Trouble in Paradise

Jennifer Greene

 From blind date...
He's divorced, eleven years older and the father of three. Not exactly every girl's Ideal Man. But as soon as reserved bookstore owner Susan meets charismatic Griff Anderson, she's smitten—and just three passion-filled months later, she's his wife.

To instant family...
Their idyllic honeymoon spent restoring a majestic Victorian is cut short when the newlyweds happily—but unexpectedly—find themselves with full custody of his children. Now, instead of enjoying passionate nights and lazy mornings-after with Griff, Susan finds herself thrust into the role of Mom to Tom, Barbara and Tiger. And quarreling with her husband over how to handle the drama that comes with a house full of tweens and teens.
When pet problems, party crashers and pregnancy scares threaten their happiness, Susan can't help but wonder what Griff really wanted: a wife, or a mother for his children?

My Take:

I love when a book focuses on what happens after the "and they all lived happily ever after" line.  Refreshingly, Trouble in Paradise glossed over the initial romance in a few flash backs and instead focused on the very real trials of a not wicked step mother trying to carve out a place in her new family.  It was nice to see the two main characters sort of refalling in love after the very short honeymoon ended and they had to scrape a family together.  While I did enjoy this book, I would not say say that it was something to write home about.  The story was  good (though predictable) the characters were good and the writing was good, but none of these elements were really special or very memorable.  When I was done I said to myself, well that was nice, now what should I read next?  I thought the characters of the book were well fleshed out, not caricatures, as often portrayed in romances.  I especially enjoyed the main character, Susan.  It was fun to see marriage really bring her out of her shell, which is something that I personally related to very much.  Griff was an okay character but again, nothing really special.  If you are looking for a quick read with an endearing and realistic romance, definitely give this book a look.  With all of this in mind, I rate Trouble in Paradise a 3, Find a Used Book Store

Do you agree with my review?  Do you think I'm totally off base?  Either way I'd love to hear from you, be sure to leave a comment and tell me how you feel!

If Trouble in Paradise was a movie, it would likely be rated PG-13 for sexual content and mild language

***FTC Disclosure:  This book was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, no other compensation was given, all opinions are my own***

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