Regina (virgosun) reviewed Want Ad Wife (Wild West Weddings, Bk 3) (Harlequin Historical, No 1267) on + 886 more book reviews
Mail-order brides are my thing. I am endlessly fascinated with the intricacies of an arranged marriage between strangers; their motivations and insecurities and the emotional upheavals that usually result. John Park Bench (gotta love the name) is a hard-working store owner who simply desires a family; to love and be loved. He can't believe his good fortune in Selina, but she brings with her a heavy burden that must remain a secret. You can almost taste his desperation to have her. But for as much as Selina wants to love him, she's just as desperate to keep him in the dark. Their intimate moments are satisfying yet taut with frustrated desire. I was disappointed that the story lost steam during their separation and didn't quite recover its previous pace, but reuniting with Selina's other mail-order bride friends gave the series an appropriate closure. 3.5 stars.
Susan F. (scoutmomskf) -
Good conclusion to the series. Selina was in dire straits when she answered John's ad for a wife. Now, several months later, she has arrived and found herself immediately in front of the preacher getting married. Though they corresponded for several months, she and John don't know each other very well, so Selina is a bit wary. That wariness seems justified when her inquiries about his family and past set off an angry tirade.
John couldn't believe his luck. Selina is even more beautiful than her photograph, and he hurried to marry her before another man could snatch her away. He's so happy that she's there that he's nervous and stumbling over his words. He also hasn't thought much about what it means to have a wife, so he was pretty awkward when they arrived at his store and home.
The development of the relationship between John and Selina was a rocky one. Selina had become a mail-order bride for security. She gave birth to an illegitimate child after she was essentially raped and the father declined to marry her. Desperate to give her son a better life, she gave him to a childless couple to raise. Fearful of what John's reaction would be if he knew, her attempt to find out more about him reinforced those fears. John desperately wanted a family of his own. He had been abandoned as a baby, adopted by a man who treated him cruelly and has harsh words about the mother who left him to such a life. Because of this, Selina went to great lengths to hide the fact that she'd had a child.
It was both heartwarming and painful to see John and Selina adjust to married life. John wasn't quite sure how to deal with Selina's desire to help him in his store when he was expecting that she'd want to do "wife stuff" in their apartment above the store. Selina just wants to do whatever she can to make him happy that he chose her. Neither expected the strength of the attraction that flared between them. Because of her previous experience, Selina was extremely nervous about the intimate side of their marriage, plus she had her fears about revealing her past. I liked John's patience with her, and his desire to show her the possibilities. While this part of their marriage progressed quite well, there were other challenges to overcome.
Trust was another issue that they had to overcome. Besides John's harsh attitude about his mother, he also had trouble trusting anyone else with the store. The last time he had done so, the man nearly ruined him. Selina's had secrets that she believed could destroy her marriage, but her attempts to protect those secrets put her on a collision course with John. There were times when I wanted to shake her and tell her to come clean about it all, but for those times her fears were understandable. When everything finally came out, I also had ambivalent feelings about John. I understood his feelings of betrayal because of Selina's actions and lies, but I also thought that some of his behavior was callous and cruel. I hurt for Selina as she had to make some difficult decisions, and I ached for John when he believed he had lost her. I loved Selina's big moment at the end as she showed John that her love for him would always be there. There was also a heartwarming twist at the end, and an epilogue that reunited all three women and their husbands.
John couldn't believe his luck. Selina is even more beautiful than her photograph, and he hurried to marry her before another man could snatch her away. He's so happy that she's there that he's nervous and stumbling over his words. He also hasn't thought much about what it means to have a wife, so he was pretty awkward when they arrived at his store and home.
The development of the relationship between John and Selina was a rocky one. Selina had become a mail-order bride for security. She gave birth to an illegitimate child after she was essentially raped and the father declined to marry her. Desperate to give her son a better life, she gave him to a childless couple to raise. Fearful of what John's reaction would be if he knew, her attempt to find out more about him reinforced those fears. John desperately wanted a family of his own. He had been abandoned as a baby, adopted by a man who treated him cruelly and has harsh words about the mother who left him to such a life. Because of this, Selina went to great lengths to hide the fact that she'd had a child.
It was both heartwarming and painful to see John and Selina adjust to married life. John wasn't quite sure how to deal with Selina's desire to help him in his store when he was expecting that she'd want to do "wife stuff" in their apartment above the store. Selina just wants to do whatever she can to make him happy that he chose her. Neither expected the strength of the attraction that flared between them. Because of her previous experience, Selina was extremely nervous about the intimate side of their marriage, plus she had her fears about revealing her past. I liked John's patience with her, and his desire to show her the possibilities. While this part of their marriage progressed quite well, there were other challenges to overcome.
Trust was another issue that they had to overcome. Besides John's harsh attitude about his mother, he also had trouble trusting anyone else with the store. The last time he had done so, the man nearly ruined him. Selina's had secrets that she believed could destroy her marriage, but her attempts to protect those secrets put her on a collision course with John. There were times when I wanted to shake her and tell her to come clean about it all, but for those times her fears were understandable. When everything finally came out, I also had ambivalent feelings about John. I understood his feelings of betrayal because of Selina's actions and lies, but I also thought that some of his behavior was callous and cruel. I hurt for Selina as she had to make some difficult decisions, and I ached for John when he believed he had lost her. I loved Selina's big moment at the end as she showed John that her love for him would always be there. There was also a heartwarming twist at the end, and an epilogue that reunited all three women and their husbands.
