The Husband

This book surprised me for a few reasons. First off, I expected the couple to marry for the sake of their deceased friends’ child, not already be married but estranged. That was an interesting spin on the marriage of convenience trope, but it also was a dilemma for me. I found that I didn’t particularly like either lead. I’ve never had that happen before and it frankly alarmed me, especially since I’ve never had this happen. Don’t get me wrong, Kate and Jared love each other, even if they don’t think the other does. My issue was they were both so darn stubborn and unwilling to bend to be together! I was inspired by their desire to be good parents to their new daughter, but they seemed to be bogged down by their expectations of how they should each live their own lives...not a life together. Kate had so many walls built up that protected her while she was a child in foster care, she still hadn’t learned as a married adult how to let Jared in. And Jared was living in the gender-defined role that his father seemed to perpetuate. So while he was proud of Kate’s business, he still thought his job was more important. After some much needed compromise by both parties, the story changed for me. I began to cheer for this new family rather than despair. I should have had more faith in the author, as Ms. McClone as never failed me with her writing. While her sweet, clean stories are soothing to my heart, sometimes my own pushy nature wants to move things along faster than the story needs them to be! I suspect that’s a big reason why I’m the reader and not the writer! In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed this story of acceptance, love, devotion and growth. It’s a great addition to an already wonderful Keeper series.

I really enjoyed this story because it’s full of hope and enlightenment. Jared and Kate love each other but there is a lot of misunderstandings until a sweet baby comes along that needs love. The beginning broke my heart but as I continued to read it changed. My favorite part was when Jared stuck up for Kate against his family. Kate had needed that loyalty to be shown to her in order for her to have the confidence in herself to know she could make her family whole. Recommended for lovers of second chance romances.