The Perfect Wife

This was so funny. I really enjoy Linsay Sands historicals. This one is going into my keeper shelf. The heroine has a bad self-image of herself, but the hero finds her beautiful.

(WARNING POSSIBLE SPOILER)...........I keep laughing just thinking about the sceen where she didn't lose enough weight to fit into her wedding gown, so her mother and her maid binds her so tight to make her fit that she can't breath, or bend, or walk! She thinks her cheeks are too round that she is sucking them in like a fish! The groom is wondering what's wrong with ther face and worried that he has married someone so "delicate" she may not survive the hard medieval times they live in.

This was a laugh out loud funny book with wonderful characters. Paen and Avelyn were the perfect match. I loved how there was no disagreement between these characters, no fighting, just misunderstanding that didn't lead to arguments. I loved Paen's "praise" of Avelyn. That made me laugh. If you like a book that makes you laugh this is one for you. Lynsay Sands just proved how well she does at writing comedy.

Lynsay Sands has penned another charming historical tale, with a dear heroine females will take to her heart. As Avelyn faces her approaching wedding day, she is riddled with fears. Her wedding gown is suddenly a wee bit too "tight". Our lass is buxom lady, and used to her independence. She wants a husband, but doesn't "need" one. As the day approaches she nearly frets herself to death fearing her betrothed - Paen Gerville - will be repulsed by his pleasingly plump bride. She tries to remake herself - hide those few extra pounds and pretend she is biddable. Only, Avelyn is too used to running her holding and doesn't believe she can be the perfect wife - think and he subservient.

Paen wants just the opposite. To him the perfect wife is a full-figured lass who has a brain and mouth to match. He relished his new bride has something to cuddle and wants an equal, a helpmate, not a servant. In typical Sands style, Avelyn blunders along trying to force herself to be what she thinks is the perfect wife. Instead of winning the love of Paen, she causes Paen to think he's made a mistake in marrying her.

Avelyn has to learn she can be loved just the way she is. It's a warm, gentle tell that reminds us all to be who we are!

The first half of the book was about Avelyn and Paen making incorrect assumptions about each other. They were good-hearted yet simple-minded, naive people who made stupid mistakes resulting in calamities and injuries. Some readers might enjoy the humor of these situations, I did not. A few examples follow in Spoilers below, for readers to judge for themselves. The last part of the book was better. There was a subplot with some twists I had not expected. Someone was threatening someone else's life.

Story brief: Avelyn and Paen were betrothed to each other when they were young, by their parents. Paen has been fighting in the Crusades for many years and just returned. He doesn't know much about women. He comes to Avelyn's family to marry her and take her to his home. Avelyn is plump. Her mean cousins have been making fun of her weight for years, causing Avelyn to be self conscious.

CAUTION SPOILERS (examples of the type of humor in the book):
Avelyn has her seamstress make the wedding dress too small as a motivation to lose weight. She asks the seamstress to keep this a secret. She doesn't lose the weight. She has nothing else to wear. On the wedding day, her mother binds her body with linen so Avelyn will fit into her dress. She can barely breathe. She can't walk and has to be carried to the altar. When kissed she faints from lack of air. At the wedding dinner, the bindings break and the dress seams split in front of everyone.

On her wedding night, Avelyn thinks Paen won't like her body so she tries to put out the candle while they are in bed. She accidentally knocks it over. It causes a fire. Paen tries to put out the fire using his clothes then his hands. The result is he has no clothes and his hands are bandaged for 2 weeks.

Because of the bandages, Paen avoids making love to his wife, because he thinks it won't be good for her. She thinks he doesn't want her because of her weight.

Paen's mother tells him he should compliment Avelyn more. Paen hands her an apple, slaps her rear and says "good." That's what he does to his horse to show affection.

Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: five. Setting: eleventh century (or later) England. Copyright: 2005. Genre: historical romance.

P.S. To C.B. Thank you for recommending this. I may not have liked it as much as you, but I'm grateful for your thoughts.

For a list of my reviews of other Lynsay Sands books, see my 5 star review of "Love is Blind" posted 1/22/07.

THE PERFECT WIFE is another `perfect read' I have come to associate with anything Lynsay Sands puts her writing brilliance to. Having discovered Lynsay by way of her early medieval novels THE DEED, and THE KEY, I was thrilled to see her setting this story in that same medieval era.

In this story, the lead heroine is Avelyn, a well-rounded, buxom lass who is fast approaching her wedding day to Paen de Gerville, a young man returned from crusades. Having been betrothed in early childhood Avelyn hardly remembers him or what he looks like. Consequently, over the years she has been mercilessly taunted by her three cousins about her weight so much so that her self-esteem has hit a new low. Determined to lose weight before the wedding she instructs the seamstress to take in her wedding gown a few sizes smaller than her size! UNFORTUNATELY, her dieting efforts were about as successful as my own, and she does not fit into her wedding dress. From this begins a calamity of events that lead Paen (who truth be told was looking forward to a pleasingly plump bride to warm his bed) to believe his bride to be frail and accident prone. What follows are a plethora of comical misunderstandings, each funnier than the last, between the two leads that will leave you with a bellyache from laughter.

*** This was for me another laugh-out-loud hysterical read that seems to be the trademark of Ms. Sands. The heroine of Avelyn was simply delightful and one that most women can relate to, especially with weight related self-conscious issues. The reader will fall in love with Avelyn who after so many embarrassing incidents let's her natural optimism and kindness carry the day. Paen is also another darling character to love who after being away at war for so many years needed lessons in how to interact towards his wife and not pat her on the head as he would his hounds or his horse. In addition, Sands skillfully weaves in the subplot of someone trying to dispatch Avelyn to the great beyond which also had some lighter moments. The laughs were pretty much non-stop in this delightful story that was supported by secondary characters including both of their engaging lovable parents, a young bumbling squire, and the biggest surprise of all -- a little piglet that ends up as the hero of the day! Sands has been an auto-buy for me for years and continues to solidify that standing. Her books should all be stamped "Satisfaction - GUARANTEED"!

Marilyn Rondeau, RIO - Reviewers International Organization

Okay, I've read some of the other reviews, and I was literally taken aback by the cluelessness of some. Avelyn was NOT dimwitted or a twit she was just insecure. Insecurity can definately short wire the brain on occasions. Also it was charming that even though her newfound husband made some serious feux pas himself that she didn't ridicule him, she just went with the flow. That, in my opinion, had a lot to do with making her look incompetant. Avelyn was a beautifully written character with much of the self doubt that a lot of women have today. Granted it wasn't because her boobs weren't big enough or her nose was like pinnochio but it was because she was overweight. You really don't see that in ANY of the romances today. It was a lovely change.

Ms. Sands did a superb job in catching the character's spirit as a large girl. The fact that her confidence was helped by her husband falling in love with her no matter what she looked like, was the icing on the cake. True beauty DOES come from within. If it didn't, I know for a fact that I wouldn't now be married to the high school jock. Bravo Lynsay!!

(SPOILER ALERT!)
Though I am a fan of Lyndsay Sands humerous novels, I personaly didn't enjoy this one. i found it too drawn out and tedious and frustrating. I know there are cruel people like Avelyn's cousins but I don't want to read about there constant demeaning of her. I wish she could have been a stronger heroine and put them in their place. Also the constant misunderstanding and miscommunication between hero and heroine did not make this an enjoyable read to me.

The Perfect Wife is a perfect treasure! Avelyn and Paen are both wonderfully likeable and caring people. Because he spent so many years fighting in the Crusades, Paen was so obviously clueless about how to interact with his wife, yet he was observant enough to see - and deal with - Avelyn's low self-esteem caused by those nasty cousins. Thank you, Lynsay Sands, for this beautiful falling-in-like and falling-in-love story!

A lighthearted romance, but not one of Ms. Sand's best. A predictable conclusion, and characters that weren't as well developed as those in her earlier books. Worth reading, but may be better as a library loan.

I love this author! This book was funny and engaging. I finished it in one day.