| Title | : | The Second Bride |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0263801128 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780263801125 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 192 |
| Publication | : | First published February 1, 1997 |
Jo fell for Rufus Grierson the day he married her best friend. But Jo kept her feelings to herself, for Claire's sake.
After Claire was so tragically taken from them, it seemed that Rufus had no cause to see Jo again, until the night of his wedding anniversary when he shared his grief with her, and neither could deny their mutual attraction.
Passion led to pregnancy, and Jo was surprised when Rufus asked her to marry him. She said yes, for one simple reason: she loved him.
/> But to be a father was what Rufus wanted most of all ....
The Second Bride Reviews
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Re-read
I just read this again, and really didn't like it as much which doesn't explain my hearts and roses and four star review from before. Hmmm.
Could this couple throw out any more false cues and misinformation to each other? Doubtful....
First reviewWell, that was a keeper. So stinking' sweet.
Jo is an independent that is still mourning the loss of her best friend Claire. Rufus shows up on the anniversary of his wedding to Claire and hotness ensues. Unbeknownst to Rufus or anyone, Jo fell hard for Rufus the wedding day but has hidden her feelings in deference of Claire's feelings and self-preservation. As this is H-landia, one night of awesome sex leads to babies as it so often does... not in real life.
No secret babies here; they are right out in the open. Jo and Rufus get married. Essentially the rest of the book is about the developing relationship. Jo is quite prickly, but very independent. Rufus is pretty much a normal guy, no ass-hattery other than the frustration of a man with a woman he doesn't understand. There are a few sexy scenes that are read through a haze of purple prose if you know what I mean. So if you are looking for anatomical sex scenes this is not the book for you.
I don't want to say too much as this story needs to unfold. It is very old school despite being written in 1997, but it is a soft and romantic book without being schmaltzy and saccharine. It probably does not deserve four stars, but considering I actually went "ahhhh" at one point, it's getting four. -
This book was just not for me. I should have known better than to pick a romance with the title of "second bride" which immediately made me think of second best. And that is what 99% of the story felt like to me, like the heroine was second best to her husband who was so desperately in love and mourning for his first wife, the heroine's best friend.
I honestly think I would have liked it more if the author had conveyed how they fell in love with each other during the marriage of convenience, finding a love for each other that was not less or better than H's first marriage but different and incomparable.
But instead, on the few last pages, we get the bombshell that the hero had, in fact, fallen in love with heroine at first sight, when she was the bridesmaid trailing after his wife-to-be, at his first wedding. Asking me to believe and root for a man who pretended or tried to love his wife, and even making his best efforts to impregnate her, even as he was secretly pining for his wife's best friend. Guh-rosssss! That declaration may be considered romantic by some but unfortunately for me it was barftastic :( -
Could have been 5 stars but the surprise ending wasn't necessary (actually took away from the story) and the heroine drove me crazy.
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The first half is superlative, amazingly fresh and absorbing but then the story sort of bogs down to a same old same old feel.
The h, an aspiring novelist is a practical and down to earth person who takes the whole situation accordingly. I liked the way she handled and also hid her feelings for the H. It had a touch of realism to it. Her confidence and independent spirit sets her out as an interesting h, but it changes to an unreasonable prickliness as the story goes on.
The H stays the same throughout and gives us hints that his interest in the h goes deeper and beyond the timeframe we are shown. His is a balanced and likeable personality, not prone to go into hyperboles and he is also sensitive and responsive to her moods and whims.
The story goes along as the blurb says, the old trope of falling for your bff-sister’s husband/(now) widower but it was handled beautifully and in a matter of fact way without over dramatization or angst overload. I found the first few chapters to be real page-turner but as I said the second half lets down and could have been better. The after-wedding part takes the torturous route of silly not-talking-it-out-mus and misconceptions. Living together for months, barely talking to each other and such crossed wires moodiness kills the reader’s mood!
As other reviewers have said that one particular revelation at the end was a bit of a stretch. Was not really required and the story won’t have suffered without it. -
Another rabbit hole find. This has been sitting in my downloads waiting to be read for quite awhile, I have no idea why I bought it.
It’s rather unusual for a Harlequin... non virgin, 29 year old heroine and a not over the top alpha hero and rather sweet.
We meander with them as they settle into a relationship based on a one night stand that results in pregnancy. He’s a widower, she’s his dead wife’s best friend. They hookup on the first anniversary of his wife’s death.
Yikes!! Right?
Strangely it works, though we do have to have that Harlequin twisty moment. The big confessions near the end of the book... they both fell in love at first sight the day they met, unfortunately, that was minutes after he married her best friend. -
This is a big spoiler so walk away now if you don't want to hear it.
This is a very garden-variety, not-too-toxic second-best romance. However the sheer repetition of the first wife's name made it a story where it was hard to get a read on the living characters.
They are forced to marry, experience tragedy, fret and agonize, then finally confide to each other the horrible truth-- that they fell in love with each other at the wedding. No, not THEIR wedding - the H's wedding to his FIRST wife --the h's best friend. It is only horrible to me, of course -- they think it's delightful. -
The Deal: Jo Fielding fell in love at first sight when she met Rufus Grieson... on the day he married her best friends Claire. Knowing what her feelings were, Jo always kept her distances from him, telling herself that they didn't have anything in common other than Claire and that there was no reason why they should ever spend much time together.
And then Claire died, and it seemed to Jo like she would never see Rufus again. Until one night when Rufus showed up at her apartment - on the eve of his the first wedding anniversary since Claire's death - looking for someone to talk.
One thing lead to another before Jo knew it she had had sex with Rufus and was carrying his baby. Rufus always wanted children, so he's not exactly unhappy with the situation, and he readily asks Jo to marry him.
Jo knows that Rufus might never love her the way he loved Claire, or can he?
My Thoughts: I don't remember who told me to read The Second Bride, but I figured I would like it since I'm usually a sucker for the whole second spouse plot. And I have to say that The Second Bride was an entertaining story.
There was this reveal toward the ending that made me roll my eyes a little, but other than that it was a quick, enjoyable read. The book was very old fashioned though - as far as I can tell the book was first published in 1996, but other than the occasional mention of computers, the book could have been published in the eighties.
For example, after Jo and Rufus first sleep together, he's wants to know if she has been with other people recently, but not because he's worried about an STD or anything, but because he wants to be sure he's the dad in case she's pregnant.
There were a few more things like that that made me think the book was really old. But it was enjoyable anyway. -
Pleasant, uncomplicated read which would have been much better if there was a hero's POV.
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I think if the book was longer then it was the story would have worked better. The hero and heroine go through so much, but do it apart most of the time so they don't seem to bond or get over any trauma together. As a reader you do want them together but when they are so many things are thrust at them, or they misunderstand, or argue. So the author uses the cheat 'I fell in love with you the first time I saw you' for them both. Which is completely tragic for both of them and the dead wife, cause shit. Overall didn't hate it, but it could have been better, so read it.
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3.5 Stars
I wanted to love everything about this book but couldn't.
Jo and Rufus had one thing in common. Claire. Her best friend for years and his wife, the love of his life. On the anniversary of Claire's death, Rufus goes to see Jo and they end up comforting each other by doing the horizontal mambo. This leads to a pregnancy, marriage and a whole lot of misunderstandings.
Jo, the heroine started out as such a wonderful strong character. Then she had sex, got pregnant, hot married and turned into a whiner. Her constant self doubt and weeping made me want to bop her upside her head. What the hell happened?! When did you stop being an strong independent woman to ... this?!?
Rufus was a sweetheart. Jo put him through the ringer with her self doubts. He tried to stand by her, be there for her but she pushed him away at every turn. She kept comparing herself to Claire, and finding herself lacking.
It was a good read, very sweet. However, I wanted ... more. I wanted more passion or even the hint of more. I enjoyed the book and am glad I read it. -
1997
Usually I'd steer clear if the hero seemed hung up on a dead wife. But I love Linda Howard's "Sarah's Child" so gave this book a go because of very similar plot.
The yummy Rufus was married to Jo's best friend Claire, who was killed tragically in a riding accident barely two years or so into her marriage. Jo had fallen in love with Rufus at first sight-- at the altar no less, when he married Claire. In order to protect Claire Jo pretended a dislike for Rufus and avoided him whenever possible. Since Rufus acted similarly she assumed he disliked her too, being so different from the seemingly perfect Claire who had led a charmed life this far.
When circumstances made them enter a sort of marriage of convenience, the delicious sexual tension was well written. So many missed cues and misunderstandings prevented them from seeing each other's true feelings for the other.
SPOILERS
Their mutual love at first sight at the altar was so tragic and unbelievable, it seemed like a farce! But kudos to both of them for acting honourably, being the best they could for Claire. There were many clues the marriage between Rufus and Claire was not as perfect as it looked, so
I wonder how long he could have endured in that marriage had Claire not died. Especially if Claire had proven to be infertile... but I feel Rufus was the honourable and gentlemanly sort so for better or worse, he'd have stood by Claire.
I like both Jo and Rufus and the supporting characters especially The Fieldings and Griersons. Such lovely mothers!
My first Catherine George book. I like her style and way with words.
PS. I had no idea this was book 11 in the series! Reads perfectly fine as a standalone. -
Book started out ok. I really liked their relationship at the beginning. Of course for the readers we could tell those two were already having a thing for each other that's why they were so hostile when Claire was alive so she wouldn't find out. But it was nice to see them getting to know each other, and getting close..
I really hated the way the book became a big pile of misunderstanding after the sad thing happened after their honeymoon. I feel Jo was a bit too dramatic and insecure, the guy tried but she was always on edge, and that ruined the story for me. For someone supposedly so clever, she was quite clueless!
Not bad but not great either. Just ok! -
Great book, I'm already a fan of Ms.
Catherine George. She writes masterpieces and I should say I that I will be reading more of her works. The story was very well written and all characters specially hero & heroine were perfect. Loved it so much. -
3.5 Stars
This was a cute story about a hero who married the wrong girl but then after a tragic incident ended up marrying who he was supposed to all along. -
Pleasant, fast read.
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3.5 stars
Independent, smart heroine (who’s not a virgin…!), witty writing style, and non-jerk hero. A little too much stalling so it drags a bit in the middle, but still enjoyable. -
I can honestly believe in HEA for this couple,Jo and Rufus,they live so good together,they talk,she cooks his favorite meal,he buys her favorite knowing she'll come for coffee,etc.
He was married to her best friend,Claire so they pretended to dislike eachother but when speaking with Claire about the 'third' every information stuck,and that pulled the strings of my poor heart-that they avoided eachother but cherished information,and locked them in the farthest corners of their soul,like he remembered her first love...
4,5* can't give it 5* cause I really liked hero and wanted some of his POv and nearing the end story seemed to drag,it's an excellent tale and would've been even better if some things straightened earlier on... -
Pleasantly surprised at how good it was.
