I know romance stories are by definition unrealistic, but this one must surely win the prize for the most ridiculous contrived plot. Crazy! That said, I did keep going to the end because I liked just about all of the characters and many aspects of each character seemed realistic. Let's face it, in a romance novel the plot is just a means tot get characters pairing off. ( )

I’m wincing as I write this review because I am a longtime fan of Rachael Johns, especially her rural romances, but I was disappointed with the The Work Wives.

Mostly because of the plot, though I can’t be specific at the risk of revealing spoilers. I felt the major elements hinged on coincidences that were too contrived, and it had a twist that any crime reader generally regards as a mistake. (And I know this isn’t crime, but it bothered me anyway.) I also found it unnecessarily long at over 500 pages.

I wasn’t that enamoured with two of the main characters either to be honest, though I’m not entirely sure why. Since meeting at the company photocopier, Debra Fast and Quinn Paladino have become good friends, sharing coffee breaks, dim sum lunches, and office gossip. They are friendly outside of work too, but 27-year old Quinn is busy swiping right in a desperate search to find ‘The One’, while 40- something-year-old single mum Deb is content to spend every night at home with her teenage daughter, Ramona. I certainly had sympathy for Deb’ and her history of trauma, I could also empathise with her struggle to accept the change in her relationship with her daughter. Quinn is fun with her ever changing hair colour, and I love that she roller skates everywhere. I also really liked the relationship she formed with her elderly neighbour. Ramona was the strongest character for me. I thought Johns portrayed her teen attitude and ssues authentically.

I’m sure I’ll be in the minority in not really enjoying The Work Wives, I’m still a fan of Rachael Johns, just not of this particular book as a whole. ( )