Nerd Gone Wild by Vicki Lewis Thompson

Synopsis

Inheriting a fortune means less to Ally Jarrett than fulfilling her real dream: to take off for the wilds of Alaska and photograph animals. Unfortunately she's also inherited her grandmother's personal assistant-an over-protective nerd who couldn't survive a snowball fight.

As a PI and bodyguard, Mitchell Caruthers is the perfect man to protect his late employer's granddaughter. However, keeping his geek-masquerade-and the secret behind his real mission-isn't easy when the freeze between Ally and Mitchell begins to melt.

Yet all's not well in this sub-zero paradise. Ally's bad seed uncle is staking a claim on the family inheritance with a dangerous masquerade of his own. With Ally's life in danger, it's time for her right-hand nerd to expose the real man undercover, and prove himself to the vulnerable body he's been hired to guard...

Publishers Weekly

The last person Ally Jarrett wants to see on her first day of her new life in Porcupine, Alaska, is her recently deceased grandmother's nerdy personal assistant, Mitchell J. Carruthers. As the new heiress to the enormous Jarrett fortune, Ally isn't about to let any meddling geek stop her from realizing her dream of becoming a wildlife photographer. What she doesn't realize is that Mitchell's dorky orange pompom hat conceals his true identity as a bodyguard and PI. Hired by Ally's grandmother to protect Ally from her evil uncle Kurt, who's after her inheritance, Mitchell never thought his work would take him from warm Bel Air to freezing Porcupine, or that he would find himself falling for his charge. Mitchell worries that his average background makes him a poor match for Ally, but once she uncovers Mitch's true identity, he doesn't stand a chance. The town of Porcupine, whose citizens use sex to compensate for dark winter nights, proves a sizzling and silly setting for Ally and Mitchell's budding romance, as well as for the over-the-top antics of villainous Uncle Kurt and his highly sexed dominatrix girlfriend. Though at times far-fetched, the third romance in Thompson's Nerd series (after The Nerd Who Loved Me) is a delightfully cozy read for a cold winter night. Agent, Maureen Walters. (Feb.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Biography

Vicki Lewis Thompson's been crazy about nerds all her life, but it was always a private passion. Then, in the summer of 2003, she went public with her romantic comedy Nerd in Shining Armor. Turns out Kelly Ripa also likes nerds and chose the book as her Reading with Ripa Book Club pick of the summer. In no time, the book hit all the major lists: New York Times, USA Today and Publishers Weekly. Understandably, Vicki's passion for nerds has increased tenfold. She lives in Arizona with her husband, who insists he's not a nerd but who does, in fact, wear glasses and is very good at math.

Visit her Web site at: vickilewisthompson.com