Nine-to-Five Bride

Blind-Date Brides #1

by Jennie Adams

WLTM: would like to meet Mr Nice and Ordinary! Marissa Warren was not at all concerned about turning thirty – joining that online dating website was just a bit of fun! So what if she hadn’t found her Mr Right yet? She was in love with her fabulous job. That was the reason she was happy to be single – it had nothing to do with how her sexy new boss made her go wobbly at the knees… Plus, Rick Morgan was so not Mr Right! He was more Mr Tall Dark and Dangerous…and if he asked her out on a date Marissa would definitely say no…wouldn’t she? www. blinddatebrides. com From first date to wedding date!

Genres: Romance, Harlequin, Contemporary

Kindle Edition

First published March 22, 2009

About the author

Jennifer Ann Ryan was born on 1963 in a small country town in New South Wales Australia. She has travelled in America, trekked Australia’s Kosciusko National Park, lived and worked on a wheat/sheep farm, played piano at marriage ceremonies, sung in a choral production, and worked in jobs ranging from Legal transcription typist, to motor mechanic’s office assistant. She currently makes her home in a small inland city in New South Wales, works 20 hours a week in an 'outside' job in the health care industry, and continues to write stories of hope and triumph for her readers around the globe.

As Jennie Adams began her writing career with the publication of her first two Mills & Boon romance stories in 2005. Her strong heroes and feisty, determined heroines have warmed the hearts of readers all over the world, with her books being translated into numerous foreign language editions. Although she fights the impulse, Jennie still tries to decipher each foreign edition when it arrives in the mail. Italian, anyone? An avid romance reader, particularly in the historical romance genre, Jennie is the self-confessed owner of an over-active imagination. When she isn't writing her own romance stories, or travelling back through time to enjoy the romances of Dukes and Duchesses, or Knights and their Ladies, Jennie keeps her imagination busy writing articles and short stories on anything from alpacas to gardening to visiting the zoo. Her articles and short stories have been published in magazines and periodicals in Australia and overseas. In her downtime Jennie tries to grow flowers, sends silly gifts to friends and family, is exploring new forms of musical entertainment, and endlessly studies the human condition wherever, in whatever form, and as often as she may do so.

Reviews

[Rose Belle · Rating 1 out of 5]

You ever been plugging along at a book, being miserable because you just don't like it, and then it suddenly hits you: Wait. I don't have to read this book. I can stop at any time. I have a reading list about a hundred miles long. Time to keep it moving. Yeah. That was this book. Don't get me wrong: I have enjoyed books from this author. I've also hate books from this author. It really is a role of the dice with her, so I'm not sure if I'm going to keep trying or not. We'll see.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jennie Adams kicks off the blind-date-brides trilogy.

Nine-To-Five Bride, is a fun read. Rick's gorgeous, Marissa's lovely (when she stops panicking about reaching 30!) and the romance is heartwarming which, for me, makes this story a winner,

I'm looking forward to reading the next two stories in this series.

[Diana McVicker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great storyline

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harlequin romance.

[LG (A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I might have liked this book more if it hadn't been for the author's constant use of denial to, I guess, create romantic tension. "He was not the most handsome man she'd ever met in her life, and she was not attracted to him in the slightest." "He did not want her hands on him." I made those up (except the second one - you can find that one on the bottom of page 42), but that's basically how it went. It felt like the denials were popping up every other page, and the reasons the two of them kept focusing on for why they couldn't be together just weren't very good.

First, there's Rick's fear of becoming like his father. Just the fact that he worries about it indicates that he won't - I doubt it even occurs to his father that there is anything wrong with the way he treats his family members. In addition, Rick makes time to be with his family - he is currently not like his father, and there are no indications that he is becoming like him. As far as I can tell, the only evidence he has that he has any potential of becoming like his father is that he dumped some girl because, at the time, he feared commitment. I'm sorry, but people change, and he's had time to grow up. His excuse was paper thin.

Second, there's Marissa's desire never to date a career-minded corporate guy again. While I can understand her desire to avoid being used and tossed aside, she is so terribly bad at not going for Rick, "the corporate type," that it smacked of self-sabotage. Actually, it seemed to me that Marissa was guilty of some of the things she kept telling herself she didn't want in a guy - things like canceling things in her personal life so that she could put in extra time at work (even though she says she's not ambitious, that comes perilously close to living her job) and working until she nearly dropped (literally - low blood sugar!). She admired Rick's work ethic and his ability to handle the stresses of his job well. Marissa is Ms. Corporate, who just happens to be a secretary, and who happens to find the characteristics of successful corporate men sexy. I can't believe she never fell asleep during any of her dates with "ordinary" men.

So, their main reasons for not being together included Rick's fear that he couldn't commit to someone and be emotionally available, and Marissa's fear that she'd be used and abandoned by yet another corporate guy. Both of these excuses don't stand up very well. The main reason they couldn't be together that kept popping up in my head but that was never mentioned by either Rick or Marissa was that he is the boss and she is his secretary. I cannot believe this never came up. Marissa may only be Rick's temporary secretary, but she's still his secretary. Even if she weren't his secretary, she still works for him indirectly, because Rick's the Big Boss of the company that employs her. How did the two of them never see this as a problem? Do things work differently in Australia?

If I had to give this book a grade, I'd probably give it a C, maybe a C-. I didn't hate it, but there wasn't anything that really grabbed me. None of the minor characters stood out, the occasional humorous moments were only ok, and the reasons Rick and Marissa couldn't be together just felt stupid to me. One thing I can say for this book - I wanted a light, pleasant read, and I got one. Rick's problems with his father and Marissa's mother's sudden illness were the darkest this book got.

(Original review, with read-alikes, posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)

[Jordan Michaels · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author could have been less cliche' about this one. Overall was an enjoyable read but really predictable.

[Charlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hope I'm not as freaked out by turning thirty when it happens as she is but if it means I get her happy ending i could totes do the freak out hahaha. Fun enjoyable and easy read.