Off the Shelf: A Review of Trophy Wife by Noelle Adams

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are my own.

Allison got away from her controlling, possessive husband and goes to her family’s rural home in order to reevaluate and establish herself as a strong, independent woman. The two perks of the location (no rent, no ‘old friends’ who scoff at her new poor personality) vastly outweigh staying in Charlotte with her husband and her old society friends. But her society-focused marriage didn’t leave much time to further her education or work on her dream of owning a jewelry boutique. Her resume leaves a lot to be desired and the job she thinks is in the can (a secretarial position at a dental office) is denied. She needs something to keep her from running back to Charlotte. But she has no plans of staying locally for very long.

Rob was the hometown hero, leading multiple sports teams to victory in high school. But two bad marriages prompt him to swear off finding Mrs. Right and focus on his work and his schedule. He makes himself available whenever his second ex-wife or stepdaughter explode, but he spends a lot of time away from himself. When he sees a new attractive neighbor across the street he tries to shake off his attraction, but his good heart wins over and calls in a big favor to help her score a job.

Neither of them are looking for a relationship, but Allison and Rob are inexplicably drawn to one another. Can Rob look past his past ‘wins’ and losses and can Allison think of herself as anything buy just a prize to be won? Only time will tell.

Trophy Wife is the first Noelle Adams book I have read, and I really enjoyed how Adams put together her characters. They say every story has been told, but I liked that the character of Allison wasn’t overtly helpless–she tried to do everything she could, but of course sometimes she couldn’t do something. Additionally, Rob’s character could have been considered a pushover, but Adams’ depiction was great at not just going to type.

Who would read this: I think Trophy Wife is a great book for any lady who may have experienced a bad relationship or a mid-life setback that made her re-evaluate things. Just remember, it is NEVER too late to follow your dream, even if you have to work on it during your ‘off’ time.

Time to Read: 1 1/2 hours (this is a really quick read!), and it was fun and totally worth it!

Rating: I don’t read a lot of romance-type novels, but Allison’s character was well-developed and sympathetic. Rob’s character was just hot.

Funny Story: I have a copy of another novel of Noelle’s that I picked up on Amazon a LONG time ago. I’m definitely going to pick it up now. How cool is that?

Final thoughts: I feel like this needs to be part of a series. I love the town and the characters. Additionally, I felt like there was something big about Allison’s ex-husband and his job that wasn’t really spelled out in the book (but that may have lead to her parents change in status). I love that Allison starts to live her life, and gives herself permission to do so.

For more information about Barclay’s tour of Trophy Wife, and the chance to win a $50 Amazon giftcard, click on my previous blog tour post for details.