Second Best

by Pamela Fudge

No one likes to be Second Best … Anastasia ‘Stacey’ Trent has spent years being treated badly by men. So when the handsome Nick Cable charms his way into her life and sweeps her off her feet, she’s all too keen to believe he’s different. So keen in fact, that when he asks her to drop everything and marry him, she doesn’t question why he hasn’t introduced her to his family. Quitting her job and putting her flat on the market, she heads out to his beautiful country home for her happily ever after. Instead, she finds only his unsympathetic brother, Lex, who makes it abundantly clear he has no time to deal with the trail of weeping women Nick leaves in his wake. Not only that, but Nick is due to marry another woman the very next day. Unemployed and homeless, she realises she’s thrown away everything for yet another man who doesn’t love her. Stacey can barely stomach being in the same room as either of the Cable brothers, but fate forces her and Lex to pose as an engaged couple. She initially resents this bizarre set up, but comes to love the extended Cable family – aside from heartless Nick, of course. When hostility turns to attraction between Lex and Stacey, can she ever convince him he’s anything but second best? Second Best is a gripping tale of love, family, and deception. ‘A well-written book that holds one’s attention from the first page with twists and turns until the final outcome.’ – The Woman Writer ‘A deeply moving novel, Pamela Fudge has done it again!’ – bestselling author Holly Kinsella ‘A light, easy read and I happily tripped through it in one sitting when I was sorely in need of something relaxing. You can always rely on Pamela Fudge.’ – The Bookbag Pamela Fudge , born in Poole, Dorset is an author, ghost writer and speaker, whose love of poetry initially led her to further explore her talent for creative writing. Having now developed a substantial portfolio of widely-published romance novels, Pam shares her talents with other aspiring writers, tutoring Writing For Pleasure And Profit classes for the local Adult Education Service. She is also a member of Wessex Writers, The Romantic Novelists’ Association, The Society of Women Writers and Journalists and The Society of Authors.

193 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[FNM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full Review @https://nzfnmblog.wordpress.com/

I went into this book looking for a nice easy romantic read, which it definitely was, but I was also hoping that there would be a bit more to the story it terms of 'surprises' or 'plot twists' which there wasn't. I had pretty much guessed exactly what would happen from the synopsis so there was a slight hope of being proven wrong. Both the main characters of Stacey and Lex took me a little bit to warm up to, mainly due to their individual introductions, Stacey I could not relate to due the extreme impulsiveness of her nature and Lex due to the fact he acts like a douchebag in there first meeting. However saying that I did grow to love them together and could eventually forgive them, never trust a first impression! The other main problem I also had initially was that I felt that they put themselves in a very unbelievable situation, yes I could understand the reasoning behind it both with the characters thought processes behind it and also in terms of the book why it happened to propel the story forward but for me it made it that much harder to relate to the book as I just couldn't see it happening.

However this was still an enjoyable read, I did enjoy the build up of their relationship as well as Stacey's relationship with some of the secondary characters, she does also show a significant amount of character growth throughout the novel which is always great to see. Another great point for me was that Nick didn't change as much as you would probably want him to, contradictory I know, but I felt this was far more realistic as people don't change overnight, especially if they don't see anything wrong with what there doing in the first place. If your in the mood for a quick romantic read then I would recommend this for you.

I would like to thank Netgalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Meghan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stacey just wasn’t my cup of tea. Really none of the characters were. I just never connected with them and overall didn’t like this very much.