What do you think?
Rate this book
A White Picket Fence #2
Swimming Naked
Is their love powerful enough to overcome a betrayal that shook the foundation of their marriage? Lina and Phil Hunter have been together since they were teenagers. Twenty-five years later, they have successful careers, three teenage children and a beautiful home. Phil also has a baby with another woman, the by-product of a four-month affair. This is a story of second chances, loyalty and redemption as the Hunters try to put their lives and family back together. This standalone novel is the sequel to A White Picket Fence. Laura Branchflower is a contemporary romance author of four novels including A Sense of Belonging and A White Picket Fence. She has a BS in Journalism and an MBA from University of Maryland. An avid hiker and lover of anything outdoors, she lives with her dog Chandler in the suburbs of Washington, DC.
407 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 14, 2019
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 133 reviews
March 9, 2022
--------------------------------------------
I read this book on a recommendation in a group as a good grovel novel, and I did not read the first book bc honestly after reading some reviews on it, I kind of felt like it had a lot of loose threads and this book was meant to fix them. I dont really like cheating books, but I decided to leave my comfort zone as a challenge and while I am not sorry I did, I didnt really care for the book. I also despise men having babies with other women in books so this was definitely a challenge! I am not sure how much my reading the first book may have altered that, but I tend to lean that this book was written simply because there were criticisms from the last book and the author wanted to try to course correct perhaps. Just my opinion!!
Anyways, I actually did like the exploration of how the affair affected everyone, it broke my heart at times for Lina and her kids. I am someone who would NEVER EVER be able to get over a man cheating on me and having a living reminder of it for the rest of my life. Couldnt do it, so it was definitely interesting to read the POV of a woman who was trying to do it, because I would have punched him in the throat and asked for a divorce. There was a lot of depth there I appreciated, so I gave two stars for that and the fact the writing was very good, flowed well, made me feel things. I also felt the author made the right choices in how to vent everyones pain, you could kind of release your frustration with Phil's sin through them getting to be angry and upset.
A few spoilers to explain why I didnt rate higher...
I felt the entire point of this book was to rehab Phil on the back of making Kim a psycho lol I read about a few of the loose threads from the other book that were conveniently tied up in this one to make Phil look good. Perhaps, the author always intended it to be that way, but I am cynical so I honestly just feel it was to manipulate you into liking Phil again. It sounds like the original book did a lot of the make Kim evil so Phil looks better in comparison anyways. She got some feedback, and got to work on how to turn a Phil hater into a Phil lover. He didnt sleep with her in their vacation home, she just gave him a blow job, but he pushed her away when he woke up fully. How great! He didnt enjoy touching her ass, it was just celebratory *rolls eyes* her smell used to turn him on, but now she repulses him even tho she looks like a model! Lol Whatever, sorry I am not that easily manipulated.
This book was a way to take a man's sin and transfer it onto the psycho mistress so you like him again..in a way the author is degrading a female character to make the heroine special because of how little the author was able to convey her husband cared for her in the original book. I just hate that plot device, because it means you have to cheer on a man calling a woman names and telling her she is worthless. Not only that, you make her a bad mother bc again Lina has to be the BEST mother to show why Phil wants her over Kim. They even get the baby! Honestly just the entire thread that she came specifically to seduce him, like he was prey and never stood a chance resisting her bc he is just a poor helpless man not capable of resisting cheating on his wife he claims to love, give me a break! It's just too easy in my eyes! That's why I didnt rate higher.
If you want me to believe he loves Lina, show me without having to do the psycho other women crap, dont take the easy way out. Now I can never truly buy all his love and attraction to Lina bc in comparison to Kim, why wouldnt he pick Lina? It raises a new slew of it's own issues.
January 31, 2019
4.5
Excellent writing and dialogue gifting insight as this book is the aftermath of a husband's affair resulting in a child. I had no problem not reading the first book. I'm definitely interested in reading more by this author!
Excellent writing and dialogue gifting insight as this book is the aftermath of a husband's affair resulting in a child. I had no problem not reading the first book. I'm definitely interested in reading more by this author!
January 28, 2019
Having read the first book, A White Picket Fence, I was intrigued by the question posed in the blurb of this book “[i]s their love powerful enough to overcome a betrayal that shook the foundation of their marriage?” The optimist in me hoped this book would feature the wife (Lena) rethinking her decision (if only for a little while) to reconcile with her cheating husband (Phil). It did not.
The writing is solid and the story flows well. However, a more descriptive title would be “How to Eat a $hit Sandwich—A Wife’s Guide to Living With Humiliation.”
This book begins right after Lina, tired of being lonely and boring on her own, asks Phil, her cosmic soulmate, to reconcile. Before asking him to come home, however, there is no introspection or appreciation for what it will mean to remain with a man who has had a baby outside the marriage. Nevertheless, she’s soooo eager to have him back, she foregos thinking about such matters and decides to wing it. Perhaps this is because Phil was sad and promised to make it up to her by putting her needs first (sounds kinda like the marital vows he took a couple decades back). Or maybe it was the sex because in this book they have a lot of sex (probably almost as much as he had with Kim--the OW).
When Phil first brings his son (Liam) to their home to spend the night, Lina finds it difficult to be around him, telling Phil that Liam’s basically a reminder of his affair with Kim and leaves to stay elsewhere for the night. At this point—2 pages into the book—I thought, yes!!! It’s gonna get real now. But nope. She just gets over it and before you know it, she’s staring into baby eyes that look so much like her husband’s and falling in love with him. Conveniently, Liam appears to have no physical resemblance to Kim and Lina has a “connection” to him through their overlapping auras. Sigh.
The attachment to the poor wee lass is made even stronger by the fact that Kim is now portrayed as a negligent, uncaring mother who managed to trap poor Phil in her honey pot. In this book, it appears that he knew very little about her background or family (or condoms) and is convinced she got pregnant on purpose.
This book is bereft of any meaningful flashback of Phil’s POV during the affair. In this book and the prior one, Phil mentions to Lina how he can read the truth on her face; it’s the soulmate connection, I guess. However, nothing explains why Lina was so bad at reading him during the affair. Did Phil experience any guilt during the affair? Other than remembering how Kim’s perfume used to turn him on and recalling how his secretary knew of the affair early on after being witness to their interactions in his office after work, there is nothing to explain how Cosmic Soulmate Phil morphed into Scumbag Phil. What was going through his head (the big one) after sleeping with Kim and climbing into bed with Lina? And having read both books, I’m still unsure why the affair ended…
Other characters attribute his adultery to him experiencing a lack of control over his family. Huh? However, Phil explains his four-month affair with this scheming and terrible woman as a bout of temporary insanity. The same kind of insanity that allowed him to lie to Lina and create numerous opportunities to have unprotected sex with his jump-off while still having sex with his wife.
Anyhoo…like the loving doormat wife she is, she holds her head high when she is told at a school event how forgiving she is to take Phil back after his affair/baby; when explaining to a neighbor (who says she did know Lina had a baby) that the child in Phil’s arms is his, but not hers; and, having to witness her son, Logan’s, pain at having to recount the derision his friend’s parents have for Lina for taking Phil back; and, attending events with Phil’s colleagues who are well aware that Phil screwed around and made a baby with a former colleague.
That being said, Logan is the star of this book. Hands down. Unlike the contrived circumstances invoked to redeem Phil, Logan comes across as completely authentic! He was the only person willing to speak the truth to Phil! It is Logan, not Lina, who actually expresses righteous anger. His mother could learn a thing or two.
Ultimately, in books like this, I have to be able to root for the female lead. In this book, I could not. She’s is too weak—love is not enough. She’s the type who would’ve been content to keep her head in the sand. If Phil actually had to fear a permanent loss of love and she made him EARN her trust and respect back, this could’ve been a fantastic read. As is, it’s basically a book about integrating the OW’s child into their lives. Oh joy.
So, the question “Is their love powerful enough to overcome a betrayal that shook the foundation of their marriage?” would be more accurately posed as “is her love powerful enough.” His “love” for her wasn’t enough to prevent a lengthy and massive betrayal; he lucked out, however, by having a needy wife whose “love” made her all too eager to tolerate it.
P.S. There is very little Nick in this book. He gets a goodbye letter early in. This alone is requires –2 stars. LOL!
The writing is solid and the story flows well. However, a more descriptive title would be “How to Eat a $hit Sandwich—A Wife’s Guide to Living With Humiliation.”
This book begins right after Lina, tired of being lonely and boring on her own, asks Phil, her cosmic soulmate, to reconcile. Before asking him to come home, however, there is no introspection or appreciation for what it will mean to remain with a man who has had a baby outside the marriage. Nevertheless, she’s soooo eager to have him back, she foregos thinking about such matters and decides to wing it. Perhaps this is because Phil was sad and promised to make it up to her by putting her needs first (sounds kinda like the marital vows he took a couple decades back). Or maybe it was the sex because in this book they have a lot of sex (probably almost as much as he had with Kim--the OW).
When Phil first brings his son (Liam) to their home to spend the night, Lina finds it difficult to be around him, telling Phil that Liam’s basically a reminder of his affair with Kim and leaves to stay elsewhere for the night. At this point—2 pages into the book—I thought, yes!!! It’s gonna get real now. But nope. She just gets over it and before you know it, she’s staring into baby eyes that look so much like her husband’s and falling in love with him. Conveniently, Liam appears to have no physical resemblance to Kim and Lina has a “connection” to him through their overlapping auras. Sigh.
The attachment to the poor wee lass is made even stronger by the fact that Kim is now portrayed as a negligent, uncaring mother who managed to trap poor Phil in her honey pot. In this book, it appears that he knew very little about her background or family (or condoms) and is convinced she got pregnant on purpose.
This book is bereft of any meaningful flashback of Phil’s POV during the affair. In this book and the prior one, Phil mentions to Lina how he can read the truth on her face; it’s the soulmate connection, I guess. However, nothing explains why Lina was so bad at reading him during the affair. Did Phil experience any guilt during the affair? Other than remembering how Kim’s perfume used to turn him on and recalling how his secretary knew of the affair early on after being witness to their interactions in his office after work, there is nothing to explain how Cosmic Soulmate Phil morphed into Scumbag Phil. What was going through his head (the big one) after sleeping with Kim and climbing into bed with Lina? And having read both books, I’m still unsure why the affair ended…
Other characters attribute his adultery to him experiencing a lack of control over his family. Huh? However, Phil explains his four-month affair with this scheming and terrible woman as a bout of temporary insanity. The same kind of insanity that allowed him to lie to Lina and create numerous opportunities to have unprotected sex with his jump-off while still having sex with his wife.
Anyhoo…like the loving doormat wife she is, she holds her head high when she is told at a school event how forgiving she is to take Phil back after his affair/baby; when explaining to a neighbor (who says she did know Lina had a baby) that the child in Phil’s arms is his, but not hers; and, having to witness her son, Logan’s, pain at having to recount the derision his friend’s parents have for Lina for taking Phil back; and, attending events with Phil’s colleagues who are well aware that Phil screwed around and made a baby with a former colleague.
That being said, Logan is the star of this book. Hands down. Unlike the contrived circumstances invoked to redeem Phil, Logan comes across as completely authentic! He was the only person willing to speak the truth to Phil! It is Logan, not Lina, who actually expresses righteous anger. His mother could learn a thing or two.
Ultimately, in books like this, I have to be able to root for the female lead. In this book, I could not. She’s is too weak—love is not enough. She’s the type who would’ve been content to keep her head in the sand. If Phil actually had to fear a permanent loss of love and she made him EARN her trust and respect back, this could’ve been a fantastic read. As is, it’s basically a book about integrating the OW’s child into their lives. Oh joy.
So, the question “Is their love powerful enough to overcome a betrayal that shook the foundation of their marriage?” would be more accurately posed as “is her love powerful enough.” His “love” for her wasn’t enough to prevent a lengthy and massive betrayal; he lucked out, however, by having a needy wife whose “love” made her all too eager to tolerate it.
P.S. There is very little Nick in this book. He gets a goodbye letter early in. This alone is requires –2 stars. LOL!
September 2, 2019
Edit: If I could remove the one star, I would. I occasionally follow this author's blog to see about new releases. As I mention in this review, this author does have writing skills. On my last visit I read several new "additions"(?) to this hot mess of a story. I get the impression there is a genuine attempt to sanitize the poorly written and executed cheating husband's character as well as gifting the cheated on wife a backbone. To the point where I wondered a few times if it is an attempt to rewrite the book. Believe me, there are many one star books I've read that could have been far better with a rewrite or two, but doing so after the fact seems a far too insecure choice for an author I believe could produce something I'd happily read, review and recommend highly. These bonus *whatevers* just seem sad. Move on and write better choices. That or rewrite the whole thing and re-title Swimming Naked "White Wash"
Two Stars with a caveat
Cheating is a difficult trope, so while I admire the author for the attempt I have to say the execution was sloppy. The redemption was weak. Really weak.
Does the other woman always need to be portrayed as a lunatic? This only makes me wonder if perhaps the hero has a thing for sticking his dick in crazy and inevitably makes me question the heroine for taking him back. At no point did I understand why she would want to. Did I mention it was unprotected sex? I guess Phil's deeply held Catholic beliefs are fine with adultery but contraception is a big no-no. At the end of the day, Kim(OW portrayed as psycho) wasn't the one cheating on his wife. He was. For four months.
My advice to the author would be to take the obvious skill and work on telling a few solid stories that don't require a follow-up story to tie-up loose ends. Or maybe work with plots that don't beggar belief.
The cover was beautiful and the title was intriguing.
Update:
On further reflection I'm removing a star. Or rather, the remaining star can stay for the author's writing. The story is too ridiculous.
Two Stars with a caveat
Cheating is a difficult trope, so while I admire the author for the attempt I have to say the execution was sloppy. The redemption was weak. Really weak.
Does the other woman always need to be portrayed as a lunatic? This only makes me wonder if perhaps the hero has a thing for sticking his dick in crazy and inevitably makes me question the heroine for taking him back. At no point did I understand why she would want to. Did I mention it was unprotected sex? I guess Phil's deeply held Catholic beliefs are fine with adultery but contraception is a big no-no. At the end of the day, Kim(OW portrayed as psycho) wasn't the one cheating on his wife. He was. For four months.
My advice to the author would be to take the obvious skill and work on telling a few solid stories that don't require a follow-up story to tie-up loose ends. Or maybe work with plots that don't beggar belief.
The cover was beautiful and the title was intriguing.
Update:
On further reflection I'm removing a star. Or rather, the remaining star can stay for the author's writing. The story is too ridiculous.
January 16, 2019
Swimming Naked is a story of redemption and the coming together of two people that should of never been a part. Phil took 100% of the responsibility for his affair and was man enough to mend the hearts of those he selfishly devastated. Lina and Phil are a true example of how unconditional love conquers all. Laura writes characters you can identify with and you will feel the raw emotions of each one. This book is AMAZING and you won't be disappointed with the swim...enjoy!
Absolutely love this author!!!!
Absolutely love this author!!!!
March 17, 2019
I got to take a road trip yesterday and finished this baby in one sitting!! This story sucked me in from the very first page and kept me glued to the very ending. I love the way the entire family grew with this experience. Lina was finally able to get all the answers she needed to have to move onto forgiveness towards her husband, and through her forgiveness was able to finally accept and love his child too. Phil became a person I was able to forgive and respect finally. Katie matured a smidgen, but was so loving to the new baby. She really won me over in this story. Logan transformed through his emotions of hate and betrayal to forgiveness and acceptance towards both Phil and Liam. Megan was still an unlikable, shallow asshole, but fortunately she was gone away to college through most of this story, so she didn't play a huge irritating part like in A White Picket Fence. And Baby Liam stole my heart. My heart broke for him and the way he was used and treated by his, manipulative, slut-whore mother. That being said though, I was fully invested in this story from the very first page and enjoyed the entire experience!
January 22, 2019
Photo Story Inside!
Beautiful writing. Epic story of second chances and unconditional love. Laura makes you feel every emotion with her writing. Loved it!
I highly recommend reading A White Picket Fence before this one, but it’s not necessary.
Complete Photo Story: https://pin.it/ifjd7qs27ywcrb
Beautiful writing. Epic story of second chances and unconditional love. Laura makes you feel every emotion with her writing. Loved it!
I highly recommend reading A White Picket Fence before this one, but it’s not necessary.
Complete Photo Story: https://pin.it/ifjd7qs27ywcrb
January 16, 2019
Once again Laura pulled me in and did not disappoint. I am normally attracted to classic boy meets girl romance novels, but after tearing through When I Saw You and a Sense of Belonging, I decided I would read anything Laura wrote. A White Picket Fence was decidedly different and more serious in nature, but I could not put the book down. I was bonded to the characters and needed to know what they would do next. Of course I had very high hopes for the sequel, Swimming Naked, and was worried it would not live up to my hype. I was WRONG. It was so much more than I imagined. She delved further into the characters I loved so much. There was growth, redemption, understanding, and so much love. Books rarely move me to tears, but I cried three separate times while reading Swimming Naked because it evoked such raw emotion. The only thing I’m sad about is how fast I read it. I suppose it’s time to reread :)
February 26, 2024
This book was a massively mixed bag for me. I read ‘White Picket Fence’ and had so many unanswered questions, which meant I was eager to read this book. I did feel like a lot of the questions were answered, but I don’t necessarily buy the explanations. I have read some of the reviews and comments on here, and I don’t know exactly what has been discussed on the authors blog recently, so I cannot comment. I have messaged with the author myself and asked her questions, and she has always replied and been kind, replying with in-depth answers. But like I said I don’t know what has happened recently, and exactly what has been said, I just know everyone has different opinions and everyone is entitled to their reaction and review. This book was easy to read and I did enjoy parts of it, I liked seeing the family dynamics and I am a fan of Logan and Katie. I also didn’t really have a problem with Kim being shown to be unstable, as it is not that unbelievable or uncommon. I did find it weird that her family did not really seem to know Kim, her parent seemed shocked she would sleep with a married man and lie to them, but then her sister is labelling Kim as someone who goes after what she wants. No offence but that was not enough to cover Kim as a person. The way Kim is portrayed to me is unstable, a woman who sees a man in a court room, who she has not met and does not know, and says she is going to marry that person, is not Normal (unless you are five and he looks like a prince). A woman who moves across the country to embark on an affair with a man she does not know, is not stable. Neither is giving up your child, or harassing a family because you don’t get what you want. Kim was portrayed as out control. That is fine by me, but I do feel like it was used as a way to make her shoulder a lot of the blame. Kim was a persistent, aggressive vixen, who hounded Phil and manipulated him to get her way, how could he resist? I am rolling my eyes here. Kim was only in their lives because Phil let her in. I also believe Kim may be a liar, but she did not make up all of the events, and I do feel like things were not as cut and dry as Phil liked to have everyone believe. He had a love nest where he met Kim, he was with her for 4 months, sharing dinners and having work trips away, he also slept overnight with her and left his wife, who he knows hates to sleep alone. That shows he was more involved than he wants Lina to know. If it was just a fling and he was not fussed than he would not have spent nights with her, it would have been the odd quick fuck, he would not have messaged her first many times, as we saw he did. I think Kim was truthful when she said he could not get enough. I also think Phil would have said sweet words or led her on to some extent. I also found Phil’s explanations for the photos ridiculous, and they did not sit well with me. I know readers do not want to hear about loving moments or sexual intimacies, but more realistic answers about why Phil fucked up, would have been more believable. Because do I really believe that Phil tried a million hotels, had no choice but to take Kim to Steamboat, slept in separate rooms, woke up to Kim giving him a blow job, and the threw her off of him In disgust? No. As if Phil has that much restraint and morals, this is the man who slept with another woma for 4 months without any protection. I never really got the reasoning for this. Phi is not some young teenager, so eager to get his dick wet, and naive that he cannot put a condom on! He is a middle aged married husband, who had a wife and family to consider, he could have suited up. The fact that he didn’t tells me he is thoughtless and selfish, he didn’t even think about giving his wife an STD,
or an unwanted pregnancy. I did enjoy seeing the family heal and welcome Liam into the family, he is a real cutie, and I did find Logan and Lina’s Hesitation realistic and understandable. I do believe Phil loved Lina and he did in my opinion work harder to reassure her in this book and try and change, seeing that she deserved a career etc, however, that did not stop him putting her down. I do think it would have been more helpful to have flashbacks to scenes during the affair, to really see what happened and what Phil was thinking and feeling, because his excuse of he was stressed and Lina was so wrapped up in the kids, does not ring true to me. I also felt that this couple had left so much unresolved, I think including counselling sessions, or the shocking reality of Lina having to get an std test screening would have helped to add depth. I also was sick to the back teeth of Meg being allowed to be a self righteous bitch to her Parents. Why was she allowed to be disrespectful for so long? Sure she was told off when she put Lina’s job down, but that was it. It was good to see her upset after meeting Kim as she realised her father wasn’t a saint. What was her daddy obsession? Did she have some reverse Oedipus complex? Also, her attitude with her mum was a joke, her conversation about what would happen to Phil’s money if anything happens was creepy and unbelievable. Raising children apparently is easy, ha as if, if I was Lina putting up with that brat I would expect a pay rise! But I did Like Katie, she really has grown and I enjoyed her interactions with the family. I do really like Logan, I also felt he got treated a bit unfairly. I personally don’t agree with Phil’a whole I don’t answer to you attitude. I get you cannot let your kids run rings round you, but sorry when you cheat and bring another child into a family, you do owe answers to your kids as you betrayed them too, their whole world has changed and so has their perception of you. Logan was lashing out as is normal, but it was treated as if it was horrific and unjustified! Lina seemed more worried about Logan upsetting Phil, than of the crap he was getting at school, which neither of them seeemd to consider! The punishment he received was unnecessarily harsh as well. I found that Lina and Phil were a bit selfish in their assumptions with the children, as if all of this didn’t really touch them, but it did, and they had a right to be upset and vent sometimes. I was glad Logan and Liam got close, and Liam looking up to Logan was really sweet. I also thought it was realistic Logan dumping his girlfriend at college, some people may say it is heartless, but I do think people need experiences and, the likelihood of being together form the age of 14 and only thing with one person and that relationship lasting is not likely. I liked him and Tiffany, and would like to think they might reunite in the future. I really like Adele, but cringed at her going to have sex with Lina’s boss in the next room (barf). I also wish Diane would piss of, talkabout a useless friend! She might as well have worn a badge that said ‘forgive Phil and get over it’. She had no real understanding of the depth of Lina’s pain and was just a bitch. She could give lessons on being a doormat. I did like this book and Laura’s writing is good, however I am still not convinced by Phil, and I do feel there were issues that not delved into. But I am glad I read this book and got some answers.
or an unwanted pregnancy. I did enjoy seeing the family heal and welcome Liam into the family, he is a real cutie, and I did find Logan and Lina’s Hesitation realistic and understandable. I do believe Phil loved Lina and he did in my opinion work harder to reassure her in this book and try and change, seeing that she deserved a career etc, however, that did not stop him putting her down. I do think it would have been more helpful to have flashbacks to scenes during the affair, to really see what happened and what Phil was thinking and feeling, because his excuse of he was stressed and Lina was so wrapped up in the kids, does not ring true to me. I also felt that this couple had left so much unresolved, I think including counselling sessions, or the shocking reality of Lina having to get an std test screening would have helped to add depth. I also was sick to the back teeth of Meg being allowed to be a self righteous bitch to her Parents. Why was she allowed to be disrespectful for so long? Sure she was told off when she put Lina’s job down, but that was it. It was good to see her upset after meeting Kim as she realised her father wasn’t a saint. What was her daddy obsession? Did she have some reverse Oedipus complex? Also, her attitude with her mum was a joke, her conversation about what would happen to Phil’s money if anything happens was creepy and unbelievable. Raising children apparently is easy, ha as if, if I was Lina putting up with that brat I would expect a pay rise! But I did Like Katie, she really has grown and I enjoyed her interactions with the family. I do really like Logan, I also felt he got treated a bit unfairly. I personally don’t agree with Phil’a whole I don’t answer to you attitude. I get you cannot let your kids run rings round you, but sorry when you cheat and bring another child into a family, you do owe answers to your kids as you betrayed them too, their whole world has changed and so has their perception of you. Logan was lashing out as is normal, but it was treated as if it was horrific and unjustified! Lina seemed more worried about Logan upsetting Phil, than of the crap he was getting at school, which neither of them seeemd to consider! The punishment he received was unnecessarily harsh as well. I found that Lina and Phil were a bit selfish in their assumptions with the children, as if all of this didn’t really touch them, but it did, and they had a right to be upset and vent sometimes. I was glad Logan and Liam got close, and Liam looking up to Logan was really sweet. I also thought it was realistic Logan dumping his girlfriend at college, some people may say it is heartless, but I do think people need experiences and, the likelihood of being together form the age of 14 and only thing with one person and that relationship lasting is not likely. I liked him and Tiffany, and would like to think they might reunite in the future. I really like Adele, but cringed at her going to have sex with Lina’s boss in the next room (barf). I also wish Diane would piss of, talkabout a useless friend! She might as well have worn a badge that said ‘forgive Phil and get over it’. She had no real understanding of the depth of Lina’s pain and was just a bitch. She could give lessons on being a doormat. I did like this book and Laura’s writing is good, however I am still not convinced by Phil, and I do feel there were issues that not delved into. But I am glad I read this book and got some answers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2019
Swimming Naked is about the aftermath of an adulterous affair in which the betrayed wife (Lina) has forgiven her cheating spouse (Phil) and their entire family now needs to adapt to the reality of his having fathered a son outside of his marriage.
If this were a standalone novel, I would rate it 1 star for demonizing the OW to give the cheating husband a happy ending he does nothing to earn.
The husband's treatment of the woman with whom he had the affair is shameful, hypocritical, and non-productive. Long before we learn that the dumped OW Kim is , Phil treats her with a complete lack of courtesy. His conversations with her are dismissive and hostile. His behavior toward Kim isn't about maintaining a respectful distance that honors his relationship with his wife; it's petty vengeance for the damage the affair did to his marriage and his self-image. (It takes two to have an affair, Phil. And two to make a baby. No matter how deliberate Kim's choices were, you are not absolved of responsibility for your own participation.) He's deflecting his anger onto her, and it's bad parenting. If the author hadn't taken the easy way out , the child would have grown up seeing his father treat his mother with a demeaning lack of consideration.
The breathtaking hypocrisy surfaces in Phil's conversations with his teenaged son about how disrespectful the boy was being to both his girlfriend and his sister by having sex in their home while his sister was downstairs: "If you're going to try to act like a man, I expect for you to behave like one. You need to treat her and every female you come in contact with like you want males to treat your own sisters."
Pot, kettle. Glass houses and stones. Liar, liar, pants on fire.
But Swimming Naked is the sequel to A White Picket Fence, and it benefits from both the established characterizations and flaws in the first novel. While I don't understand why anyone wanted a sequel (the whole "soulmates" thing was so weak), I can't deny Swimming Naked is a better, more focused book.
The best part of the sequel is Lina and Phil's children's response to their baby half-brother. Katie, the middle child who has a conflicted relationship with her authoritarian father, is the surprising star of the show, accepting the new baby in their lives with genuine affection. Megan, the eldest child and daddy's girl, displays her jealousy of the baby only to her mother. (Megan is delightfully horrible in her selfishness. I love that the daughter who worships Phil is such a terrible human being.) Logan, their only son, resents the baby as both a sign of his father's betrayal and as a rival. He refuses to interact with the baby . Their reactions are authentic and completely consistent with the characters developed in the meandering first book.
The other strength of the sequel is that it redresses the weak ending of the original, which left the reunited couple in a vulnerable position because neither had substantially changed. Although Phil still doesn't change (I doubt he's capable of it), Lina becomes significantly more assertive in Swimming Naked. When Phil tries to avoid discussing the details of his affair, she prioritizes her need to know. (There's a wonderfully symbolic scene where she insists he explain each of the poisonous photos the OW had sent in the previous book, then deletes them from her phone. The explanations in no way absolve Phil, and she lets him see her pain, but she is moving on.) She later upbraids him for hiding the truth of the OW's ongoing stalkerific behavior from her, when he had promised complete transparency. And she gets a career. Yes, it's an improbably high-profile job she would only land in this fairy tale, but she clings to it despite Phil's objections and refuses to slide back into the mommy track just because it would be more convenient for him if she were available to babysit his son at a moment's notice. I especially like that Lina's happy ending is focused on a professional accomplishment.
If Goodreads allowed fractional ratings, I would give Swimming Naked 2.5 to indicate it is better than its predecessor (which I rated 2 stars). Since I can't do that, I'll reluctantly give it a full bonus star. But I am done, done, done with books featuring Phil Hunter, authoritarian hypocrite extraordinaire.
If this were a standalone novel, I would rate it 1 star for demonizing the OW to give the cheating husband a happy ending he does nothing to earn.
The husband's treatment of the woman with whom he had the affair is shameful, hypocritical, and non-productive. Long before we learn that the dumped OW Kim is , Phil treats her with a complete lack of courtesy. His conversations with her are dismissive and hostile. His behavior toward Kim isn't about maintaining a respectful distance that honors his relationship with his wife; it's petty vengeance for the damage the affair did to his marriage and his self-image. (It takes two to have an affair, Phil. And two to make a baby. No matter how deliberate Kim's choices were, you are not absolved of responsibility for your own participation.) He's deflecting his anger onto her, and it's bad parenting. If the author hadn't taken the easy way out , the child would have grown up seeing his father treat his mother with a demeaning lack of consideration.
The breathtaking hypocrisy surfaces in Phil's conversations with his teenaged son about how disrespectful the boy was being to both his girlfriend and his sister by having sex in their home while his sister was downstairs: "If you're going to try to act like a man, I expect for you to behave like one. You need to treat her and every female you come in contact with like you want males to treat your own sisters."
Pot, kettle. Glass houses and stones. Liar, liar, pants on fire.
But Swimming Naked is the sequel to A White Picket Fence, and it benefits from both the established characterizations and flaws in the first novel. While I don't understand why anyone wanted a sequel (the whole "soulmates" thing was so weak), I can't deny Swimming Naked is a better, more focused book.
The best part of the sequel is Lina and Phil's children's response to their baby half-brother. Katie, the middle child who has a conflicted relationship with her authoritarian father, is the surprising star of the show, accepting the new baby in their lives with genuine affection. Megan, the eldest child and daddy's girl, displays her jealousy of the baby only to her mother. (Megan is delightfully horrible in her selfishness. I love that the daughter who worships Phil is such a terrible human being.) Logan, their only son, resents the baby as both a sign of his father's betrayal and as a rival. He refuses to interact with the baby . Their reactions are authentic and completely consistent with the characters developed in the meandering first book.
The other strength of the sequel is that it redresses the weak ending of the original, which left the reunited couple in a vulnerable position because neither had substantially changed. Although Phil still doesn't change (I doubt he's capable of it), Lina becomes significantly more assertive in Swimming Naked. When Phil tries to avoid discussing the details of his affair, she prioritizes her need to know. (There's a wonderfully symbolic scene where she insists he explain each of the poisonous photos the OW had sent in the previous book, then deletes them from her phone. The explanations in no way absolve Phil, and she lets him see her pain, but she is moving on.) She later upbraids him for hiding the truth of the OW's ongoing stalkerific behavior from her, when he had promised complete transparency. And she gets a career. Yes, it's an improbably high-profile job she would only land in this fairy tale, but she clings to it despite Phil's objections and refuses to slide back into the mommy track just because it would be more convenient for him if she were available to babysit his son at a moment's notice. I especially like that Lina's happy ending is focused on a professional accomplishment.
If Goodreads allowed fractional ratings, I would give Swimming Naked 2.5 to indicate it is better than its predecessor (which I rated 2 stars). Since I can't do that, I'll reluctantly give it a full bonus star. But I am done, done, done with books featuring Phil Hunter, authoritarian hypocrite extraordinaire.
January 26, 2019
New author (for me) and I loved this book. The characters are in their early 40's and we jump right into the life of the husband and wife who are dealing with the aftermath of the husband's infidelity and his child as a result. It'd be tough even if it were just the wife taking her husband back into their home but together they had teenage children. What a handful plus the mistress is narcissistic and not very nurturing. What a mess. The wife is strong and wonderful.
The husband is pretty good too. You'll see.
It's life and it's real.
The husband is pretty good too. You'll see.
It's life and it's real.
January 20, 2019
Authentic!!
I laughed, I cried and I rejoiced!
Phil is a true alpha male who loves his wife deeply. The emotional scenes as Phil comes to terms with the hurt he has caused his family are authentic, raw and very moving.
The Hunter family was masterfully brought to life by Laura Branchflower!
I laughed, I cried and I rejoiced!
Phil is a true alpha male who loves his wife deeply. The emotional scenes as Phil comes to terms with the hurt he has caused his family are authentic, raw and very moving.
The Hunter family was masterfully brought to life by Laura Branchflower!
May 18, 2019
When I read A White Picket Fence, a little over a year ago, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. For all of 2018, Phil and Lina’s story would randomly pop into my head and enrage me. It felt incomplete.
So when I heard that Laura Branchflower was writing a sequel/companion novel (this can be read as a standalone but I highly recommend reading WPF first), I was excited but cautious.
Would I end up liking Phil?
Hell! Would I grow to like any of the Hunters?!
The story of this family, specifically Lina and Phil, now feels complete. All loose ends were tied up. I finished Swimming Naked, put it down, and felt like I could finally move on and put this family behind me.
Which is exactly what I wanted.
Each character stayed authentic to themselves. And even though I may not have agreed/liked what they did/said, I understood their motives because I understood them.
My favorite moments were the ones with the children. Even though Logan is the only one I still like (Katie kind of grew on me), I found them to be the most emotional. Especially the scene with Megan after yoga.
I was someone who didn’t hate Kim after WPF. Did I like her? No. But it takes two people to have an affair, and last time I checked, she didn’t force him to have sex with her...for four months...
I would silently stalk Branchflower’s blog for SN news and it was inundated with vicious hate towards Kim and swoony, moony eyes for Phil. I was very worried at what Branchflower was going to do to Kim’s character. I was afraid she was going to do everything in her power to villainize Kim to make Phil more appealing. Well, I do now think that Kim is a grade A bitch, but nothing seemed out of left field. I think there was enough planted in WPF to make her feel like a real character vs a caricature. Unfortunately, there are people out in the world like her. Man or woman.
And now onto what could be controversial.
I. Still. Hate. Phil.
And I don’t think I’m supposed to still hate him.
So many readers talked about how emotional they were during the scene where he was reflecting on Thanksgiving without Lina. You know what I was thinking? That’s right motherfucker, you deserve every bit of misery.
I needed more. I could seriously read 100+ pages on how miserable Phil was during the separation, and it would have only brought me pure joy.
And before people go postal on me. I don’t have issues with forgiving a cheating partner.
My issue is the “just fucking”.
I still have a very hard time wrapping my head around that phrase when it pertains to Kim and Phil. They had sex for FOUR months. Not a one night stand. Not for a couple of weeks. MONTHS. Phil acted like a couple with Kim in public. He DID NOT USE A CONDOM. You selfish asshole. Have you ever heard of diseases? He left the bed he shared with his wife, to spend the night in the bed of another woman. Knowing full well that his wife had trouble sleeping alone.
To me, that is more than just sex.
That’s a relationship.
And because of that, coupled with the fact he was let off so easily, the sweet/sexy moments between Lina and Phil did nothing for me.
I think it’s a testament to Branchflower’s ability to create characters and to tell a story, to the fact that I don’t know if I necessarily “enjoyed” this reading experience, but I would still recommend it to people. WPF and SN are two books that would make a great pick for a book club. The story of Lina and Phil was so complex and there’s so much to unpack and discuss. It’s hard not to have strong feelings (positive or negative) during and after reading.
So when I heard that Laura Branchflower was writing a sequel/companion novel (this can be read as a standalone but I highly recommend reading WPF first), I was excited but cautious.
Would I end up liking Phil?
Hell! Would I grow to like any of the Hunters?!
The story of this family, specifically Lina and Phil, now feels complete. All loose ends were tied up. I finished Swimming Naked, put it down, and felt like I could finally move on and put this family behind me.
Which is exactly what I wanted.
Each character stayed authentic to themselves. And even though I may not have agreed/liked what they did/said, I understood their motives because I understood them.
My favorite moments were the ones with the children. Even though Logan is the only one I still like (Katie kind of grew on me), I found them to be the most emotional. Especially the scene with Megan after yoga.
I was someone who didn’t hate Kim after WPF. Did I like her? No. But it takes two people to have an affair, and last time I checked, she didn’t force him to have sex with her...for four months...
I would silently stalk Branchflower’s blog for SN news and it was inundated with vicious hate towards Kim and swoony, moony eyes for Phil. I was very worried at what Branchflower was going to do to Kim’s character. I was afraid she was going to do everything in her power to villainize Kim to make Phil more appealing. Well, I do now think that Kim is a grade A bitch, but nothing seemed out of left field. I think there was enough planted in WPF to make her feel like a real character vs a caricature. Unfortunately, there are people out in the world like her. Man or woman.
And now onto what could be controversial.
I. Still. Hate. Phil.
And I don’t think I’m supposed to still hate him.
So many readers talked about how emotional they were during the scene where he was reflecting on Thanksgiving without Lina. You know what I was thinking? That’s right motherfucker, you deserve every bit of misery.
I needed more. I could seriously read 100+ pages on how miserable Phil was during the separation, and it would have only brought me pure joy.
And before people go postal on me. I don’t have issues with forgiving a cheating partner.
My issue is the “just fucking”.
I still have a very hard time wrapping my head around that phrase when it pertains to Kim and Phil. They had sex for FOUR months. Not a one night stand. Not for a couple of weeks. MONTHS. Phil acted like a couple with Kim in public. He DID NOT USE A CONDOM. You selfish asshole. Have you ever heard of diseases? He left the bed he shared with his wife, to spend the night in the bed of another woman. Knowing full well that his wife had trouble sleeping alone.
To me, that is more than just sex.
That’s a relationship.
And because of that, coupled with the fact he was let off so easily, the sweet/sexy moments between Lina and Phil did nothing for me.
I think it’s a testament to Branchflower’s ability to create characters and to tell a story, to the fact that I don’t know if I necessarily “enjoyed” this reading experience, but I would still recommend it to people. WPF and SN are two books that would make a great pick for a book club. The story of Lina and Phil was so complex and there’s so much to unpack and discuss. It’s hard not to have strong feelings (positive or negative) during and after reading.
December 20, 2021
Honestly?
This was a rotten story.
Phil's attitude in this book was awful, to an innocent child and the child's mother. He conveniently forgets that HE had the affair for 4 months resulting in the birth of Liam. The treatment of this babe by Phil and his wife was borderline abusive. I don't know how this ends and I don't care but I hope they find their Catholic beliefs actually trigger their conscience's - they appear to have lost them.
I am not a fan of cheating and the attempt by this author to "normalize" it was sloppy and the excuses given for Phil's redemption were weak.
The portrayal of Kim as a lunatic stalker did not work and I asked the question why was SHE is portrayed in such bad light when it was HIM that pursued her and had unprotected sex (I believe this had nothing to do with him being a "good" catholic but rather than being a selfish man). So resulting in a child who was innocent in the whole affair. Despite introducing the whole cheating trope it didn't work because he was such a pillar of society, a practising Catholic who willingly practices Adultery and expected everyone to pat him on the head and say "there, there, silly boy you just made a mistake"
I didn't see the point in this second storyline. It served no purpose to the first book and it should have been wrapped up in that.
I read to 63% and gave up. I couldn't stomach these characters any longer.
8 Feb. Went onto finish it and although I am glad it finished the way it did, I still think Phil was one of the worst male characters ever to be written. He was un redeemable.
This was a rotten story.
Phil's attitude in this book was awful, to an innocent child and the child's mother. He conveniently forgets that HE had the affair for 4 months resulting in the birth of Liam. The treatment of this babe by Phil and his wife was borderline abusive. I don't know how this ends and I don't care but I hope they find their Catholic beliefs actually trigger their conscience's - they appear to have lost them.
I am not a fan of cheating and the attempt by this author to "normalize" it was sloppy and the excuses given for Phil's redemption were weak.
The portrayal of Kim as a lunatic stalker did not work and I asked the question why was SHE is portrayed in such bad light when it was HIM that pursued her and had unprotected sex (I believe this had nothing to do with him being a "good" catholic but rather than being a selfish man). So resulting in a child who was innocent in the whole affair. Despite introducing the whole cheating trope it didn't work because he was such a pillar of society, a practising Catholic who willingly practices Adultery and expected everyone to pat him on the head and say "there, there, silly boy you just made a mistake"
I didn't see the point in this second storyline. It served no purpose to the first book and it should have been wrapped up in that.
I read to 63% and gave up. I couldn't stomach these characters any longer.
8 Feb. Went onto finish it and although I am glad it finished the way it did, I still think Phil was one of the worst male characters ever to be written. He was un redeemable.
January 6, 2022
Reread 1/6/2022
Reread 3/20/2021
I’ve never reviewed either book in this series. My reaction to them too emotional to do them justice. I’ve always been pro Lina, and would have followed her story whether or not she took Phil back.
On this reread, I tried to appreciate it from Phil’s perspective instead of reacting with Lina. And, I think I may like him slightly more. He’s still a hypocrite, but I see him as a hypocrite trying desperately to hold his life together and ultimately keeping his promise to put Lina first in all things—not an easy task.
I still love that Logan holds Phil’s feet to the fire, but as much as I love Logan, I now appreciate Phil’s reactions to their confrontations more.
And Kim...
In AWPF, I always considered Phil the main antagonist and Kim a more minor one. She’s the instigator that pushes Lina, but he’s the cheater pushing for acceptance and to simply move on. He doesn’t want to face what he’s done, it really didn’t matter what Kim did to pull them apart. He needed to atone, he’s the one that wronged his wife and family.
Kim stands alone as the antagonist of this book. I was always a little put off by this. Why is she such a villain, why couldn’t she be slightly more reasonable? I realized she really is the villain of this one and her behavior isn’t all that different from AWPF, it’s just that she stands alone in this one. Phil’s need for control still gets in his way, but he grows and adapts.
Still 4⭐️s
Reread 3/20/2021
I’ve never reviewed either book in this series. My reaction to them too emotional to do them justice. I’ve always been pro Lina, and would have followed her story whether or not she took Phil back.
On this reread, I tried to appreciate it from Phil’s perspective instead of reacting with Lina. And, I think I may like him slightly more. He’s still a hypocrite, but I see him as a hypocrite trying desperately to hold his life together and ultimately keeping his promise to put Lina first in all things—not an easy task.
I still love that Logan holds Phil’s feet to the fire, but as much as I love Logan, I now appreciate Phil’s reactions to their confrontations more.
And Kim...
In AWPF, I always considered Phil the main antagonist and Kim a more minor one. She’s the instigator that pushes Lina, but he’s the cheater pushing for acceptance and to simply move on. He doesn’t want to face what he’s done, it really didn’t matter what Kim did to pull them apart. He needed to atone, he’s the one that wronged his wife and family.
Kim stands alone as the antagonist of this book. I was always a little put off by this. Why is she such a villain, why couldn’t she be slightly more reasonable? I realized she really is the villain of this one and her behavior isn’t all that different from AWPF, it’s just that she stands alone in this one. Phil’s need for control still gets in his way, but he grows and adapts.
Still 4⭐️s
Shelved as 'dnr'
April 12, 2019This "man" has no redeeming qualities. Short of giving up his life for his long suffering doormat wife there is nothing this adulterous douche could do to redeem himself. It's only fair since IMO his wife gave up her her own chance at true happiness by staying with him.
"All Phil saw was the woman who’d almost succeeded in destroying his life"
.....complete hypocrite. HE was the adulterer not the OW. HE was the one who pursued her, and HE was the one who could not control himself or keep his pants zipped up around Kim. He screwed her every chance he got for months. The fault was solely on this creep.
I am not rating this because I went into this to see what he could possibly do to redeem himself. Pretty much nothing other than blame and "hate" the OW and finally keep it in his pants.
"All Phil saw was the woman who’d almost succeeded in destroying his life"
.....complete hypocrite. HE was the adulterer not the OW. HE was the one who pursued her, and HE was the one who could not control himself or keep his pants zipped up around Kim. He screwed her every chance he got for months. The fault was solely on this creep.
I am not rating this because I went into this to see what he could possibly do to redeem himself. Pretty much nothing other than blame and "hate" the OW and finally keep it in his pants.
January 24, 2019
Honestly, I have a lot of problems with Phil as a person, but the strong emotions Branchflower was able to draw out of me while reading this book is a testament to how well the characters were developed and written. Each member of the family became someone I could have known in real life, could have walked off the page. I, too, do not see Phil as redeemable and don’t agree with the ways he views women, but the book was successful in challenging me and my concept of forgiveness. Not to mention it was almost impossible to put down, and those are all admirable accomplishments by the book and author.
January 18, 2019
WOW!!!
This is the forth book I have read by Laura Branchflower. I have to say it is the best!!
Laura is a master story teller!
I found myself thinking of the characters as if they were real. This is a family drama worth reading. You will laugh and you will cry! Most of all, you will be sad then the book ends.
I believe Phil redeemed himself. Some of the scenes were heart wrenching with some comic relief by Adele and Katie. Lina's character development was extraordinary. Lina learned to stand on her own without losing her charm.
Thank You Laura for sharing our story telling ability with the world!!
This is the forth book I have read by Laura Branchflower. I have to say it is the best!!
Laura is a master story teller!
I found myself thinking of the characters as if they were real. This is a family drama worth reading. You will laugh and you will cry! Most of all, you will be sad then the book ends.
I believe Phil redeemed himself. Some of the scenes were heart wrenching with some comic relief by Adele and Katie. Lina's character development was extraordinary. Lina learned to stand on her own without losing her charm.
Thank You Laura for sharing our story telling ability with the world!!
March 4, 2020
I actually liked the first book and was looking forward to this one.
First of all, I could never ever relate to the heroine in anyway. I could never forgive the husband for an affair of this scale and then live with the remainder of his betrayal for the rest of life. Having said that, I understand that some woman might be able to forgive and give the man a second chance. I am not judging them. If that’s what makes you happy then that is what you do. Live your life as you wish. More power to you. So I did not dislike this book because the h forgave H.
What I hated about this book is this. When the book involves an affair, I expect certain things to be addressed. None of these BASIC things are properly addressed in the book. Author took the pretending-it-doesn’t-exist-means-it-doesn’t-exist approach to deal with all the issues.
-Why did Phil cheat on Lina with Kim ?
They were arguing a LITTLE about how to deal with their teenage daughter. Not huge fights. Just heated conversations here and there. That’s all it took to have an affair after a loving 25 year marriage. WTF.
-Does Lina ask for the details of the affair ?
She doesn’t. Not on her own. The few questions she asks are due to prompting from other people. E.g. Kim sends her some pictures and she runs into a lady who was in the running club with Phil and Kim.
The affair is not a couple of drunk one night stands. He smoothly lies to her face for 4 months, he has unprotected sex and spends time with Kim out of bed. Running club, lunches, dinners, leaving early to meet her... He basically dated Kim for 4 months. And what ended the affair seems to be Kim’s pregnancy ? I am not sure.
Lina never asks him why he spent time with Kim out of bed ? What did they talk about ? What activities did they do together ? Where did he take her ? Why did he have unprotected sex with her ? Why did it end ? What would he do if she did the same thing ?
I would have asked a million questions.
But Lina’s approach here is just stick-your-head-in-sand. It seemed like the Author did not know how she can convince Lina and the readers to get back with Phil after these answers. So she just ignored all this.
-STDs ?
Apparently no one in this book ever heard of them.
Lina never gets checked after finding out that Phil was loving with no gloving. She doesn’t ask Phil either. No one even bothers to suggest this to her. Do these people live on a different planet ? Lina’s nut job mother wants to check her “charts”. Not the medical kind. The lunar kind. But never tells her to go get her dumbass checked. Again just pretend it’s not a thing. Problemõ solved.
-How does Lina deal with the pain of the affair ?
Simple. By not dealing with it. Brilliant isn’t it ?
Lina rarely feels any pain from the affair. She is more sad about “missing” him when they are estranged. She is more angry at Kim trying to interfere with their lives than she is ever angry at Phil who brought her into their lives.
-How does Lina deal with trust issues ?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHABBTJHHJHBVVVBBDYGJN what trust issues LMAO. She has NONE. She never asks him how do I know you won’t do this again. When they separate for a brief time she never wonders if he is seeing Kim. She is just sad that she can’t sleep. What kind of pathetic bird brained woman is this ?
-How did Phil earn Lina’s trust back ?
He doesn’t. She offers it to him on a golden platter.
- How does Lina know that Phil won’t do this again ?
She doesn’t. Author does NOTHING to convince otherwise. It’s just pathetic that Lina doesn’t ask this question even once. She is truly a shameless dumb doormat caricature.
-Why did Lina forgive Phil and took him back ?
Because he gave her a cute little baby boy from another woman who looks just like him.
What stupid woman wouldn’t love her husband after he gives her a bundle of joy from another woman.
A flawed version of Phil+baby from another woman is better for Lina than a perfect version of any man who doesn’t lie cheat knock up other woman.
You will always get closer to your husband after he gets other women knocked up.
But seriously, who knows why she forgave ? From what I could gather, her bird brain couldn’t handle being away from him for a few months and the stick-head-in-sand approach worked wonders.
-How did Phil redeem himself ?
He doesn’t. He is the same asshole from start to end. Shitty husband. Shitty father. Shitty person. He says “I am sorry” a couple of times but that’s about it.
This book has no content on Phil’s redemption. It’s about how everyone accepts/forgives him, how Phil sees that Lina is a better wife/mother/cook than Kim and Lina’s journey from being slightly upset to welcoming another’s woman’s baby into her family. Love conquers all. Affairs, babies everything.
The way the author chose to do what she thought as some kind of “redemption” is by putting someone worse beside Phil, in this case Kim, so Phil looks better by comparison. Kim is demonized to unbelievably comedic levels, to make the readers feel sorry for Phil’s pathetic ass. Kim is evil a person, bad daughter, bad mother. She lies, schemes, stalks... you name it she’s done it. While poor Phil boo hoo hoo... he was powerless against this witch’s sorcery !!! So Phil is better. He is just a man after all. It’s unrealistic to expect men to be monogamous.
If this book had shown Kim as a half decent person and if Phil worked on his redemption by himself, it would have been so good. But instead we get loooookkkk it’s Cruella De Ville omgggggg she is killing puppies and sacrificing babies !!!
-What consequences do Phil and his family face due to his selfish scumbaggery ?
Next to none. The only one who genuinely seems to struggle is Logan. That too for a short period of time.
Phil doesn’t have to travel back and forth between his family and Kim to see Liam. Kim conveniently disappears and Liam is lovingly integrated into Phil’s family. Everyone forgets forgives and lives HEA. It’s like Kim is a stork that dropped a baby in their house and flew away.
I gave the first book 4 stars. I changed it to 1 star after reading the second book.
The writing in this book is good though. I have no complaints there. I just wish the content was as good as the writing. Its a well written disaster unfortunately.
First of all, I could never ever relate to the heroine in anyway. I could never forgive the husband for an affair of this scale and then live with the remainder of his betrayal for the rest of life. Having said that, I understand that some woman might be able to forgive and give the man a second chance. I am not judging them. If that’s what makes you happy then that is what you do. Live your life as you wish. More power to you. So I did not dislike this book because the h forgave H.
What I hated about this book is this. When the book involves an affair, I expect certain things to be addressed. None of these BASIC things are properly addressed in the book. Author took the pretending-it-doesn’t-exist-means-it-doesn’t-exist approach to deal with all the issues.
-Why did Phil cheat on Lina with Kim ?
They were arguing a LITTLE about how to deal with their teenage daughter. Not huge fights. Just heated conversations here and there. That’s all it took to have an affair after a loving 25 year marriage. WTF.
-Does Lina ask for the details of the affair ?
She doesn’t. Not on her own. The few questions she asks are due to prompting from other people. E.g. Kim sends her some pictures and she runs into a lady who was in the running club with Phil and Kim.
The affair is not a couple of drunk one night stands. He smoothly lies to her face for 4 months, he has unprotected sex and spends time with Kim out of bed. Running club, lunches, dinners, leaving early to meet her... He basically dated Kim for 4 months. And what ended the affair seems to be Kim’s pregnancy ? I am not sure.
Lina never asks him why he spent time with Kim out of bed ? What did they talk about ? What activities did they do together ? Where did he take her ? Why did he have unprotected sex with her ? Why did it end ? What would he do if she did the same thing ?
I would have asked a million questions.
But Lina’s approach here is just stick-your-head-in-sand. It seemed like the Author did not know how she can convince Lina and the readers to get back with Phil after these answers. So she just ignored all this.
-STDs ?
Apparently no one in this book ever heard of them.
Lina never gets checked after finding out that Phil was loving with no gloving. She doesn’t ask Phil either. No one even bothers to suggest this to her. Do these people live on a different planet ? Lina’s nut job mother wants to check her “charts”. Not the medical kind. The lunar kind. But never tells her to go get her dumbass checked. Again just pretend it’s not a thing. Problemõ solved.
-How does Lina deal with the pain of the affair ?
Simple. By not dealing with it. Brilliant isn’t it ?
Lina rarely feels any pain from the affair. She is more sad about “missing” him when they are estranged. She is more angry at Kim trying to interfere with their lives than she is ever angry at Phil who brought her into their lives.
-How does Lina deal with trust issues ?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHABBTJHHJHBVVVBBDYGJN what trust issues LMAO. She has NONE. She never asks him how do I know you won’t do this again. When they separate for a brief time she never wonders if he is seeing Kim. She is just sad that she can’t sleep. What kind of pathetic bird brained woman is this ?
-How did Phil earn Lina’s trust back ?
He doesn’t. She offers it to him on a golden platter.
- How does Lina know that Phil won’t do this again ?
She doesn’t. Author does NOTHING to convince otherwise. It’s just pathetic that Lina doesn’t ask this question even once. She is truly a shameless dumb doormat caricature.
-Why did Lina forgive Phil and took him back ?
Because he gave her a cute little baby boy from another woman who looks just like him.
What stupid woman wouldn’t love her husband after he gives her a bundle of joy from another woman.
A flawed version of Phil+baby from another woman is better for Lina than a perfect version of any man who doesn’t lie cheat knock up other woman.
You will always get closer to your husband after he gets other women knocked up.
But seriously, who knows why she forgave ? From what I could gather, her bird brain couldn’t handle being away from him for a few months and the stick-head-in-sand approach worked wonders.
-How did Phil redeem himself ?
He doesn’t. He is the same asshole from start to end. Shitty husband. Shitty father. Shitty person. He says “I am sorry” a couple of times but that’s about it.
This book has no content on Phil’s redemption. It’s about how everyone accepts/forgives him, how Phil sees that Lina is a better wife/mother/cook than Kim and Lina’s journey from being slightly upset to welcoming another’s woman’s baby into her family. Love conquers all. Affairs, babies everything.
The way the author chose to do what she thought as some kind of “redemption” is by putting someone worse beside Phil, in this case Kim, so Phil looks better by comparison. Kim is demonized to unbelievably comedic levels, to make the readers feel sorry for Phil’s pathetic ass. Kim is evil a person, bad daughter, bad mother. She lies, schemes, stalks... you name it she’s done it. While poor Phil boo hoo hoo... he was powerless against this witch’s sorcery !!! So Phil is better. He is just a man after all. It’s unrealistic to expect men to be monogamous.
If this book had shown Kim as a half decent person and if Phil worked on his redemption by himself, it would have been so good. But instead we get loooookkkk it’s Cruella De Ville omgggggg she is killing puppies and sacrificing babies !!!
-What consequences do Phil and his family face due to his selfish scumbaggery ?
Next to none. The only one who genuinely seems to struggle is Logan. That too for a short period of time.
Phil doesn’t have to travel back and forth between his family and Kim to see Liam. Kim conveniently disappears and Liam is lovingly integrated into Phil’s family. Everyone forgets forgives and lives HEA. It’s like Kim is a stork that dropped a baby in their house and flew away.
I gave the first book 4 stars. I changed it to 1 star after reading the second book.
The writing in this book is good though. I have no complaints there. I just wish the content was as good as the writing. Its a well written disaster unfortunately.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 19, 2019
This book is amazing. I absolutely loved it. 💕💘💞
I would strongly recommend that you read 'A White Pickett Fence' first as this book is a sequel and it starts right from where the first book ends.
The author does have brief summaries of some events that happened previously a few times but you can't really read them out of order as there would be too many spoilers for book 1.
Just to warn you book 1 the husband Phil cheated, the books don't glorify cheating it's more about the aftermath of an affair and the impact it could have on everyone.
We start right where Lina and Phil have reconciled and how they move on from his cheating.
In 'A White Pickett Fence' although they got back together I felt there were some unanswered questions and some serious issues glossed over.
The author has a blog and there readers raised questions and the author took the time to listen and discuss a few things and she has addressed these in this book.
For example,
What was Phil thinking? He doesn't seem the type to cheat, even his work mates and family members ask him about why in this book and he answers.
What about the times he cheated? The photos revealed some things that seemed unforgiveable, one in particular. Lina and Phil have an honest discussion about those.
How would moving on together, with a child of the other woman now in their lives affect them, as a couple and their family?
How much interaction would Phil have with Kim? It would be unavoidable with a baby on the scene so how would that work?
No issue is shyied away from there are some honest, even emotionally brutal discussions that give the reader closure.
The writing is amazing.
It is so realistic.
At times i found my self feeling sorry for Phil, he has time with his son, Liam, but he is still a baby, very young, so how does a father spend time with a young baby, where would he take him during his few hours a week? how does he manage to care for him when with his previous children, his wife took on the role of primary caregiver to their children when they were babies?
Other times you see the effect of his actions on his family and you wonder if they would ever be able to get past his actions.
I am not sure I could have forgiven him and taken him back, the son with another woman changes things to just an affair but the author examines the issues and does not shy away from their emotional impact.
One thing I felt helped you forgive Phil a bit is his interactions with Kim, the other woman, the ex-mistress, he has no conversations with her apart from dealing with Liam, he doesnt linger or allow physical contact, he is firm on his loyalty to Lina now, despite the major ex-drama Kim brings to the story.
There is dual POV.
There are a few small flashback scenes, esp from Phil regarding his time around the cheating but no details of any intimacy, just that it occurred at times.
This book contains no current cheating and no intimate scenes with anyone other than the Hero and heroine.
There are some emotional scenes but also some very funny moments, laugh out loud moments which help to lighten the mood of the book.
Excellent secondary characters.
HEA.
I would strongly recommend that you read 'A White Pickett Fence' first as this book is a sequel and it starts right from where the first book ends.
The author does have brief summaries of some events that happened previously a few times but you can't really read them out of order as there would be too many spoilers for book 1.
Just to warn you book 1 the husband Phil cheated, the books don't glorify cheating it's more about the aftermath of an affair and the impact it could have on everyone.
We start right where Lina and Phil have reconciled and how they move on from his cheating.
In 'A White Pickett Fence' although they got back together I felt there were some unanswered questions and some serious issues glossed over.
The author has a blog and there readers raised questions and the author took the time to listen and discuss a few things and she has addressed these in this book.
For example,
What was Phil thinking? He doesn't seem the type to cheat, even his work mates and family members ask him about why in this book and he answers.
What about the times he cheated? The photos revealed some things that seemed unforgiveable, one in particular. Lina and Phil have an honest discussion about those.
How would moving on together, with a child of the other woman now in their lives affect them, as a couple and their family?
How much interaction would Phil have with Kim? It would be unavoidable with a baby on the scene so how would that work?
No issue is shyied away from there are some honest, even emotionally brutal discussions that give the reader closure.
The writing is amazing.
It is so realistic.
At times i found my self feeling sorry for Phil, he has time with his son, Liam, but he is still a baby, very young, so how does a father spend time with a young baby, where would he take him during his few hours a week? how does he manage to care for him when with his previous children, his wife took on the role of primary caregiver to their children when they were babies?
Other times you see the effect of his actions on his family and you wonder if they would ever be able to get past his actions.
I am not sure I could have forgiven him and taken him back, the son with another woman changes things to just an affair but the author examines the issues and does not shy away from their emotional impact.
One thing I felt helped you forgive Phil a bit is his interactions with Kim, the other woman, the ex-mistress, he has no conversations with her apart from dealing with Liam, he doesnt linger or allow physical contact, he is firm on his loyalty to Lina now, despite the major ex-drama Kim brings to the story.
There is dual POV.
There are a few small flashback scenes, esp from Phil regarding his time around the cheating but no details of any intimacy, just that it occurred at times.
This book contains no current cheating and no intimate scenes with anyone other than the Hero and heroine.
There are some emotional scenes but also some very funny moments, laugh out loud moments which help to lighten the mood of the book.
Excellent secondary characters.
HEA.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
May 14, 2019For the thousandth time this month I wonder why these authors do not use their intelligence and the power of a book to break the barriers of prejudice and humiliation that women have been subverted for centuries. Instead of breaking the retrograde paradigms that still guide society, they use their talent to further denigrate and reproduce misogynist ideas that only reinforce the stupid patterns of inequality to which we are still subjected. And such ideas from the women themselves is even more disturbing. I understand that not all of you are keen to actively participate in gender bias, because after all, being confined to a fantasy world may be more comfortable than facing real life. But for us women who are day by day in the market and in the world, fighting for equality is simply outrageous having to come up with such despicable and disrespectful content (to say the least!). So, instead of a review, I turn that into an appeal. Please!! If you do not want to help, just do not get in the way!
March 12, 2019
This book was absolute shit. She was weak to have taken in him back and he was a chavunistic controlling a**h***. The kids were horrible to the h when all she did was be a fucking awesome mother. The H treated belittled her career a hundred times but has the guts to reprimand his children when they do (umm.. hello who do you they're learning from). The H is cheating asshole who DID NOT GROVEL even a tad bit because ofcourse the classic "h too depended and in love with the H" crap. My only take back from this book was "how not to choose your partner". SO MANY loopholes in this book. I can't even. Definitely not reading another book from this author until she figures how to deliver a solid story without so much ambiguity and where THE WOMAN is strong enough to dump a cheating asshole or atleast make him work for it.
January 25, 2019
Family!
I was truly sad to leave this family at the close of this book. Became attached to storylines, and povs. Well worth your money and time to spend reading. ENJOY!
I was truly sad to leave this family at the close of this book. Became attached to storylines, and povs. Well worth your money and time to spend reading. ENJOY!
January 17, 2019
OMG, ten stars at least for this masterpiece. Since reading A White Picket Fence last year and falling in love with all of the Hunter’s I have been anxiously awaiting this sequel. I know you can read this as a stand-alone, but if you want the full affect I would go back and read a WPF to get the background of Phil and Lina. Phil is a complex man. He’s gorgeous, overly confident, brilliant, and loves his wife and family like no other. He is also a partner in a prestigious law firm. During a family crisis with their middle daughter, Phil felt like he lost control as a Dad and blamed himself for not being able to fix it. Consequently, along comes a co-worker who pursued him relentlessly and he has an affair. No excuses, he did wrong. Phil always blamed himself for hurting Lina and his family and took full responsibility.
Swimming Naked picks up right where WPF ends. In my opinion, Phil really redeems himself. In SN we get Phil’s POV, as well as Lina’s and it’s awesome. We get a better description of Lina too and she's just as beautiful on the outside as she is on the inside. She gets a career and she really grows with confidence. It's a story of a family healing and how they all come back together and try to forgive. There are a lot of humps to get through before a HEA. The Hunter kids have a new baby brother to come to terms with, also. I think readers will really get to understand how someone as confident as Phil really does have a vulnerable side. There are scenes in SN that will bring you to tears and I think if you were a Phil hater before that you will come over to Team Phil.
Again, Laura Branchflower does not disappoint. She is one of the best new authors out there and hopefully she will be able to expand her fan base, because she truly deserves it! I have read all of her books and the way she portrays her characters and tells a story, you feel like you personally know these people! I know I do!.
Congratulations Laura for a job well done.
Swimming Naked picks up right where WPF ends. In my opinion, Phil really redeems himself. In SN we get Phil’s POV, as well as Lina’s and it’s awesome. We get a better description of Lina too and she's just as beautiful on the outside as she is on the inside. She gets a career and she really grows with confidence. It's a story of a family healing and how they all come back together and try to forgive. There are a lot of humps to get through before a HEA. The Hunter kids have a new baby brother to come to terms with, also. I think readers will really get to understand how someone as confident as Phil really does have a vulnerable side. There are scenes in SN that will bring you to tears and I think if you were a Phil hater before that you will come over to Team Phil.
Again, Laura Branchflower does not disappoint. She is one of the best new authors out there and hopefully she will be able to expand her fan base, because she truly deserves it! I have read all of her books and the way she portrays her characters and tells a story, you feel like you personally know these people! I know I do!.
Congratulations Laura for a job well done.
January 28, 2019
Redemption!
Redemption and I don't mean Phil. This was the author's redemption. The first novel, White Picket Fence, didn't do the characters justice. I still feel like Lina needed to put her Mama and her daughter in their places, but Lina grew a little bit. Phil was the same asswipe but just a tad bit tolerable. There was a boat load more interaction between Phil and Lina which was enjoyable. A part of me wondered why wasn't he in church when his daughter was spiraling, but I guess the situation humbled him. I enjoyed learning more about Phil and witnessing his insatiable sexuality rather than being told about. This story was leaps and bounds better than the first novel. Ms. Laura I see you and say well done and keep writing. Oh, if you continue writing about this family, Meghan needs an ass whipping!!!
Redemption and I don't mean Phil. This was the author's redemption. The first novel, White Picket Fence, didn't do the characters justice. I still feel like Lina needed to put her Mama and her daughter in their places, but Lina grew a little bit. Phil was the same asswipe but just a tad bit tolerable. There was a boat load more interaction between Phil and Lina which was enjoyable. A part of me wondered why wasn't he in church when his daughter was spiraling, but I guess the situation humbled him. I enjoyed learning more about Phil and witnessing his insatiable sexuality rather than being told about. This story was leaps and bounds better than the first novel. Ms. Laura I see you and say well done and keep writing. Oh, if you continue writing about this family, Meghan needs an ass whipping!!!
May 7, 2019
I have been trying to form a witty review for this book because I. Love. It. But others, (read Nikki's review) have said it SO much better. But I promised JP (🤗Hi) that I would try, lol. So here's my review: read this book. Eloquent, I know. But, seriously, if you like angsty, cheating heros that break our heart and then put it back together again, read this. White Picket Fence needed this book bc we needed in Phils head, otherwise we would have gutted and stoned him. Really, you will get that mad at him. But hey, that's the bench mark of a really great angst fest, right? So I consider this more of a duet than sequel. Book 2 makes book 1 become amazing.
Edit: the writing is wonderful, characterization is what makes this book, bc we believe they are who she wrote them to be. That's a mouthful, but I couldn't figure out a graceful way to say it. ;)
Edit: the writing is wonderful, characterization is what makes this book, bc we believe they are who she wrote them to be. That's a mouthful, but I couldn't figure out a graceful way to say it. ;)
December 7, 2021
Wow. What a disgusting story. What a toxic hero and an even more toxic marriage. And the worst part (besides the way the author scapegoats the other woman to prop up her narcissistic hero) is that the author has no idea how toxic and wrong this whole situation is. Based on her responses to reader’s comments, she really doesn’t see how horribly she is treating her heroine and how terrible her hero is. I don’t think I’ve ever seen internalized misogyny shine through a book narrative so brightly. I am appalled.
September 16, 2022
2 stars because, at least here, the h wasn't that pathetic like the previous book.
April 22, 2019
I absolutely loved this book! If you love contemporary romance surrounding married couples, then you will adore this story. This author deserves more attention and I highly recommend this series. It is sexy, very adult and totally addictive!
January 20, 2019
5 Stars
I read White Picket Fence and loved it but felt there were too many open ended situations/questions. This book follows White Picket Fence and I am so glad there was a follow up so we could see the how they dealt with Liam and Kim. I feel that Phil redeemed himself a little more in this book. Lina is awesome and I was happy that she kept her independence after letting Phil come back home.
I read White Picket Fence and loved it but felt there were too many open ended situations/questions. This book follows White Picket Fence and I am so glad there was a follow up so we could see the how they dealt with Liam and Kim. I feel that Phil redeemed himself a little more in this book. Lina is awesome and I was happy that she kept her independence after letting Phil come back home.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 133 reviews