Personal life

Betty Neels was born on September 15, 1910 in Devon, England to a family with firm roots in the Civil Service. She spent her childhood and youth in Devonshire. She was sent away to boarding school, and then went on to train as a nurse, gaining her SRN and SCM, that is, State Registered Nurse and State Certificate of Midwifery.

In 1939 she was called up to the Territorial Army Nursing Service, which later became the Queen Alexandra Reserves, and was sent to France with the Casualty Clearing Station, until the invasion of France in 1940. Later she worked in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where she met a Dutchman. They married and had a daughter.

The married couple lived in London, and later they moved to Holland for thirteen years, where she resumed her nursing career. When the family return to England, she continued her nursing. When she eventually retired, she had reached the position of Night Superintendent.

Her hobbies were reading, animals, old buildings and, of course, writing. Her writing career began almost by accident. It began when she heard a woman in her local library bemoaning the lack of good romance novels. Though she had retired from nursing, her mind had no intention of vegetating. So she got a typewriter and developed what was to become a fantastic loving relationship with her millions of readers around the world.

Betty Neels died peacefully in hospital on June 7, 2001, aged 91.

Writing career

Her first book, Sister Peters in Amsterdam, was published in 1969. Her novels have several recurring themes. Her career with Mills & Boon or Harlequin spanned 30 years, and she continued to write into her 90th year. She wrote 134 novels.

The main male and female characters (usually "vast" or "splendidly built") are often brought together by circumstances before love flourishes. The male protagonist is often a Dutch surgeon. A character will often have an expertise in antiques. Family pets are common.

Single Novels

• Sister Peters in Amsterdam (1969)
• Amazon in an Apron (1969) aka A Match for Sister Maggy / Nurse in Holland
• Blow Hot, Blow Cold (1970) aka Surgeon from Holland / Visiting Surgeon / Visiting Consultant
• Tempestuous April (1970) aka Nurse Harriet Goes to Holland
• Damsel in Green (1970)
• Fate is Remarkable (1970)
• Tulips for Augusta (1971)
• Tangled Autumn (1971)
• The Fifth Day of Christmas (1971)
• Tabitha in Moonlight (1972)
• Wish with the Candles (1972)
• Saturday's Child (1972)
• Uncertain Summer (1972)
• Victory for Victoria (1972)
• Winter of Change (1973) aka Surgeon in Charge
• Cassandra by Chance (1973)
• Three for a Wedding (1973)
• Stars Through the Mist (1973)
• Enchanting Samantha (1973)
• The Gemel Ring (1974)
• The Magic of Living (1974)
• Cruise to a Wedding (1974)
• The End of the Rainbow (1974)
• A Small Slice of Summer (1975)
• Henrietta's Own Castle (1975)
• A Star Looks Down (1975)
• The Moon for Lavinia (1975)
• Cobweb Morning (1975)
• Heaven is Gentle (1975)
• Roses for Christmas (1975)
• The Edge of Winter (1976)
• Esmeralda (1976)
• A Gem of a Girl (1976)
• Grasp a Nettle (1977)
• A Matter of Chance (1977)
• Pineapple Girl (1977)
• The Little Dragon (1977)
• The Hasty Marriage (1977)
• Britannia All at Sea (1978)
• Never While the Grass Grows (1978)
• Ring in a Teacup (1978)
• Philomena's Miracle (1978)
• Sun and Candlelight (1979)
• The Promise of Happiness (1979)
• Midnight Sun's Magic (1979)
• Winter Wedding (1979)
• Hannah (1980)
• Last April Fair (1980)
• When May Follows (1980)
• Caroline's Waterloo (1980)
• The Silver Thaw (1980)
• Surgeon in Charge (1980)
• Not Once But Twice (1981)
• An Apple from Eve (1981)
• Heaven Round the Corner (1981)
• Judith (1982)
• A Girl to Love (1982)
• All Else Confusion (1982)
• A Dream Came True (1982)
• Midsummer Star (1983)
• Roses and Champagne (1983)
• Never Say Goodbye (1983)
• Never Too Late (1983)
• Once for All Time (1984)
• Year's Happy Ending (1984)
• Polly (1984)
• Heidelberg Wedding (1984)
• At the End of the Day (1985)
• A Summer Idyll (1985)
• Magic in Vienna (1985)
• Never the Time and the Place (1985)
• A Girl Named Rose (1986)
• Two Weeks to Remember (1986)
• The Secret Pool (1986)
• Stormy Springtime (1987)
• Off with the Old Love (1987)
• A Doubtful Marriage (1987)
• A Gentle Awakening (1987)
• The Course of True Love (1988)
• When Two Paths Meet (1988)
• Paradise for Two (1988)
• The Fateful Bargain (1989)
• No Need to Say Good-Bye (1989)
• The Chain of Destiny (1989)
• Hilltop Tryst (1989)
• The Convenient Wife (1990)
• A Suitable Match (1990)
• The Girl with Green Eyes (1990)
• The Most Marvellous Summer (1991)
• A Kind of Magic (1991)
• A Little Moonlight (1991)
• An Unlikely Romance (1992)
• Romantic Encounter (1992)
• The Quiet Professor (1992)
• An Old-Fashioned Girl (1992)
• The Awakened Heart (1993)
• At Odds with Love (1993)
• A Girl in a Million (1993)
• Waiting for Deborah (1994)
• Wedding Bells for Beatrice (1994)
• Dearest Mary Jane (1994)
• A Secret Infatuation (1994)
• Fate Takes a Hand (1995)
• Marrying Mary (1996)
• Only by Chance (1996)
• A Kiss for Julie (1996)
• The Vicar's Daughter (1996)
• The Daughter of the Manor (1997)
• The Mistletoe Kiss (1997)
• Love Can Wait (1997)
• The Fortunes of Francesca (1997)
• Nanny by Chance (1998)
• An Ideal Wife (1998)
• A Winter Love Story (1998)
• Discovering Daisy (1999)
• A Good Wife (1999)
• Making Sure of Sarah (1999)
• An Independent Woman (2001)

The Final Touch Series

1. The Final Touch (1991)
2. A Happy Meeting (1992)

Dr Fforde Series

1. Always and Forever (2000)
2. The Doctor's Girl (2001)

First Class Series Multi-Author

• Roses Have Thorns (1990)

Kids & Kisses Multi-Author

• A Valentine for Daisy (1993)

Family Ties Multi-Author

• A Christmas Wish (1994)

Sealed with a Kiss Multi-Author

• Dearest Love (1995)

Holding Out for a Hero Multi-Author

• The Bachelor's Wedding (1995)

Baby Boon Multi-Author

• The Right Kind of Girl (1995)

White Weddings Multi-Author

• An Innocent Bride (1999)
• Matilda's Wedding (2000)

White Wedding Multi-Author

• Emma's Wedding (2001)

Collections

• Best of Betty Neels: Britannia All at Sea, The Little Dragon (1985)
• Sister Peters in Amsterdam / Nurse in Holland / Blow Hot, Blow Cold (1989)
• Christmas Gift Set (1998)
• The Proposal / Making Sure of Sarah (2001)
• Not Once But Twice / A Girl Named Rose (2002)
• The Christmas Proposal / A Christmas Romance (2001)
• Christmas Gift Pack (2001)
• The Most Marvellous Summer / A Summer Idyll (2002)
• Only by Chance / A Happy Meeting (2002)
• Tangled Autumn / The Edge of Winter (2002)
• The Secret Pool / The Girl with Green Eyes (2002)
• Winter of Change / A Winter Love Story (2002)
• A Betty Neels Christmas (2002)
• Sun and Candlelight / A Star Looks Down (2003)
• Matilda's Wedding / An Innocent Bride (2003)
• Dearest Mary Jane / Romantic Encounter (2003)
• Last April Fair / The Course of True Love (2003)
• The Promise of Happiness / Caroline's Waterloo (2003)
• Sister Peters in Amsterdam / Emma's Wedding (2003)
• The Christmas Collection (2003)
• Christmas Wishes (2003)
• Betty Neels Bridal Collection (2007)

Omnibus in Collaboration

• A Wife for Andrew / Bitter Masquerade / Fate Is Remarkable (1971) (with Lucy Gillen and Margery Hilton)
• Avenging Angel / Sown in the Wind / Cruise to a Wedding (1985) (with Helen Bianchin and Jean S. MacLeod)
• The House in the Foothills / The Short Engagement / Henrietta's Own Castle (1986) (with Mons Daveson and Marjorie Lewty)
• The Little Dragon / Adair of Starlight Peaks / The Dark Warrior (1987) (with Essie Summers and Mary Wibberley)
• Two for the Heart: The Proposal / The Engagement (1994) (with Ellen James)
• Christmas Miracles (1996) (with Carole Mortimer and Rebecca Winters)
• Nearly Weds! (1999) (with Penny Jordan and Carole Mortimer)
• Mistletoe Magic (1999) (with Margaret Way and Rebecca Winters)
• Mistletoe Miracles: Dearest Eulalia/the Extra-special Gift/the Doorstep Baby (2000) (with Catherine George and Marion Lennox)
• Marrying a Doctor (2001) (with Caroline Anderson)
• The Engagement Effect: An Ordinary Girl / a Perfect Proposal (2001) (with Liz Fielding)
• A Christmas To Remember (2004) (with Debbie Macomber and Jessica Steele)
• The Doubtful Marriage / A Convenient Marriage(2005) (with Liz Fielding)
• All I Want for Christmas... (2005) (with Jessica Steele and Margaret Way)
• Christmas Treasures (2006) (with Caroline Anderson and Helen Brooks)
• Valentine Love Affairs (2006) (with Catherine George)