The Stepmother: A Novel and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more

Buy Used
Used - Good See details
$3.09 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
Kindle Edition
 
   
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The Stepmother: A Novel
 
 
Start reading The Stepmother: A Novel on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The Stepmother: A Novel [Hardcover]

Carrie Adams (Author)
3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition --  
Hardcover, Bargain Price $6.60  
Hardcover, March 3, 2009 --  
Paperback, Bargain Price $5.92  

Book Description

March 3, 2009

Bea Frazier was once the apple of her husband's eye—but now he's picked a more succulent fruit. . . .

Bea thought she'd rediscover her incredible self after divorcing Jimmy. But being home alone with three daughters brings her demons back with a vengeance. The only solution is to get her family together again. The trouble is, her ex is about to marry someone else. To get him back she'll have to reveal the guilty secret she never could when they were married. . . .

The "someone else" is Tessa King, who has finally found love. But her knight in shining armor comes with a catch—or four: three sullen daughters and an ex who doesn't seem nearly ex enough. If the split was amicable, then why are all the other women in his life so hostile? After years of singledom, what is Tessa prepared to do to get her happy ending?

As the women negotiate carpools, puberty, and family loyalties, each finds it almost impossible not to fall into the old cliché of the bitter ex and the wicked stepmother. But if Bea and Tessa are brave enough, each may just find a friend where she once sought an enemy.

Absorbing and touching, humorous and honest, The Stepmother reminds us that there is always another side to the story.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Adams follows up 2006's The Godmother with a perceptive chick noir, once again debunking the notion that everything's smooth sailing once you've found the love of your life. Tessa King (heroine of Adams's first novel) has finally nabbed hers: James, an older man with three charming daughters from a previous marriage. These daughters—including daddy's girl extraordinaire, 14-year-old Amber—don't seem so lovely once stepmother-in-waiting Tessa has to deal with their dirty school uniforms and petty jealousies. Nor did Tessa sign up for the emotional baggage of James's ex-wife, Bea, who broke James's heart. With all the angst, how's a girl supposed to plan the perfect white wedding? Meanwhile, Bea—who shares narration duty—still has a torch burning for James and has buried years of regret and guilt under binge eating and, soon, compulsive drinking. Family dramas and crises bring Bea and Tessa together with surprising results. Particularly refreshing are Tessa's and Bea's co-starring roles, which allows Adams to explore in sometimes painful detail how the real work begins once you've got the diamond ring. Fans of Marian Keyes and Emily Giffin will enjoy Adams's engrossing second outing. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Adams’ follow-up to her debut novel, The Godmother (2007), again features Tessa King, a music-company lawyer, single and “pushing forty,” who thinks she has finally found her soul mate. James has been divorced for four years, and spends Wednesdays and weekends with his three daughters, none of whom is interested in seeing their dad remarry, especially 14-year-old Amber. Over and above that problem, their seemingly perfect mother, Bea, still seems to love James, though she was the one to initiate the divorce. Adams takes the reader through a year of the ups and downs of Tessa’s relationship with James and his daughters—the bribery she employs to win the girls’ acceptance, the not-so-warm reactions she gets from Bea’s fiercely loyal friends, and her struggle to balance stepmotherhood with the demands of her high-powered job. With Bea’s alcohol problem, the worsening of Tessa’s mother’s multiple sclerosis, and Tessa’s dad’s sudden death, Adams injects her romantic soap opera with large dollops of pathos, culminating in a fairy-tale ending to this enjoyable and uplifting read. --Deborah Donovan

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 368 pages
  • Publisher: Harper; 1 edition (March 3, 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0061232653
  • ISBN-13: 978-0061232657
  • Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,399,432 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

11 Reviews
5 star:
 (2)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (3)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.1 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyed it but couldn't get over character name mispelling, December 3, 2009
This review is from: The Stepmother: A Novel (Hardcover)
I read The Godmother first and really enjoyed it, so was excited to read The Stepmother, which is a continuation of Tessa's character. It had a couple new characters, as well as several of the same from The Godmother. It was nice because I already felt like I understood some of the characters already, but I was very confused as to why the spelling of Billy turned into Billie in the second book. It seems minor but this change in spelling really annoyed me--could the author not remember how she spelled a character's name?? I even went back to double check the spelling in The Godmother to make sure I wasn't losing my mind (and I wasn't!). Overall, though, I recommend this book, and I actually enjoyed the story line even better than The Godmother.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Not a great follow up, March 17, 2009
By 
This review is from: The Stepmother: A Novel (Hardcover)
Let me start by saying I really liked The Godmother. I thought it was funny and I could not put it down. The Stepmother on the other hand is a complete drag. It still focuses on Tessa, but not enough. I thought the Bea character was dreadful and wanted to slap her the whole book. The author tries to introduce new characters and they just didn't fit while neglecting the old characters. The exploration of the James Kent character did nothing for the book...Tessa deserves better. I also think the reader was jipped by not being able to read about Tessa's wedding. If you read the 1st book I guess you can't help but read this one don't expect much though.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Chick-lit at a new Depressing low..., February 22, 2009
This review is from: The Stepmother (Hardcover)
The step-mother bills itself as an idealized, friendly compitition between two women for one man and even has the gall to have the words "humorous yet achingly real." on the back blurb. If this is in any way real I do NOT want to know either of these women.

First of all, Carrie Adams is just one more 'wimsical british author' who has latched on to the Bridget Jones-train. In effect, she does not have to try to hard as long as she sticks to the formula that all women are competitive messes, who are sisters at heart and may the best-mess get the man.

Bea (the Ex) and Tess ( #2) are the same woman. Basically James, who is never developed past WONDERFUL and PERFECT, falls in love with the same woman. The only difference is that Bea is a self-loathing, over-weight, alcoholic, love-lorn washout and Tessa is the perfect, selfless angel that Bea used to be before she let herself go. Both are door mats and while reading this you will be maddened by the authors inability to give each woman her own voice. That's right, while reading this book you will notice immediately that Bea and Tess have the same tone and inflections to their thoughts and speech. By the end of the novel you will also notice that "sweetpea" is their term of endearment for everyone.

That is NOT good writing.

And the lack of originality , bogged down in two women turning themselves inside out for the elusive James is idealistic only in Hell
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews









Only search this product's reviews



Inside This Book (learn more)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums





Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject