It is with great sadness that I share the news of the death of Harlequin author Betty Neels on June 7th, 2001. She died peacefully in hospital at age 90. She was the author of over 130 Mills&Boon/Harlequin romance novels and will be greatly missed by her legion of fans.
Long-time fans of category romances began reading Betty Neels' Harlequin Romances more than 30 years ago. Recently there has been a renewed interest in her little romances with frequent requests for her backlist on the BSJ List, and used book stores in my area have trouble keeping her titles in stock, and many ubs just don't carry the older titles any longer - finding a Betty Neels can sometimes be a quest in itself.
I began reading Harlequin Romances back in the mid 1960s and when Harlequin began began publishing her romances here in the States, I fell in love with her sturdy, barrel-chested Dutch doctors - they were something different from the British, Spanish, Italian or Australian heroes I'd been drooling over, and the Dutch settings in the majority of her stories were fascinating. I'd always hoped to travel through Holland but the closest I ever got was a layover at the airport - but I did see a windmill when we were taking off!
Because Harlequin has recently been reissuing Betty Neels' romances, I am no longer selling any of her romances.
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