Nerd Gone Wild

Nerd #3

by Vicki Lewis Thompson

Inheriting a fortune means less to Ally Jarrett than fulfilling her real to take off for the wilds of Alaska and photograph animals. Unfortunately she's also inherited her grandmother's personal assistant-an over-protective nerd who couldn't survive a snowball fight.

As a PI and bodyguard, Mitchell Caruthers is the perfect man to protect his late employer's granddaughter. However, keeping his geek-masquerade-and the secret behind his real mission-isn't easy when the freeze between Ally and Mitchell begins to melt.

Yet all's not well in this sub-zero paradise. Ally's bad seed uncle is staking a claim on the family inheritance with a dangerous masquerade of his own. With Ally's life in danger, it's time for her right-hand nerd to expose the real man undercover, and prove himself to the vulnerable body he's been hired to guard...

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Fiction, Humor, Comedy

Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

New York Times and USA Today bestseller Vicki Lewis Thompson believes love makes the world go around and laughter makes the trip worth taking. The recipient of RWA’s Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award and the author of more than ninety books, Vicki pioneered a new kind of romance hero with Nerd in Shining Armor. Following the success of her nerd stories, Vicki launched a boisterous paranormal series featuring a matchmaking witch and wizard, an ADD dragon named George, and a black cat inspired by her own precocious feline, Eve.

Reviews

[Jessica's Totally Over The Top Book Obsession · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Mitch isn't a nerd Stars



Okay I don't know what is going on with this series. It is suppose to be a series about nerds. In the last book Harry didn't really feel like a nerd and in this book Mitch wasn't a nerd. Mitch was a bodyguard and PI posing as a nerd! WTF? I was promised nerds dammit and I want me some nerds!!!



That being said this book was great. Ally and Mitch were very cute together. All the side characters where great and had fun personalities. Nerd Gone Wild had a good plot, flowed nicely and was very funny. I just wish Mitch would have been a nerd. But with that being my only problem this was a cute 4 star read! I hope the next book has a real nerd. Just sayin'.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"But, oh, sweet heaven. She was sitting across from a Fruit of the Loom poster boy ... She'd begun to suspect that Mitchell J. Caruthers, Jr., might be hiding a babe-magnet body underneath his nerd clothes." With a description like this, does it matter what color his eyes are?

This is my first book by Vicki Lewis Thompson and I have to say it was entertaining. Not a lot of depth, true, but the emotions and the sweetness and the hotness were definitely there. Her writing style is reminiscent of Jennifer Crusie, my all-time favorite romantic comedy author.

Ally Jarrett has inherited a fortune from her grandmother, but in the process she has also inherited her grandmother's nerdy assistant, Mitchell, who was hired to manage her grandmother's estate. When Ally decides to take up wildlife photography in Alaska, Mitchell follows her. What she doesn't know is that Mitchell's nerdiness is a disguise - he is a PI/bodyguard hired by her grandmother to protect Ally from a greedy uncle with plans to trick her out of her fortune (or worse). Ally and Mitchell have their HEA after a great deal of fast-paced drama, a romantic dinner of moose-meat pie and a very HOT game of strip poker.

This book is worth reading just for the subplot with Ally's Uncle Kurt and his S&M lovin' girlfriend, Vivian, alone. There is also a fun subplot with "Kitty-Cat" and "Poopsie" and cast of eccentric characters in the sex-crazed, roadkill eating Alaskan town of Porcupine.

Not a lot of nerd-speak or geekiness going on in this book. I've noted that complaint in past reviews and I have to agree with it (after all I'm married to a computer geek!) but this is still a book that I highly recommend if you're looking for a fun read.

[Eastofoz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gets a weak 4 stars for me and only because of the poker scene and the villains Uncle Kurt and his psycho girlfriend Vivian--they steal the show!

The main story never really takes off. Ally is a bit too naive/I-can-do-it for my taste and Mitchell needed some more oomph because he's not a real nerd.

I was expecting a lot of humour (I've been told it's the best in the series) but there's not as much as I thought there would be and there aren't any real laugh out loud funny scenes like you'd find with Sandra Hill or Linda Howard.

The twisted villains, especially Vivian, are very well-written. She's this crazed nympho and her boyfriend Kurt is this submissive loser. The book is pretty sedate in terms of sex scenese between the h/h and then suddenly these two turn up and you're thinking "Ok! Holy left field there!".

The secondary characters are cute--sex crazed Betsy is a funny one with her parlor room.

The book is almost borderline chick lit which I don't really like. More romance was needed between the h/h as well as more "action" in terms of building up the sexual tension.

[Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

This whole series has been kinda ridiculous and silly, but I keep randomly picking up the next book out of some strange sense of curiosity. I never really expect the book to be anything better than ok, and it's months and months in between reads, but I still some how keep reading.

This story was no exception, it's absurd with no real surprises, but still somehow it ends up being entertaining if nothing else. The main characters are fine and while I thought both Ally and Mitch were being ridiculously stupid at times I was still cheering for them to work it out and talk to each other. I think part of what made this book entertaining was the fascinating cast of side characters. They all made me smile and I enjoyed them immensely.

The plot was simple enough, young heiress with an uncle written out of the will. Ok sure the bodyguard necessary plot line made a little sense, but his whole I'm going to disguise myself as a nerd and not tell her anything subplot was a bit ridiculous. It especially became that way the further into the story you got when you realized that Ally wasn't ever going to question what he said despite his actions contradicting his nerd label.

Ultimately the book was ok, not great, but still mostly entertaining if absurd.

[Julianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviewed for THC Reviews
"3.5 stars" Nerd Gone Wild is the third book in Vicki Lewis Thompson’s Nerds series. However, to the best of my knowledge, they’re only connected by the nerd theme and have no common plot lines or characters. In this one, we have Ally who just inherited a fortune from her grandmother, Madeline, and has decided to go to Alaska to pursue her dream of becoming a wildlife photographer. Her hero is Mitchell, a PI/bodyguard who Madeline hired before she passed to look after both Ally and her fortune to protect her from gold-diggers and particularly from her Uncle Kurt who is envious of being left out of the will. Because Madeline knew her independent niece would likely resent having a guard dog around, Mitchell has been working undercover in a nerdy, pencil-pusher persona, acting as a personal assistant who’s taking care of estate matters, while covertly performing bodyguard duty. Thus far, Ally has found him to be rather annoying, so she’s happy to finally be in the tiny town of Porcupine, Alaska to take some photos. Then Mitchell shows up, ostensibly to get her to sign some papers. Ally just wants to get it over with so he can turn right around and head back to L.A., but a blizzard prevents him from leaving. They’re also stuck sharing a connecting bathroom at the only hotel in town. Needless to say, this leads to some sexual tension. Mitchell has had the hots for Ally for a while, and Ally slowly starts to see him as more than just a nerd. But their little sojourn in this quirky, winter wonderland is about to turn dangerous when Kurt shows up with his new girlfriend, Vivian, in tow. They’ve come up with a scheme to relieve Ally of her money by having Viv pretend to be a wildlife photographer whom Ally admires and getting her to invest in all kinds of things to promote her photography endeavors. But when Viv gets impatient, she’s prepared to resort to murder to get at Ally’s fortune, forcing Mitchell to reveal his true reason for being there in order to save the woman he loves.

Ally’s parents died when she was young, so she was raised by her grandmother, Madeline, who gave her everything she could possibly need. Family is far more important to Ally than money, though, so when Madeline passed, it left Ally in a vulnerable state. When her step-uncle, Kurt contacted her, she wanted to get to know him better as her last living relative. Even though she knew Madeline hated him, her grandmother never told her why, so Ally thinks he seems nice and starts to trust him. They’ve come up with a plan to meet in Porcupine with Kurt promising to bring along a famed wildlife photographer to teach Ally the ropes, so she can pursue her dream. But both Mitchell’s arrival and the blizzard put a damper on her plans. However, being stuck in the hotel and sharing a bathroom with Mitchell help her start to see him in a new light. She’d be happy to just have no-strings sex with him, but she’s reluctant to get involved, fearing that his tender geek heart couldn’t handle a casual relationship. One thing leads to another, though, and eventually she finds out what a hot body he has and just how good he is in bed, making it difficult for her to let go. Then danger comes calling and she finds out exactly why Mitchell is really there, which could lead to some trouble in paradise. For an heiress to a fortune Ally is very down to earth, although I have to admit, I’m not entirely sure where that part of her persona came from. She was basically raised with every comfort, so for her to want to earn her way and be so accepting of the oddball residents of Porcupine seemed a little off. However, I’m not complaining, because it made her a much more likable character. The only thing about her that gave me pause was her willingness to still trust her uncle even after Mitchell revealed the reason for Madeline’s dislike (a very serious allegation), which should have made her want to stay away. But otherwise, she was a good heroine.

Unlike the first two heroes of this series, Mitchell is kind of a pseudo-nerd. He admits to being rather geeky through middle school, but by high school, he’d reinvented himself as a cooler dude, one who’s adventurous, rides a motorcycle, and now owns a private investigations and security business. Madeline hired him to look after Ally and her fortune after she was gone, and he’s been trying to do just that in his undercover nerd persona. He wants to tell Ally the real reason he followed her to Alaska—that he fears her uncle may try to take advantage of her—but feeling obligated to stick to Madeline’s plan, he has to make up all sorts of excuses that he hopes won’t give him away. One thing that’s real, though, is his attraction to Ally, so sharing a bathroom with her at the hotel is an exercise in self-control. After a spontaneous kiss in the snow, he doesn’t want to hide it anymore and makes that fact known, but getting her on board with some red-hot lovin’ that will probably be nothing more than a casual fling is harder than he thought it might be. However, a chilly night of boredom leads to a steamy game of strip poker that gets them both too hot and bothered to say no anymore. But when Mitch has to ride to the rescue and reveal his real reasons for being there, Ally might not be too happy about it. By the end of the story, Mitch admits that he’s still kind of geeky, but it definitely wasn’t in the way that the first two series heroes were. That’s not to say I didn’t like him, though. He’s definitely a cinnamon roll, nice guy whose priority is looking out for Ally’s well-being, both financially and physically. I like that he’s supportive of her dreams and wants what’s best for her, so he was a pretty good hero even if he wasn’t quite as nerdy as I’d hoped he’d be.

Just like with the first two books of the series, Nerd Gone Wild is populated by a colorful cast of supporting characters. There’s Betsy, the owner of the historic hotel that was a former whorehouse, something of which she’s quite proud. She’s sweet on next-door neighbor and tap-dancing bar owner Clyde. We have Rudy, who runs the equivalent of an airport shuttle service. His true love left him because he keeps his “ladies” (chickens) in the house and he couldn’t give her “multis” (orgasms), but he’s pining to win her back. There’s bartender and chainsaw artist with questionable artistic skills Dan, and hippie-dippie general store owner Serena. And lastly there’s town drunk and dog sled operator, Ernie, who’s clearly an alcoholic, but no one seems to care, instead plying him with more alcohol whenever he becomes unmanageable. I have to admit that while I’ve heard that Alaskans can sometime be a bit eccentric, these characters were a little over the top to the point of pretty much being caricatures of every small town stereotype imaginable. The same was true of the villains, Kurt and Vivian. They’re purely mercenary, only going after Ally for the money, while also being complete parodies of BDSM practitioners. Nothing about their Domme/sub relationship was in any way realistic, and I didn’t think that Kurt’s role as a sub jived with Madeline’s big secret about him at all. It just didn’t make much sense, but I’ve come to realize that these books are just ridiculous fun, so I tried to simply go with it.

Overall, my enjoyment of Nerd Gone Wild ended up somewhere in between the first two books. I liked it a little better than book one, but not quite as well as book two. It definitely had some of the same issues I recognized in the first book, namely the over-exaggerated characterizations of the supporting players and a lack of actual romance between our protagonists. As with both of the other books in the series, I felt like I was being hit over the head repeatedly with Ally and Mitchell’s sexual attraction, when a little more subtlety would have been nice. I honestly felt like much of that was being told rather than shown, too, so I wasn’t really sensing much of a connection between them until they finally made love for the first time. Even then, they’re still thinking it’s only going to be a fling, so the realization that they’re in love kind of came from out of nowhere. However, I did like both Ally and Mitchell as individual characters, and thought that they were good together once they got over their enemies-to-lovers vibe. Aside from a lack of foreplay, their steamy times were pretty well done, too, and I enjoyed Mitch’s grand gesture at the end to make up for deceiving Ally about his real identity. I also liked the opposite-sides-of-the-track twist that cast Ally as the millionaire, while Mitch was the one who didn’t have a lot of money. Even though the townspeople were a bit over the top, their hearts were in the right place, and they could sometimes be good for a little amusement. The ending was pretty good as well, and if a book ends on a strong note, I can sometimes forgive other weaknesses. All things considered, Nerd Gone Wild ended up a half-step above an okay read for me, but it had too many issues to quite make it to the “good” level. I’ve never been a big fan of slap-stick comedy, which might be part of the problem, so anyone who enjoys this type of humor will probably like this book more than I did.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can not finish.
Vicki Lewis Thompson, you do not know nerds. I love nerds. You keep bad-mouthing nerds. You keep making the nerd secretly a jock instead of secretly a super awesome guy who is a nerd.
This heroine was so stupid. Too stupid to live.

[Nancy H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Alaska, this romance has just the right amount of suspense to keep you turning pages. When new heiress Ally goes to Alaska to kick off her new career as a wildlife photographer, she didn't count on her grandmother's accountant showing up purportedly with estate papers for her to sign, especially when he turns out to be much different than she thought. She also didn't count on someone else showing up, someone who wants her dead. The small Alaskan town of Porcupine has lots of folks who want to help and protect her, and she is touched by their concern and friendship. When her trip also includes lots of hot sex that she wasn't expecting, things get very interesting. This is definitely a good read.

[Barbi Huhn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so fun to read!
Ally Jarrett is an heiress who decides to run off to Porcupine, Alaska to meet her estranged Uncle Kurt. He’s going to introduce her to her idol photographer so she can become a wildlife photographer. But, she’s followed by Mitchell Carruthers, a nerd who worked for her late grandmother and won’t leave her alone.
Add in the crazy residents of Porcupine to include, Betsy, who owns the Loose Moose hotel (a former brothel), Clyde a tap dancing bartender, Rudy the chicken guy, and Dave a chainsaw artist who makes really “interesting art”.
The story that unfolds in this book is entertaining and keeps you turning pages to see what happens next.

[Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loose Moose Lodge. *snicker* Good stuff. =)

[Maha · Rating 1 out of 5]

was forced by my friends to read it bc it was BAD., but it was somehow even worse than I could have ever expected

[Samantha · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ally Jarrett is a deprived rich girl who after her grandmother kicks the bucket is finally able to reach out and do what she wants with her life. Unfortunately, before her grandmother died she appointed Ally a secret bodyguard who has been posing as the grandmother’s personal assistant, Mitchell. When Ally travels to Alaska in order to pursue her dream of becoming a professional photographer, Mitch is right behind her. Suddenly, Ally finds herself stuck in a small town with an annoying nerd and a strange assortment of people whose favorite topic of discussion is sex.

I picked up this book knowing the guy was a fake nerd, but I thought they would’ve played the nerdiness up a bit more. Instead, he only seems really nerdy in the very beginning and only for a few pages before his “true colors” start coming through. The plot was eh and Ally and Mitch tended to bore me sometimes. I ended up skimming through most of this book. The only really redeeming quality of this book was the fact that the writing was good just the plot and main characters were lacking and also the side characters were great. I loved them; they were all such a great assortment of eccentric odd-balls.

[Maria Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nerd #3

Another hot male story, this one has Mitchell, who was hired by Manderly,to take care of the estate by managing the daily details, plus keeping it financially in order and to keep her granddaughter Ally protected from her uncle who would be after the estate after she died, despite receiving an annual allotment. The uncle felt he was due more.
Ally made a sudden decision to go to Alaska, to supposedly meet the famous wildlife photographer, whom her uncle claimed to know well and he had arranged for this woman to tutor Ally. All of this was to occur in the town of Porcupine, Alaska. He , the uncle, intended to scam Ally out of her money.
Mitchell flies up to Alaska to keep an eye on Ally, while still indigenous persona of security executive officer who has needed paperwork for her perusal and signature. He also has a secret crush on Ally.
Like all books by this author, the men are super intoned to satisfying women.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main story with Ally and Mitch was cute. I liked the Porcupinians, even though they were a bit ridiculous. It would be a fluffy three-star read for me, except for the villains. Vivian was ridiculously 2D and Kurt was super inconsistently characterized. The author threw in almost offhand that Kurt had sexually assaulted his step-mother without ever addressing how appalling that is. Otherwise, he's played as a semi-likeable character whose main fault is not having enough spine to stand up to Vivian. Blech. Also, points deducted for kink-shaming. Kurt's interest in being dominated is written as a character flaw, proof that he's weak.

[Tammy Downing · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quite enjoyable story about a young woman who goes to Alaska to become a wildlife photographer after her rich grandmother dies. She is followed by the man her grandmother hired to watch over her. They start out not liking each other but the inevitable happens. Throw in a morally bankrupt uncle and his wild girlfriend as well as a town full of very interesting characters and you have a fun story.

[Susi Pierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the book

Ally led a sheltered life with the loss of her parents, jet grandmother had raised her. !Mitchell had been hired to watch her. After grandma passed she left Ally everything. Stepson and girlfriend tried to scam, but Ally didn't fall for scam. Mitch fell in love with her, but didn't feel good enough for her. Ally originally thought he was dork, but she slowly changed her mind ANF fell in love with him.

[Marlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific storyline and funny...

As an adult read, you will love this book to the max. I sit here smiling because it is that sort of book. Rich gal with dreams of a professional wildlife photographer in the outer reaches of Alaska finds more than wolves and birds. The man who changes her life in more ways than you can believe, is a nerd (or is he)? Loved the book.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Among the tales spun by Vickie, this particular story has claimed the throne as my favorite so far. While I've delved into many of her works, this story, in its playful essence, has beguiled me with its charm. I've ventured through its pages twice already, and I wouldn't be surprised if I embarked on the journey once more.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a light and fun read: the tension between Mitch and Ally was pretty steamy, Betsy was a riot, and all in all, I really enjoyed this cute story. I'm just curious as to what Mitch plans to do as a career post-HEA lol :)

[Hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing Series So Far

I love these nerds! It has been a while since I've read a book that sucked me in and had me emotionally vested, completely! Cheers to Ms. Vicki! On to the next one!

[Alexis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mitchell was not a real nerd hero.
Ally was extremely clueless for more than half the book.
Everyone else was way over-the-top.
I remember enjoying the previous books from Vicki Lewis Thompson's Nerds series much more than this one. I like her writing but, this one just wasn't for me.

[Bethany D. Chappetta · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me a really long time to read this book. It was super cute and the two main characters had pretty good chemistry...but even the kooky townspeople couldn’t keep me overly interested. I read a few other books in between.

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

So funny! this is the only book I read in the nerds series, I didn't know there were more books and I'm happy that you don't have to read them in order to understand what is happening in the current book your reading.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought I was in the mood for a quirky, funny, lighthearted romance, but this one wasn't working for me. I could not get a good feel for either of the main characters and quit 1/4 of the way through.

[Debra McEathron · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read. ally is an heiress and needs to be protected from relatives that want her money but not her. Mitch is the body-guard/nerd that was hired to protect her. The people of Porcupine Alaska are a fun group.

[Johanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny

The story is fun and characters lovable. An epilogue would have been nice as a way to see past the end. Looking forward to the next one in the series.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Especially the ending.

[Manoa Roland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book and I am read it again online

[Lynnette · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s Alaska, baby!

A full cast of nutty townspeople, 2 MCs who are falling in love against their will and a truly evil woman make for a nonstop tale.

[Silverluna · Rating 5 out of 5]

:)

[Sharon Macon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it