The majority of the time when I want to browse a bookstore, I go to Barnes & Noble. There are a few reasons why I prefer Barnes to Borders. The original reason I started using Barnes was proximity to my work. It is easy for me to go on my lunch, spend time browsing, and still make it back to work on time. Now I go to Barnes most of the time. I know where everything is, I feel comfortable there, I have a preferred card, and I earn points towards a gift certificate and an additional discount by using a Barnes & Noble charge card. It almost feels like Barnes is paying me to buy books. (Which is a dream of mine. Be paid by Barnes to read books and review them on my blog.) One evening in January, I was shopping near Borders. I decided to drop in. Borders always has a great sale on quality paperbacks. That sale will get me every time! While I was browsing, a seller asked me if I needed any assistance. I asked him to point me to a book. We started a conversation, he recommended, "A Reliable Wife," to me. I looked at it and said no. I do not like period books. It looked like a Harlequin Romance novel. The seller talked the book up and convinced me to buy it. I have mentioned before that I regularly judge books by the cover. This is an example of a great book I would have missed by doing that.
Some of the reviews on the back of the book: Intoxicating, suspenseful, beautifully written, brilliant, engrossing, and addictive. I agree with all of that. Is it a love story, a mystery, a thriller? All of the above and more! A man places an ad in a Chicago paper for a "reliable wife." She responds that she is "a simple, honest woman." She is not simple, plain, or honest. Ralph Truitt had more plans for Catherine than marriage. Catherine's plan is marry Ralph, slowly kill him, become a very wealthy woman. They are not who they appear to be. The plot twists and turns and always stays interesting. When you think you have it figured out, there will be another turn. It is rare that I do not know how a book will end. This was a pleasant surprise over and over. Who is good, who is evil? Hard to tell. I gave this book my highest rating, 5.
2 comments:
Oh my a 5!!!! I will add this to my must read list. I like the cover, I would have picked this up.
You know, I've seen this in Borders on the sale shelves every time I go in there and like you, I've been turned off by the period and the cover. I'll have to go and get it.
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