Our Husband [Mass Market Paperback]

Stephanie Bond (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2000

They're three women with one thing in common...Our Husband.

When they found out about his cheating heart, they wanted to get even. But how even?

Fate has just thrown a curveball at the women in Raymond Carmichael's life-- all three of them. When they meet at his hospital bed, they discover they're all married to the same man. And when Raymond suddenly dies, the police suspect that one of these spunky ladies has commited murder...

The Socialite-- Blonde, post-menopausal, and mad as hell, Beatrix always suspected Raymond married her for her daddy's money...twenty-one years ago.

The Doctor-- a smart, small-town family physician, thirty-five-year-old Nathalie had ironically insisted on only one thing from her husband of seven years...absolute honesty.

The Stripper-- Twenty-one and an exotic dancer, Ruby would have chalked up her brief marriage to a learning experience...if she hadn't been pregnant.

Now they're three women left with a man's betrayal-- and worse, each other. But one thing they each insist-- they didn't kill Raymond. What can they do? Something outrageous and probably impossible: stick together to catch a murderer...

A Selection of the Doubleday Book Club

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In her debut novel, Bond offers readers an enjoyable but predictable read. When traveling prosthetics salesman Raymond Carmichael has an automobile accident, three Mrs. Raymond Carmichaels meet for the first time at his hospital bedside. First wife Beatrix is an aging socialite who uses booze and home shopping to solace the loneliness of a moribund marriage. Second wife NatalieAthe character Bond lets readers know best and who appears to be the most distraught about the turn of eventsAis a harried but good-hearted small-town doctor who has just discovered that Raymond has plundered their marital assets. Ruby, his third bride, is a 20-something stripper with a baby on the way. Raymond soon dies, apparently of a heart attack, leaving the women to cope with his betrayal even as they battle over everything from funeral arrangements to inheritance. The plot thickens further when it is discovered that Raymond was poisoned. Since all three wives have both plenty of motive and access to the poison, they're immediate suspects. Bond's fun and frothy story keeps the plot twists coming and offers up an appealing love interest in pawnbroker Brian Butler, a charmer who is genuinely interested in Natalie and eventually wins over her bruised heart. At the book's center, however, is the transformation of three very different women from enemies into allies. Husbands may come and go, but girlfriendsAhowever unlikelyAare forever. Booksellers should be aware of this talented new author, whose first work reads like an ultra-light twist on Terry MacMillan's Waiting to Exhale. Agent, Ruth Kagle, Jane Rotrosen Agency.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

"I'm going to kill him," says Dr. Natalie Carmichael when she's informed of her husband's car accident shortly after she's found out that Raymond Carmichael, a prosthetic limb salesman, had defaulted on secret loans secured by Natalie's jewelry and inherited home. Arriving at the hospital she discovers that Ray hadn't really divorced Beatrix, his wealthy socialite first wife, and that the shapely young red-haired stripper kissing him is Ruby Lynn, the third Mrs. Carmichael. A sudden heart attack widows all three women, and an autopsy determines that Ray was murdered. As the three fight murder charges and snipe at each other, they realize that they have to find the murderer themselves. Bond's memorable and heart-warming romance is funny, irreverent, and thoroughly enjoyable. Diana Tixier Herald
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks (November 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312975651
• ISBN-13: 978-0312975654
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #762,798 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stephanie Bond was several years into a corporate computer programming career when an instructor in her night school MBA program remarked that she had a flair for writing and encouraged her to submit one of her projects to academic journals. "But," Stephanie says, "all I could think was 'I wonder if I could write a romance novel?'" Bond grew up on a farm in eastern Kentucky where the entertainment choices were few. Luckily, she had a beloved aunt who shared her passion for reading. "When she visited once a year, she brought boxes and boxes of books by Victoria Holt and Phyllis Whitney and lush historicals--I was in heaven! I think I learned most of what I know about world history from historical romance novels. So suddenly thinking about writing in the genre of the books I loved so much was very exciting." After writing every spare moment for two years, Stephanie sold her first romantic comedy manuscript, IRRESISTIBLE? to Harlequin books. Two years later, she walked away from her corporate career to write commercial fiction full time. To date, she's published over 60 romance and mystery projects with various New York publishers, and is most well-known for her BODY MOVERS humorous mystery series. Stephanie lives in midtown Atlanta and is probably working on a new story at the very moment.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A highly entertaining read!, October 28, 2000

By 

Maudeen Wachsmith "BeachReader" (Port Townsend, WA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Our Husband (Mass Market Paperback)

What happens when three very different women find they are married to the same man? And then what happens when he suddenly dies and each becomes a suspect in his murder? Readers will find out in OUR HUSBAND the first single-title release by Stephanie Bond (aka Stephanie Bancroft) who has entertained romance readers with her romantic comedies.

However, OUR HUSBAND isn't really a romance, but a comedy with mystery -- and as such it works very well. The three wives couldn't be any more different from one another -- one is a socialite, one a doctor, and the other a stripper! Readers who enjoy the books of authors such as Olivia Goldsmith and Jane Heller are sure to like this book. Filled with the witty repartee which has become Stephanie Bond's forte, readers will laugh out loud at this very enjoyable, entertaining story. I've enjoyed her books ever since IRRESISTIBLE and am thrilled to continue to follow her as she takes this new path.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Laugh-Filled Delight, December 12, 2000

By 

HeyJudy "heyjudy" (East Hampton, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Our Husband (Mass Market Paperback)

What a clever book! The story opens with three women rushing to a hospital ER, each of them having been contacted that her husband has been in an auto accident. Only after they have gathered at his bedside, all of them wondering who the other two are, do they discover that the beloved spouse has three wives. Unfortunately, he never had bothered to divorce the first two, making him a trigamist. Not only is the premise clever, but the author is able to sustain the pace right to the end. There is some romance here, but only a bit, and calling this a romance novel is inappropriate. The story has more of a feminist feel, with these women dealing with how they've been wronged. And the book is funny, actually very funny. There are points when the dialogue is hilarious. Ms. Bond is a writer of genuine talent, and I eagerly await her next book.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Funny, Memorable Characters and Storyline!, December 14, 2001

By 

Tracy Talley "Book Addict" (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Our Husband (Mass Market Paperback)

I was impressed with this off-beat story about three wives and one dead husband. The humor was rich and the mystery great, it had you wondering althrough who the killer was. This is a first from Ms. Bond and I will be reading more from this talented author!

~Take one blonde socialite, post-menopausal and fuming mad. Beatrix always suspected that her husband Raymond Carmichael married her for her money twenty years ago, but never imagined he would take on two more wives in the process!

Take one smart brunett. A very well respected doctor in a small town. Thirty-five-year-old Natalie had only wanted one thing in her marriage to Ray, honesty. This was the very reason she was ready to kill the man when she found out he was married to two other women!

Take a gorgeous redhead, twenty-one and an exotic dancer. Also married to Ray. The only problem here is she was pregnant from the lying jerk!

Fate has thrown these three mismatched women together when the only husband they have ever known gets into a car crash and ends up in the hospital only to be further shocked when all 3 of his wives show up to see how he is! Suddenly he suffers a massive heart attack and leaves the three angry wives to sift through his muddled life.
Fate is nowhere near done with the women and they find themselves in trouble with the law when they are all suspected of killing the man and conspiring with each other, only they all know each one would never do such a cold-blooded thing.
Clues soon begin to surface and the truth is more shocking than what they had imagined. Now they are all in danger and must trust one another to survive this mess!

Very funny and witty. I will always remember these characters! They were all so different, yet I connected with them all and smiled throughout the book. But I have to say, my favorite was Raymond's first wife Beatrix, she was spunky and no-nonsense. The way she handles the women are nothing less than hysterical. Very enjoyable, but I must say, there isn't much romance in the book, its more of a comedy/mystery. But I didn't mind. The wives more than make up for any romance lost in the pages! Well worth the money!!!

Tracy Talley~@