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Just Desserts
Katherine Bourne has been a member of that endangered species, the full-time house-wife, for over twenty years, but things have finally turned sour. While she disembowels her delicious home-grown tomatoes she dreams of murdering her husband. Why can't Harry have an affair with a younger woman and just leave, like normal men?
But Harry has no intention of giving up his home comforts; he's been sampling forbidden fruit for a long while. Glamorous banker Carol accompanies him on weekend trips and business beanos, but she too is beginning to find that the pleasure's growing stale.
So who's fooling who? Harry, happy in his illusion that he's a sex god and that all his women love him really? Katherine and Carol, unlikely partners in Harry's parallel lives?
Against a background of succulent suppers, cosy Cambridge cafes and the unexpected joys of unexplored freedom, the women decide that revenge is a dish best eaten cold. And discover the prefect recipe...
But Harry has no intention of giving up his home comforts; he's been sampling forbidden fruit for a long while. Glamorous banker Carol accompanies him on weekend trips and business beanos, but she too is beginning to find that the pleasure's growing stale.
So who's fooling who? Harry, happy in his illusion that he's a sex god and that all his women love him really? Katherine and Carol, unlikely partners in Harry's parallel lives?
Against a background of succulent suppers, cosy Cambridge cafes and the unexpected joys of unexplored freedom, the women decide that revenge is a dish best eaten cold. And discover the prefect recipe...
328 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1995
10 people are currently reading
76 people want to read
About the author
Sue Welfare
26 books61 followersSue is an award winning and Times best selling author. She’s published around thirty novels under various pen names including Gemma Fox and Kate Lawson and written erotic fiction under a couple of others.
Sue was among the winners of the Channel 4 SitCom Fest and was the first ever BBC local radio Story Laureate.
Sue lives in Norfolk with her husband and two dogs.
When not writing she loves gardening, singing, cooking and making things – her current passion is making mosaics, which involves smashing crockery with a big hammer.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
June 14, 2020
This is a great book if you enjoy a good juicy gossip. Katherine is a middle-aged housewife who suddenly becomes sick of being treated like a live-in housekeeper by her husband Harry. She tells him to leave and he does just that.
Harry meanwhile, has grown very settled with his work, wife and mistress, Carol. He soon finds out that the grass is not greener on the other side of the fence when he promptly arrives on Carol's doorstep and says he is ready to move in with her.
This is a funny piece of chick-lit and is very easy to read and has some terribly funny moments in it. The title says it all as Harry gets his 'just desserts' when two women start to see him as he really is. My only disappointment was with the ending which felt a bit short and blunt.
Harry meanwhile, has grown very settled with his work, wife and mistress, Carol. He soon finds out that the grass is not greener on the other side of the fence when he promptly arrives on Carol's doorstep and says he is ready to move in with her.
This is a funny piece of chick-lit and is very easy to read and has some terribly funny moments in it. The title says it all as Harry gets his 'just desserts' when two women start to see him as he really is. My only disappointment was with the ending which felt a bit short and blunt.
June 4, 2015
Katherine contemplated murder a lot. The reason her husband of 25 years Harry.
Harry is oblivious to his wife's feelings and carries on regardless.
Carol is a successful business woman and is mistress to Harry.
Jeanette is Carol's receptionist who would rather find herself a rich businessman to keep her than work.
Revenge is a dish best served cold. The journey these characters go on is funny, heart warming, exciting and inspiring. Add in Katherine's children, Carol's neighbours and ginger toms and Ben the photographer and there you have a really good book to enjoy. This book was originally written in the 90s and stands the test of time. I was given this to read by Sue Welfare for a honest review.
I for one look forward to Sue's next book.
Harry is oblivious to his wife's feelings and carries on regardless.
Carol is a successful business woman and is mistress to Harry.
Jeanette is Carol's receptionist who would rather find herself a rich businessman to keep her than work.
Revenge is a dish best served cold. The journey these characters go on is funny, heart warming, exciting and inspiring. Add in Katherine's children, Carol's neighbours and ginger toms and Ben the photographer and there you have a really good book to enjoy. This book was originally written in the 90s and stands the test of time. I was given this to read by Sue Welfare for a honest review.
I for one look forward to Sue's next book.
October 14, 2014
Well all I can say as having been a former mistress is I did wonder what would happen if I met his wife...... This book had me laughing out loud at times I immediately felt for Katherine downtrodden, tired of laundry, cooking boy felt so sorry for her when you're introduced to the love God Harry, he who must be pandered to, ego primped daily, because here is your classic male chauvinist pig the male of the species who thinks we're still in the Victorian era where the little wife stays at home & does the woman's work whilst he the big man goes out to work & does the real hard work & expects meals on the table second he walks through the door, clothes freshly laundered & ironed no matter whether Katherine is ill it only matters if he is ill.
Then you meet Carol the successful businesswoman pushing for that top job, not always taking much notice of those beneath her. Now she's dealing with a very stressful account that could be make or break for her & to relieve some of the stress her boyfriend is taking her with him on a business trip to Paris, she's looking forward to this weekend a nice relaxing weekend in the city of love but it doesn't quite go as planned.
She comes back & her adorably funny gay neighbours Ray & Geoff who run a local cafe. No matter what happens to Carol she knows she can rely on her two neighbours & best friends to make her see the good side of a bad situation.
Well let's just say throughout this book Ray & Geoff will have you laughing out loud, groaning at their attempts to sincere when they really want to just crease up & laugh at their crazy friend Carol. I promise you a great read & if life hadn't got in the way I could easily have read this in a day or two.
Then you meet Carol the successful businesswoman pushing for that top job, not always taking much notice of those beneath her. Now she's dealing with a very stressful account that could be make or break for her & to relieve some of the stress her boyfriend is taking her with him on a business trip to Paris, she's looking forward to this weekend a nice relaxing weekend in the city of love but it doesn't quite go as planned.
She comes back & her adorably funny gay neighbours Ray & Geoff who run a local cafe. No matter what happens to Carol she knows she can rely on her two neighbours & best friends to make her see the good side of a bad situation.
Well let's just say throughout this book Ray & Geoff will have you laughing out loud, groaning at their attempts to sincere when they really want to just crease up & laugh at their crazy friend Carol. I promise you a great read & if life hadn't got in the way I could easily have read this in a day or two.
July 27, 2021
Well written and entertaining but the revenge bit was a let down. Also, why do chefs train for years when Harry, who has never done a tap of housework or cooking, in a few days can expertly prep vegetables and make pastry. Unrealistic! Harry has a new love and is planning to open a restaurant! Harry did not get his just deserts, did not really learn or even understand his bad behaviour.
June 13, 2014
I received a free copy of this book in return for an honest review.
I am, and always have been, an avid reader and my main criteria for a good author is for them to be intelligent and articulate. Countless times I’ve started reading a book with a great storyline only to find it littered with grammatical errors and glaring mistakes, but Sue meets my strict criteria and none of her books come into this category!
I always enjoy Sue’s books and ‘Just Desserts’ was no exception. The storyline was brilliant, totally believable, and with enough little twists and turns to keep you guessing what was going to happen. I am sure there are lots of love triangles like this, with the downtrodden, dutiful wife (Katherine), the stylish, glamorous lover (Carol) and the man who thinks he can have his cake and eat it (Harry). Without spoiling the storyline, I particularly liked the way Harry was treated at a certain event towards the end. He really did get his just desserts but probably not in the way he, or the readers, expected! The ending for the main characters was a surprise, not quite what I was anticipating, and that made it even more of a great read. I’d love there to be a sequel, maybe a short story, letting us know how Katherine, Carol and Harry were doing in a year’s time.
I can’t recommend this book highly enough, a great ‘rom-com’ and just the thing for stretching out on a sunlounger for a relaxing read!
I am, and always have been, an avid reader and my main criteria for a good author is for them to be intelligent and articulate. Countless times I’ve started reading a book with a great storyline only to find it littered with grammatical errors and glaring mistakes, but Sue meets my strict criteria and none of her books come into this category!
I always enjoy Sue’s books and ‘Just Desserts’ was no exception. The storyline was brilliant, totally believable, and with enough little twists and turns to keep you guessing what was going to happen. I am sure there are lots of love triangles like this, with the downtrodden, dutiful wife (Katherine), the stylish, glamorous lover (Carol) and the man who thinks he can have his cake and eat it (Harry). Without spoiling the storyline, I particularly liked the way Harry was treated at a certain event towards the end. He really did get his just desserts but probably not in the way he, or the readers, expected! The ending for the main characters was a surprise, not quite what I was anticipating, and that made it even more of a great read. I’d love there to be a sequel, maybe a short story, letting us know how Katherine, Carol and Harry were doing in a year’s time.
I can’t recommend this book highly enough, a great ‘rom-com’ and just the thing for stretching out on a sunlounger for a relaxing read!
July 2, 2014
I've been feeling poorly and was the best book I could have taken to my sick bed (man flu).
It's the glorious romp of wife, mistress and philandering husband that delivers characters you would count as friends (except the husband).
I won't do the standard review -synopsis, highlights, literary breakdown, there are enough people on here who will do that much better than I.
If you are looking for a book to spend some time with, that isn't cliched or boring, this is the one for you. It's fun, fast paced and the plot twists and turns to keep you guessing as to how it will come right in the end.
Enjoy!
It's the glorious romp of wife, mistress and philandering husband that delivers characters you would count as friends (except the husband).
I won't do the standard review -synopsis, highlights, literary breakdown, there are enough people on here who will do that much better than I.
If you are looking for a book to spend some time with, that isn't cliched or boring, this is the one for you. It's fun, fast paced and the plot twists and turns to keep you guessing as to how it will come right in the end.
Enjoy!
August 26, 2014
Magnificent! Another brilliant story from Sue Welfare.
What happens to a cheat who had 2 women at his beck and call for too long?
Here we pick up the story as his long suffering wife calls time on their marriage. He believes that his mistress will pick up the pieces...after all he has promised her all this time that he will leave his wife...only now that day has come does his mistress really want to wash and iron his shirts?
A larger than life cast of believable characters in a Rom com drama for us ladies over 40.
Loved it!
Review copy
What happens to a cheat who had 2 women at his beck and call for too long?
Here we pick up the story as his long suffering wife calls time on their marriage. He believes that his mistress will pick up the pieces...after all he has promised her all this time that he will leave his wife...only now that day has come does his mistress really want to wash and iron his shirts?
A larger than life cast of believable characters in a Rom com drama for us ladies over 40.
Loved it!
Review copy
January 23, 2015
I found this book by accident when I was looking for a book to cheer me up (I had been reading something about WW2 atrocities and you need something amusing after that). I read the blurb and was intrigued, I downloaded a sample and was hooked. I don't think I've ever read a book twice, back to back, but I did with this one. I don't know what it is about it but I just loved it, and I'm pretty sure that I'm not part of the typical demographic for Sue's work. Funny, uplifting and the people who should get what's coming to them, do! What more could you want?
August 12, 2014
What a delightful tale of revenge.
Never have I looked forward to the downfall of a character more than I have for the dastardly Harry Bourne, what a nasty piece of work he was.
Loved the characters of Carole, Katherine and Jeanette.
Very readable book that I could barely put down.
Never have I looked forward to the downfall of a character more than I have for the dastardly Harry Bourne, what a nasty piece of work he was.
Loved the characters of Carole, Katherine and Jeanette.
Very readable book that I could barely put down.
Read
August 4, 2011A nice light read!
August 14, 2014
Hilarious, got to love harry really, because he was the stupid one after all!
April 7, 2016
Great read
Enjoyed this immensely. Kept me entertained and loved the characters in the book. Wood recommend it , great story line.
Enjoyed this immensely. Kept me entertained and loved the characters in the book. Wood recommend it , great story line.
July 19, 2016
3.5 stars because this book had me smiling while reading and for that I'm grateful.
Good read.
Good read.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews