Series Review: Kiwi Brides by Alexia Praks

Series Review: Is this series worth your time? Does it get better as the novels progress? Or does it get worse? Find out below:

His Hired Girlfriend by Alexia Praks | Kiwi Brides Series

Other books in the series:
 

Series: Kiwi Brides
Author: Alexia Praks
# of Books: 2 (His Hired Girlfriend, Highland Kiss, Book 3)
Book Order: Connected
Complete?: No, A Secret Admirer has yet to be published
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Drama
Heat Rating: cool
Point of View: Third Person

Thoughts:

**This post was originally posted as a Fresh Friday review of the first book of the series. It has now been updated as a DNF series review.**

I got His Hired Girlfriend for free on Amazon and decided to read it right away because it sounded like a lot of fun. While I’m used to reading books about rich men hiring average girls to be their girlfriends I’ve never read one where the guy pretends to be gay so that really interested me.

I think the biggest problem I had with this book is that it is told in the present tense BUT in third person. I’ve never read a book like that before so it really took some getting used to. Unfortunately, I think the book suffered from it because it just gave me the impression that the writing was scattered. One minute we would be getting Alex’s thoughts and then in the next two lines it would be Jay’s. It just confused me more than anything so I couldn’t get into the story as much as I wanted.

When we first met Alex, I really liked her. Same with Jay. But I just felt like their character development wasn’t the smoothest and they got a little irritating. For example, Alex just seemed really dim-witted about certain things and that frustrated me at times. She also never seemed consistent in her convictions. In one minute she was shy to be around Jay with clothes on and in the next she has no problem with him seeing her in her underwear. It just didn’t make sense to me.

The plot itself is cliché but I think that is pretty much expected so that didn’t bother me too much. This book reminded me of watching a soap opera because things are a little over the top at times and it follows a predictable path. I found with the way that this book was written it made for following the plot a little confusing at times. I’m also really confused as to why Jay (who is American) was in Sydney, Australia with his girlfriend and best friend at the start of the novel for him and his girlfriend’s anniversary–like to me that screams warning bells in my head.

Unlike other books, we don’t really get introduced to the character(s) in the next books. Briefly we meet Ruby, heroine of Highland Kiss, who discusses her impending trip abroad but not enough for me to really want to read her story. So I will be passing on the rest of the series.

Overall:

This book was disappointing in the sense that it could have been a lot more entertaining if the writing style was different and the characters were better developed. For a free read, I didn’t mind so much but I would have been very disappointed if I paid for it and this is what I got.

Rating: 2/5

Similar Reads: Faking it to Making It by Ally Blake and Break by Vanessa Waltz

Synopsis for His Hired Girlfriend (from Goodreads):
Family oriented Alexandra Stewart is in desperate need of money for her dad’s heart surgery. She is stoked when Jayden McCartney unexpectedly barges in to her life and offers to help. On ONE condition. She must pretend to be his girlfriend. One look at Jay tells her to run in the opposite direction. He is too good looking, too successful, and too rich for her liking. When she is told Jay is gay; however, she feels sorry for him and, thinking that she’d kill two birds with one stone, agrees to the proposal. Now the only problem is how does she prevent herself from falling madly in love with Jay? When the way he looks at her makes her heart tremble and his touches set her body on fire?

Hot, recently single Jayden McCartney has to bring his girlfriend to his sister’s wedding in order to stop the matchmaking his grandmother has planned for him. Not in the mood for dating or a new woman after the discovery of his cheating ex, he hires a perfect candidate as his girlfriend in Alexandra Stewart. Alex, however, thinks he’s crazy and only when he commits a sinful lie that would damned his manhood forever does she agree to help. He convinces her that he is gay and that the possibility of his family finding out would ruin them financially and socially. Now Jay has to pretend to be batting for the other team. This is no easy task where the geeky turn sexy Alex is concerned because he wants her in his bed, and what Jay wants, he gets.