Aug 4

Giveaway & Review: The Farmer Takes a Wife

About the Book

The Farmer Takes a Wife by Candice Sue Patterson

Book: The Farmer Takes a Wife

Author: Candice Sue Patterson

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release date: May 28, 2024

Librarian Gemma Breckenridge hates the spotlight. She’s content in her small town, living alone with books for company and caring for her once famous sister, Cammie, who’s now suffering from a degenerative brain disease. But Cammie’s care is expensive, and when the grant Gemma was counting on is denied, she’s forced to take desperate measures and applies to be a contestant on a reality television show where a wealthy farmer is looking for a love connection. What better place to keep her sister’s identity incognito than a thousand-acre farm in the middle of nowhere, South Dakota?

Colby Graham will do anything to save his almost bankrupt farm, even if it means that all of primetime will think he’s incapable of finding a wife on his own. The sponsorships alone should carry his business out of the red, and royalties from the producer will help to keep it there. But choosing a bride from among eight gorgeous strangers is tougher than Colby bargained for. Especially when the one woman he wants isn’t a contestant.

With a cast of vivid characters, join the crew in this witty romance filled with drama, heartache, elimination challenges, and fancy luggage full of secrets. Amid the beautiful setting of the Midwest, this tale unravels the tightly bound threads of sacrificial love.

Click here to get your copy!

My Review

5 stars

Candice Sue Patterson writes a perfectly executed love-triangle romance with lots of twists and turns that kept me guessing until the last page.

I loved the premise of the story—basically the TV show The Bachelor, but for farmers—comes to South Dakota, to Colby’s ranch. He’s the bachelor and enlists his best friend Stone’s help to choose from the eight women. Gemma signed up for the show to make her dying sister’s wish to live on a ranch come true. Yes, there is a lot of angst in this story.

At first, I was concerned about how clean a book about this type of TV show could be. I am happy to report that it was squeaky clean. The author did a great job describing some of the more flirtatious and back-biting contestants in a way that fits with a clean romance book.

The sparks fly between Gemma and Stone, yet there are financial stakes that keep them both pushing Gemma to further her position in the competition to win Colby’s heart, or at least his friendship. The points of view are equally balanced between Gemma, Colby, and Stone, so the reader is not going to guess which man wins Gemma in this love triangle, marriage of convenience, dying wish romance.

Fans of clean contemporary romance will enjoy this sweet story. You won’t want to put it down once you start reading it!

Romance: Squeaky clean. Passing mention of kissing.

I received a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher through Celebrate Lit Tours. This review is entirely my own opinion.

About the Author

Candice Sue Patterson studied at The Institute of Children’s Literature and is an elementary librarian. She lives in Indiana with her husband and three sons in a restored farmhouse overtaken by books. When she’s not tending to her chickens, snuggling with her Great Pyrenees, or helping children discover books they love, she’s working on a new story. Candice writes Modern Vintage Romance–where the past and present collide with faith.

More from Candice

Can you imagine signing up to marry someone you’d never met? Neither had my heroine Gemma Breckenridge until it was her last resort. This thought is what propelled me to write The Farmer Takes a Wife.

In 2009, I came across a reality TV dating show where several women from the city were invited to test out farm life in hopes of gaining a proposal from a farmer at the end. That show was called Farmer Wants a Wife. Though most of the episodes made me cringe, I thought it was a fantastic plot for a book. Since I write both historical and contemporary romance, I strive to put modern spins in my historical novels and vintage threads through my contemporary novels. What better vintage thread to drop into a modern-day rom com than a marriage of convenience trope?

But I didn’t want it to be the average marriage of convenience trope. I wanted something fresh. So, I put a spin on it, which brought about another spin, and before I knew it the story was taking a twist every few chapters.

The Farmer Takes a Wife is nine years in the making. After I wrote the first draft, I put it away for several years as book contracts were offered. I’d pull it out every now and then, polish it a bit, and then put it away again. In 2020, one month before the Covid pandemic rocked our world, I had finally completed it. With many workplaces shutting down, publishing houses were hesitant to offer new contracts. So, again, the story sat in my computer. At the end of last year, I decided I’d release the book myself this spring, shocked and delighted when the reality show Farmer Wants a Wife made a comeback after all those years! And it’s so much better than original season.

Perfect timing? Here’s hoping!

Join my cast and crew in Evangeline, South Dakota, for a wild ride of romance, drama, heartache, witty banter, and two hunky farmers. Yes, I said two. Did I mention this story had twists?