An Ideal Wife

Description from the book back cover: Louisa Howarth enjoyed her job as doctor's receptionist, until Sir James took on extra work, which meant that Dr. Thomas Gifford was asked to help out. Louisa found Thomas an aloof man, but very attractive for all that, so when she discovered he was engaged to Helena, someone she considered totally unsuitable for him, Louisa decided she has to stop Thomas making a dreadful mistake. She hadn't counted on her own growing feelings for Thomas, nor that he might not want to become dis-engaged!

This isn't one of Betty Neels' most memorable books. I read it last month and had to look it over to recall the details. It was a gentle, "clean" romance with a pretty predictable plot. I am a bit biased because I much prefer her earlier English nurse/Dutch doctor romances. For those who haven't had a chance to really "experience" Betty Neels, Harlequin is coming out with a series of reprints of some of her earlier novels under "The Best of Betty Neels" series. Next month Tangled Autumn is coming out, and in the fall, The Fifth Day of Christmas will be out. These are two of my favorite classics. An Ideal Wife is a sweet little book, but doesn't have the memorable characters or plot of some of the other Neels books. Entertaining, and worth the few dollars it cost, but not one that will be on the top of my list to re-read.