Today is publication day for The Hapless Husband and his Curious Wife by Helen E Field, the second in the De’ath Family series.
Follow the madcap lives of the sassy Brooke and her anxious husband Dean, as they navigate the chaos caused by their double lives: secrets, syndicates and stress… money, madness and McDonald’s… political incorrectness, punters and posh people… betting, blood pressure and ballet… haves, have nots and horseracing…diversity, dilemmas and days out…gender, gyms and gentility. TRIGGER WARNING: If you are easily offended, ‘woke’ or work in human resources you may be traumatised by this author’s irreverent sense of humour.
Synopsis
Essex girl Brooke secretly works for Lady Townsend, who’s attempting to transform her into a lady, by offering her an eye-opening education. She exposes Brooke to some mind-boggling experiences and a class of people a million miles away from her own, resulting in some seriously funny social faux pas along the way. Brooke’s outlook changes as she takes advantage of these opportunities to better herself, with often comic results! Meanwhile her husband Dean is clueless as to why his normally ditsy wife appears to be acting so weird.
Meanwhile, Dean has been set a challenge by his boss. He’s been tasked with making their workforce the most diverse in the industry, but Dean’s unorthodox approach to recruiting, reveals that he struggles with the very concept of what he considers a ‘woke’ request. In addition, he’s still keeping his mystery shopping side hustle a secret from his demanding wife, ensuring he gets some ‘me time’ away from her and their boisterous toddler Paige.
The farcical situations they find themselves in as a result of their lies, cause off the scale stress for them both. How much longer can they withstand the deceit? Will Brooke’s transformation make her long-suffering husband feel left behind? Or will it improve all their lives? It’s that or even more chaos…
The story pokes fun at a myriad of people and institutions and is a wonderfully eclectic mix of Gavin & Stacey, Pygmalion and Legally Blonde!
My review
I loved the first book in the series, which set a very high standard to follow, and I’m delighted to say this sequel is every bit as witty, clever, entertaining and generally excellent.
Dean De’ath really is a hapless husband. He’s a decent, caring but none too bright guy, content to potter along with a few of life’s luxuries and dote on his wife and daughter. Brooke, however, doesn’t want to be doted on. Outwardly rather shallow and self-centred, again she’s another nice person with a good soul who wants to do things, to be better, to learn things. Like her husband, though, she tends to be a bit heavy handed in going about it.
Of the two, Brooke is the more adaptable. She embraces modern life, whereas Dean is a bit puzzled by it. As a result he goes for the easiest solution to the problems that living in the enlightened 21st century throws up. Ensure workforce diversity? Simple, employ ‘one of each’. Problem solved surely. Wife with health issues? No brainer, allow her to live a cosseted life and not have to work. Sorted…?
Each has secrets from the other, which, the longer they keep become the harder to divulge. That’s not an ideal scenario for any couple and especially not this one with their misunderstandings and over-simplified approaches. Chaos ensues, with lots of comedy and layered social commentary for the reader to enjoy.
Do treat yourself to some time in Dean and Brooke’s company. You’ll love every minute!
You can buy the book in all Amazon stores.