WANTED: Wife by Gwen Jones

June 25th, 2013 Kimberly Review 48 Comments

25th Jun
WANTED: Wife by Gwen Jones
Wanted: Wife
by Gwen Jones
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star

Andy Devine is advertising for a wife on a utility pole, and interviewing him is the last thing TV reporter Julie Knott needs. Especially after her cheating fiancé just tweeted their disengagement. Now she has got to choose: get the story — or become it?

Wanted: Wife
Landed, Financially Secure 40-Yr-Old Male
* Handsome, but with old-school communication skills and a secret past *
Seeks Healthy, Athletic Female
* Preferably a pretty reporter with a messy love life who has never spent a day in the woods *
For Marriage and Family
* What could possibly go wrong? *
If you love the humor and romance of Rachel Gibson and Susan Elizabeth Phillips, don't miss the fabulous debut of Gwen Jones!

One of my favorite story troupes is contract marriages and Gwen Jones delivered a delightfully funny, totally hot tale with WANTED: Wife. Filled with romance, suspense, a little mystery and a whole lot of heat I consumed this in record time. Three word review:  hot, intense and romantic.

We first meet Julie Knott on the worst day of her life as her fiancé tweeted the end of their engagement. As a TV reported she handles random and strange stories a segment the locals enjoy. When a tip comes in about a man advertising for a wife on a utility pole she and her crew set out to interview him. He has scheduled interviews with perspective wives at the local fire station and Julie is knocked over when she interviews Andy Devine. He is drop dead gorgeous, seems intelligent and knows exactly what he wants -Julie to be his wife. He gives her three days to decide and the tale that unfolds was deliciously hot, sweet, suspenseful, and romantic.

Julie goes into this using her brain. She is clever, observant and nobody’s fool. She has a plan and I loved seeing it all unravel on her. Andy Devine is a muscled, educated, walking, talking, god of double-oh-yum. He is smart, a smooth talker and did I mention part French? Oh yeah, he whispers French words of endearment, and whatever he is saying in the bedroom this chick is buying..oh-la-la. I enjoyed Andy despite his sometimes quite reserve and air of mystery. The author does a wonderful job of showing us his softer side through his actions and comments she slowly reveals his past and I enjoyed uncovering his secrets and flaws. Julie is strong and I admired that she stands her ground even if it breaks her heart. While the sexual heat was intense from the beginning, I really appreciated and enjoyed the slow-building emotional aspect of the relationship. It felt genuine and I found myself rooting for a happily-ever-after. Other characters help flesh out both the main characters and propelled the plot forward.

I live in the Midwest now but I am a Jersey girl and the Pine Barrens are very familiar to me so of course I found the setting perfect! The farm, the animals and being away from town really added to the romance, suspense and created some wonderful situations. I laughed, I cried and delighted in their everyday lives as the tale unfolded. Jones added some twists and turns which kept me flipping the pages. I love how she slowly revealed all of Andy to us even if she made me nervous a few times. Did I mention how hot the romance was? The scenes were steamy with just enough heat to have the pages simmering beneath my finger tips. The author shared Julie’s thoughts, wove in the French language and made me believe in the impossible romance.  This was a thoroughly entertaining, funny and romantic tale that left with me a smile.

Fans of marriage troupes, humor, and hot romances will enjoy WANTED: Wife. This is Gwen Jones debut novel with Avon romances (HarperCollins) and I think she has a winner. I look forward to reading more of her work.

Copyright (c) 2011-2013 Caffeinated Book Reviewer
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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram

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48 Responses to “WANTED: Wife by Gwen Jones”

  1. Jennifer Bielman

    Hmmm, French. I wants a guy to whisper sweet French nothings into my ear!!! hehe. This sounds cute. I like the whole contract marriage thing too.

  2. Naomi Hop

    It’s always great to pick up a book you can get emotionally involved in!! Awesome review
    (Another Avon special I see!!)

  3. thegeekyblogger

    This sounds really good! I couldn’t imagine having to live down a tweet like: I just ended my engagement with @____ because ……. (Social Media Slam)!

  4. Nick

    If that cover model was really holding up that sign, I would totally accept to be his wife! 😛
    Sounds like a fun read! And did you mention that he whispers endearments in French! K I’m done!
    Can you imagine learning about your broken engagement via Twitter? With the way social media is working these days, I’m not surprised if cases like that exist. This morning I read a Yahoo article saying Miley Cyrus threatened her father on Twitter. O_O

  5. Andrea

    I AM a fan of marriage tropes, humor, and hot romance, so this sounds like a great fit for me. I wish I could’ve taken it for review, but I will just add it to my to-read list anyway. I’m so happy that you enjoyed the book so much, Kim. Great review!

  6. emaginette

    Looking at the cover, I didn’t expect him having any trouble. But I do love a good laugh.

    I’m in. 🙂

  7. Jenny

    KIMBA! This sounds so fantastic! I can’t believe this is the first I’m hearing of it, but as soon as I leave here I’m running to Amazon to get it on my Kindle. I love that she goes in with a plan and it completely unravels, it’s so much fun watching things like that happen. And Andy sounds absolutely delicious. CANNOT WAIT!

  8. kindlemom1

    I think the cover alone would make me want to read this one. 😉
    So glad you enjoyed this Kim!

  9. Aurian

    Great review Kim, first time I have seen this book, but it sure sounds like fun.

  11. Debbie Haupt

    Thanks for the review Kim, question do you think this is the same guy from Less Than a Gentleman wow what change a different angle makes.
    deb

  13. Diana Leigh

    I just left a comment on another blogger’s post about how I was glad I did most of my dating before the internet took off. I would hate to be dumped on Twitter!

  14. Heidi

    Ahh this just sounds delightful! The perfect lazy day summer read that will make me laugh. Hot romance yes please!

  15. Melissa (Books and Things)

    Now this is one I would have passed on, but now you have me curious. I like that Julie is seen as intelligent so that is another plus. Hm… I just might have to try this one.

  24. kimbacaffeinate

    ooh yes I do think you will like this. Oh and Andrea I am reading Tangled. I think you reviewed it and sold me on it..I am laughing my arse off!

  30. Toni

    Not normally a book I would choose just by looking at it, but your review may have just changed my mind. This sounds like something I could just plunge right into!

  31. Danielle Chapman

    You review did a better job than the synopsis did! Thank you!!

  36. Michelle

    This one sounds like a fun read! The title kind of threw me off a bit at first but I think i might like this one. Also what kind of jerk face ends an engagement through twitter?! That’s just wrong on so many levels.

  37. Lauren

    This sounds like such a fun story, and you steamy scenes and hot chemistry are just the icing on the cake. I wouldn’t think this would be so enjoyable given that title and cover, it looks a little silly, but I’m totally sold based on your review. 🙂

  38. kimbacaffeinate

    well the whole premises of putting up a sign Wanted:Wife is kind of silly, I mean if you saw it on a utility pole you would probably laugh..but this was a fun, smexy, sweet ride!

  40. Lindy Gomez

    I love contract marriage stories too? Have you read Jennifer Probst’s Billionaire series? It’s one of my favorites that deals with contact marriages! Great Review! I enjoy your writing style!

    Lindy@ A Bookish Escape

  41. Christina Franke

    LOL! This cover. Bahaha. I like the contract marriage thing sometimes, but it’s not my favorite, which is definitely hate to love. That does often go hand in hand with the contract marriage thing though. Here are some I loved with that trope: Legacy series by Kluver, Drgaonfly by Julia Golding, (not YA) Spiritwalker trilogy by Kate Elliott.

  42. libby

    This sounds good. I was scrolling through and the cover caught my eye. Of course I am looking for a man so maybe that is why! LOL. I am going to have to find this book!