Nun the Wiser

by Lissa Sharpe

Matilda Markov is ready to put her former nun days behind her and experience all the worldly pleasures she can. (ALL the worldly pleasures.) But when she feels her friend group starting to slip away from her, just like she's lost so many people who were close to her before, she takes some bold action to try to keep everyone together. If only she can anticipate everything that could possibly go wrong, always, she might be able to keep her life from falling apart.

What she doesn't see coming from a million miles away? Kimo Kapono, the surfer-dude/secret multimillionaire with a heart of gold who treats her like a lady, pays off her student loans, and who can't seem to keep himself from getting kidnapped (repeatedly). Kimo is the golden retriever to Matilda's black cat, and he's determined to win her heart---or get thrown in the back of a van with tinted windows trying.

Beneath her prickly exterior, Matilda is terrified of letting someone in, and even more terrified of losing someone she loves, again. She's always known she's not the kind of person who gets a love story--snarky bitches who've locked away their hearts rarely do. Luckily Kimo's not afraid to get creative. If he can't find the key, he'll just use a jackhammer...

'Nun the Wiser' is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. It is Book #2 in the Bad Habit Book Club series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Rom Com

308 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2025

About the author

Lissa Sharpe is a mom, a wife, a teacher, a PhD, and an award-winning writer. She has written plays, screenplays, teleplays, short stories, songs, and now for the very first time, a romance novel. When she isn't having mental arguments with her characters, she is hanging out in the American South with her husband, son, and golden lab.

Reviews

[Penny Reid]

Now Available in Kindle Unlimited!
'Nun the Wiser' by Lissa Sharpe is LIVE and available in Kindle Unlimited! I am so excited for you all to read this book, I love this series so much.

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/42bryZB
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F4C6XPHH
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0F4C6XPHH
Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0F4C6XPHH

Matilda Markov is ready to put her former nun days behind her and experience all the worldly pleasures she can. (ALL the worldly pleasures.) But when she feels her friend group starting to slip away from her, just like she's lost so many people who were close to her before, she takes some bold action to try to keep everyone together. If only she can anticipate everything that could possibly go wrong, always, she might be able to keep her life from falling apart.

What she doesn't see coming from a million miles away? Kimo Kapono, the surfer-dude/secret multimillionaire with a heart of gold who treats her like a lady, pays off her student loans, and who can't seem to keep himself from getting kidnapped (repeatedly). Kimo is the golden retriever to Matilda's black cat, and he's determined to win her heart---or get thrown in the back of a van with tinted windows trying.

Beneath her prickly exterior, Matilda is terrified of letting someone in, and even more terrified of losing someone she loves, again. She's always known she's not the kind of person who gets a love story--snarky bitches who've locked away their hearts rarely do. Luckily Kimo's not afraid to get creative. If he can't find the key, he'll just use a jackhammer...

'Nun the Wiser' is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. It is Book #2 in the Bad Habit Book Club series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

[Angela Jones]

This is the second book in this series and I read it as an ARC from Smartypants Romance. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It took me a while to get invested in Matilda and Kimo, but once I did, I was rooting for them all the way. Her grumpy to his sunshine works so well in this book, and it was so good to get to know Matilda better and find out why she was always so hard on herself and others. And I’m so looking forward to Nina’s story as well.

[Lisa Mandina]

I really enjoyed the first book in this series last year, Nun Too Soon, and was excited for the next nun to get her HEA. Matilda was the one, as described above, who was prickly, and harder to get to know in her own way. But we learn so much about her background in this story. And it is so understandable why she is the way she is.

There were a couple things towards the beginning that she said that totally are the way I feel about things. First was about being the friend who when your other friends find their significant other, it isn’t long before they move on and you are no longer someone that they make sure to spend as much time with. It feels like being ghosted at times. Then there was Matilda’s thoughts on personal space vs. sex, and that also is something I’ve felt like in the past as well. That you can enjoy sex, but still not want people in your personal space other than that.

While it was frustrating to watch Matilda push Kimo away over and over, it also made sense for her, and it only made him more lovable in how he kept not giving up on her. And then when she had a cranky day after they seemed to be in the groove with their relationship, his reaction and how he took care of her, I loved it so much! His niece and nephew were adorable, as was his watch dog mother. I loved how he kind of won over every person he talked to, he was totally the golden retriever hero.

Now, I am unsure of how to picture him. Because it makes him look very hunky on the cover, but just other things about how he was described made me think of a BIG man, like Jason Momoa, but also not as buff? But I still fell in love with him and his easygoing ways and personality.

The epilogue was from our third nun’s POV and I’m so eager for her book and to learn all about the family she is dealing with. I wonder if the ex-priest who is now a part of their group will be a bigger part of her story, or if we will get a story for him afterwards?

Review first posted on Lisa Loves Literature.

[Shannon]

I was provided an ARC of this book via the author and Smartypants romance, all opinion are my own.

This is the 2nd book in the Bad Habit Book Club Series, however it can be read as a standalone in a companion series with interrelated characters. If you have read book 1 you will remember Matilda, but if you are starting here, Matilda is a member of a book club which is really a support group for 3 former nuns and an ex-priest. Matilda has some baggage when it comes to relationships from her childhood, but she always takes on the role of protective big sister. Now that the book club girls are finding their own way outside of the convent, she is afraid the will slip away like the other important people in her life have. Enter Kimo Kapono, a sweet, laid back, it will all work out Hawaiian who is in town working with Matilda's law firm to get custody of his niece and nephew.

Kimo and Matilda have chemistry from the first time they meet, and through happenstance they happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when kidnappers take them to get at Kimo.
This allows them to spend some quality time together. Matilda doesn't really do serious relationships, because people always end up letting her down. Kimo isn't interesting in a fling. Kimo secretly has money but he is everyone's best friend and hasn't let his sudden wealth go to his head. This puts Matilda and Kimo at an impasse as they are both highly attracted to one another and can't stay away from each other. He continues to soften her hardened exterior with his humor and love of life and his family. She implores him to take things a bit more seriously with her love of rules and fairness especially when it comes to his safety and the safety of his loved ones.

I really loved getting to know Matilda and Kimo. They were the perfect compliment to one another. She really needed someone to be there for her, while she was taking on the world and taking care of everyone else. Kimo's laid back attitude was such a nice compliment to her more rigid, I can take on the world attitude. She hasn't had much experience with relationships where someone doesn't want something from her, and she has alot to learn when it comes to letting people in. Kimo is patient On the other hand, Matilda was the one lending a sensible ear to Kimo in times of his custody case and when it came to taking his own safety seriously. I loved the support Helen and Nina, our former nuns and book club members give to Matilda to only to cement that the family she has chosen is there for her no matter what.

I can't wait to see what happens with our book club in the next installment!

[Smartypants Romance]

★★NOW AVAILABLE IN KINDLE UNLIMITED ★★

'Nun the Wiser' by Lissa Sharpe Author is finally ALIVE and available in Kindle Unlimited! Go forth and read the grumpy/sunshine romantic comedy goodness people!!!

★★⁣⁣Read Nun the Wiser Now!★★⁣⁣
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/42bryZB
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F4C6XPHH
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0F4C6XPHH
Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0F4C6XPHH

★★ BLURB ★★
Matilda Markov is ready to put her former nun days behind her and experience all the worldly pleasures she can. (ALL the worldly pleasures.) But when she feels her friend group starting to slip away from her, just like she's lost so many people who were close to her before, she takes some bold action to try to keep everyone together. If only she can anticipate everything that could possibly go wrong, always, she might be able to keep her life from falling apart.

What she doesn't see coming from a million miles away? Kimo Kapono, the surfer-dude/secret multimillionaire with a heart of gold who treats her like a lady, pays off her student loans, and who can't seem to keep himself from getting kidnapped (repeatedly). Kimo is the golden retriever to Matilda's black cat, and he's determined to win her heart---or get thrown in the back of a van with tinted windows trying.

Beneath her prickly exterior, Matilda is terrified of letting someone in, and even more terrified of losing someone she loves, again. She's always known she's not the kind of person who gets a love story--snarky bitches who've locked away their hearts rarely do. Luckily Kimo's not afraid to get creative. If he can't find the key, he'll just use a jackhammer...

'Nun the Wiser' is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. It is Book #2 in the Bad Habit Book Club series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

[Celeste Anderson]

Delicious Rom-Com Treat

The latest book in the Bad Habits Club series a laugh out loud story filled with some of my favorite elements: found family, quirky, eccentric characters, a swoon worthy main male character and a super smart main female character with sass and heart. The writing is excellent. I highly this book and look forward to the next installment.

[MB (What she read)]

3.5 stars. Very enjoyable and with an unusual MMC. Fun

[Jenny Vee]

3.5

Nice improvements in the author's skills. There was more refinement and focus than the first one. I'm looking forward to Nina's story.

[Kelly]

Okay. What can be said about Matilda except YESSS. The lady is an oddly captivating menace. She's straightforward and knows she's a physical catch so why not enjoy all the things she denied herself when she was a nun, RIGHT? Unfortunately, her straightforwardness can be a little surprising for some. As in the former priest she propositioned in the men's restroom at the gym in an attempt to keep her friend group from fracturing (look, I know how that sounds and yet SOMEHOW it works when you're in knee deep in Matilda's headspace).

Kimo is Matilda's polar opposite. He's too trusting and he likes doing things for kindness sake. In fact, he's trying his level best to practically give away a lot of the money he earned almost overnight. Matilda doesn't know what to make of him. He's not her type (she's into the more buttoned up businessman types), he's way too trusting (seriously, the guy is friendly with everyone), and he seems to want more than the casual hookup she was intending to engage in.

Oh, and she also gets caught in one of the kidnapping attempts and Matilda is NOT the person you want to mess with if you're a kidnapper. She's a mama bear in full-on protective mode and only gets more so once they're extracted from that situation.

Throw in a custody battle, a little awkward flirting between Matilda and her boss (just, no), bodyguards, more kidnapping attempts, a mom who's not easy to win over, plus a serious fear of rejection and Matilda and Kimo have a lot to deal with before they can enjoy their happily ever after. *thumbs up* all around.

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal

[Viviana]

I received an ARC from @Smartypants Romance today.
I loved Matilda so much and I could relate to her in so many ways. And Kimo was a softie with a heart of gold. This series has been a great one so far to read and I look forward to more from this world.

[KristieReadsBooks]

I absolutely love this book along with the other book in the series Nun Too Soon. They don’t have to be read in order but I highly recommend in order to understand the background story of the other characters.

A bit of suspense, lots of angsty romance and a cast of characters that are so quirky and amazing.

Matilda is such a kind and caring person but she has a lot of baggage. My heart hurt for her as she felt like she really has no one that loves her/cares about her. Her fellow ex-nuns are amazing and help her realize what a wonderful person she is and how much “family she truly has.

“You’re everyone’s protector. You’re our fierce mama bear, and we would be lost without you.”

Kimo is so patient, kind, caring and definitely a fixer. He has a huge heart and fiercely protects those he loves.

Love these two together…they bring out the best in each other, show what love is and encourage one another to take risks.

There are so many scenes they will make you laugh, many they will melt your heart and a couple of suspense scenes that will have you guessing.

Amazing story in the Fantastic Smartypants Universe!

[Laura Smith]

Thanks, Smarty Pants Romance, for my ARC of this book.
I have the first book in this series, Nun Too Soon, but hadn't read it yet. I loved this one so much, I will have to go back & read it, & I can't wait for the next one!
Matilda, the FMC, is quite the prickly pear, bossing everyone around, & propositioning strangers in bathrooms. Then she meets Kimo, a big Hawaiian teddy bear, who is everyone's friend, & as their relationship develops, we begin to meet the real Matilda, who has a sad backstory & a fear of getting forgotten/ left behind. She also has an obsession with the 90's series, Full House, as a result of learning to speak English, watching it growing up. I loved all the references to that show.
This book is funny & sweet, & even though Matilda & KImo fall for each other in a matter of weeks, their connection feels real.
The road to true love is full of speed bumps however. Can two complete opposites make it work? What about Kimo's interfering mother? Matilda lives in Chicago; his home is in Hawaii. And he keeps getting kidnapped...
Loved it -great job, Lissa!

[Mary]

Clever and very funny! I really felt like Matilda, the FMC and narrator, was telling her story directly to me. When I read Nun Too Soon, I wasn’t sure I liked her, but before the second chapter of this book was finished, I decided that she is my favorite “nunster.” By the end, my heart was breaking for her and then cheering for her in equal measure.

Watching Matilda let people into her life, especially her best friends and Kimo, the Hawaiian millionaire who (mostly) gently pursued her until she couldn’t live without him, was delightful. There was even excitement, intrigue, and adventure, as Kimo got kidnapped way too often. (What would he have done without Matilda, the grumpy to his sunshine and his fiercest protector?) The Russian cursing was a fun touch, too. I’m glad I was reading on an e-reader, so I could easily translate!

In the epilogue we get a hint that Nina’s story is next. It can’t come soon enough!

[Maria]

I really wish that I could have developmentally editing this, because it has some really interesting parts. Our heroine, Matilda, is vibrant and leaps off the page. The series concept of former nuns reintegrating into society and finding love is brilliant. And the idea of the hero is great, a dad bod polynesian sunshine golden retriever. Lissa did a great job representing him respectfully as a white author, and the romance is single POV, so she never tries to show his internality. It's well done.

Where it falls apart for me a little bit is that Kimo reads a bit one note. He doesn't have meaningful flaws, and he didn't really have a character arc. His family was great, but plot convenient, and I just wanted more. Also, funny and over the top romance doesn't work super well for me personally, especially when paired with romantic suspense tropes like kidnapping.

[Sherrie]

This is my fourth Lissa Sharpe book, and I am absolutely loving her stories. As usual, this one was a delight. It took me a bit to get into, b/c Matilda is harsh and I died of mortification at Kimo's and her meet-cute. But right after that I got sucked in and couldn't stop.

My only issue is the (very minor) part about Matilda's and her boss's flirtation. (For those of you who don't like OM/OW - this is just a quick reaction to a fight that Matilda and Kimo have, not actual cheating.) The whole time, my brain kept screaming, "HR VIOLATION!" and "POTENTIAL LAWSUIT!" I'm really surprised that such a smart author used such an obviously problematic plot device, esp when Matilda is an otherwise brilliant and competent paralegal, and her boss one of the top lawyers in the state.

That aside, this is funny and enjoyable. Can't wait for Nina's story.

[Luisa Baudino]

I am loving the Bad Habit Book Club series! While I didn’t warm instantly to Matilda and it took me a while to deeply care about her, I immediately took to Kimo and didn’t want to let him go. I loved his bigger than life attitude, his sweetness and his desire to take care of Matilda from small things to bigger ones. The Stan cameos were great, the ax throwing hilarious, and I loved Kimo’s family and all the crazy adventures they went in. Wasn’t expecting the ending from how Matilda started, and now I honestly cannot wait to see Nina in Green Valley!

[Angela Whitmore]

Nun the Wiser

Read Helen's book first for a better understanding of this one.
Ex-nun Matilda is a self-confessed grouch, but life has made her that way. However she is also very self-aware and outspoken, and this puts her in front of Kimo. Imagine if Jason Mamoa was a little bit goofy with a labrador personality, with the ability to make everyone like him except for the guys who keep trying to kidnap him. And he is loaded.
There's a lot of angst, second-guessing and misunderstanding along the way.
The most disturbing part though, is in the epilogue.

[Esmee]

hmm het begon wel echt leuk. maar hij klonk te mooi om waar te zijn... ik was erg wantrouwig tegenover hem... ik dacht dat hij met haar aan het spelen was... in het echte leven zou je dat zeker denken... maar omdat hij de ML is, weet je dat het goed komt. ik vertrouwde hem alsnog niet... en ik had wel medelijden met haar. ze heeft zoveel moeten doen voor haar zusjes... en dan haar vriendinnen die eigenlijk alleen bezig met hun vriendjes zijn...

[Rose Grabowski]

We follow Matilda in the latest book in the Bad Habits Club series. In book 1 she was a rather prickly character that was hard to get to know. In this one we learn a lot more about her past and what makes her the way she is. She meets KIno in a men's room-long story- and a surprisingly sweet relationship begins. It was a wild ride with a kidnapping or so, a custody case, and much more. It was well worth the read.

[Terri V]

I'm so upset with myself for taking so long to read this book. I loved getting back to my favourite ex-nuns.

Matilda and Kimo were just the cutest. I loved his sunshine mixing with her grumpy.
This book made me smile so much, but my heart hurt for Matilda too. She deserved her new love, family and happily ever after.
Kimo's chill vibe was perfect, even when he was being kidnapped again.

Overall once I properly started this book I couldn't stop and I'm very excited for the next one.

[Linda Lassman]

I was a little leery about how much I'd enjoy this book because, of the three characters in the Bad Habit Book Club, Matilda was the one I liked the least. And when I started Nun the Wiser, my opinion really didn't change at all.

But I was wrong and I should have had more faith. ;-p I really loved this book and its characters. And I'm so happy Matilda got her HEA.

[Rebecca Carlson]

Extraordinarily Good

Skepticism? Shattered. Expectations? Obliterated. This narrative is a delightful rollercoaster of complexity, with characters so compelling they could make a tax manual read like a thriller. Consider my previous doubts thoroughly roasted and my recommendation as enthusiastic as a kid in a candy store. Buckle up, literary adventurers!

[Luv2TrvlLuvBks]

Grumpy cat and Golden Retriever vibes for this read.


The plot moves quickly as the two are embroiled in a kidnapping that takes them to various locations. It's a 3.5 read as there's only so much inner dialogue I can take from the FMC. When the two do dialogue, it's funny. It's just not enough.

[K D]

3 1/2 certainly opposites... I wish I remembered more about Matilda from the first book because I didn't understand why she had stopped being a nun from this book alone. Although obviously she's currently living a very non-nun lifestyle.

[Diane (Books and Tequila Blog)]

OMG!! I Adored this story! Super Grumpy ex- nun Matilda meets her match in Kimo, the sweetest, friendliest, nicest man ever!!
I don’t think I could love a story and its characters more. I am in love and don’t want these stories to ever end.
-5 Stars!!-

[Mary]

Loved this book

[Claire]

Really enjoyed this book! What a fun series! Teasing Nina's book at the end!!!!!

[Mrs Siobhan Klimmek]

Great Characters

Loved this book. The characters were all relatable and the banter was great. Keep writing and I will definitely keep reading!

[Luv_a_good_story]

Ok, parts were cute. I was pretty pissed at him when he missed thee thing, he could have called. Not sure I would have forgiven so easily.

[Sharron M]

Matilda is grumpy. But she’s got a lot on her plate and enough baggage to support her weariness. But Kimo is not deterred and they get to fly off in the sunset to Hawaii. Now how cool is that