Blog Tour: Wanted: Wife: Gwen Jones
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: WifeLanded, 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!
Read Chapter One of WANTED: Wife at Gwen Jones' website
Read Chapter One of the next book MA CHÈR CAPITAINE about Andy's younger brother Marcel
Read a Deleted Scene from WANTED: Wife
ANDY DEVINE SEEKS A WIFE. LANDED, FINANCIALLY SECURE 40 YR OLD MALE LOOKING FOR HEALTHY, ATHLETIC FEMALE FOR MARRIAGE AND FAMILY. MUST SUBMIT TO FULL DISCLOSURE AND BE WILLING TO WORK HARD. GENEROUS MONETARY COMPENSATION IF TERMS OF CONTRACT ARE NOT MET.
Reporter Julie Knott is having a very bad day. She has been jilted by her fiance two weeks before the wedding. She heads over to do a news story on an apparently crazy man who is advertising for a wife on a flyer posted on a utility pole. She meets the mysterious sexy Andy Devine as she interviews him and watches the whole insane wife interview process only to be told at the end of it all, that he has chosen a candidate....her. He is offering a trial marriage for three months with the intention of baby making involved. He generously gives her a few days to think about his offer. Before she knows it, her life comes crashing further down and Andy's proposal is not looking so bad.
"I'm a practical man, Ms. Knott. And a realistic one, too. I'm harboring no romantic illusions about this. We're both in it for the same thing--our own self interests..."
"I took one look at you and saw everything I wanted , right then and that quickly...Call it desire, call it lust--call it whatever you want. But it didn't take a minute before I knew I wanted you on your back and myself inside you."
After their nuptials, they retreat to his farm in the very rural Iron Bog to his old family farm that he has recently relocated to. From the beginning it is quite an adventure and poor Julie finds herself in a rural nightmare which leads to multiple comical situations. She has a trial by fire with cows, dogs, chickens, and snakes. The house is falling apart and conditions are rudimentary at best. And gasp, there is no cell coverage.
I enjoyed seeing Julie's adaptation and growth. She took challenges head on, was not a big complainer, and was not afraid to share her feelings. Sure she made some mistakes but overall she was pretty tolerant and receptive to this very unconventional situation. But she had a few secrets from Andy and ulterior motives.
Andy is a man with a mysterious past and many layers. He is old fashioned, handsome, sexy, well traveled, strong, and has a tendency to speak in French especially during intimate times. Sometimes it was really clear how he was feeling and what he wanted. But then he would clam up and be evasive. It was obvious talking about his past made him very uncomfortable and was affecting his present. They have intense chemistry and attraction and get along wonderfully. And the more she is there, the more she wants to know about him, and the more attached she becomes.
"What are you --some kind of every woman's dream? Real men just don't act like you!"
"Because men like that aren't real men...And they wouldn't deserve you."
As they bared their secrets and truths and as the situation got more complicated, I really begin to feel for them both. Their neat little written arrangement did not cover feelings and everything they would face. But I admired Julie for not settling and being strong. And Andy for fighting for what he wanted. Somewhere along the way it all became very real and complicated. There were twists and turns in the story line adding drama. Outside influences threatened to ruin any change they had at making it work. But the only way they could possibly have a future together was to find a middle ground, compromise, and full honesty.
"What's simple is my wanting you, but I'm well aware that my keeping you will be just short of miraculous. If you think I'm underestimating you, you're wrong, because as much as I want you...if you didn't want me to just as badly, you wouldn't be here."
I loved her friends Denny and Brent. They were a fun couple that stood by their girl Julie. I wanted to slap her sleazy agent ex fiance Richard upside his arrogant head on many occasions and snatch Annika by her hair. Uncle Jinks and the citizens of Iron Bog were an eclectic mix. Even the animals especially the dog Bucky had personalities. And the whole living out in the boonies without much outside communication was an interesting component considering her life usually revolved around it.
I have to admit it took me a bit to get into the story and had some difficulty with some of the transitions especially in the beginning. And I did have a few issues with the story seeming a bit far-fetched at times. But if you can stretch your imagination and look past some of the over-the-top situations, there is a sweet story of taking chances, looking outside your comfort zone, and finding love where you least expect it. It was funny, sweet, emotional, and uplifting.
Somewhere midway in the book, I realized how invested I was in this couple and ended up staying up until 1:30 am to finish when I have to get up at 5 am for work. This was a fun debut from Gwen Jones. She is already working on the next book following Andy's brother Marcel called MA CHÈR CAPITAINE and from the first chapter it seems we will be getting more with Andy and Julie as well.
Thanks to Gwen Jones and Corvisiero Literary Agency for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.
Julie
Knott’s Picks for the Five Most Romantic Movies EVER!
Julie says: I love movies - new ones, old ones, the
more romantic, the better (plus the occasional Ben Stiller or Coen Brothers,
just to keep things even). I love going to the theater and hunkering down with
a pack of smuggled-in Twizzlers, the sparks flying between the paramours as I
watch, giddily voyeuristic. When I'm at home there's always the sofa and a bowl
of popcorn on a cold winter's night, snuggled under an afghan and my own
romantic tendencies, sighing at the sound of those perfectly scripted words of
love. Ah, amor...
Is
there anything comparable to an evening with a lover such as Cary, Bogie,
George, Denzel, Clive (and well…you know)?
Well no...and yes. As swoon-worthy as any of them may be, none of them have an
entry on this list. Because if you were paying attention you would have picked
up that it's not the meat that turns up this romantic's thermostat -
it's the motion of those beautiful emotions swirling off the screen. See
if you agree...
1. Woman of the Year (1942)
Sophisticated
political columnist, Katharine Hepburn, falls hard for crusty sportswriter,
Spencer Tracy. No love/hate pretensions for these two; she had him at the first
smooth of her silk stockings. Made all the more dreamy by the dawning of their
real-life romance. And the smart woman got to stay smart and independent even
after the movie ends. Now that's love, sweetie.
2. Jane Eyre (1944)
Uber-Alpha
Orson Welles at the apex of his hottiness, the definitive Rochester to Joan
Fontaine's Jane in this Charlotte Bronte classic. I got serious chills when his
baritone called out "Jane...Jane!" And then as he kissed her
for the first time, a bolt of lightning rivened an oak tree and boy-oh-boy, was
I in love.
3. Summertime (1955)
Again,
it's Katharine Hepburn, this time as a middle-aged spinster on holiday in
Venice, looking for that undefinable something she's missing in her
life. She finds it in the oh-so-continental married shopkeeper, Rossano Brazzi,
who teaches her the finer points of carpe diem. Her red shoe left on
his terrace says it all.
4. Say Anything... (1989)
Slacker
John Cusack has one ambition in life: to be with gorgeous genius Ione
Skye, as she flies off to England on a fellowship. Who can resist falling for
the boy when Ione sees him shivering after they first make love. She asks him
if he's cold he replies, "No, I'm just happy."
5. Pride & Prejudice (2005)
In
this Jane Austen retelling, Keira Knightly and Matthew Macfadyen leave scorch
marks as they huff and pant their way through the English countryside, never
more evident than when they almost combust under a Grecian folly. Their
supressed longing is so palpable their steamy near-kiss vaporizes all the
precipitation out of the stormy afternoon.
Gwen Jones, MFA, is an Assistant Professor of English at Mercer County College, in West Windsor, NJ, a mentor in Graduate Studies at Western Connecticut State University’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative and Professional Writing program, and is a Craft and Industry Instructor for Literary Powerhouse Consulting. She’s been married to her husband, Frank, for more years than she’d like to admit, is an unabashed born-and-bred native of Southern New Jersey and the Jersey Shore, and finds all things political the highest form of entertainment. When not civilly espousing a progressive agenda, she can be found trolling neighborhood streets and greenways, perched under an umbrella at several Jersey beaches, or haunting movie theaters or random tri-state live performance spaces. Associations that have admitted to accepting her are The Romance Writers of America, Liberty States Fiction Writers, and The Association of Writers and Writing Programs. When she’s not atop any given flat space reading trashy novels or the occasional liberal diatribe, she’s usually writing women’s fiction or romance, or essays the odd person has been known to call “humorous.” Her work has been featured in The Kelsey Review, The Connecticut River Review, and her novel, Wanted: Wife was released 4 June 2013 by HarperCollins/Avon Publishers.
If the above information is barely enough and you’d like to know more, feel free to contact the Corvisiero Literary Agency, Marisa Corvisiero, Esq.,marisa@corvisieroagency.com.
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