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ksteigert's review
5.0
Jessa is fairly sure that Clark Wilder hates her. After all, everytime she has seen him, he basically grunts at her or won't make eye contact. So, she is slightly nervous when her best friend has to back out of the wilderness trip Clark leads, that they booked together. Then things go from bad to worse when her jerk ex-husband shows up on the trip with the woman he left her for. When smarmy ex is introducing her to his new flame, she is humiliated until Clark comes to her rescue and pretends that the two of them have been dating, so she can save face.
Clark's wife, Emma, died two years ago, and he hasn't allowed himself to move on. He's always found her friend, Jessa, atttractive but feels awful about it. Nobody is more surprised than he is when he comes to the rescue of Jessa by pretending they are in a relationship.
As the two of them pretend to be together, Clark realizes this may be the solution to getting his well meaning family off his back about getting back out in the dating world. Neither of them are ready for a relationship, so fake dating seems like the perfect answer.
This is the third book in the Wilder Adventures series (but can easily be read as a stand alone). Of all the brothers in the Wilder family, I was the most concerned about how a rom com would work for Clark, having lost his wife. Serena Bell does a beautiful job of healing both of these characters in this book. Each has had a very different trauma in their past relationship, and both are allowed to grieve in their own way. As always, the chemistry that she writes in her characters is just off the charts amazing, and the quick witted banter between them is perfection.
I loved this newest book, and I absolutely cannot wait for more in the series!
Thanks so much to Jelsba Media Group for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
Clark's wife, Emma, died two years ago, and he hasn't allowed himself to move on. He's always found her friend, Jessa, atttractive but feels awful about it. Nobody is more surprised than he is when he comes to the rescue of Jessa by pretending they are in a relationship.
As the two of them pretend to be together, Clark realizes this may be the solution to getting his well meaning family off his back about getting back out in the dating world. Neither of them are ready for a relationship, so fake dating seems like the perfect answer.
This is the third book in the Wilder Adventures series (but can easily be read as a stand alone). Of all the brothers in the Wilder family, I was the most concerned about how a rom com would work for Clark, having lost his wife. Serena Bell does a beautiful job of healing both of these characters in this book. Each has had a very different trauma in their past relationship, and both are allowed to grieve in their own way. As always, the chemistry that she writes in her characters is just off the charts amazing, and the quick witted banter between them is perfection.
I loved this newest book, and I absolutely cannot wait for more in the series!
Thanks so much to Jelsba Media Group for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
tamtam's review
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
karinajean's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
mspano620's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
catsandbookstacks's review
5.0
Jessa couldn't wait for a weekend hiking trip with Wilder Adventures. When her best friend can't join anymore and her ex-husband shows up, Jessa ultimately decides that she'll suck it up and not throw herself off the moving bus.
When widower Clark joked to his brother about fake dating in order to get their mother off his back, he didn't really mean it. He definitely didn't mean to jump in to save Jessa and end up having to sleep in the same tent together.
Serena Bell kills is once again with the Wilder clan! Wilder With You is an adorable and steamy comfort rom-com that can be read as a standalone but I also highly recommend reading the previous books. Each book follows a Wilder brother and ugh I just can't wait for the next ones. I'm also kicking myself for still not reading book 1.
Clark is a burly bearded mountain man, who's muscular arms I just want around me. Still managing his grief over the death of his wife, Clark is having a hard time letting someone else in. Jessa, local wedding planner with plans to move in a few short months, is understanding, sweet and kind even though her ex-husband is an absolute jackass.
As Clark and Jessa's fake dating continues, the line between fake and genuine begins to blur but the two have their own demons to handle before they can find happiness. Serena Bell's latest offering us perfectly balanced with heat, humorous banter, and heart!
Read if you like:
- fake dating
- big bearded men
- tortured past
- dual POV
- hiking
- one tent
- big families
- open door spice
4.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you Author Collective 20, Jelsba Media Group and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
When widower Clark joked to his brother about fake dating in order to get their mother off his back, he didn't really mean it. He definitely didn't mean to jump in to save Jessa and end up having to sleep in the same tent together.
Serena Bell kills is once again with the Wilder clan! Wilder With You is an adorable and steamy comfort rom-com that can be read as a standalone but I also highly recommend reading the previous books. Each book follows a Wilder brother and ugh I just can't wait for the next ones. I'm also kicking myself for still not reading book 1.
Clark is a burly bearded mountain man, who's muscular arms I just want around me. Still managing his grief over the death of his wife, Clark is having a hard time letting someone else in. Jessa, local wedding planner with plans to move in a few short months, is understanding, sweet and kind even though her ex-husband is an absolute jackass.
As Clark and Jessa's fake dating continues, the line between fake and genuine begins to blur but the two have their own demons to handle before they can find happiness. Serena Bell's latest offering us perfectly balanced with heat, humorous banter, and heart!
Read if you like:
- fake dating
- big bearded men
- tortured past
- dual POV
- hiking
- one tent
- big families
- open door spice
4.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you Author Collective 20, Jelsba Media Group and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
kerrys_bookshelf's review
4.5
This book is the third in the Wilder Adventures romance series, however, it can 100% be read as a stand alone.
In the first two books you don’t really learn much about Clarke; all we really know going into this book is that he’s a widower that’s not really dealing with his grief very well despite the fact his wife passed on a few years ago now.
Jessa is a completely new character; she’s a wedding planner who knew Clarke’s late wife and has recently split with her (now ex) husband. She has decided to take herself and her best friend on a ‘Gilderness’ Trip (a lighter wilderness survival trip where you learn the very basics of surviving in the wilderness and still get smores at the end of it all – think normal people camping where you still learn some pretty important survival techniques). At the very last minute, Jessa’s bestie has to cancel, which leaves her to face this trip on her own. Not so bad, right? There’ll be other people she can socialise with and maybe it’ll be quite nice to spend some time with just herself and nature. Wrong. Very wrong. Jessa’s ex-husband and the woman that he cheated on her with are also on the trip.
For some unknown reason, the very grumpy Clarke decides he can’t stand seeing Jessa being picked on by her ex and his new partner and decides to fake-date her to get the guy off her back.
And, like all good fake dating stories, it kinda spirals a little out of control.
This was probably my favourite of these Wilder Brother stories; and that’s really saying something because I loved the first two – a lot.
Clarke is presented as a Grumpy McGrumpFace throughout the first two books and it so lovely to get his inner monologue and reasoning behind his less-than-happy exterior. You can kind of infer from the other books that Clarke would be a massive softie, but its lovely getting to see that come to light in this book.
I remember remarking through the first to books how the representation was getting better and better; the first book is mainly and all white, straight cast with a few very minor characters thrown in that aren’t. The second book follows and Latinx love interest and there’s definitely more representation within it.
This book, however, was markedly more represented; Jessa is half Korean and there is so much talk of her Korean heritage and culture (which was clearly researched well and had me craving so many yummy foods I’d honestly never heard of before this book), she has a non-binary sibling that goes by they/them pronouns, and (spoiler - it is something that happens quite a bit of the way through the book, but doesn’t have any bearing on the story at all) Clarke’s mum – the mother of all the Wilder siblings – comes out as being in a relationship with her close female friend; among quite a few other little tidbits I didn’t manage to note down.
I often find with romance novels, once the story has done it’s thing and the love interests have had their reunion, the book ends so quickly that you never get to have any kind of insight as to what their HEA is actually like. I really liked with this how we got some time after their getting back together, as well as a little epilogue of events that had been hinted at in the main story. It’s also lovely to pick up hints of the next book(s). Knowing which brother the next book in the series is about and having a small synopsis - being able to pick up small easter eggs about how those events started in this book was great.
The only negative I have about this book, is that it seems as though each of these Wilder Adventure novels follows the same base story; there is some reason the Wilder Brother can’t/shouldn’t/won’t fall in love > enter, female that is leaving town/not staying for long > there is some kind of forced proximity > they do the do > she has to go > they realise they’re actually in love > he chases after her. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and let’s face it, it’s the basis for a LOT of romance novels. But I just so happened to read the three existing books back-to-back and they did feel quite samey. And that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy them, I did. It would just be interesting to have some variety (and for this exact same reason I SO hope that Hannah gets her moment to shine in one of these novels as I can’t wait to read about a not-so-feminine heroine!)
Overall, this book was great. It really showed the progression Clarke’s grief and (although I haven’t had to face this kind of grief before) it seemed as though it was a really realistic representation. Clarke and Jessa were extremely likeable protagonists, and it was really lovely to see characters from past books pop up in this one.
I am very much looking forward to following the Wilder family through their next stories!
With thanks for Net Galley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
In the first two books you don’t really learn much about Clarke; all we really know going into this book is that he’s a widower that’s not really dealing with his grief very well despite the fact his wife passed on a few years ago now.
Jessa is a completely new character; she’s a wedding planner who knew Clarke’s late wife and has recently split with her (now ex) husband. She has decided to take herself and her best friend on a ‘Gilderness’ Trip (a lighter wilderness survival trip where you learn the very basics of surviving in the wilderness and still get smores at the end of it all – think normal people camping where you still learn some pretty important survival techniques). At the very last minute, Jessa’s bestie has to cancel, which leaves her to face this trip on her own. Not so bad, right? There’ll be other people she can socialise with and maybe it’ll be quite nice to spend some time with just herself and nature. Wrong. Very wrong. Jessa’s ex-husband and the woman that he cheated on her with are also on the trip.
For some unknown reason, the very grumpy Clarke decides he can’t stand seeing Jessa being picked on by her ex and his new partner and decides to fake-date her to get the guy off her back.
And, like all good fake dating stories, it kinda spirals a little out of control.
This was probably my favourite of these Wilder Brother stories; and that’s really saying something because I loved the first two – a lot.
Clarke is presented as a Grumpy McGrumpFace throughout the first two books and it so lovely to get his inner monologue and reasoning behind his less-than-happy exterior. You can kind of infer from the other books that Clarke would be a massive softie, but its lovely getting to see that come to light in this book.
I remember remarking through the first to books how the representation was getting better and better; the first book is mainly and all white, straight cast with a few very minor characters thrown in that aren’t. The second book follows and Latinx love interest and there’s definitely more representation within it.
This book, however, was markedly more represented; Jessa is half Korean and there is so much talk of her Korean heritage and culture (which was clearly researched well and had me craving so many yummy foods I’d honestly never heard of before this book), she has a non-binary sibling that goes by they/them pronouns, and (spoiler - it is something that happens quite a bit of the way through the book, but doesn’t have any bearing on the story at all) Clarke’s mum – the mother of all the Wilder siblings – comes out as being in a relationship with her close female friend; among quite a few other little tidbits I didn’t manage to note down.
I often find with romance novels, once the story has done it’s thing and the love interests have had their reunion, the book ends so quickly that you never get to have any kind of insight as to what their HEA is actually like. I really liked with this how we got some time after their getting back together, as well as a little epilogue of events that had been hinted at in the main story. It’s also lovely to pick up hints of the next book(s). Knowing which brother the next book in the series is about and having a small synopsis - being able to pick up small easter eggs about how those events started in this book was great.
The only negative I have about this book, is that it seems as though each of these Wilder Adventure novels follows the same base story; there is some reason the Wilder Brother can’t/shouldn’t/won’t fall in love > enter, female that is leaving town/not staying for long > there is some kind of forced proximity > they do the do > she has to go > they realise they’re actually in love > he chases after her. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and let’s face it, it’s the basis for a LOT of romance novels. But I just so happened to read the three existing books back-to-back and they did feel quite samey. And that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy them, I did. It would just be interesting to have some variety (and for this exact same reason I SO hope that Hannah gets her moment to shine in one of these novels as I can’t wait to read about a not-so-feminine heroine!)
Overall, this book was great. It really showed the progression Clarke’s grief and (although I haven’t had to face this kind of grief before) it seemed as though it was a really realistic representation. Clarke and Jessa were extremely likeable protagonists, and it was really lovely to see characters from past books pop up in this one.
I am very much looking forward to following the Wilder family through their next stories!
With thanks for Net Galley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
heidisreads's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
3.5 stars! A super cute fake-relationship story with some steamy moments! I didn’t realize this was book 3 in a series until I was almost finished with the book! I’d definitely give this to someone who liked Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center or On Location by Sarah Smith.
I received an advanced copy of this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received an advanced copy of this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
marquez's review
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
loveleighbookreviews's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
“To Know A Wilder Is To Love A Wilder”
Man, these Wilder brothers just keep getting better!!
I have been so looking forward to this book and it did not disappoint. Clark was the perfect mix of complicated, rough around the edges but sweet and genuine. With the tragedy that befell him he’s a bit of a lost soul but the way he comes alive with Jessa was incredible. The two play off of each other really well, each dealing with their own hardships.
Another perfect addition to the Wilder series, and with the sneaky peeky set up to Kane’s story, I am now once again brimming with anticipation for the next book!