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The Daddy School #1
Father Found
Baby on the Doorstep!
Jamie McCoy is the ultimate guy. His syndicated column, "Guy Stuff," keeps thousands of men in a macho frame of mind. But the day Jamie finds Samantha on his doorstep, his life changes drastically.
Samantha is a baby and Samantha is a girl. What, after all, does Jamie really know about either? But more important, Samantha is his daughter, so he phones Allison Winslow, a nurse who runs the Daddy School, for advice. But when he actually meets Allison, he finds he wants much more than her assistance.
297 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1997
1704 people are currently reading
2287 people want to read
About the author
Judith Arnold
183 books173 followersBarbara Keiler
aka Ariel Berk, Thea Frederick, Judith Arnold
Barbara Keiler was born on April 7th. She started telling stories before shecould write. She was four when her sister, Carolyn, stuffed a crayon intoher hand and taught her the alphabet, and she's been writing ever since.
Barbara is a graduate of Smith College, where she learned to aim for thestars, and she received a master's degree in creative writing from BrownUniversity, where she took aim at a good-looking graduate student in thechemistry department and wound up marrying him. She says: "Before myhusband and I were married, I had a job in California and he was working onhis Ph.D. in Rhode Island. I became ill, and he hopped on a plane and flewacross the country to be with me. Neither of us had any money, but he saidhe simply couldn't concentrate on his research, knowing I was three thousandmiles away and facing a serious health problem all by myself. He stayed fortwo weeks, until I was pretty well recovered. That he would just drop whathe was doing, put his life on hold and race to my side told me how much heloved me. After that, I knew this was the man I wanted to marry."
Barbara has received writing fellowships from the Shubert Foundation and theNational Endowment for the Arts, and has taught at colleges and universitiesaround the country. She has also written several plays that have beenprofessionally staged at regional theaters in San Francisco, Washington, D.C.,Connecticut and off-off-Broadway.
Since her first romance novel's publication in 1983 as Ariel Berk. Shewrote one novel as Thea Frederick, and since 1985 she writes asJudith Arnold. Barbara has sold more than 70 novels, with eight millioncopies in print worldwide. She has recently signed a contract with MIRABooks. Her first MIRA novel will appear in 2001. She has received severalawards from Romantic Times Magazine, including awards for the Best HarlequinAmerican Romance of the Year, Best Harlequin Superromance of the Year, BestSeries Romantic Novel of the Year and a Lifetime Achievement Certificate ofMerit for Innovative Series Romance. She has also been a finalist for theGolden Medallion Award and the RITA Award for Romance Writer of America. Hernovel Barefoot in the Grass has appeared on the recommended reading listsdistributed by cancer support services at several hospitals.
Barbara lives in a small town not far from Boston, Massachusetts, New England with her husband, two teenage sons, and a guinea pig named Wilbur. Her sister Carolyn died of breast cancer in 1998.
aka Ariel Berk, Thea Frederick, Judith Arnold
Barbara Keiler was born on April 7th. She started telling stories before shecould write. She was four when her sister, Carolyn, stuffed a crayon intoher hand and taught her the alphabet, and she's been writing ever since.
Barbara is a graduate of Smith College, where she learned to aim for thestars, and she received a master's degree in creative writing from BrownUniversity, where she took aim at a good-looking graduate student in thechemistry department and wound up marrying him. She says: "Before myhusband and I were married, I had a job in California and he was working onhis Ph.D. in Rhode Island. I became ill, and he hopped on a plane and flewacross the country to be with me. Neither of us had any money, but he saidhe simply couldn't concentrate on his research, knowing I was three thousandmiles away and facing a serious health problem all by myself. He stayed fortwo weeks, until I was pretty well recovered. That he would just drop whathe was doing, put his life on hold and race to my side told me how much heloved me. After that, I knew this was the man I wanted to marry."
Barbara has received writing fellowships from the Shubert Foundation and theNational Endowment for the Arts, and has taught at colleges and universitiesaround the country. She has also written several plays that have beenprofessionally staged at regional theaters in San Francisco, Washington, D.C.,Connecticut and off-off-Broadway.
Since her first romance novel's publication in 1983 as Ariel Berk. Shewrote one novel as Thea Frederick, and since 1985 she writes asJudith Arnold. Barbara has sold more than 70 novels, with eight millioncopies in print worldwide. She has recently signed a contract with MIRABooks. Her first MIRA novel will appear in 2001. She has received severalawards from Romantic Times Magazine, including awards for the Best HarlequinAmerican Romance of the Year, Best Harlequin Superromance of the Year, BestSeries Romantic Novel of the Year and a Lifetime Achievement Certificate ofMerit for Innovative Series Romance. She has also been a finalist for theGolden Medallion Award and the RITA Award for Romance Writer of America. Hernovel Barefoot in the Grass has appeared on the recommended reading listsdistributed by cancer support services at several hospitals.
Barbara lives in a small town not far from Boston, Massachusetts, New England with her husband, two teenage sons, and a guinea pig named Wilbur. Her sister Carolyn died of breast cancer in 1998.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 352 reviews
December 20, 2013
I really don't understand where Allison's hostility towards Jamie is coming from. First off its really none of her business what happened between him and his baby's mother. Second, even if they are trying to start a relationship, why is she just blaming him for what happened? Its takes TWO people to make a baby, not just one. Condoms are not full proof and her being a nurse should know that. What happened between Jamie and Samantha's mother was a vacation fling, every second person in the world has one so the fact that she is holding that against him is stupid and immature. Plus he didn't walk away from his daughter, he stepped up to the plate and took care of her! Then he tries to help her with her Daddy School and she gets even more hostile, I hate to break it to you lady but not every man out there has a hidden agenda....
Jamie needs to grow a pair and tell Allison to f**k off, instead of chasing after her like a love struck teenager. She turned him down so many times only to turn back around and help him, it had me confused and frustrated. These two co-dependents deserved each other....
Overall the premise of the book is pretty much self-explanatory. There are a few grammer mistakes. I couldn't identify with any of the characters mainly because Allison was just crabby through most of the book and Jamie was a child trapped in a man's body...weird.
Jamie needs to grow a pair and tell Allison to f**k off, instead of chasing after her like a love struck teenager. She turned him down so many times only to turn back around and help him, it had me confused and frustrated. These two co-dependents deserved each other....
Overall the premise of the book is pretty much self-explanatory. There are a few grammer mistakes. I couldn't identify with any of the characters mainly because Allison was just crabby through most of the book and Jamie was a child trapped in a man's body...weird.
September 28, 2014
I am not a reader who follows the crowd. I’m not a reader who is swayed by anyone’s opinion of a book. Yes, I have my trusted bloggers and readers that I depend on from time to time for reading recommendations, but I don’t always agree with them either. My taste is eclectic. Not only that, but I’m a very patient reader. I’ll give just about any book I pick up a fighting chance. Father Found was a book that I came very close to giving up on and that just makes me sad.
This is the first book written by Judith Arnold that I’ve read. I really liked her voice. It was easy to read, the characters were well developed and the story was good. So what made me almost give up on this book? I can sum it up in one word…. Allison. If you read any of the other reviews on this book you will see a theme. I swear I was not swayed by any of them. I just happen to share the same opinion. Allison just wasn’t a likable character. I can understand her having an opinion about Jamie’s character in the very beginning, but she never really lost that opinion of him. It got so bad that I got frustrated with Jamie because both he and Samantha deserved so much better. It’s hard to read and get into a romance when you’re routing for anyone else except for the ‘girl’ to get the ‘guy.’
Since this is the first book in the series, it was free and I actually liked the rest of the characters as well as the author’s writing style, I haven’t given up on the series. Who knows, Allison might redeem herself later in the series.
This is the first book written by Judith Arnold that I’ve read. I really liked her voice. It was easy to read, the characters were well developed and the story was good. So what made me almost give up on this book? I can sum it up in one word…. Allison. If you read any of the other reviews on this book you will see a theme. I swear I was not swayed by any of them. I just happen to share the same opinion. Allison just wasn’t a likable character. I can understand her having an opinion about Jamie’s character in the very beginning, but she never really lost that opinion of him. It got so bad that I got frustrated with Jamie because both he and Samantha deserved so much better. It’s hard to read and get into a romance when you’re routing for anyone else except for the ‘girl’ to get the ‘guy.’
Since this is the first book in the series, it was free and I actually liked the rest of the characters as well as the author’s writing style, I haven’t given up on the series. Who knows, Allison might redeem herself later in the series.
January 28, 2014
I wish that I read the reviews before I read the book. I wanted to like this book and even though it took me about 3 weeks to finish it ( due to loss of interest), I just couldn't do it.
I hated the fact that Allison was such a Witch and I hated the fact that Jamie seem to be extremely naive.
After your babysitter cancels, you ask if one of the sitters friends could baby sit and when that doesn't pan out, you start looking in the yellow pages! I understand him being a new and inexperienced father but, common sense should tell you that you don't hire a complete stranger to watch your infant child so you can go on a date with a woman that you "like".
Who in their right mind would take a infant to an expensive restaurant, especially when you complain about how much she cries.
He was so desperate for a date that he inconvenienced the other restaurant patrons. Even after she cried he still didn't leave and it took the restaurant insisting that they take their food to go in order for them to leave.
It takes you four days to report a crime when 2 people have already told you that it was the right thing to do, then you wait until the last possible moment to get a DNA test. I just don't understand why Jamie was made to look like such an idiot.
I hated the fact that Allison was such a Witch and I hated the fact that Jamie seem to be extremely naive.
After your babysitter cancels, you ask if one of the sitters friends could baby sit and when that doesn't pan out, you start looking in the yellow pages! I understand him being a new and inexperienced father but, common sense should tell you that you don't hire a complete stranger to watch your infant child so you can go on a date with a woman that you "like".
Who in their right mind would take a infant to an expensive restaurant, especially when you complain about how much she cries.
He was so desperate for a date that he inconvenienced the other restaurant patrons. Even after she cried he still didn't leave and it took the restaurant insisting that they take their food to go in order for them to leave.
It takes you four days to report a crime when 2 people have already told you that it was the right thing to do, then you wait until the last possible moment to get a DNA test. I just don't understand why Jamie was made to look like such an idiot.
November 19, 2013
I agree with other reviewers about Allison, she ruined the book for me.
January 8, 2014
Oh, boy. At first, I thought this book started out okay, but by the time I got half way through, I wanted to yank out my hair. The main female character is a really unlikable nit wit. She's nothing short of a judgmental asshole who needs a good dose of "reality." Women who act like that give the rest of us a bad name. She defs deserves spinsterhood.
There's lots of attention and time given to secondary characters that don't really matter in the story, which draws the book out unnecessarily. There are also a lot of stereotypes in the story that make it less palatable. The ending is rushed which is unfortunate bc if a lot of the crap had been cut out in the middle, there would have been time for a developed ending.
I would have liked to have seen more on Jamie and the baby, and how he grew as a parent. The things that are baby related are often implausible or age inappropriate for the infants given age.
I probably would have not given this so much though if this had been a self pub, but this is from Harlequin Romance, where they have vetted editors. For a large publisher to produce sub par stories in this day and age...sorry, free or not, there's no excuse.
There's lots of attention and time given to secondary characters that don't really matter in the story, which draws the book out unnecessarily. There are also a lot of stereotypes in the story that make it less palatable. The ending is rushed which is unfortunate bc if a lot of the crap had been cut out in the middle, there would have been time for a developed ending.
I would have liked to have seen more on Jamie and the baby, and how he grew as a parent. The things that are baby related are often implausible or age inappropriate for the infants given age.
I probably would have not given this so much though if this had been a self pub, but this is from Harlequin Romance, where they have vetted editors. For a large publisher to produce sub par stories in this day and age...sorry, free or not, there's no excuse.
November 7, 2014
A good book and a really good deal for a freebie. I liked the characters, their personalities, and the story line. I liked the Daddy School idea too. Don't know if there really are ones, but it's a really good idea. I'd definitely like to read more in this series after reading this one. There were emotions (tons), plenty of humor, some tough spots, stubbornness, some steaminess, sweetness, some parts when I wanted to knock heads, and a good ending. I wouldn't mind reading this again, but it wouldn't be a top pick. This was more of a fun and serious kinda read, which sound contradictory but that's how it felt to me. Good for an anytime read. Good for the cuddle/snuggle or the waiting room. Enjoy
June 19, 2014
Review originally posted at Snarky Romance Recs: http://snarkyromancerecs.tumblr.com/
I have this huge suspicion that this shouldn’t have been the first Judith Arnold book I read. Because I actually think she has a voice I could enjoy, and the book is well written… but oh my God, did the heroine bug me.
Jamie McCoy, our hero, writes a popular humor column called “Guy Stuff”. You can image what it’s about. Credit to the author: the few pages featured in the book are actually funny. He’s just turned thirty, and one day he finds a two-week-old baby girl on his porch, with a letter from the mother saying it’s his.
Allison Winslow is a nurse and she’s just started a “daddy school”, aka a free baby-handling course for fathers-to-be, funded by her hospital. Most of her students are 16-year-olds who got their teenage girlfriend pregnant and are in no way at all prepared for fatherhood. Jamie enrolls in daddy school, they meet, sparks fly, you can guess the rest, no wheel is reinvented here. I’m not mad about that. I don’t need the wheel to be reinvented with every single romance novel I read. The reason I read them is that sometimes you just want some good old fashioned tropes, written the way they were meant to be written, you know?!
The problem is that Allison is INSUFFERABLE. Oh my God. She goes on, and on, and on, AND ON about how “irresponsible” Jamie is for having a vacation fling with the baby’s mother. First of all, it’s none of her business if Jamie consensually slept with every single man and woman at his vacation resort, and second of all, this guys finds a baby on his porch, immediately steps up, does everything in his power to take care of the baby, and he’s IRRESPONSIBLE? Excuse me? Just shut up. Also, she finds out that Jamie did not intend his relationship with the baby’s mother to be a one-off fling, he asked for her number and she gave it, but she gave him a false number because she was actually married - and she continues to blame him for having “poor judgement”? He was the victim, the lady totally played him, and he’s somehow at fault? That is seriously her main conflict in this whole book, she just keeps shaming Jamie for it. Oh no, wait, she also has another problem: she doesn’t want to take money from him, even though the hospital is pulling the Daddy School funding, so when he goes ahead and asks some of his contacts if they would like to keep funding the school, she totally throws a bitchfit at hos “disrespectful” that is and how she doesn’t want to owe him. At no point in the book at all does he hint that she should feel indebted, by the way.
The writing was good. Jamie was adorable, and so was the way he related to his baby girl Samantha. He wasn’t a totally flawless father instantly, but neither was he a complete idiot who couldn’t figure out a baby’s diaper. He fell in love with his baby pretty quickly, but he did have some reservations and resentment over having his life turned upside down. I just can’t figure out what he saw in Allison, who was a total jerk, never apologized for being a total jerk, and was totally unworthy of him. Dude, you can do better.
I have this huge suspicion that this shouldn’t have been the first Judith Arnold book I read. Because I actually think she has a voice I could enjoy, and the book is well written… but oh my God, did the heroine bug me.
Jamie McCoy, our hero, writes a popular humor column called “Guy Stuff”. You can image what it’s about. Credit to the author: the few pages featured in the book are actually funny. He’s just turned thirty, and one day he finds a two-week-old baby girl on his porch, with a letter from the mother saying it’s his.
Allison Winslow is a nurse and she’s just started a “daddy school”, aka a free baby-handling course for fathers-to-be, funded by her hospital. Most of her students are 16-year-olds who got their teenage girlfriend pregnant and are in no way at all prepared for fatherhood. Jamie enrolls in daddy school, they meet, sparks fly, you can guess the rest, no wheel is reinvented here. I’m not mad about that. I don’t need the wheel to be reinvented with every single romance novel I read. The reason I read them is that sometimes you just want some good old fashioned tropes, written the way they were meant to be written, you know?!
The problem is that Allison is INSUFFERABLE. Oh my God. She goes on, and on, and on, AND ON about how “irresponsible” Jamie is for having a vacation fling with the baby’s mother. First of all, it’s none of her business if Jamie consensually slept with every single man and woman at his vacation resort, and second of all, this guys finds a baby on his porch, immediately steps up, does everything in his power to take care of the baby, and he’s IRRESPONSIBLE? Excuse me? Just shut up. Also, she finds out that Jamie did not intend his relationship with the baby’s mother to be a one-off fling, he asked for her number and she gave it, but she gave him a false number because she was actually married - and she continues to blame him for having “poor judgement”? He was the victim, the lady totally played him, and he’s somehow at fault? That is seriously her main conflict in this whole book, she just keeps shaming Jamie for it. Oh no, wait, she also has another problem: she doesn’t want to take money from him, even though the hospital is pulling the Daddy School funding, so when he goes ahead and asks some of his contacts if they would like to keep funding the school, she totally throws a bitchfit at hos “disrespectful” that is and how she doesn’t want to owe him. At no point in the book at all does he hint that she should feel indebted, by the way.
The writing was good. Jamie was adorable, and so was the way he related to his baby girl Samantha. He wasn’t a totally flawless father instantly, but neither was he a complete idiot who couldn’t figure out a baby’s diaper. He fell in love with his baby pretty quickly, but he did have some reservations and resentment over having his life turned upside down. I just can’t figure out what he saw in Allison, who was a total jerk, never apologized for being a total jerk, and was totally unworthy of him. Dude, you can do better.
July 15, 2017
Warning: I am a mature woman! In all my years, I have never met any male that displayed emotions like this book described. I felt the author jumped ahead on some of the pertinent areas. Like I was following along and routing for a success and wholla, apparently it happened and we're moving along. I read it to the end, knowing full well what the outcome was, mainly because it was a no brainer. No sure if I would recommend it, but to each their own.
April 9, 2022
Oh man. Jamie and his daughter are so cute! I loved seeing him figure out fatherhood. While he certainly isn’t perfect, Allison was so judgmental and harsh towards Jamie. She was borderline rude about it for a lot of the book and it was infuriating. It made it hard for me to care about their relationship at all.
August 3, 2020
This CR had some laughs.
During this story, humor columnist Jamie grew up
& neonatal nurse Allison learned she had to accept
help & be open to compromise. 2 mo. old Samantha
learned the word thee (three) when she and Jamie
watched wrestling on TV (every little girl's dream?).
During this story, humor columnist Jamie grew up
& neonatal nurse Allison learned she had to accept
help & be open to compromise. 2 mo. old Samantha
learned the word thee (three) when she and Jamie
watched wrestling on TV (every little girl's dream?).
added-it
April 2, 2021🎁 FREE on Amazon today (4/2/2021)! 🎁
August 25, 2025
Moved too slow. I didn’t finish it.
August 9, 2014
Loved it love it loved it. I got this during free ebook day (I believe) and the blub peeked my interest and I wasn't dissapointed.
This is told from two POVs but the majority coming from Jamie the new unexpected father.
Basic plot of unexpected fatherhood when Jamie finds a baby on his porch with a note asking if he remembered Elthura and saying she (the baby) is Samantha. So this guy hits 30 a week prior and now has to takle learning how to take care of this screeming infant. That is when Allison enters the picture. When Jamie calles the hospital in a panic he is directed to her and she invites him to daddy school.
The male perspective was so wonderful. Not only did this story bring back all the good and bad and trying times of new parenthood but gave me an insight on what the fathers go through. I just wish I could go back in time and send my husband to daddy school, maybe then I could have had some help with my children.
Anyhoo sorry I got off track. Jamie not only is struggling learning all about taking care of the two week old baby Samantha but finds he is attracted to his baby knowlege angel Allison. So Jamie goes from batchelorhood to fatherhood to discovering how different dating and impressing Allison can be now that he has these new responsiblities.
From learning how to feed the baby, change a diaper, bathe and clothe to burping and doing laundry Jamie takles each one the best he can. Hell when Sam was a month old and he was too scared to cut her nails he sought out help....a manicurist. Yes that's right he took her to get her nails done, this girl is learning about beauty treatments early on.
Jamie keeps up on the funnies, he is a humor column in the paper after all. I might not have gottend all his jokes but it didn't make or break the story any.
Recommened as a cute semi-funny look about surprised fatherhood and relationships that build not only from parent to child but dating and falling in love through all that life throws at you as well.
This is told from two POVs but the majority coming from Jamie the new unexpected father.
Basic plot of unexpected fatherhood when Jamie finds a baby on his porch with a note asking if he remembered Elthura and saying she (the baby) is Samantha. So this guy hits 30 a week prior and now has to takle learning how to take care of this screeming infant. That is when Allison enters the picture. When Jamie calles the hospital in a panic he is directed to her and she invites him to daddy school.
The male perspective was so wonderful. Not only did this story bring back all the good and bad and trying times of new parenthood but gave me an insight on what the fathers go through. I just wish I could go back in time and send my husband to daddy school, maybe then I could have had some help with my children.
Anyhoo sorry I got off track. Jamie not only is struggling learning all about taking care of the two week old baby Samantha but finds he is attracted to his baby knowlege angel Allison. So Jamie goes from batchelorhood to fatherhood to discovering how different dating and impressing Allison can be now that he has these new responsiblities.
From learning how to feed the baby, change a diaper, bathe and clothe to burping and doing laundry Jamie takles each one the best he can. Hell when Sam was a month old and he was too scared to cut her nails he sought out help....a manicurist. Yes that's right he took her to get her nails done, this girl is learning about beauty treatments early on.
Jamie keeps up on the funnies, he is a humor column in the paper after all. I might not have gottend all his jokes but it didn't make or break the story any.
Recommened as a cute semi-funny look about surprised fatherhood and relationships that build not only from parent to child but dating and falling in love through all that life throws at you as well.
December 2, 2013
Just okay 2.5 stars
I really thought that I would like this book more than I did but it just didn’t do it for me. I really enjoyed Jamie but I never really connected with Allison.
Jamie finds a new born baby girl on his back steps with a note that her name is Samantha and that she’s the outcome of a vacation get together with a girl that he never saw again a little over nine months ago. Jamie has just turned 30, has no girlfriend and knew nothing about babies. He was a bachelor that loved to party, take home a random women whenever he felt like it, worked out of his home writing a weekly column for the local newspaper. He was in way over his head, he needed help and he needed it fast.
Allison was a nurse in the neonatal unit at the local hospital. She runs a daddy class for new fathers to teach them how to help with their new born babies. After Jamie calls the hospital and gets connected with her he attends the class and instantly feels a connection with her.
The story started off pretty good but it seemed to go downhill from there. I will admit though that the date at the high class restaurant with bay in tow did have me chuckling a little.
The one main thing though that really turned me off was the ending. It was rushed and went from being super climatic to completely over in just a few pages. It was like the author realized that the page quota was met and then BAM the story was over. I felt that it should have been drug out, give it a fight at the end with true winner not the way that it was done. Sorry but the ending really sucked. I don’t believe that I will invest in book 2
I really thought that I would like this book more than I did but it just didn’t do it for me. I really enjoyed Jamie but I never really connected with Allison.
Jamie finds a new born baby girl on his back steps with a note that her name is Samantha and that she’s the outcome of a vacation get together with a girl that he never saw again a little over nine months ago. Jamie has just turned 30, has no girlfriend and knew nothing about babies. He was a bachelor that loved to party, take home a random women whenever he felt like it, worked out of his home writing a weekly column for the local newspaper. He was in way over his head, he needed help and he needed it fast.
Allison was a nurse in the neonatal unit at the local hospital. She runs a daddy class for new fathers to teach them how to help with their new born babies. After Jamie calls the hospital and gets connected with her he attends the class and instantly feels a connection with her.
The story started off pretty good but it seemed to go downhill from there. I will admit though that the date at the high class restaurant with bay in tow did have me chuckling a little.
The one main thing though that really turned me off was the ending. It was rushed and went from being super climatic to completely over in just a few pages. It was like the author realized that the page quota was met and then BAM the story was over. I felt that it should have been drug out, give it a fight at the end with true winner not the way that it was done. Sorry but the ending really sucked. I don’t believe that I will invest in book 2
March 15, 2016
I started to read this book because of the cover. Yes, I know, we should not judge a book by its cover, though there was something about it that grabbed my attention. To be honest I didn’t even read the book description so I had no idea what was it about.
Father Found by Judith Arnold is a contemporary romance book. The main character, Jamie, is a man close to his thirties which lives a perfect live by himself, writer of profession (he writes a humour column called ‘Guy Stuff’). All of the sudden he finds out he has a baby girl, Samantha, which changes his life completely. From the carefree man he must now convert in the perfect father. He is lucky when he meets Alison, a nurse who teaches a class for new fathers called ‘Daddy School’. From that moment not only that he becomes a father but he falls in love as well. It is not as easy as he thought though, when he realizes that he has to gain the confidence of the now most important women in his life: his daughter and his loved one.
This book is both funny and emotional. It shows how a man can change when he becomes a father and as well when he truly falls in love. It shows the struggles of a new single father and I find it really touching when in our days we tend to focus more on the new mothers. And it also shows that men can become great parents by themselves with a bit of understanding and confidence.
I loved this book from the begining until the end and I highly recommend it. It definitely deserves 5 beautiful stars. ☺️
Father Found by Judith Arnold is a contemporary romance book. The main character, Jamie, is a man close to his thirties which lives a perfect live by himself, writer of profession (he writes a humour column called ‘Guy Stuff’). All of the sudden he finds out he has a baby girl, Samantha, which changes his life completely. From the carefree man he must now convert in the perfect father. He is lucky when he meets Alison, a nurse who teaches a class for new fathers called ‘Daddy School’. From that moment not only that he becomes a father but he falls in love as well. It is not as easy as he thought though, when he realizes that he has to gain the confidence of the now most important women in his life: his daughter and his loved one.
This book is both funny and emotional. It shows how a man can change when he becomes a father and as well when he truly falls in love. It shows the struggles of a new single father and I find it really touching when in our days we tend to focus more on the new mothers. And it also shows that men can become great parents by themselves with a bit of understanding and confidence.
I loved this book from the begining until the end and I highly recommend it. It definitely deserves 5 beautiful stars. ☺️
May 19, 2017
Great concept, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.
My biggest problem with this book was the female lead, Allison. She is super judgmental towards the male lead (Jamie/James) because of some of the decisions he made in the past, and doesn't cut him any slack for having a "out of wedlock" baby (which honestly, who says that kind of crap anymore?) until about the 75% mark, with no real reason for the change of heart except expedience for the writer. She also seems to believe, despite Jamie keeping his daughter and taking care of her when he easily could have placed her in foster care, that he is irresponsible and not committed to being a father, with no real reasoning except her own personal prejudices, but has a sudden change of heart at about the 75% mark.
I really felt that the ending was very rushed and should have been more fleshed out, as all of the major conflicts resolved themselves in about 10 pages. I also would have liked to see more interaction between Jaime and his daughter and less of Allison acting like a judgmental prude with her equally judgmental friends and grandmother. There were also a lot of situations in this book that I felt promoted strong gender roles and misogynistic stereotypes that I just really couldn't stand.
Ultimately, I just really disliked this book and am glad I got a copy for free through Amazon rather than waiting both money and time on it. I wouldn't recommend reading this book.
My biggest problem with this book was the female lead, Allison. She is super judgmental towards the male lead (Jamie/James) because of some of the decisions he made in the past, and doesn't cut him any slack for having a "out of wedlock" baby (which honestly, who says that kind of crap anymore?) until about the 75% mark, with no real reason for the change of heart except expedience for the writer. She also seems to believe, despite Jamie keeping his daughter and taking care of her when he easily could have placed her in foster care, that he is irresponsible and not committed to being a father, with no real reasoning except her own personal prejudices, but has a sudden change of heart at about the 75% mark.
I really felt that the ending was very rushed and should have been more fleshed out, as all of the major conflicts resolved themselves in about 10 pages. I also would have liked to see more interaction between Jaime and his daughter and less of Allison acting like a judgmental prude with her equally judgmental friends and grandmother. There were also a lot of situations in this book that I felt promoted strong gender roles and misogynistic stereotypes that I just really couldn't stand.
Ultimately, I just really disliked this book and am glad I got a copy for free through Amazon rather than waiting both money and time on it. I wouldn't recommend reading this book.
September 5, 2016
I had such high hopes...
I got this book free, and thought it was going to be a fun little story about a guy learning how to be a dad. I expected diaper disasters, awkward moments, and funny anecdotes.
What I got was a guy who was kind of an idiot/kind of trying his best. Diaper confusion was barely mentioned in passing, the baby at the restaurant scene was not funny but actually full of shaming and mean people. (Granted, bringing a baby to a fancy restaurant wasn't going to work no matter what, but the reaction was very stereotypical)
I did actually like Jamie. I enjoyed his sense of humor, and by the time I quit reading, I was enjoying the moments of affection he as sharing with the baby.
I did not like Allison at all. As a nurse, and someone who was so determined to educate men on how to be supportive and helpful fathers, as soon as she was getting 1-on-1 with one of these guys, she was judgemental and nasty. The contradictions in her behavior were abrasive to read.
I made it to 70% in this book. I probably have only read 40% of it though. I started skimming as soon as she started judging. Definitely filing this one on my DNF shelf and won't be picking it up again.
I got this book free, and thought it was going to be a fun little story about a guy learning how to be a dad. I expected diaper disasters, awkward moments, and funny anecdotes.
What I got was a guy who was kind of an idiot/kind of trying his best. Diaper confusion was barely mentioned in passing, the baby at the restaurant scene was not funny but actually full of shaming and mean people. (Granted, bringing a baby to a fancy restaurant wasn't going to work no matter what, but the reaction was very stereotypical)
I did actually like Jamie. I enjoyed his sense of humor, and by the time I quit reading, I was enjoying the moments of affection he as sharing with the baby.
I did not like Allison at all. As a nurse, and someone who was so determined to educate men on how to be supportive and helpful fathers, as soon as she was getting 1-on-1 with one of these guys, she was judgemental and nasty. The contradictions in her behavior were abrasive to read.
I made it to 70% in this book. I probably have only read 40% of it though. I started skimming as soon as she started judging. Definitely filing this one on my DNF shelf and won't be picking it up again.
December 25, 2013
I would have given this book a higher rating if the female lead here wasn't so full of crap. How could she excuse and tend for women, while condemning him for the same thing? If someone even attempts to talk to a single mother that way would get cussed out, and maybe even beaten. Then to claim she wanted to run a parenting class for men, as she is critically judging one of her students, just disgusting. If this were a man doing this to a mother, would this book have made it this far? Hell No! She publicly claimed what she privately dispised. She acted like a two-faced, double-standard having, bigot. I would never allow someone tI cared about to be treated so harsh. And honestly, if he was such a grown and accomplished man, why the hell was he stupid enough to take her crap? I do not know any 30 year old man who would. Be so foolish. This book was unbelievable, and just a way for someone to spew hate. Lousy!
June 1, 2014
I've read books by Arnold in the past and enjoyed them. Sadly, this one was dated and frustrating. The heroine was a prig, the theme outdated and in the end I just wanted to pull my hair out as I read. It did serve as a nice reminder that romance – and society – has come a long way in 15 years. What was considered an unforgivable sin in 1997 – fathering a child out of wedlock with a one-night-stand – is much more accepted today. Not that I’m saying this is something we should celebrate, but the heroine coming down on the hero for it when he was doing the right thing just made me angry. I don’t know that I would have said the same in the 90′s. Progress.
January 15, 2016
Even though books about guys going through the new single-father phase, it's not that common.
Samantha (Jamie's baby girl) brought the whole plot together, by binding emotions together.
Almost every single one of us, no matter how tough we are, will still soften towards a baby. That's what Sammy did for Jamie and for Alison too. She made them think clearly when times are rough.
Like all Contemp romances, there'll always be a good ending :) so I would give this a 4/5.
Still amazing but I don't think it's a high 5.
Samantha (Jamie's baby girl) brought the whole plot together, by binding emotions together.
Almost every single one of us, no matter how tough we are, will still soften towards a baby. That's what Sammy did for Jamie and for Alison too. She made them think clearly when times are rough.
Like all Contemp romances, there'll always be a good ending :) so I would give this a 4/5.
Still amazing but I don't think it's a high 5.
June 18, 2016
This is a lovely little story about a young bachelor named Jamie who ends up becoming an instant dad. Jamie was a sweetie. Allison annoyed the crap out of me- she was way too judgemental. And the ending was SUPER rushed, which was annoying. I feel a bit cheated. There was all of this build up and then a few quick, throwaway paragraphs about this happy ever after which we did not at all get to experience with the characters. This, I'm afraid, is what earned it the three star rating.
March 28, 2014
This book was really cute, where Jamie meets Allison, when, after his baby is left on his doorstep, take a rocky-road down parenthood lane.
Well written, but predictable.
Nice to read
Well written, but predictable.
Nice to read
January 2, 2015
it was ok
July 31, 2022
I loved the first page. It was the newspaper column, GUY STUFF, written by James McCoy, the hero of the book. It was hilarious and I thought, wow, this is going to be good guy stuff. Well…not quite.
The leading male protagonist is James “Jamie” McCoy who has just turned thirty but is written as if he were no older than twenty-one or twenty-two. His maturity has not caught up with his chronological age. He had a fling on vacation and the condom failed. He tried to maintain a tie to the woman, but she gave him a false number and fake marital status. Nine months and two weeks later, in late June, a baby is left on his back doorstep with a note telling him the baby is his. An interesting enough premise, yes? Unfortunately, the premise was a promise not kept.
Jamie is far too immature, and we do not see any change in him after a two-week-old baby enters his life. He’s as clueless and needy at the end of the book as he was at the beginning. He refuses to get a paternity test, and we are given no reason why, we are not privy to his thoughts. He refuses to tell the police about the baby having been left at his door – and there is SO much wrong with that. What if he hadn’t been home? What if the weather had turned? What if the baby were stolen from its real parents, and abandoned? So many what-ifs. Finally, he is convinced to go to the police who are way too laid back about the situation.
Allison Winslow, the main female protagonist, is a whiny, judgmental harridan who looks down her nose at Jamie, holds him entirely to blame for being careless and making a baby, and never lets him forget how inept he is as a parent. The fact that he has stepped up to his responsibility does not phase her. Wow. She’s the one teaching in the Daddy School and while she should be teaching him, instead she swoops in and provides excellent care for the baby in a number of circumstances, without doing much for the father. Good for the baby. Bad for any kind of adult relationship between Jamie and Allison.
The relationship is rocky from the start and does not improve. The whole story is off-putting, from the baby written to be much older than two-weeks (e.g., the baby is talking at 2 weeks…uh-huh), to Jaimie’s refusal to get a paternity test, to Jamie declining to go to the police with a foundling that may not be related to him. The story keeps going downhill. The ending is abrupt. All the loose ends are tied up in neat little paragraphs. We are told how it all ends, not shown. I’d like to have seen how all the threads came together; the ending was like reading a newspaper article.
There is a funny passage in chapter 14 where Allison is asked to go to Human Resources; she is worrying about the purpose for the request. “Expecting the worst wasn’t like her [Allison]….” Actually, it was exactly like her. She expects the worst in all things. She expects not to get any funding for her Daddy School. She expects Jamie to be a terrible father. She expects any relationship with Jamie to be less than solid. She is the poster girl for expecting things to go from bad to worse.
There are some errors which surprised me. I believe this book was originally published for Harlequin Romances which has some outstanding editors and proofreaders. It is copyrighted in 1997, so is 25 years old, which perhaps is why the premise of the book is so odd for 2022 mores.
There is some unusual punctation. For instance, “…coffee with him wasn’t a date . It was the act of a desperate man.” The period is surrounded by spaces; it should have been placed at the end of the first sentence, without a space.
“…the woman had an name….” That should be “…the woman had a name.”
“…the prediction that they was destined for bad things.” Subject-verb agreement says that a plural subject requires a plural verb. “They” is a plural subject. This should read, “…the prediction that they were destined for bad things.”
“The green dress….” The “T” in “The” is italicized: why?
“What did they say?” The “W” in “What” is italicized: why?
The errors are not egregious, but they do manage to pull a reader out of the story, even if just momentarily.
I rated this book 1.5 stars and rounded up because the column pieces written by James McCoy were funny and bright. Apparently, there are nine books in this series and after this example, I’m not particularly interested in any others. Allison Winslow is not a good main character. Flaws are not bad; they give a character an opportunity to improve. But Allison Winslow doesn’t seem to see anything about herself to work on, let alone improve upon. Since she’s the head of this Daddy School, and no doubt will continue in the next books, I believe I’ll refrain from continuing this series.
The leading male protagonist is James “Jamie” McCoy who has just turned thirty but is written as if he were no older than twenty-one or twenty-two. His maturity has not caught up with his chronological age. He had a fling on vacation and the condom failed. He tried to maintain a tie to the woman, but she gave him a false number and fake marital status. Nine months and two weeks later, in late June, a baby is left on his back doorstep with a note telling him the baby is his. An interesting enough premise, yes? Unfortunately, the premise was a promise not kept.
Jamie is far too immature, and we do not see any change in him after a two-week-old baby enters his life. He’s as clueless and needy at the end of the book as he was at the beginning. He refuses to get a paternity test, and we are given no reason why, we are not privy to his thoughts. He refuses to tell the police about the baby having been left at his door – and there is SO much wrong with that. What if he hadn’t been home? What if the weather had turned? What if the baby were stolen from its real parents, and abandoned? So many what-ifs. Finally, he is convinced to go to the police who are way too laid back about the situation.
Allison Winslow, the main female protagonist, is a whiny, judgmental harridan who looks down her nose at Jamie, holds him entirely to blame for being careless and making a baby, and never lets him forget how inept he is as a parent. The fact that he has stepped up to his responsibility does not phase her. Wow. She’s the one teaching in the Daddy School and while she should be teaching him, instead she swoops in and provides excellent care for the baby in a number of circumstances, without doing much for the father. Good for the baby. Bad for any kind of adult relationship between Jamie and Allison.
The relationship is rocky from the start and does not improve. The whole story is off-putting, from the baby written to be much older than two-weeks (e.g., the baby is talking at 2 weeks…uh-huh), to Jaimie’s refusal to get a paternity test, to Jamie declining to go to the police with a foundling that may not be related to him. The story keeps going downhill. The ending is abrupt. All the loose ends are tied up in neat little paragraphs. We are told how it all ends, not shown. I’d like to have seen how all the threads came together; the ending was like reading a newspaper article.
There is a funny passage in chapter 14 where Allison is asked to go to Human Resources; she is worrying about the purpose for the request. “Expecting the worst wasn’t like her [Allison]….” Actually, it was exactly like her. She expects the worst in all things. She expects not to get any funding for her Daddy School. She expects Jamie to be a terrible father. She expects any relationship with Jamie to be less than solid. She is the poster girl for expecting things to go from bad to worse.
There are some errors which surprised me. I believe this book was originally published for Harlequin Romances which has some outstanding editors and proofreaders. It is copyrighted in 1997, so is 25 years old, which perhaps is why the premise of the book is so odd for 2022 mores.
There is some unusual punctation. For instance, “…coffee with him wasn’t a date . It was the act of a desperate man.” The period is surrounded by spaces; it should have been placed at the end of the first sentence, without a space.
“…the woman had an name….” That should be “…the woman had a name.”
“…the prediction that they was destined for bad things.” Subject-verb agreement says that a plural subject requires a plural verb. “They” is a plural subject. This should read, “…the prediction that they were destined for bad things.”
“The green dress….” The “T” in “The” is italicized: why?
“What did they say?” The “W” in “What” is italicized: why?
The errors are not egregious, but they do manage to pull a reader out of the story, even if just momentarily.
I rated this book 1.5 stars and rounded up because the column pieces written by James McCoy were funny and bright. Apparently, there are nine books in this series and after this example, I’m not particularly interested in any others. Allison Winslow is not a good main character. Flaws are not bad; they give a character an opportunity to improve. But Allison Winslow doesn’t seem to see anything about herself to work on, let alone improve upon. Since she’s the head of this Daddy School, and no doubt will continue in the next books, I believe I’ll refrain from continuing this series.
April 12, 2018
DNF’d at 64%
Allison is probably the most annoying character I’ve ever met. She had a stick up her butt about Jamie the entire time I was reading and I wanted to slap her silly for being a judging biotch.
Jamie met a woman on vacation about a year before the book starts. They hit it off, had a little fling and Jamie thought that it was something they could continue until he finds out that the woman gave him a fake number and ghosted him. Fast forward nine months later and a baby is left on his doorstep.
Jamie needs help and meets Allison, a nurse who is trying to get a Daddy School program off the ground to help dad’s prepare before the baby comes.
Now, Allison immediately starts judging Jamie the second she takes his phone call. She looks down her nose at him because he “had a child out of wedlock” (I’ll get back to the choice of word later). She just can’t get past the fact that Jamie had sex with a woman who he wasn’t married to (we are in the 21st century, no?) even though he was a responsible adult and used protection. That should get him a pat on the back, but more often than not he gets a door slammed in his face for trying to step up as a father when the mother abandoned the baby and is obviously a piece of crap excuse for a human.
While Jamie isn’t the best character I have ever read (felt way too immature to be thirty - money doesn’t make you mature), he stepped up the second he discovered Samantha on his porch. He could have easily contacted the police right away and have the baby be put in the system until the situation with the mom was figured out. Instead, he calls a hospital for advise on feeding the baby.
He goes to classes that are supposed to help him but Allison is strangely reluctant to really, truly help him. She could have made a list of basic information to get him started but he basically has to pull teeth to get advise from her because she thinks he needs to “figure it out for himself”. Now that’s a pretty irresponsible stance for a nurse who claims she wants to prepare new dads to be hands on fathers.
I really really dislike Allison and the way she continually rejects Jamie for his “mistake”.
The only reason I can see why Jamie is attracted to Allison is because she knows about babies and has a maternal instinct. Otherwise, she’s a witch.
The choice of words are a bit archaic and it seems like the author took a thesaurus and dumped it all over every page. I couldn’t pay attention to the story when I was running into phrases and words that felt misplaced in the story. And there was also a scene where Jamie described Allison as a “skinny Bottocelli angel” and her response was “You really think I’m skinny?” Pretty cringeworthy, huh?
I really should have read some reviews before I started this book.
Allison is probably the most annoying character I’ve ever met. She had a stick up her butt about Jamie the entire time I was reading and I wanted to slap her silly for being a judging biotch.
Jamie met a woman on vacation about a year before the book starts. They hit it off, had a little fling and Jamie thought that it was something they could continue until he finds out that the woman gave him a fake number and ghosted him. Fast forward nine months later and a baby is left on his doorstep.
Jamie needs help and meets Allison, a nurse who is trying to get a Daddy School program off the ground to help dad’s prepare before the baby comes.
Now, Allison immediately starts judging Jamie the second she takes his phone call. She looks down her nose at him because he “had a child out of wedlock” (I’ll get back to the choice of word later). She just can’t get past the fact that Jamie had sex with a woman who he wasn’t married to (we are in the 21st century, no?) even though he was a responsible adult and used protection. That should get him a pat on the back, but more often than not he gets a door slammed in his face for trying to step up as a father when the mother abandoned the baby and is obviously a piece of crap excuse for a human.
While Jamie isn’t the best character I have ever read (felt way too immature to be thirty - money doesn’t make you mature), he stepped up the second he discovered Samantha on his porch. He could have easily contacted the police right away and have the baby be put in the system until the situation with the mom was figured out. Instead, he calls a hospital for advise on feeding the baby.
He goes to classes that are supposed to help him but Allison is strangely reluctant to really, truly help him. She could have made a list of basic information to get him started but he basically has to pull teeth to get advise from her because she thinks he needs to “figure it out for himself”. Now that’s a pretty irresponsible stance for a nurse who claims she wants to prepare new dads to be hands on fathers.
I really really dislike Allison and the way she continually rejects Jamie for his “mistake”.
The only reason I can see why Jamie is attracted to Allison is because she knows about babies and has a maternal instinct. Otherwise, she’s a witch.
The choice of words are a bit archaic and it seems like the author took a thesaurus and dumped it all over every page. I couldn’t pay attention to the story when I was running into phrases and words that felt misplaced in the story. And there was also a scene where Jamie described Allison as a “skinny Bottocelli angel” and her response was “You really think I’m skinny?” Pretty cringeworthy, huh?
I really should have read some reviews before I started this book.
October 26, 2017
Such a great story!
Wow, I loved this book!! I really wasn't sure what I was getting myself into when I first picked up the book because Jamie's character starts off with his column. But when the baby gets involved, things start getting really funny.
Jamie McCoy, has just turned the big 3-0, he's a self-proclaimed bachelor, a famous columnist; his column is featured in other cities besides Arlington, and he's successful because of it. When a baby, Samantha, is left on his back porch one morning along with a note claiming that she's his daughter from a woman he met in the Bahamas 9 months and 2 weeks ago; shocked doesn't cover Jamie's reaction. The woman he met in the Bahamas, Jamie really liked her. They spent a whole week together and hit it off, he wanted to see if things could have been more, so they exchanged phone numbers. But when Jamie called her when he got home, the joke was on him. She gave him a fake phone number. Now he has no clue how to reach her. He doesn't know what to do with Samantha, he doesn't even know how to change a diaper.
Jamie calls the hospital for help, they refer him to Allison Winslow. She works in Maternity and she teaches "Daddy School" for father's-to-be.
Allison Winslow, is a nurse who works in the maternity ward delivery babies and once a week she teaches classes for the "Daddy School." Allison started this program because Daddy's need to know how to hold a newborn, change a diaper, and feed one too. They can't expect their wife to be able to do everything on their own without any help. That's the purpose of these classes.
So when she gets Jamie's phone call, she's not sure if he is taking care of his daughter correctly and it sounds like she's pretty much an obligation to him that he can't wait to get rid of. Allison doesn't like Jamie right away, she sees red flags, yes she thinks he's handsome. But he went on vacation, spent a week with someone, his method of protection didn't prove effective, as a result he has Samantha, and he acts like she's in the way of his life.
Will Jamie come to love his daughter the way a father should? Will the biological mom come back into the picture?
Read!!!
Wow, I loved this book!! I really wasn't sure what I was getting myself into when I first picked up the book because Jamie's character starts off with his column. But when the baby gets involved, things start getting really funny.
Jamie McCoy, has just turned the big 3-0, he's a self-proclaimed bachelor, a famous columnist; his column is featured in other cities besides Arlington, and he's successful because of it. When a baby, Samantha, is left on his back porch one morning along with a note claiming that she's his daughter from a woman he met in the Bahamas 9 months and 2 weeks ago; shocked doesn't cover Jamie's reaction. The woman he met in the Bahamas, Jamie really liked her. They spent a whole week together and hit it off, he wanted to see if things could have been more, so they exchanged phone numbers. But when Jamie called her when he got home, the joke was on him. She gave him a fake phone number. Now he has no clue how to reach her. He doesn't know what to do with Samantha, he doesn't even know how to change a diaper.
Jamie calls the hospital for help, they refer him to Allison Winslow. She works in Maternity and she teaches "Daddy School" for father's-to-be.
Allison Winslow, is a nurse who works in the maternity ward delivery babies and once a week she teaches classes for the "Daddy School." Allison started this program because Daddy's need to know how to hold a newborn, change a diaper, and feed one too. They can't expect their wife to be able to do everything on their own without any help. That's the purpose of these classes.
So when she gets Jamie's phone call, she's not sure if he is taking care of his daughter correctly and it sounds like she's pretty much an obligation to him that he can't wait to get rid of. Allison doesn't like Jamie right away, she sees red flags, yes she thinks he's handsome. But he went on vacation, spent a week with someone, his method of protection didn't prove effective, as a result he has Samantha, and he acts like she's in the way of his life.
Will Jamie come to love his daughter the way a father should? Will the biological mom come back into the picture?
Read!!!
May 9, 2019
I hate giving this a low rating and I don't hold this book against the author. I might read something else by her. I just could not get into this book. I didn't even finish it. I got to chapter 8 and then skipped to the last chapter because I couldn't take anymore. I tried I really did but when the female character makes you wish she were real only so you could drop kick her, that is saying something. She was so judgmental! Even though there were occasions where she even kinda reprimanded herself for judging the male lead, she still did it. CONSTANTLY!! I seriously wanted to tell the male lead to not bother and he could do better because all he was in for was her constantly criticizing and who wants that? Plus the fact that towards the end, something that could have been even more of a bonding moment for them and could possibly redeem the female character in the eyes of the reader by her standing by her man while he deals with something so major, its totally glossed over. Like, oh yeah by the way this thing that had male lead track down female lead and tell her he needs her and loves her, well lets just give it the minimum of two paragraphs to close up that part of the story. I'm sorry I really wanted to like this book. I really did. While the author did create a likable male lead and the writing was in no way lacking... the lead female just ruined it for me. Like I said it didn't turn me off to the author all together but if her other books have the same type of female characters in them then I probably wont.
January 10, 2021
I like the idea. I like the characters. I like some of the scenes. The book did not live up to that and was, therefore a disappointment.
Jamie is a great character. The existential bachelor, he writes a hilarious column extolling the joys of bachelor-dom. The a one-night stand dumps his infant daughter on his back step. Jamie's trials and triumphs as his tries to be a good father are well done.
Allison should be a good character, but comes off as more of a side kick. She is a neonatal nurse, which is an impressive career track, busy and demanding. She teaches Father to Be classes. She watches over/cares for her grandmother.
She says that they will not date because she is his teacher and immediately breaks that. She says they should not sleep together because he needs to figure out his new life as a single dad, without her as a crutch, immediately afterwards agrees to sex. Everything between seems rushed and contrived. They meet, have a few classes together, two dates and are sleeping together. There are three classes a week, so 3 weeks knowing each other and they are a couple. Before the baby is 2 months old they are engaged.
There is no development of a relationship between them. There is physical attraction and lust. There is the baby, whose care is the center of everything. That is not what a relationship and marriage should have as its basis. The plot starts were there. It had potential. The timeframe was way off and way short for was the intentions were, or so it seemed to me.
Jamie is a great character. The existential bachelor, he writes a hilarious column extolling the joys of bachelor-dom. The a one-night stand dumps his infant daughter on his back step. Jamie's trials and triumphs as his tries to be a good father are well done.
Allison should be a good character, but comes off as more of a side kick. She is a neonatal nurse, which is an impressive career track, busy and demanding. She teaches Father to Be classes. She watches over/cares for her grandmother.
She says that they will not date because she is his teacher and immediately breaks that. She says they should not sleep together because he needs to figure out his new life as a single dad, without her as a crutch, immediately afterwards agrees to sex. Everything between seems rushed and contrived. They meet, have a few classes together, two dates and are sleeping together. There are three classes a week, so 3 weeks knowing each other and they are a couple. Before the baby is 2 months old they are engaged.
There is no development of a relationship between them. There is physical attraction and lust. There is the baby, whose care is the center of everything. That is not what a relationship and marriage should have as its basis. The plot starts were there. It had potential. The timeframe was way off and way short for was the intentions were, or so it seemed to me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 12, 2018
Four and a half stars
Okay, I'm a picky reader. But I just found a new favorite author. I absolutely loved this book.
When Jamie McCoy finds baby Samantha on his back porch with a note informing him she's his daughter, his unworried bachelor life comes to an end. At first sight, the premise sounded cliché, but the book was not. The author did an amazing job portraying the love/hate, awe/terror, adoration/resentment we all parents have felt for our new babies. She also did a great job presenting the internal conflicts of the heroine. I could certainly relate to Allison's reluctance to get herself involved with Jamie when he had so much to figure out in his life, and wondering if his past mistake (getting Samantha's mother pregnant) meant she couldn't trust him. At times it felt as if she was bordering being righteous or judgmental, but her fears made sense.
The only reason I'd removed half a star if I could was that the baby milestones were wrong. Samantha was supposed to be two weeks old when Jamie found her; a baby that young couldn't do half the things described (like holding her head up, or kicking so strongly her feet typed on the keyboard). At the end of the book Samantha was only two months old and she was already eating solids and had said her first word "three".
Yes, I'm that picky, which will tell you how much ai had to live this book to give it such a high rating.
Okay, I'm a picky reader. But I just found a new favorite author. I absolutely loved this book.
When Jamie McCoy finds baby Samantha on his back porch with a note informing him she's his daughter, his unworried bachelor life comes to an end. At first sight, the premise sounded cliché, but the book was not. The author did an amazing job portraying the love/hate, awe/terror, adoration/resentment we all parents have felt for our new babies. She also did a great job presenting the internal conflicts of the heroine. I could certainly relate to Allison's reluctance to get herself involved with Jamie when he had so much to figure out in his life, and wondering if his past mistake (getting Samantha's mother pregnant) meant she couldn't trust him. At times it felt as if she was bordering being righteous or judgmental, but her fears made sense.
The only reason I'd removed half a star if I could was that the baby milestones were wrong. Samantha was supposed to be two weeks old when Jamie found her; a baby that young couldn't do half the things described (like holding her head up, or kicking so strongly her feet typed on the keyboard). At the end of the book Samantha was only two months old and she was already eating solids and had said her first word "three".
Yes, I'm that picky, which will tell you how much ai had to live this book to give it such a high rating.
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