Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: The Husband Gambit
AUTHOR: L.A. Witt
NARRATOR: Greg Boudreaux & Michael Ferraiuolo
PUBLISHER: Author’s Republic
RELEASE DATE: August 2, 2019
LENGTH: 10 hours, 5 minutes
BLURB:
Marry me for one year. Payment: $1.2 million.
Hayden Somerset is convinced the ad is a joke, but he responds anyway because, hello, $1.2 million. He’s broke, living in a tiny apartment with two roommates, and exhausted from praying his ancient car survives just one more week. His skyrocketing rent and crushing student loans aren’t helping either. At this point, there isn’t much Hayden wouldn’t do for that kind of cash.
The ad isn’t a joke. Jesse Ambrose is absolutely serious. His father, the charismatic patriarch of a powerful Hollywood dynasty, has his eye on politics, and he’s counting on California’s liberals and progressives to elect him. But Jesse knows what his father believes when cameras and voters aren’t around.
As the election looms, he’ll do anything to force the man’s hand and show the public who Isaac Ambrose really is. Anything, including marrying a stranger, so his father will make good on his promise to disown Jesse if he ever takes a husband.
Now he just has to wait for his father to take the bait…and try not to accidentally fall in love with his fake husband.
REVIEW:
When I saw that both Greg Boudreaux and Michael Ferraiuolo was narrating this book I just had to listen to it. I mean they are two of my favourite narrators so listening to them both for the same book was bound to be a treat –and it sure was.
The trope is not a new one, the fake relationship has been done before – it’s a classic by now, and one of my favourites at that. The reason behind this fake marriage was a new one – usually you’re not actively looking for a way to be disowned, but that’s exactly why Jessie puts out an add looking for a fake husband for a year. Because he can’t think of anything worse than having his homophobic father get elected for the senate.
Hayden knows what it’s like to live on a budget, to drive his car not knowing if it will make the ride. So when he spots an add for someone looking for a fake husband for a year and pay him 1.2 million dollars for it he answers it – not knowing if it was real or if he would end up the next victim of a serial killer. He agrees to meet Jesse and also agree to his terms. And that as they say was the beginning of something neither of them counted on.
Hayden and Jesse get along from the beginning, they have a lot in common – despite being from different worlds. Their romance is a slow-burn one and I loved watching Jesse realise what a healthy relationship was supposed to look like. There might not have been any surprises but it was great anyway.
Greg Boudreaux and Michael Ferraiuolo’s narrations were epic and spot on. They definitely kicked this book up a level or two. I think I liked Ferraiuolo interpretation of Hayden’s inner musings the best. There was something really authentic about them. Not that the rest of the book didn’t have that feeling – both Boudreaux and Ferraiuolo are phenomenal at bringing characters to life and make them real. They nailed every moment, the passionate ones and the lighter humorous ones but also the heart-breaking and emotional ones – especially the ones dealing with Jesse’s dysfunctional family.
I loved listening to every second of this book and I really hope that there will be many more co-produced audiobooks in the future.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
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