Customer Reviews

Wife For Hire

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Hank Malone was the town bad boy. He's returned to take up his inheritance - an apple orchard in Vermont. He has plans to turn it into a serious organic business, but in the town's eyes, he's still the same troublemaking stud he used to be, and the bank won't take him seriously for a loan. To change his image, he decides to hire a wife for six months, to give the illusion of stability and hopefull get the business loan. He hires Maggie Toone in New Jersey and brings her to his farm. She's eager to escape her small town life and job as a teacher, and relishes the chance to fulfill her dream of writing a book based upon her aunt's diaries. One small problem - her aunt was the local madam.

This is a very funny and witty book. Hank and Maggie's relationship is romantic and sexy. The dialogue is classic Evanovich - she easily writes in the rhythm of natural speech so the reader feels as though he/she could step right into the conversation. Hank falls in love with Maggie right off the bat and plots to make their marriage a real one; she is not so sure that she wants to be stuck in another small town. Elsie Hawkins, a reoccuring character in Ms. Evanovich's romances, is present here as a temporary housekeeper. She is the prototype of the Grandma Mazur character of the Stephanie Plum series - a feisty, blunt-speaking senior who drives a '57 Cadillac, packs a gun, and is in serious pursuit of the male species (in her age group, they tend to drop dead unexpectedly so she tries to act quickly).

Hopefully, someday these early Evanovich books will be reissued, but until then, this definitely one used-book worth finding.

I didn't know Janet Evanovich wrote romance stories earlier in her career, but I stumbled across this title and couldn't resist seeing how she did before she got famous with her Stephanie Plum bounty hunter series. The good news is: Janet is just as funny and whimsical here as are her better known recent works. The bad news is, the plot synopsis can be stated in about 20 words: man hires woman to pose as wife, they immediately fall insanely in love, and will they stay together after the gig?? Bet you can guess! Between the heated blood coursing through their veins at every touch, to -- well you get the drift. I guess that's why they call these bodice rippers! For a nice easy read, no mental stress, little doubt about the story line, and some heart warming (I guess) relationship study (with no explicit sex), coupled with that great Evanovich sense of humor, give it a try. Supposedly she did a few others for Loveswept, but I'll take my chances on missing those.

Wife for Hire will mainly appeal to those who want to see what kind of a writer Janet Evanovich was before she began writing about Stephanie Plum. The deftness of the Stephanie Plum numbered novels becomes more apparent when you see Ms. Evanovich struggling to find a way to conclude Wife for Hire.

Hank Mallone, a young man with a reputation for not being serious, cannot convince his family, friends, and acquaintances that he's determined to make a success of being an organic apple farmer in Vermont. His solution? Pretend to be married. How? Hire someone to act as his wife.

Maggie Toone, a Jersey product, wants to escape from her life as a teacher to write a novel about her Aunt Kitty's career as a madam. She mainly needs peace, quiet, and some low-cost living. On a whim, she takes up Mallone on his offer.

From there, the story becomes an expected romance punctuated by some funny misunderstandings. I thought the most interesting part of the book came in reading about a Grandma Mazur prototype, Elsie Hawkins, who is Mallone's housekeeper/cook.

Misunderstandings abound, and some fun arises in the process. If you decide to read the book, focus on the fun.

The book gallops along at a nice pace until near the end where it takes an inauspicious turn away from being interesting. My impression is that Ms. Evanovich ran out of ideas for making the story interesting and simply limped to the finish.

If you like lots of schmaltz and predictability mixed in with your humor, you'll probably think this is a good romance novel. I was not amused enough to feel that way.

Wife for Hire will mainly appeal to those who want to see what kind of a writer Janet Evanovich was before she began writing about Stephanie Plum. The deftness of the Stephanie Plum numbered novels becomes more apparent when you see Ms. Evanovich struggling to find a way to conclude Wife for Hire.

Hank Mallone, a young man with a reputation for not being serious, cannot convince his family, friends, and acquaintances that he's determined to make a success of being an organic apple farmer in Vermont. His solution? Pretend to be married. How? Hire someone to act as his wife.

Maggie Toone, a Jersey product, wants to escape from her life as a teacher to write a novel about her Aunt Kitty's career as a madam. She mainly needs peace, quiet, and some low-cost living. On a whim, she takes up Mallone on his offer.

From there, the story becomes an expected romance punctuated by some funny misunderstandings. I thought the most interesting part of the book came in reading about a Grandma Mazur prototype, Elsie Hawkins, who is Mallone's housekeeper/cook.

Misunderstandings abound, and some fun arises in the process. If you decide to read the book, focus on the fun.

The book gallops along at a nice pace until near the end where it takes an inauspicious turn away from being interesting. My impression is that Ms. Evanovich ran out of ideas for making the story interesting and simply limped to the finish.

If you like lots of schmaltz and predictability mixed in with your humor, you'll probably think this is a good romance novel. I was not amused enough to feel that way.