Trashionista

August 12, 2010 7:45 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen

Being new to the novels of Sarah Addison Allen, I was excited to receive a copy of her latest book, The Girl Who Chased the Moon (the UK cover is adorable!) Sarah's previous works, The Sugar Queen and Garden Spells, have gained plenty of recognition, so I was curious to find out what else Ms Allen had to offer!

After her mother's death, teenager Emily Benedict has arrived in the small, traditionally Southern town of Mullaby, North Carolina; the place in which her mother grew up. Mother Dulcie, a world-saving activist with selfless intentions, never spoke of her past, of her life in Mullaby, or even of her father - the grandfather that Emily never knew she had. So when Emily arrives in the small town, her 8ft tall grandfather Vance isn't the only surprise - nor is his strange story about the bedroom wallpaper changing design. Not long after turning up in Mullaby in the hope of finding out more about her mother as a young girl, she discovers that she's not welcome.

Comments about the girl's arrival are already buzzing around Mullaby, with strangers shunning her and local youngsters stating how she's not welcome. The only person willing to speak to her is smart young Win Coffey, and even then, it's in secret...

Just what did her mother do to make the whole town turn against her? Just what did she leave behind? Emily is determined to find out.

Meanwhile, neighbour Julia is focused on her cake-making. Seeing her return to Mullaby as only temporary whilst she embarks on her two-year plan - to run her father's barbecue business before selling it - she's still intent on creating her own baking business. And seeing Emily arrive, she quickly bakes a welcome cake, seeing the opportunity to become friends, After all, due to her mother's fiery past, she's going to need one...

Emily's confused, but determined. What is the big secret that everyone is hiding? What did Dulcie Shelby do that made her everyone's enemy? And just what are the Mullaby Lights? Are they really ghosts? And why DOES the wallpaper in her mother's old room change its design?

There are so many mysteries in Mullaby, and Emily Benedict is about to solve them, making a huge discovery. And of course, finding out more about her mother along the way. Especially when it comes to the overly-traditional Coffey family, who never come out at night...

The Girl Who Chased the Moon is an absolutely lovely story of love, mystery and new beginnings, combined with just enough magic to make it perfect. The secretive town of Mullaby is a wonderful setting for this heart-warming tale of identity and friendship. Whilst Emily is learning about her family history, Julia is finding out some home truths as well.

Once I started this book, I just couldn't put it down until I'd finished it, impatiently wanting to know how the mysteries were solved! It's a fantastic tale and has made me want to get hold of Allen's previous novels. The Girl Who Chased the Moon is a thoroughly pleasing, magical read!

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try: The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes

 

 

Posted by Elle Symonds on August 12, 2010 in Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 18, 2009 9:03 PM

BOOK NEWS: Air Confidential and top tell-all career books...

Wicked Whispers: Confessions of a Gossip Queen

Former 3am girl Jessica Callan released her tell-tale book in 2007, detailing life as a showbiz journalist. Jessica dished the dirt on both the nice celebrities, and...well, the not so nice ones. Working as one of the most renowned showbiz journos in the country, Jessica and the 3am girls were subject to a vast array of celebrity shenanigans...and so, she penned this scandalous diary.

Tabloid Love

What are your favourites?

Posted by Elle Symonds on March 18, 2009 in Book News, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Recent Release, Weblogs | Permalink | Comments (1)

November 27, 2008 12:09 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Spa Wars by Chris Manby

Spa Wars by Chris Manby is about waxing, reality TV stars and revenge. It starts out with a cracking pace and the brilliant writing sucks you into the story immediately. Emily Brown has always wanted to make others look good. Her goal in life is to open her own beauty salon and with some prudent saving she achieves the dream. Thanks to a name drop from Carina Lees, a reality TV star, bookings have to be made weeks in advance. She expands, takes on new staff. Then everything seems to go wrong.

The first half of this book was great and I zipped through it thinking, yup this one could be on for a five star rating. But then things started to go a little flat. Emily, as the heroine, was a strange character. I didn't know what to think of her but then she did something quite tactless and I thought, I don't care what happens to you anymore. All of a sudden I wasn't quite so desperate to reach the end. But then, surprisingly, the book changed pace again and I was drawn back into the plot.

This is a great book. Full of up to date cultural references and a behind the scenes look at how reality TV stars milk their fifteen minutes, despite the slowing in pace, I really enjoyed it.

In my dusty memory I don't think I've read any books by Chris Manby before, but I look forward to ploughing through her back catalogue.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Just Say Yes by Phillipa Ashley

Posted by Helen Redfern on November 27, 2008 in Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 18, 2008 11:01 AM

BOOK REVIEW: It's A Kind Of Magic by Carole Matthews

What is it with Carole Matthews and her book titles recently? A few weeks ago I read All You Need Is Love (ta da da da daa) and now I have Freddie Mercury with his moustache and yellow jacket in my head. Not a bad image but quite distracting when you're trying to read and write.

As you may guess from the title, It's A Kind of Magic (gah! Every time I write this I'm doing the backing vocals) is a magical book. Chick lit with fairies. I am not averse to a bit of magical  fantasy in any of the books I read, as long as it is done well. I loved Garden Spells where the magic and fantasy was applied in such a subtle way, it was still believable. With It's A Kind Of Magic, the magic was applied with a sledgehammer. Nevertheless I still found it entertaining.

Emma and Leo have been on and off for around five years. Emma is a neat and control freak whereas Leo is untidy, unreliable and, if I'm honest, a right, royal pain. On Emma's thirtieth birthday he rolls up over two hours late, drunk and falls into her birthday cake. Emma breaks it off and this time she means it.

Or does she?

Walking home that night Leo meets a woman on Tower Bridge. She comes home with him and turns his life upside down. For she is not human. She is a fairy - with a wand and everything.

And I can accept that, for it isn't the magic I have a problem with. What didn't quite ring true for me were the characters of Emma and Leo. Emma whines a lot about Leo, saying she loves him, but most of the time she just hates being on her own. Leo was meant to be cute, in a childlike way, but I just found him irritating and certainly not likable enough to root for him.

Despite all this I still found the book entertaining enough to want to finish it which is great as I have plenty that I am struggling to start at the moment. Carole has that great ability to suck you in and, by keeping her chapters short, with a mini cliffhanger at the end of each of them, you just have to carry on. She also made me laugh out loud a few times. Not something I am prone to do.

I would, however, have liked a different ending. I love romance and the bit where you finally see which people get it together. But when I finally closed the book I felt like I had eaten too much toffee (and I hadn't even had my breakfast yet). The words that popped into my mind were "sickly" and "sweet".

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try I much preferred Carole's latest one (out in hardback) All You Need Is Love

Posted by Helen Redfern on November 18, 2008 in Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 14, 2008 10:22 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Engaging Father Christmas by Robin Jones Gunn & My Mother's Wish by Jerry Camery-Hoggatt

Reviewed by Jill Hart

Two Christmas Stories You Can Believe In

I love Christmas. I love the lights, the tree, even the hustle and bustle. But, one of my most favorite things about Christmas is treating myself to a cup of cocoa and a good Christmas story. Some years I'm drawn back to the old standbys like A Christmas Carol or even How The Grinch Stole Christmas. But, this year I have two new Christmas favorites.

The first book, Engaging Father Christmas, is actually the second book in a series by Robin Jones Gunn. (The first book is Finding Father Christmas - my last year's favorite.)

Gunn's novellas are cozy. Set in London, they have everything I need for a heartwarming Christmastime read - love, intrigue and, of course, a happy ending. The books each stand alone, but my recommendation would be to read them together.

In Engaging Father Christmas, the main character, Miranda Carson, is headed to see her boyfriend whom she met the prior Christmas. She's unsure of exactly where they stand and running into a old flame at the train station makes things even more complicated. She's also in town to see her step-mother - a woman who hasn't been able (or willing) to accept her as a true member of the family. She's hoping this trip she'll be able to win her approval and finally have a real family. But, a serious of events casts a doubtful shadow over Miranda's trip and she's not sure she'll ever find a family to belong to.

The second story is My Mother's Wish: An American Christmas Carol by Jerry Camery-Hoggatt. The US is joining the ranks of the Christmas Carol producers and this YA novella is a sweet example. Ellee, a frustrated teenage girl, just doesn't see things the way the rest of the world does. Her controlling mother won't give her a break, even refusing to refer to her as anything but Eleanor (her grandmother and namesake) and comparing her every move to that of her perfect sister.

Ellee finally gets fed up and decides that running away from home is the only way to escape her mother's disappointment in her. She gets more than she bargained for when she finds herself at the Comeback Cafe with no money, no ride and not a friend in site. Lives interwoven is the theme of this book and it's a beautiful picture of how each of us can have an effect on those around us.

Rating: 4/5

Posted by Aigua Media on November 14, 2008 in American Authors, Inspirational, New Releases, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 7, 2008 10:16 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Overnight Fame of Steffi McBride

I wasn't exactly mad keen to read Andrew Crofts' debut novel, The Overnight Fame of Steffi McBride - I find it hard to maintain my interest in real dysfunctional soap stars, why would I want to read about a fictional one? But, despite that, I did find the premise intriguing and so I sat down to read...

... and I didn't get up again until I'd finished it. That makes it sound like a particularly gripping read and, while it *was* both gripping and entertaining, it was more that it was such an easy read. It would make a great holiday book.

Steffi wants to act, but her abusive father has told her in no uncertain terms that her doing so would bring shame on the family. So she has acting lessons in secret and it's at one of these lessons, when she gives a monologue describing her father beating her mother, that she is discovered by casting directors from Britain's biggest soap (which, unsuprisingly, sounds rather Eastenders-esque).

Steffi is thrown into the limelight and, despite basically playing a tart with a heart, apparently becomes enormously popular with the public. Next thing she's modelling for Elle (I found this a bit implausible - has anyone from Eastenders modelled for Elle?), being courted by a Max Clifford style PR guru and fixed up, both professionally and personally, with her childhood hero, former boy band singer, Luke.

Of course, her old life - her father's behaviour, the fact that she lived in a squat with her druggy boyfriend - is soon picked up on by the press who, as they do, take to hounding her pretty constantly. And then they get hold of an even bigger secret from her past - one that even Steffi's unaware of...

I really did enjoy this book. It found it convincing about the fake aspects of celebrity (although I found Steffi's mega-swift rise to fame a bit much) and how easily the people around you can change. What I didn't find entirely convincing was Steffi herself. I never really knew how she was coping with it all. I just didn't feel I'd really got under her skin. In fact, I didn't feel like I really knew any of the characters; they all could have been fleshed out so they felt more like real people.

Having said that, I'd quite like a sequel because I want to know what's next for Steffi!

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try The Secret Diaries of Abigail Titmuss by Abi Titmuss for a "real" version or The Truth About Ruby Valentine by Alison Bond for a fictional alternative

Posted by Keris on November 7, 2008 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 4, 2008 1:14 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Honey Trap by Julie Cohen

When Julie Cohen's latest book, Honey Trap, fell onto my doormat a short while ago, I actually let out a short squeal. I had thoroughly enjoyed her previous novel, One Night Stand, but then, as I looked at it, I became a little nervous in case this one didn't match up. Despite this, on holiday last week I picked it up, and the first few chapters had me so engrossed I didn't even notice my brother in law setting a drink down in front of me or four boys (not all mine) running about the place.

Sophie Tennant is a private investigator. She crops up briefly in One Night Stand, but was such a vivid character to Julie, that she now has a book all of her own. She specialises in honey traps, employed on behalf of a suspicious wife to see if her husband is playing away from home. The honey trap she has set when the book opens however, appears to be one trap too many and Sophie is in real danger. Deciding enough is enough she retrains as an aromatherapist and is employed by a reunited rock band to go on tour with them. Sounds good. But her previous career doesn't seem to want to go away - especially when she sets eyes on the new bassist in the band. Dominick Steele. He was her first ever honey trap.

And that is a much as I'm going to tell you, as that is as much as I knew when I began reading the book and I don't want to inadvertently give anything away. You see, this book is part romance, part sass, part funny and part mystery. It is also incredibly sharp with both a tight plot and dialogue.

I was gripped from the first sentence, Sophie Tennant had never seen her date in real life, but she knew he was brown-eyed, brown-haired, slightly built, and a scumbag. I then couldn't put it down until the end. In fact I even tried to go to sleep but ended up switching the light back on to read more.

The plot evolved naturally, it wasn't contrived, and when something in particular happened...well I didn't see it coming and I love it when that happens. Sophie was a great character, as were the men in the band and Dominick Steele, the bassist, well, he was a great hero.

There was so much detail packed into the 340 pages, no mean feat to do I'm sure. But if I had one complaint, is would be that the book was longer!

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Fast Women by Jennifer Crusie

Posted by Helen Redfern on November 4, 2008 in Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 3, 2008 10:55 AM

MORE ON MONDAY: Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott

I was afraid to read Elizabeth Scott's Living Dead Girl. I've loved her other books, but this was something completely different.

It's the story of “Alice” who was abducted, aged 10, by Ray. She's now 15 and constantly subjected to physical, mental and sexual abuse. Ray killed his previous “Alice” when she reached 15 so Alice is waiting until he kills her too. She's not afraid, she would welcom it. But Ray's got something different in mind – he wants her to help him kidnap his new "Alice".

This book is described on the back cover as “more than a novel... it is a visceral experience” and I would agree. I found it incredibly hard to read, in fact I had to scan it quickly because I wanted to find out what happened, but I wanted to avoid as much detail as possible.

Brilliantly written as it, it's the kind of book that could give you nightmares. Even if it doesn't, I guarantee you won't be able to stop thinking about it.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Dear Zoe by Philip Beard (or The Lovely Bones, which we haven't reviewed).

Posted by Keris on November 3, 2008 in American Authors, More On Monday, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 22, 2008 10:32 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Ugly Betty

I absolutely love the TV show, Ugly Betty (although somehow I've managed to pretty much miss the entire recent series), so when I heard about this glossy companion book, I had to get it.

Designed to look like an issue of Mode magazine edited by Betty, it's full of all the usual information and pics we've come to expect from these kind of books, i.e. interviews with the cast and crew, articles about the sets and the clothes and the inevitable episode guide.

What makes this book different is just how utterly gorgeous it looks. Like the show itself, it's colourful, fun and over the top.

It would make an excellent Christmas pressie for the discerning Betty fan.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Sex and the City - the book of the movie

Posted by Keris on October 22, 2008 in Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Television | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 20, 2008 11:47 AM

BOOK REVIEW: All You Need Is Love by Carole Matthews

I've read some of Carole Matthew's older books and I have to be truthful here, I didn't find her to be my cup of tea. (That is actually a mild way of describing my feelings towards her books.) And this new one, All You Need Is Love, about a woman, Sally, who appears to be saved by one of two men (a rich one or a poor one) didn't exactly strike a chord with me either.

So being slightly prejudiced against the book before I'd even opened it (and don't get me started on the annoying song that came into my head everytime I looked at it) the book didn't have much of a chance.

When I eventually settled down to read it this weekend, I couldn't help but admire Carole's writing. It appears to trip effortlessly off the page, making it easy to read, but I know, from experience, how hard it is to write that way.

Set in a sink estate in Liverpool, Sally lives in a grotty flat which smells of urine and has a lift which is permanently vandalised. She has a ten year old son, Charlie, and plans for the future. She doesn't know what these plans are yet, but she has started to better herself with a computer course. Which is where she meets Spencer, the teacher of the course. He has a porche, a beautiful apartment in the city and is interested in her. Much to the hurt and annoyance of her ex, Johnny.

Sally sees Johnny as only a friend though, so he retreats back to the garage lock up where he finds solace in his painting. Paintings that Sally was extremely dismissive of when they were together. In fact, she'd never even seen one of them, believing he should be painting and decorating rather than splattering bits of paint onto canvas. This is because Sally wants their lives to improve and there is no room for dreams but good, honest work.

When Spencer comes into her life he opens her eyes. And this is the inspiration for Sally to start on a one woman quest to improve their estate.

I could write about this book for some time, which just goes to show how much I enjoyed it. My prejudices were cast aside. And Sally isn't a woman that needed to be saved. This book is fun, feel good, escapist chick lit. A cracking page turner of a book. I think that is all I need to say.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Accidental Wife by Rowan Coleman

Posted by Helen Redfern on October 20, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

MORE ON MONDAY: All Balls and Glitter by Craig Revel Horwood

I love Craig Revel Horwood. I know he's meant to be the Mr Nasty of Strictly Come Dancing, but I find him the most consistent judge and the most consistently hilarious.

I'd read a lot about this autobiography before it was published. The papers were full of lurid tales of Craig's time as a rent boy and a drag queen, so I was expecting it to be scandalous, juicy and, since Craig is so honest on Strictly, rather indiscreet too. Yeah. It wasn't.

It was a good read, I'm not saying that, and it was certainly considerably more entertaining than Lorraine Kelly's yawnfest, but there just wasn't actually that much scandal.

Craig wasn't *really* a rent boy (he allowed an older man he wasn't actually interested in to take him travelling), being a drag queen isn't particularly shocking anyway (and judging by the photos, he was a very good one) and apart from that it was mostly about his career. Which has been solid and accomplished.

I had to stop myself skipping to the Strictly section of the book, where I thought his lips might get a little looser, but, no, it was all on-message. Everyone gets on. It's a great show to do. No, the producers don't tell him to be nasty, he just likes to tell it as it is.

Like I said, it was, in the main, an entertaining read, but it wasn't a particularly exciting one. Maybe he should have got the Mr Nasty side of his character to write it...

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try My Booky Wook by Russell Brand (much juicier)

And don't forget about my Strictly Come Dancing reviews over on TV Scoop!

Posted by Keris on October 20, 2008 in Celebrity Authors, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 13, 2008 11:38 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Seduction by Gemma Holliday

You know me, the words "erotic fiction" made me a teensy bit afraid. I'm not a prude (okay, I'm a bit of a prude), but I'm always wary of reading anything described as "erotic" and I'm certainly wary of reading anything with people in their underpants on the cover.

But Geneva Holliday's latest book, Seduction, while it is indeed erotic, is also great fun. I think I read it in two sittings and I was pretty much smiling throughout.

Seduction features Mildred Johnson. She works for the managing director of an investment firm and is, by all accounts, deeply unattractive and insecure.

Tony Landry is a player. Despite still living with his mother, he sleeps with a different woman every night (and sometimes more than one at a time) and is basically a moral vacuum.

So when Tony gets a job at the company where Mildred works, the reader isn't unduly worried. I mean, Mildred's certainly not his type. But then Tony's friend tells him how he can use his new job to steal money from the company and, for that, he needs to convince Mildred that he's in love with her. And he does. And poor Mildred falls for him too. Hard. (Fnarr.)

Tony, the swine, jilts Mildred on their wedding day and nicks off to Barbados with his ill-gotten gains.

Mildred, devastated, goes to Barbados on holiday. Well, she thought it was a holiday, but it turns out her friend has sent her to a weightloss boot camp. Mildred loses weight and becomes stunningly gorgeous.

And then she bumps into Tony and sees the chance for revenge...

(I know it seems like I've given away pretty much the whole book - and I kind of have - but that's no more than it says on the back cover!)

Like I said, Seduction is great fun... as long as you don't take it too seriously. (And, to be honest, I'm not sure you could.) At the beginning, Mildred is such a dope and so insecure that I just wanted to shake her, but then she changes quite dramatically and I'm not entirely confident it's for the better (I can't say any more than that because I don't want to give the ENTIRE book away!).

But bits of it *were* pretty sexy, so it would make a rather fabulous beach read, I think. And I'll definitely be reading more Geneva Holliday books.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Amorous Woman by Donna George Storey

Posted by Keris on October 13, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance, Series | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 10, 2008 11:59 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs

I'd been looking forward to Kate Jacobs' second book for almost a year, so earlier this week, I made myself a cup of tea, got myself a packet of dark chocolate digestives (*my* comfort food) and curled up on the sofa to indulge... (I had the book as well).

It's the story of TV chef Augusta "Gus" Simpson who learns that her long-running cookery show is getting, in the opinion of the audience and the television station, stale. I'm afraid to say I found the book stale too. (The biscuits, however, were fine.)

Gus's producer tells her that they need to liven things up and so she finds herself agreeing to a live show with special guests. The original plan, basketball stars ("Hot guests and cool food") falls through when they are delayed by the weather and the head of the station instead brings, younger, hotter (and cooler) Spanish internet chef, Carmen Vega to cook alongside Gus. Gus, of course, can't stand Carmen, but the audience loves her and so Gus and Carmen are given a show to co-present.

Meanwhile, Gus is trying to control the lives of everyone around her - her daughters, their boyfriends, her best friend and neighbour, the reclusive Hannah - while refusing to live her own life (widowed more than twenty years earlier, she hasn't dated since).

But I'm afraid I didn't really believe a word of it. I didn't warm to Gus at all. I didn't find anything that happened particularly believable, plus it was all rather cliched (why did she dislike Carmen? Because she was younger and more attractive). The storyline that Hannah was hiding out after a scandal seemed to appear from nowhere.

I know I recently complained about criticisms of chick lit as predictable, but, seriously, the love interest in this book practically arrived with a flashing "LOVE INTEREST" light show above his head. And yet I didn't find myself rooting for he and Gus to get together because I didn't care enough about either of them.

I've also complained in the past when people call a plot "contrived" because, let's face it, all plots are contrived by the author - but I got the impression reading Comfort Food that Kate Jacobs was sitting and thinking, "Hm. What should happen next? Oh yes, I know, I'll send them all on a team building course." It just didn't seem natural to me and I found myself mostly scanning the entire second half of the book.

I was particularly disappointed because I enjoyed The Friday Night Knitting Club so much. Jacobs' next book is a sequel to that one, so here's hoping it'll find her back on form.

Rating: 3/5 (I toyed with a 2, but it *is* well-written, so I've decided on a 3)

Like this? Try The Perfectly True Tales of a Perfect Size 12 by Robin Gold (a similar idea, but so much better)

Posted by Keris on October 10, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

October 6, 2008 12:35 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Just Say Yes by Phillipa Ashley

Just Say Yes is a contemporary romance, full of up to the minute cultural references, set in both London and Cornwall. Lucy Gibson is the girlfriend of Nick Laurentis, a popular winner of the reality TV show Hotshots (thinly veiled The Apprentice). Nick proposes to Lucy live on air in the final show, Lucy says no (they hardly know each other and the L word has never been mentioned) and is subsequently hounded by the paparazzi and treated like the worst woman in Britain.

Lucy has had enough of the paps stalking her on her doorstep, so she decides to flee to Cornwall and live in her friend Fiona's cottage for a month. Whilst she's down there she meets Josh and his girlfriend Sara, feels like a gooseberry but is also, disconcertingly, extremely attracted to Josh.

Josh is the sort of man who doesn't like being lied to, who likes the truth and doesn't give any second chances. The problem is, as soon as he says this, you know Lucy isn't going to tell the truth about why she is down in Cornwall. I've spoken about this kind of frustrating misunderstanding in books before, where she is obviously not telling him the truth just for the sake of the plot so it all reaches a climax towards the end. Last week, Keris spoke of predictability in chick lit. Whilst we often know in chick lit who is going to end up with who, it is the journey of how they get there that makes a great story. I knew who Lucy would end up with straight away, but slightly infuriatingly I also guessed how they would get there.

Also, as far as I can see, she has nothing to be ashamed of. So she turned down a chap's marriage proposal. Is that such a bad thing? Surely Nick was the one who should be ashamed for putting her in that position in the first place?

With the clunky plot in mind, there were a few other aspects of the story that didn't make it flow easily. One minute it is early evening and the next it is afternoon (on the same day). Then the spiky plant. One minute she has taken it home, then towards the end of the book it is back at the office...It is just little things, but mildly infuriating when you are opening up your imagination to believe the story and the characters.

Now that I've had my moan though, I did enjoy the book. It was a pleasant, easy read. There were great descriptions of Cornwall that made me want to pack my bags and live there immediately. Josh was a heroic swooning character ideal for a romance novel and Lucy was the sort of girl who doesn't recognise her own beauty. A bit dim at first but comes up trumps in the end.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Decent Exposure by Phillipa Ashley

Posted by Helen Redfern on October 6, 2008 in Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

MORE ON MONDAY: Ways to Live Forever by Sally Nicholls

I'd heard a lot of good things about Sally Nicholls' Ways to Live Forever, but I was put off by the fact that it's the story of an 11-year-old boy with leukaemia. I'd tried to read Jenny Downham's Before I Die, but found it too upsetting, but I convinced myself to try Ways to Live Forever and I'm so glad I did.

Since he's being homeschooled due to his illness, Sam decides to keep “a collection of lists stories, pictures, questions and facts” as a project. Sam's voice is charming, sweet and funny and, inevitably, it's this voice, combined with the issues Sam is having to deal with that makes this book so heartbreaking.

Sam's questions are things like, “Why does God make kids get ill?” and “Does it hurt to die?” and he tries to answer them with the assistance of his fellow leukaemia sufferer and friend, Felix. The book also illuminates how his illness affects his family's relationships both with him and with each other.

It's very easy to read (in the main - some of the more painful parts are harder) and it's done with a very light touch.

Because I knew the ending was inevitable, I worried about it all through the book and was almost afraid to read it, but it's dealt with beautifully. Although that's not to say I didn't cry - clutching my mercifully healthy son - for about ten minutes after finishing it. It's incredibly moving, but also sweet, charming and funny.

Sally Nicholls was just 23 when she wrote this book. I can only imagine what she's going to come up with next.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Dear Zoe by Philip Beard

The cover above is the new UK cover (the book has been described as "Jodi Picoult for teens" so I think that's what they're going for with that cover), but which cover do you like best?

The cover on the left is the originally UK cover. Bit generic, no? The cover on the right is the US cover and my favourite.

Posted by Keris on October 6, 2008 in British Authors, More On Monday, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (4)

September 11, 2008 10:01 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Book Club by Kate McCabe

Reviewed by Fionnuala Kearney

As a Kate McCabe virgin, I was pleased to open her third novel, The Book Club, whilst on holiday in Spain. The beach, the sun, an iced drink, cooling breeze and a book – oh happy days. In fact, I decided to read this book before my own book club offering, as I fancied the cover more and it looked a perfect holiday read.

When Marion Hunt, tired of solitary Winter nights, decides to start a book club, her advert attracts a disparate group of people whose lives are about to impact each other greatly. Christy Grimes (who had only ever read James Bond before) joins to encourage his wife, an avid reader, to meet new people following a minor stroke. Nick Barry, a successful poet is determined not to let his treatment at the hands of literary critics stop him writing a novel. Liz Broderick, a young widow, discovers new hope and new friends. Throw Matt Bolinger, Marion’s sexy neighbour and Alan McMullan, her stalker like ex into the mix and the book club meetings look set to be interesting.

The characters were all well drawn, interesting and likeable (with the exception of Alan McMullan who could never be described as likeable and who is surely responsible for the slime in slime ball). 

The pace, sense of place, and sensitive subjects like grief and illness were handled beautifully. My only criticism is that as the novel progressed, the plot did not feel credible in places and the ending was too predictable. That said, I enjoyed the read. Not a book for a book club, I feel, as it’s not a book that will incite debate, but as a holiday read, it ticks all the boxes.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler

Posted by Aigua Media on September 11, 2008 in Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 2, 2008 4:06 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Jack With a Twist by Brenda Janowitz

Jack With a Twist is Brenda Janowitz's second novel featuring lawyer Brooke Miller. In the first, Scot on the Rocks, Brooke's boyfriend dumps her just before her ex-boyfriend's wedding, which they were supposed to attend together.

In Jack..., Brooke is trying to arrange her wedding to her gorgeous fiance (um, Jack) at the same time as working on the biggest case of her career. Things are thrown into turmoil when Brooke finds out that Jack is working on the same case... but for the opposition.

Between dealing with her controlling mother, Jack's even more controlling family, and the enormous workload dealt to her by her future husband, Brooke is also trying to find a wedding dress and, you know, have some semblance of a life.

I enjoyed Jack With a Twist even more than Scot on the Rocks. As with Scot... there are some improbably situations that drove me a bit mad, but Brooke is such a sweet character and the supporting characters are such good value that I didn't mind as much as I might otherwise.

Brooke herself reminds me of a less daffy Becky Bloomwood or Lizzie from Meg Cabot's Queen of Babble series. And, yes, that's a compliment!

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Queen of Babble Gets Hitched by Meg Cabot

Posted by Keris on September 2, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (1)

August 25, 2008 11:01 AM

MORE ON MONDAY: America Unchained by Dave Gorman

I started watching Dave Gorman's America Unchained documentary, but never actually finished it, so I was glad to get my hands on the book version. I've read Gorman's previous books and seen him live, and he's always very good value.

The premise of America Unchained is that Dave Gorman would drive (or attempt to drive) across America from coast to coast using only independent businesses, including hotels and gas stations. Avoiding Shell, Amoco, Best Western, Comfort Inns, etc., was always going to pose a problem, and so it proved. But that wasn't the only problem.

Because he was also making a film (this hadn't been the original plan, Gorman had just been going to do this by himself), he had a filmmaker with him, Stef. But holding the heavy camera at an awkward angle in an enclosed space (the car Gorman bought at the beginning of the journey), damaged Stef's back and so much of the early part of the journey was spent driving between chiropractors. And also garages. Gorman had bought at 1970s Ford Torino and it had a lot of problems.

For probably the first half of this book (much like the half of the documentary that I saw), I thought Gorman's plan was wrongheaded. Independents aren't necessarily good and corporations aren't necessarily evil, a fact proved by the scuzzy independent motels he stayed in and the corporate garage that rescued him from the motorway when he ran out of petrol, and didn't even charge a call-out fee (to be fair, I can't imagine that ever happening in the UK, but maybe I've been unlucky). As I continued to read though, I started to appreciate what Gorman was trying to do. No, it wasn't perfect, but who cares, it was still a noble goal.

Dave Gorman is such an interesting character. He often comes across as aggressive and combative, but there's a real sweetness and idealism underneath. It's the sweetness that is far more in evidence in this book than it was in, say, Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure. The book also works as a travelogue, making me eager to take another US roadtrip (although I'll be avoiding Mississippi).

Oh and the ending made me well up. You can't ask for much more than that, can you?

Rating: 4/5 (Why not 5? Since I've just said you can't ask for more. Well, it didn't make me laugh out loud and Gorman is a comedian, after all.)

Like this? Try Not Buying It by Judith Levine

Posted by Keris on August 25, 2008 in British Authors, More On Monday, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 22, 2008 8:38 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Tommy Sullivan is a Freak by Meg Cabot

It's hard to find new things to say about Meg Cabot's books when I find I'm reviewing them about once a month... but luckily I don't need to find new things to say, I can just keep saying they're fantastic. Because they are. (Just in case you did not get that.)

Her latest teen book (I think...), Tommy Sullivan is a Freak features Katie Ellison who is both intelligent and popular. But it's come at a cost. She has to hide who she really is and what she really thinks.

She didn't used to. She used to be good friends with Tommy Sullivan, but when he discovered that some members of the town's precious football team cheated on their SATs - and exposed them - he was run out of town.

Oh, but now he's back. And threatening to ruin everything Katie's worked for. And he's really hot.

Like all of Meg's books, Tommy Sullivan is a Freak is an easy read with hidden depths. I flew through it and, I have to say, I LOVED Tommy Sullivan, one of the foxiest teen characters I've read for a while. Plus I learned a lot about bivalves and that kind of knowledge can't be underestimated. Probably.

Read an extract here.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try How to be Popular by Meg Cabot

Posted by Keris on August 22, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (3)

August 14, 2008 8:30 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Secret Diaries of Abigail Titmuss by Abi Titmuss

For those of you who don't know who Abi Titmuss is, well, she shot to fame as the girlfriend of a well known TV presenter in the UK (an ex of Catherine Zeta Jones) when he was arrested over rape and sex allegations. She was a nurse at the time and loyally stood by him whilst the press went mad and he was left a broken man. Because of all this press interest in her boyfriend's story, Abi herself started to get attention. Then, bizarrely, the Richard and Judy Show called her in to screen test as a presenter.

The screen test went well and she was offered a job as a roving reporter. Meanwhile she was still working as a nurse at the hospital. She did a couple of pieces for the show, then disaster struck. Someone sold pictures of her with two men and a woman (you know what I mean). Then there were drug allegations. So she was dropped from The Richard and Judy Show. In our crazy media obsessed world, however, this didn't stop the job offers. She went to work for a fantasy channel for a lot of money, FHM the men's magazine wanted to shoot some pictures of her, the tabloids were printing stories about her all the time, and she sort of *fell* into the world of glamour modeling.

This is not an autobiography. As the title suggests it is actually a diary from the date she met her TV presenter boyfriend and when she had just gone part time as a nurse in order to study acting. Unfortunately for her, with the scandal that followed and the career choices she made, her dreams of being an actress were beginning to look less and less likely. I thought the diary extremely well written, but when I read the first page or so properly I saw it had been written "with" Lucie Cave, the talented features editor from Heat Magazine.

The diary shows the world behind the headlines. What is printed versus what actually happens, staged paparazzi shots, the inordinate amount of money to be made from photographs. To me though, this is actually a sad book. When I finished it I actually felt sorry for Abi. If what is said in the book is true or even remotely true, it is a terrible example of the price of fame and the way women in particular are built up by the media, only to be torn to strips a short while later. The sadder part is, women or girls actually aspire to be like her. As Abi says in her advice, are you insane?

From the headlines and the photographs you would think Abi is having a ball and milking it for all its worth. Whilst she may be doing the latter, the former is achieved through lots of alcohol in order to make her more confident. Most women deal with self esteem, weight issues and fat days. Abi is no different. But then I think, why put yourself out there? Why go on a reality TV show? Why expose yourself in such a way? She complains that she feels violated at times so why keep on milking the cow?

Even if you aren't interested in Abi, but are interested in the celebrity media and the way it works, this gives you a small slice of behind the scenes action. As celebrity books go, it's not bad, and as it's not an autobiography but a diary - it's an easy read.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Jordan: Pushed To The Limit by Katie Price

Posted by Helen Redfern on August 14, 2008 in British Authors, Celebrity Authors, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

August 13, 2008 3:54 PM

BOOK NEWS: My Best Friend Has Issues

My Best Friend Has Issues is a darkly comic book by Laura Marney, author of Only Strange People Go To Church and No Wonder I Take A Drink. It has been described as shocking at times, but in a funny way, which, going by the titles of her other books I can't say I'm surprised. Apparently they are a cross between dark humour and chick lit. They certainly seem to be a little bit different.

What did I know about life, a wee heifer like me, a twenty two year old no mates stay at home from the rump end of Cubernauld? 

What did I even know about sex, never mind drugs, or violence, or murder? Alison, an innocent Scottish girl, moves to Barcelona and meets Chloe, a not so innocent American heiress. Chloe as well as introducing Alison to a multitude of sins, teaches her new friend about the sweet taste of revenge. Throwing off her Presbyterian morality (and hopefully her embarrassing virginity), Alison begins a sex and drugs romp through the gothic streets of Bacelona, while sending vengeful postcards home...Dear Lisa and Lauren, Chloe and I on beach with beautiful Latino boys, wow! Need to buy new clothes, size twelve way too big now! Suppose you'll be watching Emmerdale. Hope cystitis not causing you too much agony. Alison xxx.

Posted by Helen Redfern on August 13, 2008 in Book News, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

BOOK REVIEW: How To Be Bad

How to Be Bad is a novel written by three authors. Three brilliant and successful YA authors, two of whom happen to be among my absolute favourites (the third, Lauren Myracle, I have been assured that I will also love as soon as I get around to reading one of her books).

How to be Bad is also the story of three girls: Mel, Vicks and Jesse, who all work at the Waffle House and all have problems they want to run away from. And so they do. Albeit temporarily.

Following a row with her mother (following her mother winning first prize in a wet t-shirt competition – yikes!), Jesse just wants to get away. So when she learns that Vicks's boyfriend hasn't called since leaving for university two weeks ago, she suggests that they take a trip to Miami to visit him.

The only problem is neither of them has much money. But Mel does. Plenty of money and no friends. So she suggests she pays for everything if she can come along.

And so off they go. Two best friends (one of whom is behaving rather oddly) and a new girl who wants to be friends, but who they don't know very well.

Of course, a road trip isn't a road trip without adventures on the way and the girls call in to see an old stuffed crocodile, the world's smallest police station and, of course, go to a party and meet a boy.

I wasn't sure about this book at first – I didn't feel like enough was happening – but the personalities of the girls sucked me in and, by the end, I felt like I knew them. The book touches on all sorts of issues, including virginity, Christianity, drinking, sibling rivalry, family relationships, money.

Incidentally, even though I think the three authors have very distinctive individual styles, you can't see the joins in this book; I have no idea who wrote what, which is pretty impressive.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Boyfriend List by E Lockhart or Me vs Me by Sarah Mlynowski (not YA) or something by Lauren Myracle!

Posted by Keris on August 13, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (1)

August 7, 2008 10:21 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Bride Hunter by Amy Appleton

The Bride Hunter, the debut novel by Amy Appleton, was recommended to me by a friend. I bought it based on that recommendation, though I have to say, I felt The Bride Hunter was a bit of a scary title. When I received it, I thought the cover was great, not least because it had a complete woman on the front. No headless chick lit here but it was, as I was about to find out, extremely well written chick lit.

Becca  Orchard used to be a head hunter, but then she lost her job and her boyfriend and her flat as all three were tied up in her job (her boss was her boyfriend and he told her she was fired and had to move out of his flat and they were over on the same day). Feeling extremely fragile, she decided to set up her own business. Instead of hunting heads for recruitment purposes, she used her skills to matchmake. Employed by men she would search out a suitable girlfriend for them, in the hope they'll become their bride (thus "bride hunter" see - I get it now, no longer scary). And so far she has a pretty good success rate.

The heroine of this story is no Bridget Jones. She isn't worried about fat (or carbs), she isn't worried how she looks. She is a business woman, doing something she loves.

This is a well written, well crafted and confident book. The story flows seamlessly, and page turningly. My copy now is looking a little dog eared as it is the sort of book you want to take everywhere, into the bath, on the side whilst you are cooking and into the garden. I actually found it quite refreshing and relatively original in its storyline. Yes, it is romantic chick lit, so you kind of guess the outcome from about half way through, but there is also a rich cast list of secondary characters that are brought vividly to life. Georgie, Becca's aunt, for example, has her own interesting back story and we learn what makes her life tick just before the end. It is additional extras like this that add layers and in turn make this read such a good one.

There is one of those typical misunderstandings that you often get in romantic comedies, but for some reason it works, maybe because we know Becca's background by this stage and understand the reason why...

This is one of those books you can't believe you haven't heard of before. Take a quick look around the bookshops and you'll probably not find it. I myself found it on amazon. But it is certainly worth the hunt.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Little White Lies by Bernadette Strachan

Posted by Helen Redfern on August 7, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 6, 2008 1:35 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Holly Would Dream by Karen Quinn

I really didn't enjoy Karen Quinn's debut, The Ivy Chronicles - in fact, I didn't even finish it – but I loved the premise of her third book, Holly Would Dream, and I've been looking forward to it for ages, so it seemed like a perfect book to take on holiday with me.

The premise is that Holly Ross, who works in a fashion museum in New York, is obsessed with all things Audrey Hepburn. When her boyfriend dumps her, she loses her apartment (because it was his apartment) and misses out on a promised promotion all on the same day, it seems like things can't get any worse, but then, thanks to a collection of Audrey Hepburn's dresses, they do.

Holly Would Dream takes in New York, Italy, Turkey and Greece and contains over a hundred hidden references to Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant films. Right up my street, in fact. So did I like it?

Actually I really liked it. It's clear from the beginning of the book that this is a fairy story and there isn't much reality involved, but it's a great escapist read. I liked Holly although I found her irritatingly full of herself at times (which is exactly the same problem I had with Ivy in Quinn's first book). I didn't think there was any chemistry between Holly and the object of her affections, which was a shame. If ever a book was crying out for a sexy, traditional, manly hero, it was this one. But a number of the other supporting characters – from Holly's father, to the rich widows Holly meets on the cruise – are highly entertaining. I could have done without the tired cliché of the gay best friend, but I suppose Holly does work in fashion so I'll just have to let that one go.

All in all, a highly entertaining and almost entirely satisfying holiday read. On the strength of this book, I think I'll give Quinn's second book, Wife In the Fast Lane, a try.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Late Night Talking by Leslie Schnur

Posted by Keris on August 6, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

July 31, 2008 11:59 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Love Of Her Life by Harriet Evans

Keris loved the cover and story of Harriet Evan's second novel, so I was quite excited to review her third, The Love of Her Life. With a similar (but not as stunning) cover, The Love of Her Life promised to be a "modern day love story jam-packed with humour hurt, hope and happiness". Everything you need really, so I was raring to go.

The heroine is Kate Miller, an English girl living in New York. Her father, living back home in London, is ill and she needs to come home to see him. The only thing is, she'll no doubt also see lots of reminders of what happened as well. Including the man who could, quite possibly, be the love of her life.

So she goes back home and sees her father, meets up with her best friend, and all the time references are made regarding something that has happened in the past. What could this be?  Harriet Evans definitely keeps the pages turning here, as we need to know what had made Kate run away to New York and take a job that is quite beneath her abilities.

The book then goes back in time and we find out some information. Then we come back to the present, then back again, which to be honest did confuse me slightly. But then I should have been paying better attention, but I was distracted by Kate. You see, I found her a bit frustrating. I wanted to give her a good shake at times, she just seemed a bit, well, wet.

I find it frustrating when the plot is based around a lack of communication and misunderstandings that are blindingly obvious to the reader. After all, if there were less of these issues in the book it could probably have been about one hundred pages shorter, yet still a good read.

Saying that though, I did enjoy the book. It was fun putting all the pieces of her life together and finding out exactly what happened in order for her to flee London. Everything then makes sense and I can almost (almost!) forgive her for being a bit of a drip.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Alphabet Weekends by Elizabeth Noble

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 31, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

July 29, 2008 10:17 AM

Who Can Save Us Now?

A subject close to my own heart, superheroes, along with one of my favourite authors, Jennifer Weiner, appear together in this anthology of stories about superheroes edited by Owen King and John McNally. As Jennifer says on her blog,

I've got a short story in Who Can Save Us Now...that I think is pretty nifty (the book in general, not my story in particular...although I really like the title of my story. It is called "League of Justice (Philadelphia Division)," and is based in part on the premise that all of the superheroes with really cool talents have moved to New York.)

Related posts: Author Interview | Jennifer Weiner and Jane Green on Martha Stewart |

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 29, 2008 in American Authors, Book News, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 22, 2008 10:53 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Darcys Give a Ball by Elizabeth Newark

Reviewed by Jill Hart

Touted as "A gentle joke, Jane Austen style," The Darcy's Give A Ball is a short, light-hearted novel centered around the lives of Austen's most loved characters.

Jane and Elizabeth are experiencing a small portion of what consumed their mother's thoughts in Pride and Prejudice - the romantic attachments of their children. To aid in this endeavor, they decide a ball is in order. Their children are of age to enter society and what could be more fun than a ball that includes all of their friends and loved ones.

This book is a lot of fun - a quick read, but well put together. There is a bit of romance, a bit of mystery and a bit of intrigue. Austen would have gotten quite a chuckle of what this author came up with to keep her character's lives exciting.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try A Walk With Jane Austen by Lori Smith

Posted by Aigua Media on July 22, 2008 in American Authors, Classic Novels, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 17, 2008 10:44 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Thanks For Nothing, Nick Maxwell by Debbie Carbin

Thanks For Nothing, Nick Maxwell is the debut novel by Debbie Carbin. Using a rather unusual style of writing we follow Rachel Covington's life as she meets Nick at work, takes him home, gets pregnant but doesn't realise - then spends the next few chapters wondering what's wrong with her. When she finally does see the doctor, it is also, by coincidence the same day she has arranged to meet a man called Hector as she found his mobile phone and is returning it to him. She then ends up spilling her secret to him.

When I say unusual style of writing I mean Debbie has written this in the first person as though Rachel is talking directly to you. For example;

I'll show you my office later. Make sure you have a look at the performance tables. They're over by Jean's desk, pinned up on the wall. You'll see that my name is always in the top three, week in, week out.

At first this style of writing irritated me, but I got used to it, got stuck into the story and it didn't matter anymore. What was strange though was when Rachel went on to describe what other people were doing in the story, without actually being there herself. I had to get my head around that one.

When Rachel decides what to do about her pregnancy (and you can guess what she decides as she finds out early on in the book and the book goes on for another 400 or so pages) the stranger with the mobile phone becomes more involved in her life, we find out that they coincidently share the same circle of friends, then Hector happens to be involved with the IT at her work...

I really enjoyed this book. It was a page turner, was well written and I'm looking forward to Debbie's next book. However, there are rather a few too many coincidences throughout but especially near the end (which was, nevertheless, satisfyingly emotional). Then there is the plot. It is a plot built on confusion and misunderstandings. Woman gets pregnant with someone she's not serious about, doesn't realise for a while even though it's blindingly obvious to the reader, then meets another man but man thinks she is still involved with the father. Also, I can't help but think I've read a similar plot somewhere before.

This is a lovely debut novel and definitely one to pack in your suitcase, just don't expect too much in the way of originality.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Shopaholic and Baby by Sophie Kinsella

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 17, 2008 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 16, 2008 2:30 PM

KERIS & HELEN'S SUMMER READS 2008: Petite Anglaise by Catherine Sanderson

As a blogger myself, I can't help but be fascinated with any other blogger out there who has carved a niche with their blog and managed to bag a book deal out of it. Catherine Sanderson was the first person I had heard of to do this, although I know others have before her.

(Note that I have used the US book cover here as it is far more attractive than the UK one)

Catherine started her blog in 2004 whilst living in Paris with Mr Frog and their child, Tadpole, after being inspired by the the adventures of Belle de Jour. She then left Mr Frog for a man she "met in her comments box", then got dumped, then outed. But she also managed to get a book deal out of it and Petite Anglaise - the book - is the result.

This isn't her blog in book format though. Rather it is the story behind the blog and fills in a lot of the back story that she kept hidden at the time. It also shows how her life changed when her blog became well known.

If you want to read her blog then you can find it here.

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 16, 2008 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Recent Release, Summer Special | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 11, 2008 12:05 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Not-So-Perfect Man by Valerie Frankel

I've read a few Valerie Frankel books and found them to be, while always well-written, a bit hit and miss, so I wasn't sure what to expect from The Not-So-Perfect Man, but I really loved it.

Frieda Schast is a widow with a young son. Her older sister, Ilene, thinks it's about time Frieda started dating again. She also thinks it's about time her own husband, Peter, lost a bunch of weight and she doesn't hesitate to tell Peter so. Frieda's younger sister, Betty, could also do with losing some weight. And finding a man.

But when Frieda does start dating, Ilene doesn't approve. Because Frieda's dating Sam Hill, a sexy, young actor, who Ilene thinks is more fling material than second husband material. Ilene, though, should really be concentrating on her own marriage and the fact that her constant comments about her husband's eating habits just make him want to eat more. Until, that is, he goes on a diet and secretly recruits Betty as his dieting buddy. Because Betty has met a man. Earl was sent to the store where Betty works to implement a new system and make some overall changes, but it seems he wants to make a lot of changes to Betty too...

I loved this book. I loved the banter between the sisters. I loved that the women were all so strong, but also flawed and human. In fact, all the characters seemed real and even thought there are misunderstandings and secrets, they always seem realistic rather than contrived (apart from the ending, which is why I knocked off a point).

It's the kind of book I'll hold onto and read again and again.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie

Posted by Keris on July 11, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 10, 2008 11:04 AM

BOOK REVIEW: A Good Girl Comes Undone by Polly Williams

A Good Girl Comes Undone is the third novel by Polly Williams after the successful Rise and Fall of a Yummy Mummy and the poorly reviewed here on Trashionista (ok, by me) A Bad Bride's Tale. I didn't like the bad bride book because I thought the main character was weak, other characters were clichéd and the whole plot ridiculous. I wasn't expecting much, to be honest, from A Good Girl Comes Undone, but I'm pleased to say (as I actually do like to give good reviews) I was grabbed from the first page.

Annie Rafferty works as deputy editor for magazine, Glo. She lives with her boyfriend Nick in a house they splashed out on after her promotion. This means a huge increase in mortgage payments but as they are both successful, they can afford it. Then he tells her he has taken voluntary redundancy as he wants to work out what to do with his life.

Meanwhile, at work, Annie is struggling for survival after her colleague and (rather clichéd) worst enemy Alexis is gunning for her job. Then there is the fact her new superior seems to be flirting with her, her boyfriend Nick has turned to smoking drugs all day and her sister is getting married to Olly. Then her parents announce they are selling her childhood home.

Annie isn't a weak character. I liked her. She is focused, in control and accomplished. However, whenever she has a heated discussion with a man she rises from the table and grabs her coat saying something along the lines of "I can't do this." Which lets her down a tiny bit. I know this leaves the book with the page turning factor but it became irritating after a while. I wanted to shout at her to just talk to him then we'd all know where we stood. But this is a minor point. There were other minor points too which irked me a little bit, but I'll skirt over those because the book was actually a riveting read.

This is a huge leap from Polly's last book and I found it surprisingly enjoyable. I wasn't sure how it was going to end all the way through but I'm pleased with the ending it did have. The other characters were well thought out and there were quite a few surprises from them along the way. Polly did well with one of the main, male, characters, as we are kept guessing about him right until the end.

If her previous book put you off then I really recommend you give her another chance. If you've never tried Polly Williams before, then start with this one.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Other Side of the Story by Marian Keyes

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 10, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 9, 2008 11:16 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Moose by Stephanie Klein

When I featured the video trailer for this book, I warned that it would make you cry... well, if you're anything like me, you'll find the book even more upsetting.

Subtitled, "a memoir of fat camp", it's exactly that - there's a little about Stephanie now at the beginning and end of the book, but the rest of it is about Stephanie's overweight childhood and summer spent at Camp Yanisin. The title refers to the fact that in eighth grade, boys at school started calling her "Moose". But not just Moose, a long, drawn-out, moose-call type of "Moooooooossse". I can't think about that without feeling utterly furious, so you can imagine how I felt when Stephanie reported that her father thought it was funny...

The book is filled with that kind of thing - Stephanie actually feels popular and relatively at home at fat camp, despite the fact that the camp itself sounds ridiculous and pointless (and that's assuming you don't find the very idea of fat camp offensive). The thing I found so depressing about this book was the relentless focus on Stephanie's weight - both by herself and her family. Yes, I know that's what the book's about, but it's just such a miserable thing for a child to have to spend her time worrying about.

Of course, it's certainly possible that I found this book so upsetting because I identified with it so much, but I've recently read two other weight memoirs - Shauna Reid's The Amazing Adventures of Dietgirl and Such a Pretty Fat by Jen Lancaster - and, although I identified with those books too, I also found them amusing and entertaining (as well as poignant and inspiring); Moose made me sad and angry.

It's very well written and brutally honest (wincingly honest sometimes), but I was glad to finish it.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Such a Pretty Fat by Jen Lancaster

Posted by Aigua Media on July 9, 2008 in American Authors, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 7, 2008 11:07 AM

MORE ON MONDAY: Under Pressure by Carl Honore

I really enjoyed Carl Honore's first book, In Praise of Slow, so when I heard that he was taking on the culture of "hyper-parenting" I knew I had to read more.

In Under Pressure, Honore visits schools and preschools that are taking a "slow" approach (including a totally outdoor preschool, which sounds amazing), along with looking at current research on how children learn and at the damage that hyper-parenting can actually do.

I found this book fascinating and I've been quoting it to fellow parents frequently since finishing it. It did actually make me rethink how I play and interact with my own son (although I was certainly already closer to "slow" than "hyper", mainly due to inherent laziness).

One of the things I loved about it was how honest Honore is in admitting that he's still struggling with the concept himself. After reading Slow, I imagined he'd become utterly relaxed and chilled and was totally living the slow life. Under Pressure shows that this isn't the case, but he is trying because he knows it's better for both him and his family. Read it and you won't doubt it either.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Family Friendly Working by Antonia Chitty

Posted by Aigua Media on July 7, 2008 in American Authors, More On Monday, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 4, 2008 11:52 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Jumping to Confusions by Liz Rettig

To begin with, I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy Jumping to Confusions - the main character, Cat, is "the fat, plain one in my family". Her sister, Tessa is blonde, gorgeous and popular, mostly with boys. Cat's mother favours Tessa and comments relentlessly on Cat's weight. I felt like I'd read it all before and couldn't be bothered to read it again, but Cat's voice convinced me to keep going and I'm glad I did.

Tessa fancies Josh, the son of Cat and Tessa's father's American boss, who has moved to Glasgow to restructure the company. But when Josh seems more interested in Cat than in Tessa, Tessa suggests it's because he's not interested in girls at all...

What follows is utterly unbelievable, but strangely compelling. On the assumption that Josh is gay, Cat makes him her new best friend and utilises him for everything from bra shopping to kissing practice. Much of the entertainment comes from the fact that the reader knows (or at least I imagine most readers would know) that Josh isn't gay at all, rather he's interested in Cat ... and Cat is making a holy show of herself.

Plus there's Cat's crush on her schoolteacher (although she doesn't think it's a crush, she believes that he's just waiting for her to finish school so they can be together) and her - mostly hopeless - attempts to matchmake her friends.

Even though Cat came across as pathologically oblivious to what was right in front of her face, I really liked her. She's such a funny, good-hearted and stubborn character. Josh is very cute and Cat's group of friends are highly entertaining too.

Not necessarily a realistic read, but a highly entertaining one.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Pretty Face by Mary Hogan

Posted by Aigua Media on July 4, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (2)

July 3, 2008 11:21 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Little White Lies by Bernadette Strachan

Bernadette Strachan is not an author I've come across before (although this is her fourth novel) and because I'm not familiar with her work - when I picked up Little White Lies, read the blurb and studied the front cover, I wasn't really expecting much at all.

Billie Baskerville is allergic to weddings after her own went disastrously wrong. A few months later an aunt of Billie's asks her to look after her wedding shop and Billie, in a dead end job and wanting to escape, rushes to Sole Bay to take over the running off Barbara's Brides. The shop is dingy, run down with terrible stock. But Billie rises to the challenge and sets about, with the help of Dot, making it over.

She has nowhere to live as her dotty aunt had rented out the apartment, so she lives in a beach hut on the sea front. She gains friends, meets a fireman and it looks like life for Billie is getting better...

This book is actually one of those that turns out to be surprisingly good. I liked the writing style enormously.  Although it was written in third person, I felt whilst reading the book that someone was chatting to me. Occasionally I would feel lost and think, what did she mean by that sentence, but most of all I felt deeply involved in Billie's life, her friend's lives (not everything is what it seems) and how it would all end.

Talking of conclusions, I really did not see the end coming at all. Often when you start to read a book you can work out it's finale straight away. This one I didn't and although I felt slightly disconcerted by this (I'm so used to working things out) I just enjoyed the surprises within the story. Now I must check out Bernadette's other books.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Revenge of the Wedding Planner by Sharon Owens

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 3, 2008 in Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

July 2, 2008 10:20 AM

KERIS & HELEN'S SUMMER READS 2008: The Behaviour of Moths by Poppy Adams

My second recommended summer read is one I haven't yet read, but is one I am looking forward to reading very much. The Behaviour of Moths by Poppy Adams is creating a bit of a buzz. I believe it is called The Sister in the US.

Ginny lives in a crumbling mansion, where she once had an idyllic childhood with her sister, Vivien. Now she sits waiting for her sister to return home. A sister who hasn't been back for forty seven years.

Ginny, a lepidopterist, has rarely set foot outside of the mansion. She wonders why Vivien is coming home and remembers their youth, loss and old rivalries. She has shut off and sold the furniture in various parts of the mansion. The only room left untouched is the attic, where the walls are pinned with moths...

It has been described as gripping, absorbing, original, complex, chilling and thrilling. I can't wait to read it.

Summer Reads archives

Posted by Helen Redfern on July 2, 2008 in British Authors, Recent Release, Summer Special | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 1, 2008 12:32 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Slave by Cheryl Brooks

Reviewed by Angela Richardson

Slave is Cheryl Brooks’ first novel. I was very intrigued by this book. For a start the author is a critical care nurse by night and a romance writer by day. Also she has attempted to mix science fiction/fantasy and very heavy-duty romance in the story. When I picked up this book I was wondering whether she could pull off this highly ambitious mix, especially considering it’s her first novel. I was secretly hoping she would, considering she’s had to work on it in between her night shifts. Something I can sympathise with.

This story is set in space. Jacinth’s sister has been kidnapped. In an attempt to find her she has ended up chasing her rapidly cooling trail for the past six years. Always just missing her and hearing terrible stories of her being kept captive, this chase has led her across many planets. Finally she gets information that she’s on a planet where all the women are slaves. She has only one choice - to find a man to act as her owner. She knows it’s risky and decides the best way is to buy a slave herself. She’s hoping if she promises his freedom that he will be loyal for long enough to free her sister.

That’s where she meets Cat, filthy and chained, but she could still see the honour in his eyes. Jacinth’s hoping she can trust him with her life.

I just couldn’t help comparing this to films as Brooks has a great talent for allowing the reader to visualise her scenes in an almost filmic quality. It felt like a cross between Star Wars and Romancing the Stone to me. Brooks seamlessly blended the romance and science fiction even if it was a little racy for me at times. Definitely not a book for the prudish! The story line was high octane and when the plot faltered the romance rushed in to fill the space, it was a perfect balance. I read this in a couple of days and just couldn’t put it down. It was original and entertaining and I can’t praise this book enough. Go and buy it now!

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Vampires Are Forever by Lynsay Sands

Posted by Aigua Media on July 1, 2008 in American Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Series, Supernatural | Permalink | Comments (2)

June 27, 2008 11:33 AM

BOOK REVIEW: House of Dance by Beth Kephart

In the comments on my review of Marisa de los Santos's Belong To Me, Jade said, "Even though they don't actually contain it, I just feel like somehow her books have a sense of magical realism about them...". I feel exactly the same way about Beth Kephart's books. Every time I picked up House of Dance, it struck me that I felt like I was entering a dream ... the real world just faded away.

It's the story of Rosie, whose friends are away for the summer and whose mother is distant, spending all her time with her business partner, with whom she's also having an affair. Rosie's grandfather is dying and, though she doesn't know him all that well, her mother tells her he needs her now and so she starts visiting every day.

On the way to her grandfather's house, Rosie passes the House of Dance. At first it just seems incongruously glamorous, but soon Rosie finds herself climbing the stairs and signing up for dance lessons.

Rosie's grandfather wants to get his affairs in order and, in helping him sort through his stuff, Rosie gets to know him better: his dreams, his regrets and exactly what she can do to give him the perfect goodbye.

This book is so beautiful, I almost felt bereft when I finished reading.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Undercover by Beth Kephart

Posted by Keris on June 27, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (4)

June 18, 2008 2:14 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Johnny Be Good by Paige Toon

Reviewed by Kirsty Greenwood

In between all the celeb gossiping, it seems a few Heat Magazine journos (Jo Carnegie, Lucie Cave) have taken to knocking out the odd book – not least Paige Toon, Heat’s resident reviews editor.

I picked up Johnny Be Good after its sterling review in said magazine, and wanted to find out if it was worth the (possibly biased) five stars accolade they gave it.

Johnny Be Good begins when twenty-something Meg Stiles flies to LA after landing a dream job as PA to the worlds hottest rock star Johnny Jefferson (if only). Determined not to cross the boundaries of a working relationship, Meg vows not to fall under sexy Johnny’s spell. Until of course, she does.

Also residing at the LA mansion is down to earth, good guy Christian, an old friend of Johnny’s who is there to write his biography. (Can you tell what happens next?)

Swept up into the sometimes-bitchy world of LA celebrity, Meg is torn between two men. The moody, sexy bad boy who will inevitably break her heart, or the one who will always love her, but she just doesn’t fancy. In between all this Meg is trying desperately to keep Johnny from embarking on a path of alcoholic self-destruction, as well as trying to figure out whether the LA lifestyle really is for her.

Johnny Be Good is extremely well written. Meg is a likeable, relateable character and the book contains some real laugh out loud moments. It does, however, focus solely on her relationship with the two leading men, and although this is well done, it would have been nice to see a little more substance within the plot.

Without question, Johnny Jefferson is one of the sexiest chick lit heroes I’ve ever read, and the scenes between him and Meg are bursting with toe-curling anticipation.

The ending has a killer twist, which I’m hoping has been done to pave the way for a sequel. If not, then it’s just one of those annoying endings that leaves you feeling a bit “Huh??”

I’d recommend this novel for anyone who wants a relaxing, giddy read, without having to concentrate too much.

Rating: 3.5/5 [We don't do halves, so I've rounded it down, cos I'm mean like that! - Keris]

Like this? Try Dedication by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Krauss

Posted by Aigua Media on June 18, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

June 17, 2008 2:02 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Don't Make Me Choose Between You and My Shoes by Dixie Cash

Now this is an odd one. Dixie Cash is a pseudonym for two Southern sisters (one of whom is named, interestingly, Jeffery). Don't Make Me Choose ... is the fourth in a series featuring the "Domestic Equalizers" - two friends who are hairdressers with a sideline in private investigation.

So. The Domestic Equalizers are Debbie Sue Overstreet and Edwina Perkins-Martin and, in this book, they've been invited to New York to speak at the National Association of Private Investigators convention. Also attending the convention is Celina, a librarian from another small Texas town, who's always harboured ambitions to be a PI herself.

And then. Stuff happens. Okay, er, Debbie Sue and Edwina befriend Celina and they attend some of the conference. Plus Celina meets a hot policeman who the other two aren't sure can be trusted. And somewhere in New York there is a serial killer targeting prostitutes.

To use footballing terminology (sort of), this is a book of two halves. For the 150 pages, practically nothing happens in painstaking detail. Usually I would have stopped reading, but the writing is pretty engaging and I really liked the character of Celina and wanted to find out what happened to her.

The rest of the book loads happens, but I found it utterly unconvincing. Debbie Sue and Edwina are caricatures and I just didn't believe in them. Yes, it's far-fetched and kind of a farce, but it should still be convincing. I mean, Lula in the Evanovich books is over-the-top, but I totally believe in her.  I didn't believe in Debbie Sue and Edwina for a minute (I also struggled to keep straight which was which). That's probably why I liked Celina, because she seemed like a person, rather than a character. I ended up scanning the rest of the book and getting more and more irritated with the women's daffy behaviour.

And yet I'm giving it 3/5. I thought about giving it a 2, but when I think about this book, I think about it with fondness, rather than irritation, presumably due to the first half or the character of Celina. I don't know, it's not an exact science (that's for sure). So to sum up? It could have been really good. It wasn't. But it also could have been a lot worse. Hmmm. Maybe give Celina her own series..?

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Size 12 Is Not Fat by Meg Cabot

Posted by Aigua Media on June 17, 2008 in American Authors, Crime / Mystery, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 16, 2008 10:50 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Pemberley Chronicles by Rebecca Ann Collins

Reviewed by Jill Hart

[Make sure you read to the end of the review, since we have five copies of The Pemberley Chronicles to give away! - Keris]

Have you been longing to know what happens to Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy after the wedding? The answer has arrived. The The Pemberley Chronicles by Rebecca Ann Collins picks up where Jane Austen left off.

The book begins seven weeks after the wedding and finds Lizzie happily at Pemberley. She has endeared herself already as the new mistress of Pemberley and has acquainted herself with her duties and obligations as such. Life marches on and the author gives you glimpses, just as Austen did, into both the trivial as well as major events that take place in the lives of all the beloved Pride and Prejudice characters.

It's an enjoyable read and I was satisfied with most the events the author placed in the lives of Austen's characters. My one main complaint is the overwhelming praise of Mr. Darcy all through Part One. It got to the point that I literally skipped entire sections that rambled on and on about all of his wonderful qualities. It almost seemed that Collins was trying to make up for all of the insults Darcy receives in Pride and Prejudice. It was, however, very distracting and took away from the quality of the story.

That aside, I relished being back in Jane Austen's world. Collins' did a great job of staying true to the characters that we all fell in love with in Pride and Prejudice. It's definitely worth reading.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try A Walk With Jane Austen by Lori Smith

To be in with a chance of winning one of five copies, email editor@trashionista.com with your name and address and "Pemberley" in the subject line, before midnight GMT 30 June. This comp's only open to US entrants, I'm afraid.

Posted by Aigua Media on June 16, 2008 in American Authors, Classic Novels, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 5, 2008 10:11 AM

BOOK REVIEW: I like You: Hospitality under the Influence by Amy Sedaris

Reviewed by Diane Shipley (remember her?!)

I'd like to nominate Amy Sedaris as the anti-Martha Stewart. Although Amy has written a guide to entertaining and hospitality, it could possibly put any serious "homemakers" into an early grave. Like her brother David (who I love!) actress/author/comedian Amy is witty, intelligent... and more than a little strange.

I Like You... is made up of 29 chapters, giving advice on putting together different types of parties and get-togethers, from wakes to brunch. Plus there are recipes for quick and tasty meals for one and a number of cakes and desserts which sound positively mouth-watering. (Sedaris clearly knows her stuff: she has her own cupcake company in New York.)

Sometimes I couldn't work out whether the author was serious, such as when she talks about bringing home a group of Japanese business men she didn't know and cooking for them, or when she recommends holding impromptu twenty-five cent sales during a dinner party. But despite the sardonic tone, all of the recipes here are genuine and Sedaris is clearly enthusiastic about entertaining.

Unfortunately, the book reminded me of all the reasons I don't enjoy cooking or throwing parties (the effort, the clean-up, the small talk!) but that's a personal thing. It also made me laugh when Sedaris said she loved being a waitress, and would always rather eat at home than eat out. Reverse both those statements and you have my views exactly!

I do wonder if the wit and irony of the book might perhaps turn off people who don't realise the recipes should be taken entirely seriously. It might be better to have skipped the information on the best way to douche (!) and have made a few more concessions to conventionality... Also (picky, much?) I'd have preferred the book in an A3 format, that could have been laid flat so it was easier to follow the instructions. (I imagine...)

Despite a few reservations (and the caveat that this book is not for the easily offended!) I'd definitely recommend I Like You as a refreshingly modern guide to entertaining; an alternative to the likes of Martha Stewart and Delia Smith, who take it all too seriously for my liking.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris

Posted by Aigua Media on June 5, 2008 in American Authors, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 4, 2008 10:43 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Revenge of the Wedding Planner by Sharon Owens

Reviewed by Claire Allan

(Published as The Trouble With Weddings in Ireland)

Sitting down with a Sharon Owens book is like sitting down with a good friend, a bottle of wine and a (kingsize) bar of chocolate and settling in for a good old girly chat.

Her writing oozes warmth, humour, gossip and decadent, gorgeous descriptions of perhaps the nicest homes, gardens, offices and restaurants you could ever choose to visit.

With Revenge of the Wedding Planner you get to add wedding dresses into the equation too - it's almost every woman's dream come true.

But don't be fooled into thing it's all designer shoes and style queens - Owens brings a twist to all her books and Mags - the narrator of this story - is a real gem. An ex-goth, married to an ex-punk, trying to raise four teenagers and keep her flighty boss in line - Mags is one of those strong, beautifully warm yet flawed heroines who you would really like to meet in real life.

When Mags' boss, Julie embarks on a life crisis, running away from her live-in lover and throwing herself in to a hair-raisingly sexy fling with Jay, it is Mag herself who is left to pick up the pieces. And when Julie eventually comes back, Jay in tow, the real trouble starts.

But there is so much more to this book than Julie and her dodgy love life - in fact in many ways I felt that storyline was secondary to Mags' life - which has it's own share of ups and downs.

Mags relationship with her husband is a joy to read - one of fiction's genuinely happy and believable couples. Her relationship with her children - especially her eldest son and daughter - is beautifully written. And her relationship with her parents is funny and extremely moving.

This book is without a doubt one of the funniest, warmest books I've read in many a long year.

It had laugh out loud moments, risque love scenes, a sexy bar man, wedding cake dilemmas and a very funny series of twists and turns. And yet at the heart of it there was a serious message about love, forgiveness, friendship and family.

It was delightful, entirely.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try It Must Be Love by Sharon Owens

Posted by Aigua Media on June 4, 2008 in Irish Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

June 3, 2008 12:40 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

I've been hearing about Sarah Dessen's books for years now, but I hadn't read one until The Truth About Forever.

It's the story of Macy, who is trying to keep it together following her dad's death (which she secretly feels she could have prevented). Macy's way of dealing is to keep her life very small and controlled and everything's going fine until her boyfriend suggests they take a break (he's not sure Macy is in line with his future "goals"), she gets a new job that she hates and she meets a chaotic catering crew who are always looking for extra help.

Liking the fact that when she's with the Wish caterers, she's just Macy and not Macy-whose-dad-died, she starts spending more and more time with them, particularly the gorgeous Wes. She and Wes enter into a game of truth and become closer and closer, sharing their secrets, but it's still safe because they both have partners (Wes's girlfriend is in prison).

But Macy had to have learned her coping strategy from someone and it was her mother who, when she realises how much time Macy is spending with her new friends, takes back some control of her own.

I loved this book. I liked Macy from the first page and the Wish crew are charming and hilarious. Wes is extremely sexy and charismatic and the book is filled with little details - about art, family, emotion, friendship, letting go and moving on - that are so brilliantly and subtlely woven into the story that you barely notice them until you finish reading and realise how utterly satisfying it all was. Although Macy and her family are sad, this isn't a sad book at all; in fact it's a very positive book. I'll definitely be reading more Sarah Dessen.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty

Posted by Aigua Media on June 3, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (6)

May 28, 2008 1:34 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Before I Die by Jenny Downham

Reviewed by Helen Vipond

God knows I cry at everything. Television, films, even advertisements, but strangely, never at books, no matter how sad they are. Then I read Before I Die by Jenny Downham.

As the title suggests, the novel revolves around a terminally ill girl Tessa, who has a list of things she must do before her death, the first being sex. During the story, we see the world in an ironically life-affirming new light, through the eyes of a dying girl. Depressing as it may seem, the plot is told in a way that made me accidentally laugh out loud at the escapades Tessa finds herself in.

Although I won’t give away any more of the plot, I will reveal I found the last few chapters extremely difficult to read, due to the tears blocking my vision. It would take a hard- hearted person to read such a novel without being affected.

Overall, I would recommend 'Before I Die' to anyone, male or female, old or young, as an exceptionally moving novel, surely to be enjoyed.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Dear Zoe by Philip Beard

Posted by Aigua Media on May 28, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (1)

BOOK REVIEW: The Accidental Wife by Rowan Coleman

Rowan Coleman is one of those writers where you think, how does she do that? At least I do anyway. The Accidental Wife is Rowan's sixth full length novel since her first was published in 2002 plus she has written a novella and writes the Ruby Parker series for teens (which, by the way, I adore).

The Accidental Wife, a story of friendship and betrayal, is written through the eyes of two women. Each think they may have the wrong life. Catherine, soon to be divorced with two children in a dead end job wonders if she would be happier if she had married her first boyfriend, Marc. Alison, Catherine's former best friend, is actually married to Marc with three children and wondering if she would have had a better life if she had married her school girl crush, Jimmy. Who also happens to be Catherine's soon to be ex husband.

When Alison and Marc move back to the town they ran away from when Alison was sixteen and find Catherine and Jimmy are still there they find out the answers to their questions.

I really enjoyed The Baby Group which was Rowan's last novel so I had high expectations for this one. First off I would say this is not as action packed as The Baby Group. It is gripping but in a more quiet and understated way. Rowan's writing is colourful adding depth to the dialogue - which there is quite a lot of, because after Alison steals Catherine's boyfriend she has a lot of explaining to do.

Rowan obviously knew her characters very well and this comes across. We uncover the layers that make up Alison and Catherine and I changed my perception of both throughout the novel as I discovered more about them.

I do have a criticism and I thought this of The Baby Group too (and the title of that book, but that's another story). It is the book cover. The story inside is a lot more sophisticated and in depth than the pastel cover implies. If I were just browsing the book shop I don't think I would have picked this up. Which would have been a real shame as it is a great read.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Switchcraft by Mary Castillo

Posted by Helen Redfern on May 28, 2008 in British Authors, Modern Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 27, 2008 12:44 PM

BOOK REVIEW: All That Glitters by Pearl Lowe

The trouble with addiction memoirs is that they tend to be quite repetitive: doing lots of drugs, realising they've got a problem, vowing to give up, giving up, falling off the wagon, doing lots of drugs ... and so on.

Pearl Lowe's All That Glitters is no exception. Pearl Lowe was in a vaguely successful band in the indie decade, the '90s. She had a child, she got married, she got divorced. She met Danny Goffey from Supergrass and they fell madly in love. And she did loads and loads of drugs. And then she didn't. And then she did again.

I found All That Glitters veered between incredibly boring and strangely compelling. Each time Pearl fell off the wagon, it followed the same pattern and I found myself scanning pages. The bits that I found compelling were mainly either because I was so horrified by Pearl's behaviour (or the behaviour of those around her) or because I just didn't believe her.

I can't really be specific about the bits I didn't believe (we've got a no spoilers policy here), but I'm sure, if you read it, you would also doubt their veracity. I didn't exactly feel that Pearl was lying, more that she was being disingenuous, both about actual experiences and her motivations. (One thing I will say is that her behaviour towards Gavin Rossdale - who turned out to be the father of Pearl's eldest daughter, Daisy - was just horrendous.)

The main thing that disturbed me about this book, though, was that Pearl never seems to get to the bottom of her addiction and she constantly seems on the verge of another relapse, particularly since her friends and even her partner, Danny, continue to take drugs around her.

Rather than being "ultimately uplifting" as Cosmopolitan called it, I found the whole thing depressing.

Rating: 2/5

Like this? Try Drugs are Nice by Lisa Crystal Carver

Posted by Aigua Media on May 27, 2008 in Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 2/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 21, 2008 11:01 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Secrets of Married Women by Carol Mason

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

Jill is married to a lovely chap called Rob. Life would be perfect for them, if only they hadn’t been told that Rob wouldn’t be able to father children. Rob is distraught and understandably withdraws. His wife though thinks he is going off her.

Jill has two close friends. Leigh is bored with her own husband and decides to have an affair whereas Wendy has a seemingly perfect marriage. Whilst listening to Leigh in raptures about the man she has found to have an affair with, Jill can’t help but look at her own marriage and wish she had a bit of passion in her own life. Then she bumps into a Russian lifeguard.

I’m a bit confused about this book. A few of the characters, including the main one, evoked quite a few negative feelings in me, which is obviously skilled writing as I actually feel something for the characters. This also meant, however, that I didn’t feel any empathy for Jill. Her husband is reeling from the shocking news of his inability to have children, yet all she can think about is their sex life and lack of it. During the course of the book I found her uncaring, spoilt and undeserving of such a lovely man. If I’m honest I didn’t particularly care what happened to her until the end. Which is when I couldn’t put it down.

The writing style became different, quite deep, with not so much conversation taking place. I began to see a stronger side to Jill and actually started to care what happened to her. I would have liked to have seen this final Jill explored more thoroughly rather than just shoved into the epilogue as I thought it made her journey more interesting and made her less shallow.

Throughout the book the style of writing is great with some hooks to keep me reading. There were a few twists (one I saw coming a mile off but I won’t dwell on that). It is just this empathy issue. I wanted to root for her but she kept letting me down. I only carried on reading at some points to see how Rob would get on. I’m glad I did because the epilogue made it worthwhile.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Marshmallows for Breakfast by Dorothy Koomson

Posted by Aigua Media on May 21, 2008 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 20, 2008 11:10 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Stealing Heaven by Elizabeth Scott

Two chapters in to Elizabeth Scott's third book, Stealing Heaven, I made myself a cup of tea, kicked off my shoes, piled cushions up behind myself, put my feet up on the sofa and settled in for the long haul.

Danielle has grown up travelling around the country, helping her mother rob wealthy homes. She's never had a real friend, never had a boyfriend, or a real home, she didn't even attend high school.

But when she and her mum arrive in the beach town of Heaven, Danielle finds herself starting to change. First she meets a girl who she feels she could be friends with. Then she meets a man who she feels she could be more with, but unthinkingly she not only tells him her real name, he sees her car, he knows where she lives ... and he's a cop.

While Danielle is trying to stop herself becoming too fond of Heaven, her mother is scoping out the local houses to find which one to burgle. Of course, the best prospect belongs to the family of Danielle's first friend.

But that's not the family's only worry - Danielle's mother has a cough, a really bad cough...

I LOVED Elizabeth Scott's first two books - Bloom and Perfect You - and now that Stealing Heaven has made it three in a row, I'm very excited to read her next, Living Dead Girl.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Either Bloom or Perfect You!

Posted by Aigua Media on May 20, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (4)

May 19, 2008 10:42 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Remind Me Again Why I Need a Man by Claudia Carroll

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

I picked this book out of my to-be-read pile as from the cover and the title I thought it would be a light, easy read. Just what I needed. I have to say though that my heart sank when I read the blurb on the back of this book, ‘Ever since she was a little girl, all Amelia Lockwood has ever wanted is to get married…Her glamorous television career…only go so far in consoling her now that she’s in her thirties and still not married.’

Gah! I have so many problems with this I can’t begin to start but it’s basically another book about a woman desperate to get married. So desperate in fact that she enrols on a course called ‘How to find a husband over the age of thirty five’. The course involves finding out all her ex boyfriends to discover what went wrong to see if she can find a reason as to why she’s still single. Ok, maybe it’s not so bad. Maybe this woman is going on a journey of self awareness. That would be quite interesting.

She meets up with these ex-boyfriends and each one has cliché written on his forehead. Whether it is because he is gay or religious the reasons are clear. She is choosing the wrong men.  Does she find out anything about herself though? No. And neither does the reader. I am not in Amelia’s position as I am (happily) married. So to know why it is so bad to be unmarried at 37 I really need to understand the character and get to know her. But I never feel like I do.

She has three best friends, the Lovely Girls who also have cliché written all over them. The bitter, chain smoking but successful one, the one with the perfect marriage to a perfect man and the (male) gay one. I don’t feel like I get to know any of them either.

Then we get the flashbacks. Each time we come to one I throw the book down with frustration. Fine we need to know what happens in the past to understand the present but the way it has been written seems so clumsy and basic.

I can’t say I enjoyed this book at all but maybe I’m just not the right target market.

Rating: 2/5

Like this? Try Not Married, Not Bothered by Carol Clewlow

Posted by Aigua Media on May 19, 2008 in Rating: 2/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 13, 2008 2:24 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Lottery by Patricia Wood

I'd heard good things about Patricia Wood's Lottery long before it was shortlisted for the Orange Prize, but once I saw it was on the shortlist, I knew I had to read it.

It's the story of Perry L Cranall who is "not retarded". He knows this because you have to have an IQ under 75 to be retarded and his IQ is 76. He lives simply and happily with his Gram and works in a marine supply store. But when Gram dies, everything changes for Perry. His awful family sell Gram's house from under him and leave him with practically nothing.

But then Perry wins $12 million on the Washington State Lottery. Funnily enough, his family soon becomes much more concerned about his welfare, but fortunately Perry has friends - and his own Gram-taught sense and values on his side.

I loved Lottery. Perry reminded me of a cross between Forrest Gump and Christopher in Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.

The characters never seemed like characters, they seemed like real people. And I loathed Perry's family so much that I almost had to stop reading. It's a sweet, funny, charming, moving book and a very well-deserved Orange Prize nominee. (The winner is announced 4 June.)

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

Posted by Aigua Media on May 13, 2008 in American Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 9, 2008 11:19 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks be E Lockhart

I've loved all of E Lockhart's books, but I have to admit I was a bit afraid to read her latest, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, since a couple of friends whose opinions I respect really didn't like it at all. Well, I don't respect their opinions anymore*, since I loved it.

Frankie attends the exclusive boarding school that her father and sister (and father's father, etc.) attended before her. When she started there, she was in her sister's shadow, but now that her sister has left - and Frankie has experienced some physical "blooming" - things are looking up.

* only joking.

Frankie is thrilled when her long-time crush and star of the school, Matthew Livingston, suddenly notices her and they begin dating. She's not so thrilled when she realises that Matthew is lying to her in order to hang out and plan pranks with the all male secret society of which he's a member.

Frankie refuses to let Matthew and his friends underestimate her and so decides to carry out a few pranks of her own with startling results.

From the first page I loved this book. I loved the character of Frankie and her refusal to be patronised. I loved how she co-opted a boys' club and had them all under her control without them ever suspecting her. There are plenty of feminist characters in young adult fiction, but I find them to be more overtly feminist (yet not stridently so) in E Lockhart's books.

While I didn't love this as much as the Ruby Oliver books (like this one and this one - and there's another coming soon!) - the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds reminded me a bit too much of the Life and Death Brigade in Gilmore Girls and there's a running joke about language that I found a bit irritating - it's yet another addition to my brilliant YA bookshelf. If E Lockhart just wrote about nine more books a year, she could give Meg Cabot a run for her money!

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Secret Society Girl by Diana Peterfreund

Posted by Aigua Media on May 9, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 5, 2008 12:48 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: Family Friendly Working by Antonia Chitty

Reviewed by Zoe Lea

As I work from home and have a boisterous four year old to deal with, I jumped at the chance to review this book hoping for lots of ideas and advice. I’m happy to say that I wasn’t let down.

The title and by-line ‘Inspiring Ideas for making money when you have kids’ is tackled from all angles in a practical and realistic manner.  The 10 Chapters cover a wide range of themes in the area of flexible working, from ‘Finding ways to work’ and ‘Growing your business’ to a very clear ‘How to guide.’

Unlike lots of other books in this field, Family Friendly Working draws on experiences from parents and carers at every opportunity, so the book is filled with real-life case studies of what people have done, more or less on every page.  I did find this inspiring, but as there were more than a hundred parents featured in the book, there was a  slight sense of over-kill to it.

That being said, the book is filled with good ideas, tips and advice.  It’s a good read and a great starting point for anyone wondering how to achieve that work/life balance.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Zoe's website, Flexible Working Life

Posted by Keris on May 5, 2008 in British Authors, More On Monday, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 1, 2008 7:20 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Pretty Face by Mary Hogan

I enjoyed Mary Hogan's book The Serious Kiss, but I wasn't wild about it. I enjoyed Pretty Face much more, even though it deals with some of the same issues (specifically: weight).

In Pretty Face, Hayley is overweight and the boys she likes just want to be friends. Yes, she's got a pretty face, but if they could just look past her weight, they'd see she has a lovely personality too. But they don't. And neither does her mother. Having conquered a weight problem of her own, Hayley's mother is determined to help her daughter with her own issues, but she's going about it all wrong (so wrong, in fact, that I wanted to beat her around the head with a box of Krispy Kremes).

Fortunately for Hayley, her parents decide to send her to stay with friends in Italy for the summer. Friends who can see past the weight and give Hayley the space to become comfortable with herself.

The story itself is very cliched (how many books have you read with an overweight heroine who finds herself and loses weight?), but I didn't care. I flew through it.

I loved Hayley from the first page and the descriptions of Italy (and the food!) made my mouth water. It was such an easy read and I kept wondering what it reminded me and then I realised it was like one of the Sweet Dreams books I used to be obsessed with.

In fact, I wish it had been around when I was an overweight teenager myself, it would have become one of my favourite books.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Serious Kiss by Mary Hogan

Ah, the covers. I complained in my review of The Serious Kiss that the (UK) cover didn't suit the book and I'd say the same for Pretty Face - it's just too vague. But while I like the design of the US cover (on the left), it almost seems too specific. (I know, I'm impossible to please!)

What do you think? Which do you prefer?

Posted by Keris on April 1, 2008 in Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (3)

March 21, 2008 7:30 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Meaning of Sunglasses by Hadley Freeman

Despite having no discernable interest in fashion (I work from home, mostly in pajamas, so there's no real need), I absolutely love Hadley Freeman's Guardian newspaper column. She's so dry, funny and down to earth. I think I gave a little squeal when I heard she'd written a book.

The Meaning of Sunglasses is subtitled "A guide to almost all things fashionable" and it's certainly that. Set out in alphabetical order (which took me a shameful amount of time to work out - I kept wondering how the topics had been organised. D'oh.), the book features everything from Accessories to Yoga.

The thing I love about Ms Freeman is that she often says just what I've been afraid to admit (sometimes even to myself) about fashion (see Coats, stuck at the nexus point between dull and stressful). She's totally straightforward in her criticisms of magazines (the products are featured because the companies have paid for the advertising - I know this and yet I still always fall for those "must-have" or "products of the year" articles) and even certain designers, and she's practical about the ridiculousness of much fashion.

And yet ... I didn't enjoy this book anywhere near as much as her column. Often, either me or my husband (yes, my utterly fashion-ignorant husband loves her too) will read bits out to each other. I didn't feel the need to share any of this book with  him. Her column frequently makes me laugh out loud. The book had me smiling once or twice. Granted, I did read it straight through and it may be a better book to dip in and out of.

If you haven't read any Hadley before, I'm confident you'll enjoy it as a common sense explanation of the madness of modern fashion, but Hadley fans may be disappointed.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Fashion Babylon by Imogen Edwards-Jones

Posted by Keris on March 21, 2008 in Fashion-Lit, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 19, 2008 1:58 PM

BOOK REVIEW: When to Walk by Rebecca Gowers

Reviewed by Sarah Hague

Do you know the feeling of meeting someone and immediately all your hackles rise?  For some reason, you dislike on impact the person before you.

There are books like that too. It may have nothing to do with the quality of the book but everything to do with a clash between the mindset of the author and yourself. When to Walk is one of those books for me.

One lunch time, Ramble's husband declares, in an offensive speech, that he is leaving her mainly due to her own shortcomings which have come to grate to a degree he can no longer stand. He gets up and goes out and leaves her to contemplate... well, everything.

Which is why the story grates on me. It is oppressively contemplative. I felt sucked in to the inner workings of a brain I didn't wish to know. Brains are notoriously unconnected when distressed and hers left me with an impression of irritation rather than compassion. Basically I didn't care what became of her.

Despite my antipathy to the story, it is very well written, and if you like that sort of thing, you'll probably find it funny in places and a beautiful portrait of a bewildered woman.

Me, I just wanted to smack her.

Rating: 1/4

Like this? Try The Ivy Chronicles by Karen Quinn

Posted by Keris on March 19, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 1/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

March 12, 2008 9:49 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Helping Me Help Myself by Beth Lisick

I am a self-confessed self-help junkie, so I was really looking forward to reading Beth Lisick's second book, particularly since I'd heard great things about her first, Everybody into the Pool.

Unlike me, Beth is a self-help skeptic, but following the realisation that, at age 37, she was sleeping in a room with plastic sheeting covering a damp patch on the wall, doing a job for which she had to dress up as a banana, and too unfit to keep up with her four-year-old son, she decides self-help can't, well, hurt and so undertakes to examine (and hopefully improve) one area of her life each month for a year.

From Jack Canfield's book The Success Principles to a Richard Simmons weightloss cruise, via (Men are From Mars author) John Gray, The Artists' Way and a parenting book entitled 1-2-3 Magic!, Lisick repeatedly steps out (way out) of her comfort zone.

I approached Helping Me Help Myself expecting to find Lisick disagreeing with or mocking every self-help method she tries, but she really doesn't. She genuinely seems to approach them all (okay, almost all) with a totally open mind. She's charming, funny, enthusiastic and self-deprecating and (and I know I always say this) by the end I felt like we were friends. So much so that I kept thinking of books to recommend to her before remembering that I don't actually know her at all.

Plus it genuinely contains good self-help information while, at the same time, cheerfully (and without malice) exposing the money-making opportunities inherent in the self-help industry. I loved it.

Self-help addict or self-help skeptic, there's something here for everyone. Oh and it'll make you look at Richard Simmons in a totally different way...

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Give it Up! by Mary Carlomagno

Posted by Keris on March 12, 2008 in American Authors, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 10, 2008 2:02 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: The Strawberry Picker by Monica Feth

Reviewed by Colin Mulhern

A killer seeking the perfect partner. All he wants is beauty and innocence. But when he gets close he notices imperfections, the image is shattered and the papers report another murder.

Caro is his latest victim, and at her funeral, Jemma - Caro's flatmate - swears revenge and decides to track down the killer, but in making her very public oath, she attracts the attention of a hansom, mysterious strawberry picker.

It all sounds pretty good - certainly the makings of a good thriller, but the point of thrillers is, by definition, to thrill - to involve the reader by invoking emotions, to convince them that the characters are so real that they believe and care. You can only really do that if you allow the reader to see what is happening as it is happening. The Strawberry Picker is way too passive in its delivery, telling the reader what people have said or done or doing rather than showing these things in real time. The only thing the characters do actively is make espresso - in so many scenes that you wonder if this is something the author has only just discovered.

The result of this passive, wishy-washy hold-my-hand style is that by the half way mark the characters are as lifeless as they were on page one, the scenes are painfully dull and any aspect of a mystery has withered and died before we even reach the moment where Jenna swears revenge. This, incidentally, is well past the halfway point, and to be honest, by the time I'd got there, I really couldn't care whether she fell in love with the killer, helped her mother edit another successful crime thriller (writers writing about writing - yawn) or make another bloody espresso.

There are too many other things you can spend £5.99 on. Don't buy this.

Rating: 1/5

Like this? Try Be Mine by Laura Kasischke (an adult book)

Posted by Keris on March 10, 2008 in American Authors, Crime / Mystery, More On Monday, Rating: 1/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 4, 2008 3:32 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Two Doors Down by Annie McCartney

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

A fabulous looking book, this cover twinkled up to me from my to-be-read pile. I had no idea what it was about, all I had to go on was that cover. But what a delight I found inside.

Marlborough Road is where three households rely on the cleaning (and counselling) services of Sally O’Neill. Sally is what we would have called working class (in days gone by) and the residents of Marlborough Road, middle class. Sally, Miss Black, Clare and Saffron go on a journey where their two classes meet, banishing preconceptions and prejudices on both sides, discovering a friendship they never thought possible.

Clare and her husband Tony have three children, described as free-range, out roaming the lane, with Evie the middle child bent on a rebellious phase towards her mother. Tony seems tied to the work place and isn’t much help.

Saffron is married to the increasingly distant Trevor. A lot older than the vegetarian Buddhist, how will he react to her shocking news? And will he get fed up with her mung bean stews that constantly simmer, stinking the house out?

Then there is Edith Black, a well off retired career lady; she now takes in lodgers (but only a certain class of lodger) at her home. Currently she has Fintan the opera singer and Otis, the rock poet (and waste of space).

What I loved about this book is that its like having a real good nosy around someone else’s house and lives – with no-one even noticing. The pace rattles along and not once was I bored even though it was just a seemingly tame story about the community of Marlborough Road during one particular period in time. McCartney has made some fairly ordinary lives utterly fascinating. A more contemporary Maeve Binchy perhaps (and that is high praise from me as I love Ms Binchy).

I cannot add anymore, I’ll just let the mark out of five speak for itself.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try 31 Dream Street by Lisa Jewell

Posted by Keris on March 4, 2008 in Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 29, 2008 10:25 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Forget Me Not by Isabel Wolff

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

The cover of Forget Me Not by Isabel Wolff made me think the story was going to be a bit ‘wishy washy’. Neither the design nor the title does the book justice; they don’t look or sound promising, unlike the plot and the main character (who incidentally is nothing like the character drawn on the front).

Anna Temple is a former city career woman, who decided to swap her fast paced life for garden design after her mother suddenly died. On the night of her leaving do, she meets Xan resulting in Milly nine months later. Xan, with no sense of responsibility (so much so you want to throttle him) leaves soon after she breaks the news, for Indonesia, leaving Anna pregnant and having to raise their child alone. She tries to forget about her daughter's father and concentrates on putting her life back together.

This book is packed with subplots featuring a host of characters, including a nanny, a maternity nurse called Elaine with her nephew Jamie and a new man for Anna called Patrick.  We also learn about Anna’s father and his new secret life as well as her new best friend, Jenny - why won’t she open up to Anna? There is also a ‘shocking’ family secret, which to be fair I saw coming. I think Jenny’s secret was also a little obvious which made me wonder why a seemingly intelligent woman such as Anna didn’t grasp things sooner. Despite this, I really enjoyed the book.

Wolff has created believable and real characters that you could envisage living around the corner from you and the story flows along well. It also has the unputdownable factor, so I did have a few late nights. There is plenty of detail for the book to come alive, including as an added bonus for any green fingered people out there, an array of gardening tips.

Forget Me Not is a realistic, enjoyable story, touching on a few sensitive issues, with a fully rounded leading character. Just open it up quickly and don’t dwell on that cover.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Solo by Jill Mansell

Posted by Keris on February 29, 2008 in British Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 26, 2008 12:36 PM

Lani Diane Rich reads to you

You know I told you about Lani Diane Rich's new book, A Little Ray Of Sunshine, and how fabulous it sounded?

Well, the book is out now, but there's more... Lani has made a recording of herself reading the first chapter and it's available for download on her website. Thanks Lani!

Related posts: Lani Diane Rich interview | Jennifer Crusie, Lani Diane Rich and Anne Stewart podcast

Posted by Sarah Painter on February 26, 2008 in American Authors, Book related, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

BOOK REVIEW: Good Vibrations by Ayn Carrillo

Ayn Carrillo's Good Vibrations has been on my shelf for a little while, but I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it. First there's the title. Then the subtitle - "One good girl's hilarious exploration of all things bad..." Funnily enough, I spotted the US version which is titled Pornology and has a much more sophisticated cover (see it over the cut). The US is often accused of dumbing down (the title of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone being changed to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone springs immediately to mind), but they're certainly winning in the chick lit cover wars!

Anyway, back to Good Vibrations. When Carrillo's boyfriend accused her of being "pornophobic" she made a list - she really loves making lists - a "Porn to do list" in fact. On the list were items like "meet a porn star", "visit a strip club", "test vibrators", "check out a brothel" and more. Here's a tip: if the previous sentence offended you, you're not going to enjoy this book.

I'm not easily offended and I enjoyed this book. Carrillo has a chatty and easy writing style, in particular she's good at writing about pretty full-on stuff in a lighthearted and informative way. Having said that, even though I'm no prude and am pretty open-minded about most things, there was one bit of the book that quite literally turned my stomach. Chapter 8. Not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach.

As is often the case with memoir, I didn't believe bits of the book, usually bits that were meant to be funny. There's also a relationship with a man Carrillo met in a sex shop running through the book and that didn't ring true either (although, judging by the acknowledgments, the man exists, at least!). Mostly Good Vibrations is an entertaining and informative addition to the sex memoirs that have flooded the market lately. (Ew. Now I've reminded myself of Chapter 8.)

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try My Horizontal Life by Chelsea Handler

Posted by Keris on February 26, 2008 in American Authors, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

February 25, 2008 10:18 AM

MORE ON MONDAY: The Poison that Fascinates by Jennifer Clement

Reviewed by Sarah Hague

Some people have a morbid fascination with death, others with the means of death. Emily Neale, half British, half Mexican, collects facts about women who poisoned others. Abandoned as a baby by her mother, she's brought up in Mexico City by her father and Mother Agata, head of the orphanage that Emily's great-grandmother founded and where Emily now often helps out.

We hear that there are saints for almost everything in a devote Catholic Mexican society that is painted with bright, evocative words : the street sellers, the market sellers, the traffic, the smog.

Interspersed with Emily's story are the facts she collects about stories of women who have killed and why. Emily knows that some things are worth killing for.

Finally she meets her cousin Santiago from a remote farm in Chihuahua who has been watching her and disturbing her things.

Jennifer Clement has made a peculiar book sensuously palatable. Emily inhabits a small, restricted world of Mexican superstition, mythology and faith. Santiago changes that world forever bringing with him love and secrets.

It's a fascinating book written with masterful ease.

Rating: 4/5

Posted by Keris on February 25, 2008 in More On Monday, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 12, 2008 12:04 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Midori By Moonlight by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga

I know I'm shallow, but I was mainly attracted to Midori By Moonlight because of the cover: moonlight, cupcakes and a cute outfit on the illustration! Also I love the title and the book is set in San Francisco, one of my favourite cities.

Fortunately, the book is just as cute as its cover. Midori moves from Japan to marry Kevin, an American she met out there. Unfortunately, Kevin reignites an old flame at his and Midori's engagement party, leaving Midori both heart-broken and stuck in San Francisco without a visa.

Desperate not to return to Japan - obsessed with US culture, Midori had planned to stay in San Francisco forever - Midori calls a Japanese friend of Kevin's, Shinji/Sean, who, as luck would have it, needs a room-mate.

Midori still has the problem of finding a job without a visa. She wants to be a pastry chef, but soon resorts to working in a "hostess bar". And of course she can't tell her parents - not about the lack of a wedding, the living with a strange man, and certainly not her job - they never wanted her to go to the US in the first place (although they did want her to get married and had been in the process of arranging a marriage for her when she met Kevin).

I loved this book. More like a fairy story than a realistic portrayal of the illegal immigrant experience (I doubt many illegal immigrants have it as easy as Midori), it's charming, sweet, funny and gripping and Midori is lovely and I was rooting for her from page one. Plus there's San Francisco, cupcakes and moonlight. I can't wait to read Wendy Nelson Tokunaga's next book.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Perfectly True Tales of a Perfect Size 12 by Robin Gold

Posted by Keris on February 12, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 4, 2008 11:08 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Undercover by Beth Kephart

This is her first book for young adults by National Book Award nominee, Beth Kephart. I admit I was a bit intimidated to read this because the whole National Book Award thing made me think of "Literature" and I thought Undercover might be too serious for my tastes. Yes, it's serious. But it's also sweet, charming, sad,  beautiful and ... just flat-out wonderful. ("Just flat-out wonderful" - do you think that's what the National Book Award folks said about Ms Kephart?)

Anyway, it's the story of Elisa who writes love notes for boys to give to the objects of their affection, but isn't so lucky in love herself. Her mother and sister are like two perfect peas in a pod, but Elisa is much more like her father. Her father who is working in San Francisco and who may not ever come home.

Things begin to change for Elisa when, first, she discovers a frozen pond (complete with an underwater
statue of a girl reading a book), and then Theo Moses asks her to write a love note for Lila, the most popular girl in the school. Even after Theo has won Lila, he persists in hanging around Elisa, but she has no idea why. Surely he can't like her?

Whether writing poetry, skating, talking to Theo, missing her father, or worrying about her parents' marriage, Elisa is ... I was about to write "sweet" then, but then I let out a huge sigh. She's not "sweet". She's lovely, but she's also wise and sad and full of repressed emotion*. I loved her and wanted everything to work out for her.

Read this beautiful book to see if it does.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Bloom by Elizabeth Scott

*Have you ever watched David Duchovny's show, Californication? I can see the daughter, Becca, as Elisa.

Posted by Keris on February 4, 2008 in American Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (7)

January 30, 2008 11:08 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Beauty Confidential by Nadine Haobsh

I have to admit, I'm not a big beauty junkie, so I wasn't too excited about Nadine Haobsh's book, Beauty Confidential. I was, however, intrigued by the book's backstory - Nadine was a beauty editor about to start her dream job, when she was outed as the anonymous author of tell-all beauty blog, Jolie in NYC. The dream job offer was retracted ... after Nadine had left her current job. Fortunately, Jolie in NYC's popularity was such that Nadine got a book deal, plus the site is still going strong (although it's no longer anonymous).

Still, the backstory was summed up in a couple of pages and I worried the beauty stuff wouldn't hold my attention. Yep, wrong again. The thing about Beauty Confidential that distinguishes it from the generic beauty pages I flick past every month is Nadine's voice.

She's chatty, funny, down-to-earth and honest. She knows that singing the praises of Nars blush (in Orgasm) isn't going to change the world, but she also knows that if your hair looks good, your day goes better and that's not to be underestimated.

Not only did I fly through this book making mental shopping lists (and vows to spend more than one minute doing my "face"), I've actually referred back to it once or twice since finishing.

From thinking it wasn't a book for me to keeping it on my shelf as an indispensable reference book ... not bad for someone with no interest in the beauty industry. What I'm saying is, if Nadine Haobsh can fire my enthusiasm, she can fire anyone's. And if you're already a beauty junkie? Pull up a chair, pour yourself a drink and enjoy!

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Goddess Guide by Gisele Scanlon

Posted by Keris on January 30, 2008 in American Authors, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 28, 2008 12:04 PM

MORE ON MONDAY & COMPETITION: The Greatest Freelance Writing Tips in the World by Linda Jones

Full disclosure: Linda Jones has been one of my mentors as I changed career from administrator in corporate recovery and personal insolvency (hello? still awake?) to freelance journalist, so I knew in advance just how straight-talking, down to earth and exceedingly useful this book was going to be.

Linda's been a journalist for 20 years and has not only worked as a freelance, but also in newspapers, magazines, online media and PR, so these tips cover writing across the board and from both sides of the fence (I don't think there's a chapter about mixing metaphors, unfortunately).

Find out how you can win a copy over the cut.

This book covers everything you could need to know - from the business side of freelancing (invoicing, copyright and legal matters) to the fun stuff (interviewing, researching and actually writing).

Linda is generous with her advice, but at the same time she doesn't mollycoddle and that's what I liked the most about this book. Yes, it's encouraging and enlightening, but it's also realistic about your chances of making it as a freelancer, which, as I know from experience, will be vastly increased by learning from Linda.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Career Helium by David Thompson

For your chance to win a copy of The Greatest Freelance Writing Tips in the World, please email us at editor @ trashionista . com (take out the spaces) with "Tips" in the subject line and your name and address in the body of the email (so we can send you the book!). Closing date 4 February 2008.

Posted by Keris on January 28, 2008 in British Authors, Competition, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 22, 2008 1:06 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Amazing Adventures of Dietgirl by Shauna Reid

I've only just started reading Shauna Reid's wonderful blog - The Amazing Adventures of Dietgirl - so I was keen to read the book version and catch up on everything I'd missed over the past seven years!

In 2001, after seeing a gigantic pair of her knickers on the washing line, Shauna decided it was time to go to WeightWatchers ... where she discovered to her horror that her weight had crept up to 25 stone. Knowing that she really needed to lose a significant amount of weight, Shauna came up with an online fat-busting alter-ego  ... Dietgirl!

For years, Shauna kept her identity a secret, while blogging about dieting, exercising, her struggle with depression and, eventually, travelling with her sister from Australian to Scotland, where her life was to change even more dramatically.

By the end of the book I felt like I knew Shauna and I was so proud of what she'd achieved, not just physically, but emotionally too. This book is a real journey and I didn't want it to end (although I'm glad it did, for Shauna's sake!).

Shauna writes honestly and movingly about her struggles, but she's also very funny. I think you'd enjoy this book even if you've never had any problem with your weight, but if you do have weight issues, I have no doubt you'll find it incredibly motivating and inspiring. I've been losing and regaining the same two stone for about fifteen years now, but Shauna has definitely changed the way I think about weightloss (for the better - just to be clear!).

I loved this book so much that I really can't recommend it highly enough.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Pretty Fat by Jen Lancaster (when it comes out!)

Posted by Keris on January 22, 2008 in Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (4)

January 8, 2008 11:09 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Reincarnationist by MJ Rose

Reviewed by Angela Richardson

The Reincarnationist is about the tenth book by M. J. Rose and is a thriller set in the present and the past thanks to numerous past life flash backs.

After nearly dying in a terrorist bomb, Josh Ryder is haunted by memories of a past life in Rome. The medical profession cannot explain or solve his new memories and flashbacks and so he turns to the Phoenix Foundation who specialise in past life regression.

A trail of present-day murders seem to link up to his past life memories of being a pagan priest whose dangerous congress with Sabina, one of the Vestal Virgins, poses a transgression so serious that the lovers would face certain death if exposed. Scents of jasmine and sandalwood and images of furtive liaisons and violence descend on Josh at will and become more frequent when the Phoenix Foundation leads him to an archaeological dig at an ancient yet strangely familiar Roman burial site.

The discovery of the existence of a collection of ancient gems called memory stones whose origins trace back to ancient Egypt and India put everyone in danger. The stones’ promise to ‘assist the wearer in reaching his next incarnation’ set the ancient and modern worlds on a collision course and tempts someone so badly that they would murder to get their hands on them.

Although this book is long, it’s very well written and kept me interested throughout. It’s a thriller that’s been thoroughly researched and I felt as though as I was learning about the ancient Roman religion while enjoying the story. She even includes an author’s note at the back to tell you what parts of the story she invented and what parts were from her research.

The whole idea of the existence of memory stones was very original and the mixture of tension of the present day murders and ancient memories of a love long lost kept me turning the pages. I know I shouldn’t mention the end, but it was one of those books that have an arty finish that may satisfy the author, but leaves all us poor readers wondering what the hell happened to everyone. For all I know they all died a second after the book finished as they were still in the middle of the drama.

Overall this was an original thriller mixing modern day with historical plot threads that kept you reading and there was just a dash of the supernatural to add a twist. Just don’t expect a satisfying ending.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

Posted by Keris on January 8, 2008 in American Authors, Crime / Mystery, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 21, 2007 9:09 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Size Doesn't Matter by Meg Cabot

After reading on Meg Cabot's blog that her third Heather Wells mystery, Size Doesn't Matter (or Big Boned if you hail from the States!) was finally out in the UK, I could hardly contain my excitement.

Former pop star Heather Wells has returned - well, kind of. She still works as a residence hall officer in Fischer Hall (nicknamed 'Death Dorm' for its recent spate of grisly murders), dealing with fussy students and her mismatched bunch of colleagues.

But if there's one thing Heather's totally sure of, it's that she loves her job...even if she IS unsure about her relationship with her math professor Tad, her feelings for landlord Cooper, and of course, her latest diet.

Yep, her job is great...even if her boss has just been shot in the head in his office.

Cue another mystery for past teen queen Heather to try and solve. As the media gets involved due to a union strike in the renowned residence hall, Heather quickly gets on the case to try and figure out just who might be behind this one.

Add to that Tad's recent announcement of "I need to ask you something when the timing's right", her ex-boyfriend Jordan Cartwright's (remember the former boyband member?) latest announcement, and a new job proposal from her dad, and Heather's life just might be getting a little bit busy...

Will Heather Wells, former singing sensation and new girl detective, be able to find out just who shot her boss?

And will we get to see Heather walk down the aisle? (Altogether now: "Eeeee!")

This is the third novel in the Heather Wells series, following Size 12 is Not Fat and Size 14 is Not Fat Either. Personally, I think this might just be the best in the series, albeit a seemingly quicker read than the others. But truly? They're all brilliant. Heather, despite being a former pop princess, is a down-to-earth, funny character who's instantly lovable and easy to relate to. I'd advise you to read the other two books in the series first, although it's pretty easy to follow up and Meg's witty writing style is as fabulous as always.

But I have to say, there is one heck of a downside to this book.

It's so addictive, I read it in a day.

Thankfully, all is not lost - Queen of Babble in the Big City, another follow-up offering from the wonderful Meg, will be out in paperback in March.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Ex Factor by Andrea Semple

Posted by Danielle Symonds-Yemm on December 21, 2007 in American Authors, Crime / Mystery, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (2)

December 19, 2007 9:36 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Amorous Woman by Donna George Storey

I admit I approached Donna Storey's Amorous Woman with trepidation. For one, there's a woman in her underwear on the cover. And then the back cover describes the book as "the erotic secrets of one woman's sexual awakening and her subsequent passions in Japan". Um. Not one to read on the commute then (luckily I work at home).

The book begins with Lydia - the Amorous Woman herself - living in San Francisco and teaching Japanese culture to American businessmen. Following her return to America from Japan, Lydia vowed never to have sex again "with anyone, man or woman" for the rest of her life. Only a few pages in, I got the impression that would be a promise she'd find difficult to keep.

When she goes out for a drink with two of her students, not only does she find herself attracted to them (inevitably), she also learns that she hasn't been able to hide her true self as well as she thought. They have guessed she has secrets and ask her to tell them. So she does. And the reader learns it all at the same time, of course.

If you ignore the fact that, rather than a couple of hours, it would have taken Lydia days to relate her story, the book is compelling and beautifully written. Despite the fact that Lydia behaves fairly appallingly throughout, she is so open and honest about her wants, needs and weaknesses that I couldn't help but like her.

There isn't much of a plot - basically Lydia goes to Japan and has varied sex with varied people - but there is an emotional core to the book, so it doesn't seem gratuitous. But it is erotic fiction, so it is fairly relentless. It's interesting to read about a woman exploring all aspects of her sexuality (almost) without apology.

The Japanese setting is interesting too - I really felt like I'd got an insight into the country's culture - but I've no idea why there's a Japanese woman on the cover. Lydia is American and there are hardly any Japanese women in the novel (plenty of Japanese men though).

Since it's an erotic novel, you probably want to know whether it is indeed "erotic" (that word's never been the same to me since Waynetta Slob). It is. (Ha! Coy enough for you?)

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try White Tigress by Jade Lee

Posted by Keris on December 19, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

December 14, 2007 10:34 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Hopscotch & Handbags by Lucy Mangan

I love Lucy Mangan's columns for The Guardian newspaper, so I was keen to read her first book, Hopscotch & Handbags: The Essential Guide to Being a Girl and it was just as good as I expected.

In her typical hilariously dry style, Mangan looks at all aspects of what it means to be female. From early days at preschool, via senior school's obsessive collecting of stickers, keyrings and erasers (called "rubbers" when we were at school, but not any more), to living with a man (and explaining to him - at exhaustive length - why sausages are not actually a health food), motherhood and more.

Like sex, hair and beauty, exercise and health, friendship, working, and dealing with your mother.

Sometimes (and you'll probably already be aware of this if you've read her columns) Mangan has a tendency to be excessively verbose (she says with excessive, er, verbosity) and occasionally I found myself scanning a little to get to the point, but when I finished the book I still longed for more. Plus at least twice I literally laughed until I cried (once was in public and it was rather embarrassing).

Hopscotch & Handbags is one of those books you'll read out over the phone to your friends. Buy it for every woman you know (although, on second thoughts, maybe not your mum...).

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try How to Bring Up Your Parents by Emma Kennedy or My Fat, Mad Teenage Diary by Rae Earl

Posted by Keris on December 14, 2007 in British Authors, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

December 6, 2007 12:13 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Under the Rose by Diana Peterfreund

Keris loved the first book in this series, Secret Society Girl, so I was excited to read Under the Rose. It's the second book and follows on from Amy Haskell's initiation into the prestigious Rose & Grave society at Eli University.

I like to read books in order, where possible (doesn't everyone?), but I needn't have worried. Peterfreund weaves in the back-story from the first book seamlessly and I never felt lost.

Amy's club is the first in the society's long history to include women and some of the patriarchs aren't too happy about it. The book opens with mysterious threatening emails to each of the female members (the Diggirls) and continues on a rollercoaster ride of intrigue and suspicion.

I loved dipping into a world of Ivy League life and secret society rituals; this book really made a change from my usual reading. I felt exhilarated by Amy's schedule of papers, meetings and romantic liaisons with the delicious George 'Puck' Harrison. In truth, I was compelled to snatch moments with this book until I had devoured the entire thing.

The third book in the series, The Rites of Spring (Break), is scheduled for next summer and I will definitely reach for another slice of this smart, exciting, and very witty world.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try: Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard

Posted by Sarah Painter on December 6, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

November 28, 2007 11:07 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Coffee At Luke's: An Unauthorized Gilmore Girls Gabfest, edited by Jennifer Crusie

I have mixed feelings about this book since I wanted to have an essay in it and they turned me down - Me! Don't they know who I am? Ahem - but, at the same time, American TV show Gilmore Girls is one of my total obsessions. In fact, I'm watching it in the corner of my screen as I'm writing this ("The Festival of Living Art" from season 4, in case you're interested).

Plus the book is edited by Jennifer Crusie and we do love Ms Crusie here at Trashionista. Like other SmartPop books including This Is Chick Lit, Flirting With Pride & Prejudice and Perfectly Plum (which I do feature in - yay me!), Coffee At Luke's is a collection of essays about Gilmore Girls by a wide range of writers and pop culture experts.

Subjects range from personal relationships (including looks at fabulous secondary characters Kirk and Paris), to parenting (with a spirited defence of Emily Gilmore), to the wonder of Stars Hollow and Gilmore fixations food, books and sex. The last section is on Gilmore Girls and the real world and that, for me, was the least successful. I don't know if I'd just had enough GG at that point (doubtful) or whether I'm just not interested in how the show relates to the real world since I'd rather pretend it's all true.

My favourite essays were Television Without Pity writer Sara Morrison's analysis of how Stars Hollow businesses would fare in the real world. It doesn't sound particularly thrilling, but it's both interesting and really good fun. I was also totally blown away by Gregory Stevenson's Dining With the Gilmores, a jaw-dropping exploration of food as metaphor in the show. I never noticed it before reading this essay, but it makes perfect sense and served to underscore the complete brilliance of Amy Sherman-Palladino's writing.

Clearly only for fans of the show - despite the glossary (Coffee At Luke-isms) at the back, if you hadn't seen Gilmore Girls you would be flummoxed by most of these essays - Coffee At Luke's is interesting, entertaining and made me both want to watch certain episodes again and made me lament the show's cancellation.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Serenity Found edited by Jane Espenson

Posted by Keris on November 28, 2007 in American Authors, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Television | Permalink | Comments (4)

November 23, 2007 12:32 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips

I used to read Marie Phillips' blog, Struggling Author (now invitation only), and so I was familiar with Gods Behaving Badly before it even had a publisher. I always thought it sounded great (and I'd read the enthusiastic comments of industry bigwigs) so I was keen to read it.

As an idea, it's what Hollywood calls "high concept" - the gods behaving badly are Greek Gods, living in modern-day London. So we meet Apollo who is using his psychic ability to front a TV show, Aphrodite is working in phone sex, Dionysus runs a nightclub between Euston and Kings Cross and Eros has become a Christian. They all live together in a run-down house with a secret on the top floor.

Into this dysfunctional family comes Alice, an intelligent but timid cleaner who is in love with her best friend, Neil. Neil's in love with Alice too, but can't bring himself to tell her. When they go together to see Apollo's TV show, an unfortunate series of events finds their fate inextricably linked with that of not only the gods, but the entire world...

I enjoyed this book just as much as I thought I would. It's great fun. The Gods are hilariously narcissistic and Phillips fits them into the 21st century seamlessly. It's exciting, funny and features imaginative leaps that made me think of the Harry Potter series (I loved Angel tube station being the portal to the underworld).

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Venus Envy by Shannon McKelden

Posted by Keris on November 23, 2007 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Supernatural | Permalink | Comments (4)

November 22, 2007 3:15 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Sushi for One? by Camy Tang

Reviewed by Jill Hart

I knew this was going to be a great book when the crazy grandmother showed up in chapter one. Camy Tang’s first book, Sushi For One?, is a great start to a budding career. We don’t see a whole lot of Asian chick-lit, so this book, while maintaining what we love about chick-lit, gives a taste of something new and different. 

The main character, Lex, is on the verge of becoming the oldest single female cousin in her family. With her older cousin, Mariko, getting married, Lex knows that her family will soon be on her case about getting married. It starts sooner than she thinks, though, when her grandmother corners her even before Mariko’s wedding and lets Lex know that she better have a date – a real date – for the wedding….or else.

Hilarity ensues with Lex making a fool out of herself in a number of ways and places. The lengthy list of qualifications her dates must meet keeps her far from finding anyone to fit the bill. She may just have to settle for what’s available – if she can convince him. Or is it Lex that needs convincing – to trust new people and open her heart to new possibilities?

Tang delivers a fresh outlook on the single life and gives her readers a glimpse of life in the Asian community. This first book in the Sushi Series will leave readers giggling and looking forward to book two.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Wedding Date by Liz Young

Posted by Keris on November 22, 2007 in Debut Novels, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 12, 2007 9:22 AM

BOOK REVIEW: A Bad Bride's Tale by Polly Williams

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

A Bad Bride’s Tale is Polly Williams’ second book after the successful The Rise and Fall of a Yummy Mummy.  Rather confusingly A Bad Bride’s Tale was also known as The Egg Race in hardback. The Egg Race is not a brilliant title but I think A Bad Bride’s Tale as a title is misleading. Yes she’s a bride, but bad? Hmm.

Stevie Jonson is getting married to Jez. Everything is organised for the big day. But there is a problem. Stevie just isn’t physically attracted to her fiancé anymore. He is also a bit self absorbed and manipulative. However, she is thirty four, she can hear the tick, tick, tick of her biological clock and feels this man is the last chance she’ll have to have a baby. Thus ‘The Egg Race’.

To cause further confusion for Stevie, Sam, her childhood friend and one time crush, returns from France two weeks before she says ‘I do’. Her doubts before the big day, however, are pushed to the back of her mind after a crisis in the family of her soon to be in laws. On their honeymoon, they bump into Katy, an ex of Sam’s. Katy is hoping her current boyfriend Seb will be proposing any day now.

This book is a page turner. The proof of this is that I sneaked away from my family on Sunday to keep reading it. I like Williams’ writing style. She is vivid with her words and sets the scene really well. But I feel certain things let the book down.

On one level it is a straightforward romantic comedy. On another Williams raises deeper issues regarding declining fertility and the modern working woman. To cover such a complex and important issue, with such a one dimensional, weak character does not do the subject justice. Frustratingly, Stevie is incredibly reliant on a man and does not voice her own wants at all. Whilst in reality there are women like this, for this story and plot to work I needed a character I could empathise with more.

Then there is Katy, the secondary female character. I felt she was such a media cliché of a woman wanting to get married and have babies before her ovaries shrivel up, it made me want to weep and this interrupted the flow of the story.

Marian Keyes produces contemporary novels covering serious issues with strong, rounded female leads. I think there is promise here, but with A Bad Bride's Tale, Williams hasn’t yet managed to achieve the same high level.

Rating: 2/5

Like this? Try Baby Proof by Emily Giffin

Posted by Keris on November 12, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 2/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 8, 2007 10:18 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Motherhood Walk of Fame by Shari Low

The Motherhood Walk of Fame, Shari Low's fourth book, is the story of Carly Cooper, an author and journalist, happily married to her childhood sweetheart and with two lovely sons. The problem is, she's bored. And not just with her sex life (that's less boring and more none-existent).

When she gets a phonecall from her ex, Sam - one of the (six!) men she was engaged to before marrying Mark* - everything changes. Mark has given Carly's first novel to his agent and he's lined up meetings for Carly with Hollywood studios.

*And you can read all about them in Shari Low's first book, Why Not? What If?, which also features Carly. 

Completely overexcited, both at the thought of livening up her life and possibly taking Hollywood by storm - Carly books tickets to LA for the whole family. There's only one problem, Mark refuses to go. Determined not to miss out on the chance of a lifetime, Carly and the kids go anyway, leaving a disgruntled Mark home alone.

Out in LA, things are great. Possibly too great. Carly not only loves the lifestyle, she finds herself remembering all too clearly what she used to love about Sam.

So Carly has to choose. Between LA and the UK. Writing for the movies or writing for Family Values magazine. Between her husband, Mark and her ex, Sam (who, by the way, used to be a high class gigolo). In other words, between real life and a dream life.

I enjoyed The Motherhood Walk of Fame. Shari Low is very funny and I'd laughed out loud a few times in just the first few pages. The kids are very cute and the Hollywood experience is entertaining, but I felt the book sagged a bit in the middle. There wasn't really enough plot to keep my interest. Having said that, I loved the ending.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Rainy Days & Tuesdays by Claire Allan

Posted by Keris on November 8, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (2)

November 5, 2007 10:18 AM

MORE ON MONDAY: Imagine This by Sade Adeniran

Reviewed by Belinda Whitehead

Imagine This is a beautifully written coming of age tale about Lola Ogunwole, a young girl whose father relocates her and her elder brother Adebola to their native Nigeria from England without so much as an explanation for his actions. Sent to live in a remote village with her aunt, and surrounded by a whole host of relatives she has never met before, Lola struggles to settle into her new life in Idogun.

Adebola, meanwhile, is himself suffering at the hands of his cruel uncle Joseph, and through their correspondence the two children dream of running away together to a better life.

Unable to come to terms with her abandonment, Lola starts acting up in school as a ploy to force her father to come and get her, but succeeds only in getting herself into more trouble with her relatives and provoking her father’s anger. When things eventually come to a head, Lola finds that even when it seems life can’t get any worse, it does.

 

This book does more than just tell a story, it takes the reader on a journey of discovery, provoking empathy towards Lola as she endures the many hurdles life throws her way, coming to terms with life, love and, the hardest thing of all, loss.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay

Posted by Keris on November 5, 2007 in Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

October 29, 2007 4:08 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: The 4-Day Win by Martha Beck

Martha Beck is one of my heroes. I devour her books. I re-read them frequently. I keep them on a shelf above my desk for inspiration. I love her. So imagine my excitement when I read that her latest book would be a (sort of) diet book. Since I've been trying and failing to lose weight for approximately two thirds of my life, I couldn't read it quick enough.

The 4-Day Win is subtitled "change the way you think about food and your body in just 4 days" which is actually a little disingenuous. The plan features a series of 4 day wins - 4 days being the optimal time it takes to change your behaviour and implement new habits that stick. There is a jump start programme on which, Beck assures, you will start to lose weight almost immediately. But this book doesn't feature eating plans and exercise suggestions, it's more about learning to change the way you think about food.

Yes, I know there have been a bunch of non-diet diet books lately and yet the world's population is still getting fatter, but Beck explains clearly and concisely why this is the case. Why even though losing weight may seem to be the most important thing in your life, you still can't do it.

Based on sociological and psychological research, It all makes perfect sense, it's readable, fascinating and, because it's Martha Beck, hugely entertaining. Has a diet book ever made you laugh out loud before? No, me neither. (My favourite line: "Tracy and I agreed that she would try a two-pronged approach to changing her body and mind. So we got her a fork with only two prongs...")

No, I haven't actually lost any weight, but that's because I haven't started doing any 4 day wins yet (I'm still in what Beck calls the "pre-contemplation" stage - in other words, I just read the book, I didn't actually do any of the - theoretical, not physical - exercises).

In Beck's book The Joy Diet, she said she'd never write an actual diet book. And yet now she has. And I for one am thrilled about it.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Beyond Chocolate by Audrey & Sophie Boss

Posted by Keris on October 29, 2007 in American Authors, More On Monday, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 26, 2007 3:02 PM

BOOK REVIEW: How To Bring Up Your Parents by Emma Kennedy

You probably recognise Emma Kennedy from the Heat magazine TV ads, but she's an established comedian, writer and actress. How To Bring Up Your Parents is her first book and it's based on her popular (and very funny) blog.

I was a bit concerned when I started reading this book because the first section - "the science and history bit (because you're worth it)" - didn't really do much for me, but once Kennedy got onto the subject of her actual parents - Hysterical Mum Brenda (HMB) and Welsh Dad Tony (WDT) - the book really got going. 

Rather than just being a series of blog posts in book form, How To Bring Up Your Parents is arranged around "Practical Problems" such as Entertaining, Leaving Home and Sex and Other Embarrassments. Kennedy's parents do seem to be genuinely funny, but Emma's interpretation of them is utterly hilarious. It's a very affectionate portrayal too - they really seem to have an enviably close and honest relationship.

Reading this book will both make you appreciate your parents more and comfort you to learn that your parents aren't quite as mad as you always suspected (or perhaps that they are and that's okay too!).

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try The Yes Man by Danny Wallace

Posted by Keris on October 26, 2007 in British Authors, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 23, 2007 12:42 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Glamour by Louise Bagshawe

I've never felt tempted to read a Louise Bagshaw novel because I always thought they were bonkbusters and while I was very much into the bonkbuster as a genre when I was about 14 - Judith Krantz, Jackie Collins, you know - these days, not so much.

But then I started reading Bagshawe's latest book, Glamour, and I got into it straight away. It's the story of three school friends: British brain Jane, Texan glamourpuss Sally and Jordanian Helen (who has both brains *and* beauty). But things suddenly go badly wrong for all three girls and they end up living very different lives and losing touch.

Of course, when they inevitably find each other again, it turns out that not only are they all beautiful and successful, they're all brilliant at the same business - retail - and so they decide to set up a store. But not just any store - the most glamorous and exclusive store in the whole wide world!

I sound a bit sarcastic, don't I? Well, the thing is, although I thoroughly enjoyed Glamour, I also found it to be enormously cliched and, well, not very good. The women are basically archetypes and the men are the traditional alpha males who treat the women like precious objects (but of course they also respect their success and intelligence ... to a degree).

Plus Bagshawe is the mistress of the mixed metaphor and some of them made me laugh out loud (yes, grammar humour - I'm a dork). Like this one - "... Sally and Jane were like a jigsaw puzzle. They made no sense on their own, but together they were unstoppable." Yes, look out for those unstoppable jigsaw puzzles!

Oh and as for it being a "bonkbuster", it's really not; there's hardly any bonking in it at all (oh, it's years since I've used the word "bonking"!).

What is *is* is the very definition of a guilty pleasure. Despite frequently saying "This is rubbish!" and being disappointed by the totally unbelievable ending, I could barely put the book down. Next time I go on holiday, I just might be packing a Louise Bagshawe book for the flight.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Adored by Tilly Bagshawe

Posted by Keris on October 23, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

October 15, 2007 12:27 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: Pies and Prejudice by Stuart Maconie

I didn't know what to expect from this book. I know Stuart Maconie from TV and radio, of course, but I hadn't (knowingly) read any of his journalism and I'm a bit wary of books about "The North", you know, because that's where I come from (and still live).

Maconie's book features his travels around a random selection of northern towns, basically places he's been in the past and wanted to revisit, or places of special interest like Oldham (race riots in 2001) or Newcastle (since the north east claims to be the "True North").

Sadly, Maconie neither visits the town I grew up in, nor the one I live in now, but it's not really about me so I'll try not to hold that against him. Via Liverpool, the Lake District, Durham, Bury, Manchester, Blackpool, Barrow in Furness and more, Maconie has created a brilliant travelogue cum social history that I could hardly bear to put down. Seriously. I absolutely loved this book.

Maconie writes passionately and articulately about the people and places and manages to cram in tons of tidbits and fascinating facts and not just about the north - I'd completely forgotten that those crane arcade games used to have packets of cigs amongst the cuddly toys.

I honestly can't rave about this book enough, but I'm probably starting to sound a bit crazed (starting?) so I'll stop, but let me just say that if you're from the north you need to read this book. And if you're not from the north you need to read it and learn what you're missing.

It reminded me of how great the north can be and left me a little bit in love with Stuart Maconie. Isn't it funny what books can do?

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson

Posted by Keris on October 15, 2007 in British Authors, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

October 12, 2007 10:38 AM

BOOK REVIEW: All I Want is You by Martina Reilly

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

As a Martina Reilly newbie I didn't know what to expect of All I Want is You. On first impressions the book didn't really show much promise. I thought both the title and the cover were a bit 'blah'. I t wasn't with great enthusiasm that I started to read.

Poppy Shannon is married to a successful architect in Dublin. She spends her days having facials, expensive haircuts, getting her nails done and shopping for designer clothes. Hmm.  Was I going to enjoy this? I wasn't sure. As I read though I started to enjoy Reilly's fabulously snappy writing style. So I continued.

Poppy's life is turned upside down when her husband's business partner runs off leaving them with massive debts. They have to sell their palatial home and downsize. She has to stop shopping and her hair is to be cut in the local, cheaper salon. In the meantime her son's behaviour causes concern at his new school, her businessman father retires leaving him bored, her mother in law has to come and live with them and her own mother is busy with her charities. Pete, Poppy's husband, withdraws from her, his pride not allowing him to accept financial and emotional help. And he struggles to admit his son's behaviour might be a problem.

Worst still, Poppy has to take a job. In the 'everything's a Euro' shop.

I found Poppy difficult to like initially. Her shallowness, naivety (which almost bordered on stupidity) and her reluctance to stop spending made her somewhat irritating.

But as Poppy started to sort her life out, she blossomed into a strong, independent woman. I found myself rooting for her, admiring the way she dealt with problems and with people.

Yup. I was hooked.

The rich woman losing her money and turning her life around has been done before. You might guess how things will turn out after reading just chapter one. But it doesn't matter. How she gets there is what makes this book so readable and unputdownable.

In an interview with Trashionista earlier this year Martina said that her main aim when writing a book was "to create great memorable characters, emotional, funny, interesting scenes and a cracking page-turner of a plot". She has done this. Exactly. Along with brilliant dialogue, fascinating contemporary issues, and characters that you really care about.

The scenes between Poppy and her mother in law are particularly memorable. The dialogue is quick witted, straight talking, funny and in one particular scene extremely emotional.

It is lovely when you find a fantastic read most unexpectedly. Hidden behind the 'blah' book cover is one gem of a book. Martina – you have a new fan.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Motherland by Maria Beaumont

Posted by Keris on October 12, 2007 in Irish Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 11, 2007 1:06 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Still Summer by Jacquelyn Mitchard

I've been aware of Jacquelyn Mitchard for years - surely everyone's heard of The Deep End of the Ocean, yes? - but I hadn't actually read any of her books until her latest, Still Summer. I'll definitely be reading more.

Still Summer is the story of four women - Tracy, Olivia and Holly, who have been best friends since high school, and Tracy's daughter Cammie - who arrange to take a yachting trip together, following the death of Olivia's rich Italian husband.

At first, of course, it's idyllic - at least the sailing is, Olivia is actually a bit of a pain and the women aren't sure their friendship will last, but then, following a series of more than unfortunate events, the women end up alone on the yacht (I hope it's a yacht; I don't know anything about sailing) and in fear of their lives.

I've read that Mitchard wanted to write a book in which the women have to save themselves (rather than waiting for someone else to save them), and she's certainly done that. It's an exciting and tense read and I didn't want to put it down.

What was less successful, for me, was the character of Olivia (too evil - although I did want to reach into the book and wring her scrawny neck) and some of the dialogue, which was pretty stilted. Having said that, I find it staggering to believe that Tracy, Holly and Cammie don't actually exist. They were utterly real to me as I was reading and remain so even a couple of weeks after finishing the book.

If you haven't read any Jacquelyn Mitchard, you don't know what you've been missing.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult

Posted by Keris on October 11, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

October 5, 2007 11:38 AM

BOOK REVIEW: A Hopeless Romantic by Harriet Evans

I was so in love with the cover of Harriet Evans's second novel, A Hopeless Romantic, that I was almost afraid to read it in case the book itself was disappointing.

It's the story of Laura Foster - a hopeless romantic, obviously - she loves chick flicks, romance novels, and is continually falling head over heels for inappropriate men.

But after her heart is broken by the gorgeous, but duplicitous Dan, she decides to give up on romance once and for all. Her videos and paperbacks all go in the bin and she is determined to be pragmatic. Until, on a visit to a stately home with her parents, she meets Nick and finds herself falling again. But the newly down to earth Laura decides it can't possibly work, vows to forget all about Nick and returns to her life in London.

Of course it's not that easy...

With a charming casts of supporting characters, A Hopeless Romantic is, thankfully, incredibly romantic. I really loved it. I warmed to Laura immediately, despite her being the "other woman" at the beginning of the book. I loved her flatmate, her friends, her family and, of course, Nick, who was completely gorgeous. (Plus it made me nostalgic for London, which is quite a feat since, after leaving there 10 years ago, I really can't abide the place.)

I now can't wait to read Evans's debut, Going Home. Luckily I bought it ages ago so I won't have to wait too long.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Little Lady Agency by Hester Brown

Posted by Keris on October 5, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (3)

October 4, 2007 12:00 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Honor and Evie by Susannah Bates

Reviewed by Helen Redfern

It has been a long time since I’ve wanted to throw a book across a room, but parts of this one almost made me dent the plasterboard in frustration.

Honor and Evie are best friends and also cousins. Honor is the rich, sophisticated cousin, and Evie the poor, prickly one.

So far, so clichéd.

We follow their lives though University, relationships and various jobs until both of them realise they are on the wrong course in life and decide to change it.

Honor is seeing Abe, an actor, who actually sounded quite nice if it wasn’t for his substance abuse problem. And the fact he wanted to go out and make a name for himself in L.A. See what I mean about cliché? She quickly lets that relationship fizzle out and falls for Edward, a sophisticated and wealthy neighbour.

Evie meets a man who looks after her, understands her prickliness and would do anything for her. However, somewhat for the sake of the story, he has a personality change over the course of a few pages and thinks he’s in love with Honor.  (This is the part where I had to restrain myself from throwing the book.)

The blurb on the back cover told me that they were best friends but I didn’t see much evidence of that. Yes they had a friendship, but it didn’t seem quite right. So when this friendship is threatened with life’s ups and downs I didn’t actually realise and thought this was, well, their normal relationship.

We are introduced to both Evie’s and Honor’s family. In line with the stereotypes of the book it is fair to say that the poorer parents are the more loving and sensitive towards the cousins. Obviously the richer ones are boorish, have the sensitivity of a rhino and deserve their comeuppance.

I didn’t like the way I was supposed to root for Evie just because she had less money. Honor has problems later on and even then the reader isn’t really encouraged to feel for her. There are some interesting characters but they struggled to escape from too many clichés.

Throughout the book the author, Susannah Bates, quickly progresses onto different stages in the characters lives thus renewing my interest every now and again. I did, however, find the quickly changing points of view made the book a confusing read.

I felt the story was quite a good one. I actually thought it improved towards the end. The characters were solid (if you took away the stereotypes and made them a little more likeable) and they stayed with me for a while afterwards. It was as if they were saying to me, ‘we had all the elements of a good story, enough to make you wonder about us…but somehow it doesn't quite click’.

Rating: 2/5

Like this? Try Saffron Skies by Lesley Lokko

Posted by Keris on October 4, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 2/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 27, 2007 10:45 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Five Things I Can't Live Without by Holly Shumas

If you're a regular Trashionista reader, you'll know how excited I was to read Holly Shumas's debut novel, Five Things I Can't Live Without, and I wasn't disappointed.

It's the story of Nora Bishop who is the very definition of a woman who thinks too much. She calls it her "meta-life" but it basically means she can't live in the moment because she's always second-guessing, questioning and analysing everything. Can't think why that appealed to me so much!

Realising her heart's not in her job, Nora quits, but doesn't know what she really wants to do. When a friend asks for her help rewriting her internet dating profile, Nora thinks she may have found her niche.

Each chapter begins with the dating profile of various characters (some more than once and including Nora herself) and it's a surprisingly successful device. I loved seeing how Nora developed through her profile alone, but there's more to the book than that. Holly Shumas is a marriage and family therapist and it shows, Five Things I Can't Do Without is warm, wise and, dare I say it, emotionally intelligent.

Between Nora, her friends and her clients, various relationship issues are raised and examined. Like life, not all are resolved, but they're interesting and thought-provoking.

I think I might be making this book sound more serious than it is. It's a lot more serious than I expected it to be, but it's still a fun read that I didn't want to put down. I can't wait to see what Holly Shumas does next.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Pug Hill by Alison Pace

Posted by Keris on September 27, 2007 in American Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 24, 2007 9:45 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Neat Vodka by Anna Blundy

Having very recently claimed I haven't read a chick lit book featuring a heroine who smokes for years ... and that there are very few (in fact, I could only think of one - Rachel's Holiday) featuring alcoholic heroines too, along comes Anna Blundy's Neat Vodka featuring Faith Zanetti. Chain-smoking, alcoholic Faith Zanetti. But then I'm not entirely sure Neat Vodka is a chick lit book. The definition of chick lit has widened so much that I'm not sure what it includes anymore.

If chick lit means (as I've always believed) written in the first person, featuring a single woman with a humorous voice, then Neat Vodka is chick lit. If you think chick lit is shoes and cocktails, then it's not. But then whether it is or isn't chick lit really doesn't matter. What it definitely is is completely brilliant.

Faith Zanetti is a journalist and frequent war correspondent. In the late 80s she lived illegaly in Soviet Russia and was, at the age of 19, married to a Russian who she hasn't seen since she left him long before the fall of the Iron Curtain and the day after their neighbours were brutally murdered.

Following her transfer to her newspaper's Moscow office, she is almost immediately dragged in for questioning on the double murder and learns not only that her husband (who she never actually divorced) admitted to the murder, is in prison, but has now retracted his confession and implicated her. And then things get much worse.

I was wary of starting this book. I didn't think I'd be interested in a murder-mystery set in Russia and I'm not a huge fan of heroines with substance abuse issues, but I completely fell in love with this book and all the characters. Faith is hard, bitter, strong and hilarious. Her sometime boyfriend Eden Jones is gorgeous. It's genuinely threatening and the portrayal of Russia is amazing. I've never been there and, after reading this, I'm not sure I ever want to, but it certainly sounds like a fascinating place.

There are a bunch of twists, quite a few of which I saw coming, but it didn't lessen my enjoyment of this book one bit. I actually slowed down as I approached the end because I didn't want it to finish, so imagine my excitement when I found the first chapter of the *next* Faith Zanetti novel nestled in the back. Yes, it's a series! And then, thanks to Amazon, I discovered that Neat Vodka is actually the third book in the Faith Zanetti series (would it have killed the publishers to mention that somewhere on the book?). I'm now going to read the first two and eagerly await the fourth.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try One for the Money by Janet Evanovich

Posted by Keris on September 24, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 20, 2007 1:28 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Sammy's House by Kristen Gore

Reviewed by Jessica Denmark of Jessica, Etcetera

When I read that there was a sequel to one of my faves, Sammy's Hill, I couldn’t get to the library fast enough. Thank goodness for home delivery!  I’m an advocate for the checking out books from the library until I decide if I want to add them to my already-far-too-large collection. This one jumped near the top of the buying list if only to complete the set.

Samantha "Sammy" Joyce, fresh off the campaign trail for her vice-presidential boss RG and fresh in love with Washington Post reporter and boyfriend Charlie, has her work cut out for her in the White House under the presidential rule of President Wye and his enemies, the conniving opposition group called the  Exterminators. When Sammy gets the hint that President Wye has slipped off the wagon, she makes fast frenemies with her fellow staffers, all of whom she suspects to the be the leak for the Exterminators, struggles to come to terms with boyfriend Charlie's quick move to the New York bureau to cover a developing story, and fends off her well-meaning but somewhat meddlesome mother, all in a single bound.

Sammy’s House is heavier in tone and politics than Sammy's Hill so there are a couple, albeit brief, monotone spots, but is nonetheless entertaining with several laugh-out-loud situations including a Say Anything reference (Lloyd Dobbler anyone? How do you NOT love that?).

While it was not quite as entertaining, it’s understood that Sammy has overcome several obstacles,  conquered some new tasks, taken on new adventures and grown up quite a bit - right alongside her readers. And I appreciated the fact that Gore recognizes her readers have aged and does similarly with Sammy. What Sammy might have done in the first book, she thinks twice about in this one; where she would have spoken her mind before, she bites her tongue; and yet remains steadfast in her stances and views to still be a relatable character. I like to think I’ve grown up a little since reading the first book too.

I absorbed the book in an almost stream-of-consciousness way, as if hearing Sammy's internal monologue.  It is definitely chick lit but for the political set that power walks the streets of D.C versus the runways or publishing hallways of NYC.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try The Washingtonienne by Jessica Cutler

Posted by Keris on September 20, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 7, 2007 11:36 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Beauty*licious by Lisa Clark

I absolutely loved Lisa Clark's first book - Think Pink - so I was keen to read her second Beauty*licious, tempered only by the fact that I don't have very much interest in beautifying myself. I skip the hair and make-up pages in magazines since I've been reading variations on the same ideas for about 25 years now!

But Beauty*licious really is different. For a start, Lisa Clark could write about anything (mortgages, pensions, Westlife) and make it entertaining. She really has got the coolest and funniest style. Plus the illustrations are so gorgeous they make you want to read every page.

Like Think Pink, the advice is given by the fabulous Lola Love and her funky friends (all with different beauty requirements: petite, curvy, afro hair, etc.). I even learned something (why didn't it occur to me that my sleep problems may just be related to the fact that I haven't done any exercise for about two years?).

Beauty*licious would make a fantastic gift for a teenage girl (Christmas is coming, you know), but it's a great read no matter how old you are.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Think Pink by Lisa Clark

Posted by Keris on September 7, 2007 in British Authors, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 6, 2007 5:06 PM

GIVEAWAY: I Married A Pirate

A few weeks ago we featured an interview with journalist and debut novelist Samantha David, as part of our Summer Special.

Today: the chance to win not just a copy of her book, I Married a Pirate, but a signed copy! (UK only I'm afraid)

Carry on over the cut to find out how to be in with a chance to win...

Entries should be sent to our usual address - subject line: PIRATE - and please include your name and address (so we can send you the book if you're picked at random). Closing date is midnight GMT next Friday, 14 September. Good luck!

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on September 6, 2007 in Book related, British Authors, Competition, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 5, 2007 11:17 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Perfectly True Tales of a Perfect Size 12 by Robin Gold

Robin Gold's debut, The Perfectly True tales of a Perfect Size 12 isn't perfectly true at all - it's a novel and a very sweet and funny one it is too.

Delilah White is a producer on a Martha Stewart style homemaking show called Domestic Bliss. Her mentor and the show's executive producer, Agnes De Ville is leaving and the coveted executive producer position is going to either Delilah or another producer named Margo Hart.

But just for the weekend Delilah's not going to worry about that, instead she's going upstate to spend the 4th of July weekend with her best friend Sofia (who also works at Domestic Bliss) for Sofia's extremely rich family's Independence Day celebrations.

Delilah's having a wonderful time - she's relaxed, she's happy, she's met a gorgeous man - but then Margo turns up and Delilah learns that the competition for executive producer is much hotter, and meaner, than she'd anticipated...

I really loved this book. It's written in quite an unusual style. I can't really describe it except that there's a lot more "telling" than "showing", but because Robin Gold has such a great voice, it works (it also makes for a shorter, and possibly sweeter, book).

Delilah is a lovely character. She could have been too perfect, but somehow (and, again, I'm not sure how) Gold makes it work and within pages I was mad about her. It made me laugh out loud more than once (it features the best - if not the only - bouncy castle scene I've ever read) and the last page made me cry.

I have only one criticism. The title. Yes, Delilah is a "perfect size 12" (UK 16) but she's happy with that. She doesn't spend the book worrying about her weight or trying to diet, she's comfortable with who she is. So why mention it in the title?

Apart from that, The Perfectly True Tales of a Perfect Size 12 is a charming, old-fashioned and inspiring book. It's also the first book for a long time that I actually read while walking down the street!

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Love Walked In by Marisa De Los Santos

Posted by Keris on September 5, 2007 in American Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 3, 2007 11:27 AM

BOOK REVIEW: The Self-preservation Society by Kate Harrison

Week before last I read Caprice Crane's Forget About It - the story of doormat Jordan Landau who, following an accident, takes control of her life. Last week I read The Self-Preservation Society: the story of Jo Morgan, a self-confessed "scaredycat" who, following an accident, takes control of her life. The similarities don't end there - both women's accidents are bike-related, both suffer head injuries and - even more spookily - both their fathers have given them Jelly Bean-related nicknames. Both books were written and published around the same time, so I'm not suggesting either one copied the other, more that great minds think alike!

All the above similarities aside, The Self-Preservation Society is very different to Forget About It. Jo has a very safe life. Along with her boyfriend, she works in Accident Prevention, is hyper-aware of risk and has basically arranged every aspect of her life around the avoidance of it. Of course, you can't live any sort of life and avoid risk completely, but Jo only learns that when she's knocked down on her way to work (she'd forgotten her reflective jacket).

The accident causes Jo to suffer flashbacks - perfect recollections of incidents in her childhood. Like many of us brought up in the 80s, Jo was petrified at the prospect of nuclear war. Following the guidelines in the government issued Protect & Survive leaflet, Jo started stockpiling food and planning for a potentially terrible future. But when her younger brother got sick - and her parents focus turned to him - Jo's present wasn't so great either. And then there were those strange women at nearby Greenham Common...

Along with the flashbacks, Jo's a lot moodier and less easy-going than she used to be. At first Jo and her family and friends blame the change in her behaviour on her head injury, but with the help of fellow patient Frisky (an 85-year-old former fighter pilot) and his foxy, but mysterious grandson Luke, Jo starts to understand that a life without risk isn't necessarily one worth living.

I really enjoyed The Self-Preservation Society. Jo's flashbacks (actually my favourite parts of the book since they were so evocative of my own scaredycat childhood ... not that I'm a narcissist or anything) are cleverly woven into the story and are never jarring. Frisky and Luke are great fun, but also surprisingly deep. In fact, many of the characters reveal hidden depths and keep you guessing and thinking right to the end.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Forget About It by Caprice Crane (obviously!)

Posted by Keris on September 3, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 31, 2007 10:40 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Life on the Refrigerator Door by Alice Kuipers

In the tradition of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, Harry Potter and His Dark Materials, Alice Kuipers' debut has been released in both teen and adult editions.

It's the story of Claire and her mum who are both so busy they barely get to spend any time together and instead the majority of their communication is done via notes on the fridge door.

When Claire's mum is diagnosed with breast cancer, we learn their reactions to it via the notes. Of course, both Claire and her mother are shocked and devastated, but they also struggle to cope - not only with the diagnosis, but with each other.

Because many of the notes are short, I read Life on the Refrigerator Door in less than an hour. I found that because I'd spent so little time with these people and knew so little about them (it's hard to convey much backstory in notes on the fridge door), it wasn't as involving and moving as it could have been.

I'm actually a bit annoyed that this book has been treated as a "serious" book about "serious" issues (and Kuipers' introduction doesn't help) when I've read much more moving portrayals of both cancer and mother/daughter relationships in so-called "fluffy" chick lit books.

The above probably sounds more negative than I mean it to be. I did enjoy this book (as much as you can enjoy a book in which one of the main characters has breast cancer), but I would have liked to get to know Claire and her mum a lot better and without gimmicks.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Cancer Vixen by Marisa Acochella Marchetto

Posted by Keris on August 31, 2007 in Modern Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (3)

August 24, 2007 12:07 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Behind Every Great Woman There's a Fabulous Gay Man by Dave Singleton

Is it just me? Does everyone in the world have a fabulous GBF (Gay Best Friend) except me... And if so, where can I get one?

Dave Singleton argues that every woman needs a GBF - that's why his book is called Behind Every Great Woman There's a Fabulous Gay Man. But luckily for those of us who don't have our very own Stanford Blatch, Dave is happy to advise us on how to "avoid the pitfalls of the dating game, live stylishly and be even more fabulous than you already are." Which is nice.

The book is essentially a love and style guide for women from a gay man's perspective, divided into two parts: Dating, Men and Relationships and Style, Straight Talk and Self-Esteem.

Dave begins by talking about the importance of a male gay best friend for every straight woman, and about how wonderful his female friends are. Which is lovely for them, but doesn't help those of us without a GBF, now does it?!

There are some really interesting ideas in the first part of the book, such as looking at the part you play in your unsuccessful relationships - finding out where your love insecurities come from, and breaking self-destructive patterns. There are also useful and more light-hearted tips on checking if a man 'plays for your team' or not... The second part of the book is about appearance, plastic surgery and the like and is more superficial - although Singleton advises thinking about whether you're having a procedure done for your looks or your self-esteem, which is certainly good advice.

But a lot of the advice in the book seemed to be stretched a bit thin - I felt it was a bit repetitive and could probably have been squashed into a long feature article as I'm not sure there was enough here to build a book on. Some of the chapters in the second half of the book in particular just seemed there to make up the numbers, and didn't provide much useful insight - why it's okay to wear a short skirt to work, for instance. (Do we need to be told? And I'm still not gonna...) Plus, I couldn't help feeling that perhaps the idea for the book was a bit outdated - I mean, SATC is over and GBFs aren't exactly news. This book was only published in the UK this year, but in the US in 2005, which explains a lot.

It's witty, if not particularly original, and does contain some useful ideas, but may be one to skim rather than use as your style and dating 'bible'.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Jane Austen's Guide to Dating by Lauren Henderson.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 24, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance, Self development | Permalink | Comments (3)

August 22, 2007 12:21 PM

BOOK REVIEW: There's a (Slight) Chance I Might be Going to Hell by Laurie Notaro

Ever since Keris highlighted news of Laurie Notaro's debut novel, I'd been longing to read it. So much so, I even paid to get my hands on a copy (yes!)

Subtitled: 'a novel of sewer pipes, pageant queen, and big trouble' and of course, called There's a (Slight) Chance I Might be Going to Hell, it sounded nothing if not intriguing (also: I love the cover!)

The book tells the story of Maye, who moves from a scummy-sounding suburb of Arizona to the leafy, gorgeous small town of Spaulding, Washington State. At first, things seem idyllic: Maye and her husband Charlie have found the perfect house, Charlie has a fantastic job, and the area couldn't be prettier. But Maye has a little trouble fitting in: she embarrasses herself hugely at one of her husband's work functions, joins a book club that turns out to be a coven, and has no luck meeting nice, normal people to be friends with.

Then she hears about the annual Sewer Pipe Pageant, a talent show that anyone in Spaulding can enter. Winning the crown at the pageant is a ticket to respect and popularity and so Maye decides she must sign up. She's going to need a little tutoring though: and that's where she decides to track down a legendary former Pipe Queen who was driven out of town decades before - Maye must solve the mystery of why, find the pipe queen and prepare to win the pageant. That's not too much to ask, is it?

Luckily her freelance writing career has hit the skids, so Maye has plenty of time!

I've always enjoyed Laurie Notaro's essay collections, but on the basis of this book, I think she's even better at fiction. There's a (Slight) Chance... is intelligent, witty, fun, hopeful and a bit poignant, too.  There's a credible mystery woven in to a story about trying to fit in, and it all works really well. I loved reading this and didn't want it to end.

And as Notaro herself moved from Arizona to a small town in Washington with her husband, I can't help wondering if any of the incidents in the book really happened...

But what I really want to find out is when is Notaro's next novel coming out, and can I sign up for my copy now?

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Bitter is the New Black by Jen Lancaster.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 22, 2007 in American Authors, Crime / Mystery, Modern Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 21, 2007 10:26 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Despite finding Jodi Picoult's books a bit hit and miss, I was keen to read this book from the minute I heard about it. The idea of the Queen of morally difficult issues taking on the subject of school shootings ... how could you not want to read it?

From his very first day at school Peter Houghton is bullied. He's pushed, hit, shoved into his locker, verbally abused and horribly humiliated. And when it all becomes too much he takes four guns into school and starts shooting. It's hard to say anything else about the plot, because the way Picoult writes is so involved and intricate, that I'm not sure what happened when, at one point important information was learned, and I don't want to give anything away.

Along with a subplot about domestic abuse, Picoult asks difficult questions without giving any easy answers. I was a bit concerned that I found myself sympathising too much with Houghton (even, at one point, feeling that the bullies got what they deserved), but that's the great thing about Picoult's books (I'm primarily thinking of My Sister's Keeper), she makes you feel the uncomfortable feelings and leaves you questioning your own morals.

This is an involving and thought-provoking novel. I couldn't put it down.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Posted by Keris on August 21, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (8)

August 20, 2007 8:56 PM

When characters come alive...

This morning I was at the train station (I went to Nottingham for two hours - I'm such a jet-setter) when I saw a girl who made me stop in my tracks: with her short platinum hair, battered leather jacket, long legs and punkish look, she looked exactly how I imagine the heroine of the book I'm reading to look.

Spooky, or what?

Carry on over the cut to find out what I'm reading...

The book is Paint it Black, Janet Fitch's long-awaited follow-up to her excellent debut White Oleander (which I heard about back when Oprah's book club highlighted new fiction - aka: the good old days). The main character is Josie Tyrell, twenty year old artists' model and casual drug user, whose painter boyfriend has just killed herself, leaving her reeling.

I'll be reviewing the book next week - so find out what I thought of it then, but in the meantime, have you ever seen characters from a book you're reading 'appear' in real life, and been completely spooked? (I do hope I'm not the only one!)

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 20, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Opinion, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (6)

August 16, 2007 2:06 PM

BOOK REVIEW: No! I Don't Want to Join a Bookclub by Virgina Ironside

Better known as an agony aunt, Virginia Ironside is also an experienced journalist and now a novelist, too. No! I Don't Want to Join a Bookclub is about Marie Sharp, who's single and just about to turn sixty and has decided to start a diary, Bridget Jones-style.

Kind of.

Unlike many people of her generation, Marie is not trying to recapture her youth, doesn't want to take evening classes, expand her mind, keep active, or god forbid, join a book club. What she wants to do is cover up her bingo wings, drink a lot of wine and enjoy being old. But being old doesn't mean doing nothing - in fact Marie has a pretty jam-packed time even though she has retired. She becomes a granny (or, as she inexplicably writes it, grannie) for the first time (something she talks about with such joy, I was incredibly moved and almost wanted to be one myself - although at 28 I think I might be a little young...) Her first love also comes back into her life, one of her oldest friends becomes very ill, and Marie has a young French lodger to keep a motherly eye on.

Although sometimes a little too cynical and curmudgeonly for my tastes, Marie is a very well-drawn and likeable character and I found this a fast and enjoyable read. It was refreshing to read about an older heroine and especially one who is both single and happy about it and happy with her age.

However, I'm not sure I'd want to be like Marie when I'm older - I don't see what's so wrong with salsa dancing and bungee jumping post-retirement if you fancy it, and sometimes Marie sounds more like 80 than 60!

But don't be put off if your age is nearer 20 - this is a good read for any age. I'd just love for a book club to pick it...

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Plotting for Beginners by Sue Hepworth and Jane Linfoot.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 16, 2007 in British Authors, Celebrity Authors, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 15, 2007 4:57 PM

YAY OR NAY WEDNESDAY

Well, we didn't get a huge number of answers to last week's Yay or Nay, but you made up for it in quality - we have some very intelligent readers out there! (Maybe flattery will induce you to be more chatty this week? *Looks pleadingly*)

Today I want to ask you what you thought of another book, by another doyenne of chick lit, Mz Marian Keyes. It's her latest, Anybody Out There? Which you've all had plenty of time to read as it's been out in hardback since last year and paperback for... ooh, a good few months!

Did you like it? (Will anyone dare say no?) - Why/why not? And if you haven't read it, do you want to? (Will anyone dare say no?)

Is it a Yay or a Nay - and WHY?

Yay or Nay archives.

[Don't forget it's Yay or Nay day at Hippyshopper, Bridalwave, Dollymix, Corrie Blog, Catwalk Queen, Kiss and Makeup, The Bag Lady, Shoewawa and Shiny Shiny, too!]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 15, 2007 in Book related, Irish Authors, Marian Keyes, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Yay or Nay? | Permalink | Comments (8)

BOOK REVIEW: Wish You Were Here by Phillipa Ashley

I had to review a book called Wish You Were Here as part of our Summer Special celebrations, didn't I?

Phillipa Ashley's second novel features Beth, who fell in love with Jack on holiday in Corsica eight years ago. It had certainly been a whirlwind romance, but Beth was devastated when, after proposing, Jack walked out on her with no explanation. When Beth gets a fabulous job in a travel company, she's horrified to find that Jack's just been made CEO.

Beth needs the job to help support her family back in the Lake District - her father had an accident and can't work and her sister needs money to go to drama school - so she accepts it on the condition that she and Jack never speak of the past and keep their relationship strictly professional. But, of course, it's not as easy as they imagine.

The longer they work together the more they're reminded of their previous relationship and the more the old feelings reoccur. And then Beth arranges a research trip to Corsica and Jack decides to go with her ... and not strictly for professional reasons.

I enjoyed Wish You Were Here, but I'm annoyed at another misleading blurb. The back cover says, "As Beth and Jack are forced to spend time together, Beth begins to unravel the mystery of Jack's disappearance." No, she doesn't. She absolutely doesn't. She starts to fall for him again, but there's no unravelling involved. And, in fact, the mystery of Jack's disappearance was the most disappointing thing in the book. Obviously, I can't say what it is, but I didn't buy it at all. I did, however, love Jack (why are all the sexiest heroes named Jack?).

I really liked Beth and her family and the descriptions of Corsica are lovely too, but the ending of the book made me like the rest of it less.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot

Posted by Keris on August 15, 2007 in British Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance, Summer Special | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 14, 2007 5:10 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Men! by Isabel Losada

Isabel Losada has written non-fiction books on the inner lives of nuns, finding enlightenment and saving the world. (As well as Reasons to be Glad). Her latest release is a little more down-to-earth: ‘Men!’ she exclaims. ‘Where the **** are they?’

She believes there is a national shortage of interesting, available men over the age of 35. For the purposes of the book, her definition of an interesting man is: ‘One who when you meet them you’d like to have dinner with them and, having had dinner with them you are glad that you had dinner with them and would like to see them again.’ Available means emotionally available as well as single (and married men who tell women they’re separated don’t count!) The interesting, available man should also have travelled, be independent and free from addictions and other emotional problems. Is such a man so elusive? The evidence of her own love life and those of her friends suggests he is, so Losada embarks on a nine-month quest to find out where all the interesting and available men are, and to net one for herself in the process, if she can...

To find out where the eligible men are hiding, Losada visits some all-male environments on our behalf. She attends a Harley Davidson ‘ride out’ and a weekend plumbing course before spending two weeks working as the only woman on a building site. Dispiritingly, she finds that men are often quite literally hiding from women as they prefer to spend leisure time in the company of other men. The motorbike club is mostly a chance for men to drink copiously and tell sexist and homophobic jokes. The plumbing course is not set up for women although Losada copes admirably well and the building site workers treat her as one of them (after some initiation rituals) but their views on life and love are enlightening in all the wrong ways.

So Losada vows to try more new things. She attends lectures all over London, learns to drive a motorbike and goes on a diving holiday in Egypt. She also falls for two men, neither of whom is technically ‘available’…  She’s endearingly open and frank about her romantic missteps, admitting that getting over one of these men is so hard that she wouldn’t be interested in a new relationship anyway – so her experiment is flawed on a personal level. At the end of the quest, Losada confirms her hypothesis: as she suspected, there is a lack of interesting, available men for independent, intelligent women over 35. Our author claims she was hoping to be proved wrong but the words ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’ don’t seem out of place here - throughout the book it’s more apparent that she wants to prove herself right.

However she does have suggestions for changing the situation she says she has uncovered. First, women seeking men should take a new approach: ‘Doing radical and exciting things with our lives is one solution’, and something that is never a bad idea! Losada also encourages us to look at the bigger picture, postulating that the reason so many marriages are unhappy is that people lack the courage to be honest with each other and to leave without fear of recrimination when a relationship is no longer working. If more people were honest when a relationship stops working, this would mean more available men let loose.

The author claims she’s not scared to be a single woman forever if she can’t find Mr Right. But her vision of ageing single women, though (I hope) tongue in cheek, is offensive and lazy: ‘I have so many wonderful female friends… we could all move into a house together that would become a glorious celebration of being old batty females. We’d all have to wear purple. And have lots of cats… pretend to be witches and have big bonfires and make strange sounds to frighten the local schoolchildren.’ If that’s what happens to single women of a certain age it’s no wonder Losada wants a man!

At times I couldn’t help having the un-sisterly thought that perhaps her standards are too high. If a man has different views to her, she’s not interested. If he enjoys spectator sports, she’s not interested. And yet she falls for two unavailable men in the space of nine months. Wouldn’t a football fan have been better?

Also, although she talks repeatedly about not needing a man she frequently presents being alone as the third-rate option. During her research mission, Losada goes on her first dive and absolutely loves it. She comments that it’s a shame she’s on her own as it would be ideal to share the experience with a partner or friend. Is an experience only worth having if you’re with someone else?

Although intelligently-written and well-considered with a spiritual angle not often found in books about love, ‘Men!’ isn’t as new and subversive as it wants to be. It is after all another book about how women can find men (isn’t it time they found us for a change?!) While part of me found it sad that a vibrant, intelligent and (not that it should matter, but it probably does) attractive woman like Isabel Losada finds it so hard to find a lasting relationship, a larger part of me thought, ‘So?’

Still, I found the author charming and frank and her look at love has more depth than other books of its ilk.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Dating Amy by Amy DeZellar.

Read this review in full at The F Word.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 14, 2007 in British Authors, Girly Stuff, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance, Self development | Permalink | Comments (4)

August 13, 2007 6:52 PM

TRASHIONISTA RECOMMENDS: Dear Holly

A couple of months ago, Keris told us about Holly Shumas's new book debut, Five Things I Can't Live Without. She'll be reviewing it soon, but in the meantime you might like to take a look at the author's excellent web site, which includes an interactive advice section, Dear Holly. Follow that link for questions from readers and answers from Holly herself on all manner of dating dilemmas.

Why don't more authors do this? I'd love Marian Keyes's advice on skincare and Sophie Kinsella's tips on shoe shopping...

Which author would you most like a Q & A with, and on what topic?

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 13, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, British Authors, Debut Novels, Girly Stuff, Irish Authors, Marian Keyes, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Romance, Sophie Kinsella | Permalink | Comments (0)

And in blook news...

Yes, I'm on about blooks (blogs-to-books) again - I will shut up about them soon, promise. For now allow me to indulge myself with a round up of happenings in the world of blooks...

- Excellent online feminist 'zine The F Word has an interview with notorious sex-blooker Abby Lee, aka: Girl With a One-Track Mind. Provides a different perspective on the controversial author than our review... one I can't quite get behind, but interesting all the same.

- Something I found about a while ago via our sister site Dollymix (and was saving for - er, no apparent reason): Rudely-named and very popular blog My Boyfriend is a Tw*t has been turned into a book, out now. My co-ed Keris interviews a different woman blogger each week for the site's fab Women Who Blog series - well worth a read!

More news/linkage over the cut...

- A slightly old but still interesting thingummy about blooks from The Blog Herald.

- Voracious blogger, journalist of much repute and sometime Trashionista reviewer Linda Jones has an upcoming release all about freelance writing, to tie in with her popular blog. It's tongue-in-cheekily called The Greatest Freelance Writing Tips in the World.

- Finally, a little while ago, I wrote this. I'm still waiting for my blook deal, however...

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 13, 2007 in Book News, Book related, British Authors, Memoirs, New Releases, Non Fiction, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

MORE ON MONDAY: The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith

I love Alexandra McCall Smith's Botswana-set No.1 Ladies Detective series. I always think each book is going to be the last and then, before I know it, there's another.

Good Husband - the eighth in the series - continues in the same vein as the other books, i.e. not much happens. Mma Ramotswe actually doesn't do much (if any) investigating in this book, instead her assistant, Mma Makutsi, and the good husband himself, Mr JLB Matekoni decide they'd quite like to do some investigating of their own, with varied results.

Mma Makutsi's case involves stationery stealing and Mr JLB Matekoni is instructed by "the rudest woman in Botswana" to find out who her husband is having an affair with. No, it's not exactly Law & Order, is it?

But there is a little bit of drama - although drama is too strong a word really - a couple of the regulars are looking to move on. Charlie, one of Mr JLB Matekoni's apprentices (he's the owner of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors) has decided to set up on his own and Mma Makutsi realises that now she's getting married she doesn't need to work at all and hands in her notice.

It's the mellowness of this series that I love, but this latest book is so mellow it's almost unconscious. I enjoyed it - what's not to enjoy? - but it's probably the weakest of the series, which is a shame. In putting Mma Makutsi and Mr JLB Matekoni to the fore, it's almost as if Smith has forgotten the heart of the book. This series belongs to Precious Ramotswe and the stories should always be hers. Fingers crossed she's back in the driving seat (of her little white van) in the next book.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexandra McCall Smith

Posted by Keris on August 13, 2007 in British Authors, Crime / Mystery, Modern Fiction, More On Monday, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Series | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 8, 2007 1:56 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Yours, Faithfully by Sheila O'Flanagan

Reviewed by Helen Redfern...

Bigamy. Not the usual subject of a warm, feel good chick lit novel but Sheila O’Flanagan has produced an engaging read with Yours, Faithfully, exploring the bizarre relationship between two women married to the same man. The book also covers mother-daughter relationships and creating relationships with someone you wouldn’t have thought possible.

We are pulled into the lives of Iona and Sally both of whom are married to Frank. Sally has been married to him since they were very young and they have a teenage daughter, Jenna. Iona met and married Frank after a whirlwind romance four years ago. They are now trying for a baby. Neither wife knows about the other until Frank is involved in an accident.

When they learn of each other’s existence and meet in the hospital sparks fly, but then after a period of hatred towards what each calls ‘the other woman’ we see how their relationship develops and grows. As if having a husband in a coma and finding he is a bigamist isn’t enough Sally also has a major life change to deal with, much to Iona’s envy and Jenna, Sally’s teenage daughter’s, disapproval.

It is an unusual subject matter, and I had to slightly suspend my belief in order to read, but as Sally, Iona and Jenna journey through the maze of Frank’s coma and marriages, the reader is allowed a glimpse into his past, which actually makes Frank’s situation more credible. Siobhán, the policewoman investigating the case, brings an alternate perspective to the situation but also has her own problems to contend with.

As the story moves on O’Flanagan ensures you don’t wish to see one wife succeed over another, rather we see, quite refreshingly in fact, two women who in extreme circumstances and with every reason to dislike one another, develop a friendship.
A handful of strong Irish characters combined with a well paced plot make this book as satisfying as a rich, smooth, velvety ice-cream – an ideal poolside read.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Husbands by Adele Parks

Posted by Keris on August 8, 2007 in American Authors, Irish Authors, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

YAY OR NAY WEDNESDAY

It's a while since we've polled your opinions on a particular book rather than a hot topic in publishing, so today it's time to redress the balance.

Today I'm asking what you thought of Sophie Kinsella's latest, Shopaholic and Baby. Did you enjoy it, or have you had enough Becky spin-offs?

And if you haven't read it (yet) - do you want to? Why/why not? Tell us:

Is it a Yay or a Nay, and why?

Yay or Nay archives.

[Don't forget it's Yay or Nay day at Hippyshopper, Bridalwave, Dollymix, Corrie Blog, Catwalk Queen, Kiss and Makeup, The Bag Lady, Shoewawa and Shiny Shiny, too!]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 8, 2007 in Book related, British Authors, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Romance, Series, Sophie Kinsella | Permalink | Comments (11)

BOOK REVIEW: The Myth of You & Me by Leah Stewart

I hadn't heard of The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart before, but while I was browsing Amazon.com I noticed it got fantastic reviews. Also, the cover is purdy. (Reminded me of this). So when I spotted a cheap bargainous copy on sale, I had to take a look!

When the teenage Cameron moves to a new town and meets Sonia, Sonia literally saves her life, and the two quickly become the best of friends, with a close, unshakeable bond they assume will last forever. But then Sonia does something that Cameron can't forgive, and she abandons Sonia and their friendship, never to return.

But then... Cameron's boss, the reclusive elderly author Oliver Doucet, who she lives with and cares for, suddenly dies. With no more ties in the world, and a present that Oliver posthumously asks Cameron to give to Sonia, Cameron sets out on a reluctant road trip...

Flashbacks alternate with the present day storytelling as Cameron goes on a quest to find Sonia and what happened between them years ago (and why) is revealed. I was equally interested in the present day story and the past, and the two blended seamlessly together. I couldn't wait to find out what had happened between Cameron and Sonia, and what would happen next. I wasn't disappointed, although maybe I would have liked the ending to have been a bit more conclusive, but it was realistic, kind-of happy, and in one way, rather surprising.

Anyone who knows what it's like to have an all-consuming friendship, to lose a friend, to be jealous of a friend's boyfriend, to be in love with a friend's boyfriend or to ponder the nature of life (so that's pretty much everyone, then) will find something to relate to in this book. And if you're anything like me, you'll probably shed a tear or two, too.

It's a story of friendship, loss, grief, forgiveness and re-creating your past, and it's terrific.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Girls by Lori Lansens.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 8, 2007 in American Authors, Modern Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (4)

Booker Prize longlist announced

No sooner do I mention the Booker Prize in passing than longlist is announced for the British literary establishment's biggest prize. Nothing that I've read on there (which to be honest, doesn't make a change) but at least there are a few women nominated...

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan is the bookies favourite to win but, as we've said before, that doesn't always mean much!

The winner, announced in October, will bag a healthy £50,000. (And, if they're lucky, increased sales too.)

Carry on over the cut for the full list.

The Booker Longlist:

Darkmans by Nicola Barker

Self Help by Edward Docx

The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng

The Gathering by Anne Enright

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid

The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies

Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones

Gifted by Nikita Lalwani

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan

What Was Lost by Catherine O'Flynn

Consolation by Michael Redhill

Animal's People by Indra Sinha

Winnie & Wolf by A N Wilson

Prizewinners archive.

[Via BooktradeInfo]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 8, 2007 in Book related, British Authors, Modern Fiction, Prize Winners, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 7, 2007 11:54 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Diary of a South Beach Party Girl by Gwen Cooper

Diary of a South Beach Party Girl is a bit of an odd duck. It says "a novel" right there on the cover, but the similarities between the main character of Rachel Baum and the author, Gwen Cooper, are so extensive as to make you wonder. I appreciate that often is the case with a firsst novel, but Diary of a South Beach Party Girl seems much more autobiographical than most.

When Rachel moves in with her friend Amy in Miami's South Beach, she finds herself launched into a world more decadent than she ever imagined. With almost constant partying, cocaine use and with a thing for a local career criminal, Rachel's life seems out of control, but it's not, not really. In fact she loves her life, loves the South Beach scene and, following a huge falling out with the treacherous Amy, loves her new "family" of gay best friends. So what's the problem? Well - and this is really the problem with the book - there isn't one.

Diary of a South Beach Party Girl reads much more like memoir than fiction and, as you read on, you find that Rachel and Gwen have so much in common as to make the "a novel" on the cover pretty redundant. Then the acknowledgments include the sentence "Tony also provided an inexhaustible trove of names, dates and descriptions, and it was to him that I turned whenever my own memory was in doubt." But why'd'ya need "memory" to write "a novel"?

I did enjoy Diary of a South Beach Party Girl, I just think I would have enjoyed it more had I not felt misled. There are some great characters - not least the appropriate named John Hood - and the writing is engaging, but I like my novels to have a story, not just be thinly (very thinly) veiled memoir.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Tabloid Love by Bridget Harrison

Posted by Keris on August 7, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

August 6, 2007 8:30 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: By Jack Rosenthal by Jack Rosenthal

No, I haven't gone mad! By Jack Rosenthal is a book... By Jack Rosenthal. Are you still with me?

Legendary TV and film scriptwriter (and husband of Maureen Lipman) Jack Rosenthal had been asked many times to write his autobiography, but he  felt he wouldn't know where to start filling a book about himself. And then he hit upon the idea of writing the whole thing as a script, divided into the decades of his life: from his parents' marriage to the present day.

Unfortunately, due to cancer, Jack died before he could complete the last decade, so in a very literal Postscript Maureen finishes it for him.

At first, it's hard to get into the swing of reading a book in script form. I've never enjoyed reading plays, and I struggled a little at the start, trying to picture what was happening and follow the story. (I don't think a career as a playwright - or an actress! - will ever be my calling I'm afraid...)

But about a third of the way through the book I got used to the format and the abbreviations, and was able to focus on the story of Rosenthal's life from World War Two evacuee to university student, Coronation Street scriptwriter to colleague of Barbra Streisand, and finally loving husband and father. Rosenthal writes with honesty, warmth, compassion and good humour and comes across as completely charming. His life story is an ordinary one with occasional incredible starry moments, which never seem to affect his down-to-earth nature.

Although I'm sad that Jack never got to write about the last decade or so of his life, and that he died of such a horrible illness, I am glad that Maureen got to write the closing chapter as she gives a closer, more personal insight into the man the reader has got to know and her chapter is incredibly moving. It conveys just how much the couple loved each other, and is poignant without being maudlin. Like the rest of the book, it's fab.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try About Alice by Calvin Trillin.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 6, 2007 in Book related, Memoirs, More On Monday, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 1, 2007 5:12 PM

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Samantha David

Samantha David is a journalist who has written what could be the perfect summer read: I Married A Pirate is her debut novel and she'll tell you about it below, along with talking about what she's reading now, and women who prefer dogs to men (really)... And yes, we will be reviewing her book at some point, of course!

Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer:

An original, intelligent, irreverant, quirky, laugh-aloud romantic comedy about Bohemia, personal freedom and love. [Ooh, good one! - Diane]

Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?

At my desk, in front of my computer, preferrably after midnight when I won't be disturbed. (I spend my days at my desk, in front of my computer, being a journalist.)

Your favourite chick-lit book?

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos.

Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?

Flora Poste (from Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons) because she makes me laugh. Tessa Sanger (The Constant Nymph by Margaret Kennedy) because she makes me cry.

What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?

JDI - Just Do It.

What are you reading at the moment?

The Lady of Shalott (Tennyson), Northanger Abbey (Austen) and Scotland Street (Mccall Smith).

What are you working on now? (If you can give us a hint!)

A romantic comedy about the most charming, intelligent, handsome, sexy man in the world and Rosie - who is stunningly beautiful but prefers dogs to men...

What question have you never been asked in an interview, but think you should have been? (Tell us the question and answer it too, if you like!)

Where shall we send the cheque?

Hee... sorry, we're not asking that either, but thanks, Samantha!

Author Interview archives.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on August 1, 2007 in Book News, Book related, British Authors, Debut Novels, Interviews, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Romance, Summer Special | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 31, 2007 4:27 PM

EXCLUSIVE 'Be Mine' giveaway!

Be Mine by Laura Kasischke might be a good option for your summer hols if you like a touch of mystery and don't mind being a bit scared on your sun-lounger.

Keris called it "thrilling, thought-provoking, exciting and erotic" (oo-er!) and we have 2 copies to give away to 2 lucky Trashionista readers.

Carry on over the cut to find out how to be in with a chance of winning...

Simply email us your name and address (so we can send you the book if you win), putting "Laura" in the title. We'll pick 2 names at random after the giveaway closes on August 1st.

Posted by Aigua Media on July 31, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Competition, Crime / Mystery, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (1)

BOOK REVIEW: The Two Mrs Robinsons by Donna Hay

Reviewed by Bag Lady extraordinaire Nicola Pedley...

In Donna Hay's latest novel, The Two Mrs Robinsons, Oliver Robinson dies, leaving behind two women who love him: the ex-wife he hasn’t divorced and the girlfriend he hasn’t married. The uneasy truce that exists between the two women is stretched to the limit when Eve, the ex-wife, decides to run his restaurant while Anna, the girlfriend, thinks they should sell it.

When an unexpected turn of events forces Anna to change her mind it is soon obvious the two women will not be able to agree on how the business should be run. Anna thinks Eve is stuck in the past and Eve accuses Anna of trying to turn Oliver’s into a fast food joint. Throw in a couple of shady employees and a bit of bad advice and the restaurant soon starts to lose money, much to the women’s horror.

Desperate to turn things around the two women find they have to compromise and soon start to grow closer as they look out for each other. I enjoyed the way Donna Hay explored the grief of her characters. Eve completely falls apart, even though she and Oliver have been separated for five years, while Anna relies on pills to hold her world together. Eve’s teenage children have to cope with their mother’s grief as well as their own, and Anna’s three-year-old son, Charlie, has no concept of death and happily tells people his daddy’s dead with a big grin on his face.

This is a good read about a difficult subject – the death of a loved one and the feelings it leaves behind. The emotions are sensitively handled and joy and pain both have their place in this story of grief and recovery.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try How Will I Know? By Sheila O’Flanagan or Anybody Out There? by Marian Keyes.

[Reviewed by Nicola Pedley]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 31, 2007 in British Authors, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 30, 2007 11:50 AM

Exclusive excerpts on the New York Times books site: Rules for Saying Goodbye and more

Keris has highlighted the difference between the UK and US covers of new book Rules for Saying Goodbye by Katherine Taylor before, and also talked about the fact that the author has taken offence to her book being described as chick lit. (Sigh).

Now you can see for yourself whether it seems like something you want to read (whether chick lit or not...) as The New York Times has an excerpt (the first chapter, in fact) on their website.

You can also read the first chapter of Sammy's House here and the opening of Lisa See's Peony In Love here. What a fantastic resource!

(If they ask you to sign in to read those, I'd do it - they never bug me with emails and offers).

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 30, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 27, 2007 4:05 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Another Man's Life by Greg Williams

The concept of  Another Man's Life by Greg Williams is pretty interesting: twin men with very different lives (one is a single, hot-shot rich businessman, the other a stay-at-home-dad ever since he was made unemployed) decide to swap lives and to find out how the other half lives, if the grass is greener on the other side... and all that jazz.

So they hatch a plan to pretend to be each other for two weeks, during which Tom (the stay-at-home-dad)'s wife will be away and Sean (the single, hot-shot rich businessman) will be off work. Or that's the plan, anyway.

What could possibly go wrong?

Of course LOTS could possibly go wrong, and in fact does - Sean meets a woman he could fall in love with, but is posing as a married man; Tom is shocked to discover how little he misses family life. And both men realise that yes, in many ways the grass is greener on his twin's side of the fence.

A quote from GQ editor Dylan Jones on the front of this book calls it 'Nick Hornby with knobs on', so I was expecting big things. Unfortunately it didn't quite deliver. The brothers narrate alternating chapters but I found little to tell their voices apart, and kept having to flick to the front of a chapter to remind myself who was telling the story! While the moral implications of such a life-swap were dealt with pretty well in the narrative, the characters still came across as a bit unsympathetic at times. And it just isn't as funny and clever as it thinks it is. (Jokes are often punctuated with a "she thought I was really funny" - type comment as if to impress the reader, which doesn't work).

However, I did enjoy the concept and liked the book more as it moved towards its conclusion. I liked the happy ending but just didn't feel I'd read anything particularly special.

As it's 'lad lit', I wonder if a man would have enjoyed it more...

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Mr Nice Guy by Thomas Dowler.   

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 27, 2007 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 26, 2007 9:05 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Queen of Broken Hearts by Cassandra King

Reviewed by Diane Johnston of Corrieblog...

Dr. Clare Ballenger is a divorce coach, helping women cope with the loss of a crumbled marraige, guiding them to start afresh and let go of the past. The only problem is, she's still recovering from a more tragic loss herself.

And she has a second chance at love with not just one man but two - but will she be able to let go of the past and move on? Can the doctor heal herself?

I've never read any of Cassandra King's work before so I opened Queen of Broken Hearts without any preconceptions. I was pleased to discover that the main character, Dr. Clare Ballenger, her best friend Dory Rogers, and both of Clare's potential lovers are my age (late 40s) or older. It's nice when you can identify with the people you meet in books. I, too, have been divorced so I can relate to that aspect of the story as well.

The book takes place in Alabama and is filled with colourful peripheral characters. The narrative is in the first person present most of the time, except when Clare takes the reader back to fill in some of the blanks that she constantly opens up. Some she fills in straight away and some take a while but be patient, they will get filled in eventually. I did find that a bit disconcerting, being left hanging at times wondering what she meant when she hinted at something that happened the previous summer or even years before.

There is a romance threading its bumpy way through the book, with all the ups and downs you might expect. The ups and downs do not include juicy sex scenes, so if you're looking for that, look the other way. In this case, the story doesn't really need it because it's not about that. It's about women rediscovering themselves as they approach middle age after their lives change completely and often traumatically. It's about women supporting each other and it's about friendship and love in all the best ways. I'm rating it a little less than perfect, though, because I did find the author's style of leaving you wondering about those blanks a bit annoying at times even though all the loose ends were tied up at the end.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try How Will I Know? By Sheila O’Flanagan.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 26, 2007 in American Authors, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 25, 2007 10:13 AM

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: E Lockhart

We're huge fans of E Lockhart here at Trashionista - see reviews here, here and here! - so we're very excited that she's answered our questions.

Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer:

The Boy Book - Hyperverbal teenage girl. Rogue ex-boyfriends. Exploitation of hooters. Terrors of school trip. With penguins!

Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?

I have a tiny tiny office/closet with dark pink walls and built-in bookshelves. There are pictures pinned up  all over and stacks of papers everywhere. I have coffee and diet ginger ale and absolute silence. Although sometimes, for variety, I write in a coffee shop with my novelist friends Maureen Johnson, John Green and Scott Westerfeld.

Your favourite chick-lit book?

Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding. And the sequel, Edge of Reason. Why? Because I laughed out loud. Repeatedly.  Especially at the bit about loaning out the wonderbra in prison. I love stylized prose and outrageous situations. I adore Louise Rennison's books for the same reasons.

Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?

Bridget Jones makes me laugh, but for a favorite character I prefer more inner steel. Jo March, from Little Women, is probably the character I think of most often in daily life. I think about her charity, her impulse for goodness, and the way it combined with her unconventionality and her love of hilarity and storytelling. She was figuring out how to be a woman, and a writer, and a good person -- all of which are things I still deal with every day.

What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?

Finish your book. The big difference between me and many  equally (or more) talented but unpublished writers is that I sit down every weekday and write. I finish a project, revise extensively, and begin the next one within a reasonable time frame.  It is the discipline and the finishing that make the difference, not the talent.

What are you reading at the moment?

I have approximately twenty books going at any one time, plus audiobooks. Mainly I read chick lit, literary fiction, food books, mysteries, travel writing, and humor.

Currently in my pile:  Water for Elephants (Sara Gruen), Twelve Sharp (Janet Evanovich), Home to Big Stone Gap (Adriana Trigiani) [hope she likes it better than we did], Size Twelve is Not Fat (Meg Cabot), Laughing Gas (P.G. Wodehouse), The Bookwoman's Last Fling (John Dunning), The Coffee Trader (David Liss).

What are you working on now? (If you can give us a hint!)

In the UK, the novel coming out after THE BOY BOOK will be FLY ON THE WALL: HOW ONE GIRL SAW EVERYTHING. It's about a teenage girl at a New York City art school who's a collector of odd objects and a Spider-man fan. She's also very freaked by the opposite sex, and one day she wishes she could be a fly on the wall of the boys' locker room in her high school, just to see what guys talk about when girls are not around. And the next thing she knows, she is. A fly. On the wall of the boys' locker room. She sees it all -- and I mean, all. [We've read it. We loved it.]

But truthfully, that book came out in the states in 2006, so I haven't exactly been working on it. I've been finishing The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, which is a novel about a  boarding school girl who infiltrates and eventually dominates her boyfriend's all-male secret society. It was really  hard to write because I had to devise all these complicated pranks and secret society rituals, but in the end I'm quite pleased with it. It comes out in the USA in March 2008. I don't know about the UK yet!

What question have you never been asked in an interview, but think you should have been? (Tell us the question and answer it too, if you like!)

Question:  Would you like me to take you to a stylist who will give you the perfect haircut? Because really, you shouldn't be cutting your hair yourself any more, my dear, and I know you keep having bad stylist experiences.
Answer:  Yes please!

Thanks, E!

Posted by Keris on July 25, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Recent Release, Series, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (0)

BOOK REVIEW: Marked by PC Cast and Kristin Cast

Reviewed by Trashionista reader Angela Richardson...

This book is the first in the House of Night series, where P.C & Kristin Cast have created a world where vampires have always existed. For all Buffy addicts like me who have been suffering from the void of losing their favourite series… we may have been sent a form of methadone from our American friends.

Sixteen-year-old Zoey Redbird has been Marked, to the disgust of her friends, who watch her become sicker and sicker in daylight hours. She is rushed to the House of Night, a school where she will train to become an adult vampire. That is if she survives the Change. Not all of those chosen do. It’s tough being away from all that she knows and on top of that Zoey finds that she’s no average fledging. The vampire goddess Nyx has marked her as special. When she discovers the leader of the Dark Daughters, the school’s most elite club, is misusing her Goddess-given gifts, Zoey must find the courage within herself to set things back to the way they should be.

Okay this is probably teen lit but I tell all you parents now, keep it for yourself and only when you finish it wrap it up as the present you intended. Parents will also be pleasantly surprised at Zoey’s moralistic side to her character that, to cut a long story short, tells teens it’s not cool to be a slut or a drunk.

The only annoying thing about this book is the similarities to Harry Potter. Zoey hates her family and gets whisked away from her horrible life to a magical school, okay it’s for vampires and not witches and wizards, but you get the point. Plus she is separated out from the other pupils as special by a different mark on her forehead… now we’re getting a bit too close to Harry’s scar. This is a shame because the plot is much better than Rowling’s over hyped books. [Ooh! - Diane]

Of course this was always going to be compared to Buffy as it is a teen novel that contains vampires, but I see this as a good thing as there are no other similarities in the plot. It’s like Buffy’s arch-enemy vampire has written a book to show the world that they aren’t all nasty blood sucking fiends, but have a gentler side too: awww!

Overall this was fast paced, funny and exciting. It held my attention all the way through and Zoey grows into a feisty heroine who’d I’d definitely want on my side. (That is if I ever got into a fight between vampires… yes I know I’ve been watching way too much sci-fi.)

Go give your self a well-needed mental holiday from all the everyday stresses and strains and read this book. I guarantee you’ll come away refreshed and ready to fight another day.

Rating: 5/5.

Like this? Try Carpe Demon by Julie Kenner.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 25, 2007 in American Authors, Crime / Mystery, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release, Series, Supernatural, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (12)

July 24, 2007 1:47 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Second Chance by Jane Green

It's funny, I mentioned in the introduction to our interview with Jane Green that she's one of the most divisive chick lit authors: you either love her or hate her. Um, except that I didn't love her or hate her. I hated Straight Talking and loved Bookends and wasn't that fussed on Babyville. So I guess that would put me in the "meh" category. But still I thought I had a strong sense of what Jane Green's novels were like and I felt (without having read most of them...) that I didn't like them (which, yes, I now appreciate was stupid, but these things happen). So I approached Second Chance with trepidation...

When Tom is killed in a terrorist attack, his old school friends (who, over the years, haven't kept in touch with each other, but did all keep in touch with Tom) meet for his memorial service and find themselves, for various reasons, enjoying being back in each other's lives again. Holly is stuck in a loveless marriage, but finds herself becoming attracted to Tom's brother, Will. Paul and Anna have been trying to have a baby, but with cycle after cycle of IVF failing, are beginning to become disheartened. Alcoholic actress Saffron is having an affair with a married Hollywood superstar. Olivia is trying to get back on her feet after the end of the relationship she assumed was forever. Plus, of course, they've all got their grief and shock at losing Tom to deal with.

You probably won't be surprised to hear that I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Second Chance. Funnily enough, since Jane Green was one of the original chick litters, it's much more "women's fiction" than chick lit (is this inevitable as chick lit authors get older, married and have children? Probably). The characters are fairly stereotypical, but they're also believable and warm, particularly Holly whose story is more central than the others - I really liked her.

One complaint would be that all (or at least most) of the characters call each other "my darling". Doesn't matter if they're British, American or Swedish, it's all "my darling" all the time. (Plus there was the small matter of Holly - who lives in the UK - going off to Barnes & Noble, which we don't have in the UK...)

But that's just nitpicking, really. I found that the more I read Second Chance, the more I wanted to spend time with these character, the more I wanted everything to work out for them, and the more I realised how wrong I'd been about Jane Green.

Remember those adverts - "You know more Crowded House songs than you think you do"? You might find you like Jane Green more than you thought you would. Give her a second chance. (God, I didn't even plan that - I'm brilliant!)

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try 21 Dream Street by Lisa Jewell

Posted by Keris on July 24, 2007 in British Authors, Jane Green, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

More summer beach read giveaways from Bookreporter.com

Continuing our summer special-theme, "It wouldn't be summer without sun, surf and sizzling reading," says Bookreporter. So they're offering one reader a week the chance to win a beach bag of goodies, including a great summer read each week until August 24th.

The current book choice is Second Choice by Jane Green, and past books include The Manny and Anybody Out There? So you could find some great reading recommendations over the next few weeks, whether you win or not!

And don't forget we'll be giving books away every week for the rest of the summer, too!

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 24, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, British Authors, Competition, Modern Fiction, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 23, 2007 11:12 AM

BOOK REVIEW: An Absolute Scandal by Penny Vincenzi

Reviewed by freelance writer and Trashionista fan Hannah Davies...

Coming in at 768 pages in the hardback edition, and set amidst the complex financial dealings of the City in the Eighties, Penny Vincenzi's latest novel An Absolute Scandal seems a daunting prospect. Potential readers should bear in mind, however, that this is less than half the size of War and Peace. More importantly, An Absolute Scandal is a very good read overall.

All the classic Vincenzi ingredients are here: a glittering backdrop of wealth and privilege, a large and diverse cast, some energetic sex and, well, plenty of scandal. An Absolute Scandal introduces the characters as they enjoy the kind of material success that, for some, typifies the early Eighties. As disaster strikes in the form of increasing debt to Lloyds Bank, the families are drawn together by their mutual monetary woes. This device is extremely well-handled: the explanations of the financial complexities are clear and accessible, and never take precedence over the gripping human drama. The plot skips lightly from Alice bands and Ferraris in London to well-heeled Americans in Boston, the savage beauty of the Welsh coastline and the glitzy world of the celebrity hairdresser, yet never loses its hold on the reader.

The main weakness is the sudden promotion of 'feisty' housewife Debbie to prominence during the second third of the novel. Although she is clearly intended to be an 'everywoman' counterbalance to the assorted wealthy Sloanes, her character fails to convince, and her struggle to balance the duties of family with the demands of career flirts at times with tedium.

In addition, after a long and intense build-up, the ending feels rushed and somehow not entirely satisfying. Nevertheless, with its addictive plot and stylish narrative, I'd recommend this as a great holiday read. Even if you feel that it is not quite up to the standard of Penny Vincenzi's previous books, you can always use this hefty tome for impromptu arm-toning exercises by the pool. However, be prepared to take less sarongs and sandals than usual, or you might end up paying excess baggage charges!

Rating: 3 out of 5

Like this? Try Adored by Tilly Bagshawe.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 23, 2007 in American Authors, Bonkbusters, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 20, 2007 2:44 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Nine Summers by Rina Huber

I've never sailed. I've never actually had much interest in sailing. But I am interested in travelling around the Mediterranean, so I expected Nine Summers to be a vicarious travel treat. I wasn't disappointed, but it's more than that too.

When Felix Huber is diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, he and his wife Rina decide to retire and spend however many years they have left sailing around the Mediterranean. Starting in France, they spend the next nine summers sailing their yacht Galatea from Italy to Greece to Turkey, even Israel. 

On the way, they have numerous, significant problems - Felix suffers a stroke practically before they've set off, Rina contracts breast cancer and also has to have a potentially paralysing back operation, and then Felix has a heart attack - but their positive attitude, lovely natures and deep love for each other carry them through everything.

I loved Nine Summers. It's not just a travel memoir, but a memoir of a relationship. The sections about Rina' childhood in Israel and Italy following her mother's death are moving, but it's Rina and Felix's relationship that really shines through. Married for 50 years, they were still best friends who were happy - in fact more than happy - to spend 24 hours a day together in a very enclosed space.

By the end of the book I'd fallen in love with both of them. It didn't make me want to sail, but it did make me want to go and hug my husband.

A really lovely book.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Summer At Tiffany by Marjorie Hart

Posted by Keris on July 20, 2007 in Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

BOOK REVIEW: Anatomy of a Boyfriend by Daria Snadowsky

We've talked about Anatomy of a Boyfriend before, when the cover was causing a stir in America. I love the design and was very interested to read the book, which wasn't really anything like I expected: I thought it would be Louise Rennison-esque, instead it's more like Judy Blume...

Daria Snadowsky's debut novel is the story of the relationship between 17-year old Dominique and her new boyfriend Wes. Wes is a shy but sweet athletic/writerly type, while Dominique wants to be a doctor - hence the title of the book, she's obsessed with medical textbooks!

We follow the couple from their first meeting, through to their first semester at university, and all the ups and downs and those major 'firsts' that come with a first love...

This very much reminded me of a modern-day Forever (although with a little less um, description). It's certainly not for younger teenagers but the sexual stuff is realistic and appropriate in the context of the story. Easy to read and with some great emotional depth, I just wondered if the teenager's voices were entirely lifelike: Dom is a little immature at times where her best friend Amy sometimes sounds like SATC's Samantha. Also the relationship between Dom and Wes takes a while to get going, and I was a bit frustrated by that!

I did love the two girls' friendship and found the story very moving and well-crafted. It's quite an easy read, but definitely not a facile one. I was sad when I'd finished it and got quite emotionally involved with the characters so I'm definitely looking forward to more books by this new author. (In other words, thank you Luisa for the loan!)

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Good Girls by Laura Ruby.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 20, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Debut Novels, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance, Young Adult | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 19, 2007 11:32 AM

GUEST BLOG: Allison Winn Scotch

I loved Allison Winn Scotch's debut novel, The Department of Lost and Found so much I asked the author to do a guest blog for us, and she very kindly agreed to tell the background to her book, or...

The Story Behind The Story by Allison Winn Scotch

When people ask what my novel is about, I mutter something about a young woman who is diagnosed with cancer and wait for the inevitable reaction:  horror.  It's as if their brains are flashing, “There is no way in freaking hell that I'd read a book about cancer."  I mean, truly, it's painfully and incredibly obvious.

So then I offer up my caveat.  "But it's really funny!  And it's not really about cancer, it's more about a young woman's journey to self-discovery, and the cancer is just the catalyst."

They nod their heads and look at me unconvinced.  You're probably reading this and thinking the same thing.  Yeah, right.

So let me rewind and explain how I got here.  Over two years ago, I lost one of my closest friends to breast cancer.  She was 31, a mother to a three-month old at the time of her diagnosis, and one of the most vibrant and tenacious women I'd known.  Her diagnosis was shocking, swift and brutal, and six months later, she passed away.  It all happened so suddenly that I literally barely had time to register that she was sick, much less gone.  Even today, I still sometimes think that I see her on the street or forget entirely that I can't call her or email her to share some news.

(Ahem, I know.  You're wondering, when does this get funny?  Hang in there.)

After the funeral, I didn't know where to put my grief. I mean, how do you box up the devastation of the most painful experience of your lifetime? Where do you put it? How do you move forward? The answer is, or at least, my answer was, to write.

A month or so after her funeral, I woke up one morning with a vision of a character who would soon become my protagonist, Natalie. She was a ferocious 30-year old whose cancer diagnosis would throw her world on end but ultimately, wouldn’t beat her. And so, I sat down in front of my computer and wrote. And wrote and wrote and wrote. Until three months later, not only did I have a completed manuscript, I'd also wrestled with a good amount of my grief. Which brings me to the funny.

As I was writing, it became clear that I was using the book as a tool for healing, and because of this, never once did it occur to me to drag the prose or the plot down in maudlin, heavy-handed themes. Because, come on, as anyone who has ever been touched by cancer knows, the last thing you need in this situation is something else to remind you of the horror of the experience. So instead, I placed Natalie in humorous situations (her first experiences smoking pot, her increasing obsession with The Price is Right, her top 5 list of celebrities she wants to sleep with), and showed (I hope) that you can keep your sense of humor (and your sense of life) even while battling this insidious disease.

Since The Department of Lost and Found has come out, I've received notes from a variety of people whose lives (for better or worse) have been affected by cancer, and nearly all of them have told me that the book has helped them heal in some way. And most of them delighted in the fact that while I still took the time to highlight the difficulties that cancer can wreak, both physically and emotionally, I also made the point that it doesn't have to break your spirit. And that, in fact, it can even bolster it.

So to cancer I say, screw you. If I can eke a laugh out of the disease, then I'm certain that it's not unbeatable. A cure can't be too far behind.

(c) Allison Winn Scotch 2007

Related: Cancer Vixen

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 19, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Debut Novels, Guest blogs, Modern Fiction, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (6)

July 16, 2007 3:42 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: Mating in Captivity by Esther Perel

I was a bit wary about reading Mating in Captivity. For a start, it's called Mating in Captivity. And its subtitle is Sex, Lies and Domestic Bliss (that's in the UK; the US subtitle was Reconciling the Erotic and the Domestic). But it's actually a surprisingly readable and insightful look at sex in long-term relationships.

The author, Esther Perel's contention is that we need to look at sex in long-term relationships in a different way. She suggests that everything we've come to prize in relationships - equality, tenderness, honesty - is at odds with what we look for in sex (i.e. passion, eroticism and, you know, muckiness).

The quote on the back from the Sunday Times says, "Enormous fun," which I thought was a bit odd for a book on this subject, but it is very enjoyable and an easy read. Using case studies and anecdotal evidence, Perel looks at a number of different relationships and scenarios and her arguments are entirely convincing.

Whether out of nosiness or just because they were the more entertaining bits, I enjoyed the case studies more than Perel's analysis, but the entire book is entertaining and informative.

Much like John Gray's Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, Mating in Captivity could change the way couples look at each other and relationships. Recommended.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Women Who Think Too Much by Dr Susan Nolen Hoeksema

Posted by Keris on July 16, 2007 in American Authors, More On Monday, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 13, 2007 5:48 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Yorkshire Pudding Club by Milly Johnson

The first thing that attracted me to this book was its cover - attractive and conveying a clear 'women's fiction' message without being a pink shoe/butterfly/egg-covered cliche, it's very nice indeed. The second thing that attracted me was the title because like the heroines of this book, I'm from South Yorkshire, so I just had to read it.

The Yorkshire Pudding Club is made up of three women: Janey, Elizabeth and Helen, who have been best friends since school despite having very different backgrounds. When Helen makes them accompany her to an ancient fertility symbol in the hopes she'll fall pregnant, little do the women realise that before long all three of them will have buns in their metaphorical ovens..

But none of their pregnancies will be smooth sailing...

One of the most frustrating things about this book was how long it took to get going. It took about 100 pages for all the women to cop on about their upcoming bundles of joy ('Hmm, I wonder why I'm so tired, and my breasts are swollen and do you know I haven't had a period...' sort of thing)which was annoying and totally lacking in suspense as it's clear from the cover that all 3 women are going to have babies. I was also annoyed by the self-consciously 'Northern' nature of some of the dialogue - it got bit too "ee by gum" salt-of-the-earth stereotypical at times. More importantly, the story constantly switches perspective and I kept finding it hard to keep Janey and Elizabeth's voices separate - they were very similar.

But it wasn't all bad by any means. I found the last third of the book became more exciting and less predictable, and things ended just as I'd have liked. I also loved the support the women gave each other and think this could be a comforting/consoling read for first-time mums.

A good read but not a great one - losing about 100 pages might have helped.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 13, 2007 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 11, 2007 4:20 PM

BOOK REVIEW: A Dangerous Dress by Julia Holden

First of all, can I just say how much I love the cover of Julia Holden's debut novel, A Dangerous Dress? It perfectly captures the mood of the book (and of the dress that's the star of the show). We often compare the US and UK covers, and this is one time when (I think) the UK version is definitely superior. (Here's the original US version - what do you think?)

But what is the book like, you're wanting to know! Well, it's about a dress. Yes, really. Jane is a bored bank worker in the town of Bum****, Indiana (not its real name, but that's what everyone calls it 'cos its so boring). One day, she's contacted out of the blue by a film company who read an essay she wrote in university about the glamorous Parisian gown she found among her late grandmother's belongings. In the essay, she speculated about who might have designed it and where her grandma may have worn it, and talked about its wonderful design.

The film's production crew read her passionate essay and think she's just the person to track down a similar dress for their movie, so Jane packs her bags, hurriedly arranges a passport and catches a plane to Paris to work on a film and follow in her grandmother's footsteps... Love, excitement and glamour await her - or do they?

Well, she certainly has an interesting and exciting time, but it's a bit of a bumpy ride and things don't turn out as Jane expects ( wouldn't make a good book if they did!)

When I think about the plot of this book in retrospect, it seems a little silly but it has a fairytale-like quality that means you have to suspend disbelief as it's fairly unlikely the events of the book would take place in real life and a lot of the plot is based on coincidences and chance. But it's all so charming that I was completely absorbed in the story and couldn't wait to find out what would happen next. I absolutely raced through it and found Jane a charming, if naive, narrator. (A bit YA-ish if I'm honest). I was a little bit disappointed that the end didn't quite tie up all the loose ends, but a sequel would be great and I'll definitely read more by this talented new author.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Venus Envy by Shannon McKelden.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 11, 2007 in American Authors, Debut Novels, Fashion-Lit, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 10, 2007 12:03 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Home to Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani

We've reviewed two Adriana Trigiani books at Trashionista. Lucia, Lucia, I absolutely loved. Queen of the Big Time, Diane didn't enjoy at all. I adored Trigiani's Big Stone Gap trilogy so could hardly wait to read Home to Big Stone Gap, but, sadly, I was terribly disappointed.

Ave Maria and Jack's daughter Etta has married young and settled in Italy. Jack's health is poor and Ave Maria thinks she's seen their son, who died aged 4, walking in the woods behind their house. Plus Ave Maria learns a secret about her best friend Iva Lou that causes a rift between them.

As I started reading Home to Big Stone Gap, I found it quite comforting to return to these much-loved characters, but as I read on... well, I was bored. I recently read and loved Michael Tolliver Lives - a sort of continuation of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City series after a break of 20 years - so why didn't I enjoy Home to Big Stone Gap? Perhaps there hasn't been enough of a gap (ha!) since the end of the trilogy for me to be happy just to spend time with the characters. I wanted a story and I didn't really get one.

There were a number of plot lines, but none of them were fleshed out (and they were slight to begin with). We don't really get to the bottom of Ave Maria's disapproval of Etta's marriage. When Ave Maria thinks Jack is dying she finds a list he's written of things he still  has to deal with - there is what appears to be a bombshell on this list and obviously I can't say what it is without spoiling things, but I found it a total cop-out. And manipulative, to boot.

The thing that really surprised me was the bad writing. Not all the way through, but there were a few sentences that involved one of my writing pet hates: exposition as dialogue:

"He wasn't four years old, like when he died, but older. Like twenty." I'd assume Ave's husband knows how old their son was when he died.

"... I'm named for my grandmother, who was a seamstress  - and Grandma Mac was also a good one ..." says Etta to her mother, who, I'd guess, already knows who she was named for!

"... I was trained by the master. Shorty Johnson spent the better part of her life in the kitchen. What with her sons, Roy and Shep, hungry around the clock, she mastered the great Southern dishes, that's for sure." Who talks like that?!

But that's not all. The last few chapters are deathly dull and riddled with factual errors (I could go into more detail, but, again, I don't want to give anything away - although, if you're desperate to know, one of the reviews on Amazon'll help). And there's another massive error in the middle of the book that I can't believe got past the amount of people who've read this book before it got to print!

Honestly, I can't tell you how disappointed I was with this book. When Diane gave Queen of the Big Time 1/5 I was shocked. Diane said, "I think the reason I felt so strongly is I know she can do so much better...I flirted with a 2, but she made me mad!" Home to Big Stone Gap made me mad too. Since I couldn't even finish another of Trigiani's books, Rococo, I'm wondering if she no longer cares enough to do better.

Rating: 1/5

Like this? Well if you like this, you might like Queen of the Big Time! But read Lucia, Lucia, it's so much better.

Posted by Keris on July 10, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 1/5, Recent Release, Rubbish Books, Series | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 9, 2007 10:30 AM

Megan Crane explains... The Concept of the "Frenemy"

Keris loved Megan Crane's new book, Frenemies... but what exactly is a "frenemy"?

The author explains...

The Concept of The Frenemy

I was suspended somewhere at 35,000 feet, on a flight from New York to Los Angeles, when I decided that I wanted to divorce all my friends. I didn't arrive at this decision lightly. The fact was, I loved my friends. I just kind of wanted to kill them all with my bare hands.

The feeling passed (perhaps it was brought on by the in-flight entertainment, or stale pretzels) but I revisited it many times as I set about writing my third book. The concept of the frenemy was something I had thought about quite a lot over the years. While I imagine men must have them too, I'm not so sure they have the kind of frenemy women do. My friends (yes, the ones I occasionally wanted to legally separate from, because I enjoy complicated relationships) and I had so much experience with various versions of this phenomenon that we gave our frenemies a name long before we heard the term "frenemy" on Sex & the City: that girl.

That girl was the one who, when you were young and didn't know any better, you admired ferociously with that specific female-only blend of anger and envy. Because really it wasn't about whether or not you liked her. You hated her. You wanted to be her. Usually all at the same time.

As you grew older, you realized that the very traits that made her that girl were the traits you identified in women you would never be close to the moment you met them. These women, simply, violated the Girl Code. Maybe they were overly-familiar with someone else's partner. Or they seemed unable to perform even the most basic steps of female intimacy rituals. A normal woman might say, "he's a complete loser" or "what are you talking about, you look hipless in those jeans." That girl was more likely to say things like, "he's not your type at all, he's all about the perfect girl, you know, who dresses well and is a size four" or "the thing about style is that not everyone looks good in the trendiest things."

(Just let them sink in. Ouch, right?)

Some other that girl 'tells': They hung out exclusively with men and were conversant on the latest sports statistics and couldn't believe other girls were so annoying about the sports thing. They failed to understand— or worse, refused to understand— about shoes. They maintained that PMS was a fairy tale and said things like it's all in your head or chocolate is such a myth, you should try a three-mile run. Meanwhile, when it suited them, they could become so helpless and afraid and trembling that they could scarcely make it up a flight of three stairs without the assistance of a big, strong, preferably handsome male.

Men, naturally, failed to see the atrocities committed by such women. "That girl is so cool," they would say. "She's just like one of the guys." Or, "I don't know why you can't be nicer to her, she's just lonely and insecure." Yeah, right. About as lonely and insecure as, say, Angelina Jolie.

I thought the very least I could do, as a sort of penance for secretly wishing to divorce my friends, was to write a book that uncovered the perfidy of that girl.

Which I did, only to make a startling realization. We were all that girl to the women who dislike us. And I suspect that many of us have been a frenemy, too. More often than any of us would like to admit.

Copyright (c) 2007 by Megan Crane. Reprinted by permission of Hachette Book Group USA, New York, NY. All rights reserved.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on July 9, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 14, 2007 5:38 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Big Fat Bitch Book For Girls by Kate Figes

This week, I read The Big Fat Bitch Book For Girls... or did I read The Big Fat Bitch Book for Grown-Up Girls? Yes, this is one of those confusing, split-in-half books that you turn upside down halfway through: one side is aimed at teenage girls, the other at women. And that's not the only confusing aspect of this book (but more on that later)...

The Big Fat Bitch Book... is an interesting and worthwhile idea: it's a look at the history of bitching in life and on the big and small screens as well as an exploration of the role of bitching in women's lives. Is it an important bonding experience - or a form of bullying that hurts far more than physical aggression? Kate Figes shows that bitching can be both.

Back to the confusion thing, though - the book is an odd mix of iconic bitchy quotes from stars like Bette Davis and Joan Crawford (those legendary feuders!) and films like Mean Girls and Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf... mixed in with devastating stories of the effect truly bitchy behaviour can have on girls' and women's self esteem. This would have been better as a study of bitchery which asked us all to be a bit nicer or as a book for teenage girls (or their mothers) about how to cope with bullying bitching. OR it could have been devoted to good-natured bitching without delving into the darker side. It's hard to read about a fifteen year-old who self harms because of the bitchy remarks of girls at school and then to laugh about Katharine Hepburn slagging off Shirley Temple, for example. It seems like Kate Figes's argument is enjoy bitching... but not too much. It's a confusing message. If your moral argument is we all need to think more about what we say, don't then glorify hurtful remarks, however iconic.

I also didn't like the two books in one deal - I think it meant some of the material was repeated and while it's a fun gimmick, again, it meant the book wasn't very (my watchword of the week!) cohesive.

While I may seem very criticial, I did for the most part enjoy this book, even as I found its messages more than mixed. (But I mean that in the kindest possible way...)

Rating: 3 out of 5

Like this? Try Watching the English by Kate Fox

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 14, 2007 in British Authors, Girly Stuff, Non Fiction, Opinion, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 13, 2007 11:37 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Hollywood Car Wash by Lori Culwell

From the minute I heard about Lori Culwell's novel Hollywood Car Wash I couldn't wait to read it (I admit it even jumped my massive queue of books to be reviewed). I'm celebrity-obsessed (yes, I know it's shallow, but I don't care) and Culwell's book, about an actress who is systematically turned into a "starlet," is based on true events.

Amy Spencer is a college student in Michigan with ambitions to be an actress in independent films, but when she gets the part of a regular girl from Michigan in a TV pilot she puts her ideals on hold and heads for Hollywood. The part is good, the money even better (particularly since Amy's family have been struggling since her father's death), but soon the show becomes incredibly popular and Amy's under increasing pressure to change, well, everything. Her name (to Star), her hair, her teeth, her nose and, of course, her body.

I didn't want to put this book down and I wouldn't have done if I hadn't had other responsibilities (I kept thinking what a perfect book it would be for the beach... if I didn't have a 3-year-old). It's entertaining, shocking and completely compelling. Because Star - sorry, Amy - is ordinary at the start of the book, she's easy to identify with, and though I found her a little weak at times, I really felt for her (I even cried a couple of times).

The back cover blurb includes the line: "...this shockingly accurate novel about the ins and outs of the Hollywood gave will leave the reader wondering - who is Star?" I don't know who she is (and she's not who I thought she was - the "megastar boyfriend with a big secret" was a red herring!), but I am desperate to know.

Despite the fact that I've read plenty of celebrity magazines and biographies and watched the odd E! True Hollywood Story or ten, there was still plenty in this book to shock me (unless I'm just gormlessly naive) and it made me appreciate just what a truly awful place Hollywood must be! Plus it's interesting from a feminist point of view - showing just how much work goes into making actresses "picture perfect" these days.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try How To Sleep With a Movie Star by Kristin Harmel

Posted by Keris on June 13, 2007 in American Authors, Debut Novels, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (7)

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Jessica Conant-Park and Susan Conant

We've had a mother-son interview before, but this is the first mother-daughter writing combo to talk exclusively to us at Trashionista! And I'm excited they did, as I loved their books - Steamed and Simmer Down - and can't wait for the next in the series (Turn up the Heat, out March '08). In the meantime, we have this great interview...

Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer:

Jessica: Humorous and romantic culinary chick lit mystery set in the Boston restaurant scene. Recipes included!

Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?

Jessica: I write in my office surrounded sticky notes with book ideas scrawled across the yellows squares. I have visions of becoming totally organized and working in a neurotically neat space, but I suspect that will never happen. For reasons I don’t understand, there is no overhead light in my office, but I do have a grow light for my plants which casts a bizarre pink glow throughout the room, so that makes for an interesting atmosphere. (The neighbors must wonder if aliens have landed their ship in our house.)

Susan:  Outdoors, often on the back steps.

Your favourite chick-lit book?

J:  simply adore The Hazards of Sleeping Alone by Elise Juska. (By the way, this is one of those books where the cover doesn’t match the story.)

S:  Pride and Prejudice. Or maybe Emma. Yes, is Jane Austen the true mother of chick-lit?

Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?

J: Charlotte from Elise’s book is such an interesting and endearing character and her faults make her progress all the more meaningful. I love flawed characters; I mean, who wants to read about somebody completely perfect?

S: Elizabeth Bennet, who married the eternally irresistible Mr. Darcy.

What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?

J: Start writing! It sounds obvious enough, but I know many “writers” who have yet to put anything down on paper. Don’t hem and haw over everything you write because you can always go back later and edit, delete, or expand on whatever you’ve written. I hate writing the first few paragraphs of a book so I often just skip ahead and write the opening lines later, otherwise I might sit poised over the keyboard for days waiting for some brilliant line to come to me... Do not try to copy another author’s style or your writing will be disastrous. I love Elinor Lipman’s books [me too! - Diane], but never in a million years could I write the way she does - I can only imagine how hideous my attempts would be. Show your work to someone. Anyone. As terrifying as this is to new writers, you must have someone else read what you’ve written. Be open to feedback and constructive criticism because that is how you improve!

S: If writing does not come naturally to you, quit trying. Read instead!

What are you reading at the moment?

J: Pick Your Poison by Leann Sweeney.

S: Anne Tyler’s Digging to America.

What are you working on now? (If you can give us a hint!)

J: I’ve been busy gathering materials for our website and am itching to get writing again. My mother and I are getting ready to sign a contract for two more books in the Gourmet Girl series so we will start plotting the fourth mystery very soon.

S: I was outlining my second cat lover’s mystery, but Holly Winter’s malamutes leapt in and shoved the cats aside, so I am writing my nineteenth dog lover’s mystery.

What question have you never been asked in an interview, but think you should have been? (Tell us the question and answer it too, if you like!)

Jessica: Your husband is a chef so you must eat like a queen all the time, right? A: Yes, it’s foie gras and fancy chocolate cakes for dinner every night. Okay, not exactly, be we do eat well. My husband, Bill, works most nights so I’m often left to fend for myself. When he is home and cooking, his food is always spectacular.

Susan: What is a Harvard-Radicliffe summa doing writing dog mysteries, cat mysteries, and chick-lit? Answer: Having fun.

Thanks so much, Jessica and Susan!

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 13, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, Crime / Mystery, Interviews, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Romance, Series | Permalink | Comments (0)

BOOK REVIEW: Forty Camel Girl: Letters from Turkey by E. Grace Beyler

Shiny Shiny's deputy ed, the lovely Alex Roumbas, reviews a recent read she thinks Trashionista readers will enjoy: Forty Camel Girl is available to buy from the website (above), and Alex highly recommends that you do so - read on to find out why...

In 1969, at the age of twenty six, E. Grace Beyler found herself bound for Turkey with her fiance, Hakan, ready to live with his family while he completed mandatory army service. Not yet speaking a word of the language and full of the independence of her American upbringing, she faithfully wrote home to her parents in the United States chronicling her experiences. Beyler has now drawn on these letters to create a funny, moving diary of this pivotal period in her life in Forty Camel Girl: Letters from Turkey.

Beyler's letters describe not only a turning point in her own life, but that of the nation she adopts as her temporary home. Describing the westernisation of Turkey and the enduring legacy of Ataturk, Grace is also forced to examine international attitudes to US foreign policy which remain strikingly relevant nearly forty years later. Beyler's alternately moving and hilarious accounts of learning to love and communicate with her new extended family take place against the backdrop of the shifting place of Turkish women in society and news from home such as the imminent deployment of her brother, Bill, to Vietnam. Written with passion and humour, Forty Camel Girl: Letters from Turkey is a highly readable personal memoir definitely worth missing your tube stop for.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try Dork Whore by Iris Bahr.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 13, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 12, 2007 7:36 PM

BOOK REVIEW: What The Dog Did by Emily Yoffe

Temporarily taking over Keris's mantle as animal-themed book reviewer (pigs, dogs, monkeys, birds, she reads about them all), I decided to read What The Dog Did. The book is Slate agony aunt/writer Emily Yoffe's memoir about her beagle Sasha, and how she turned Emily's family life upside down.

A "formerly reluctant dog owner", Yoffe had always been more of a 'cat person', but when her young daughter became desperate for a dog, and her husband wanted one too, she caved in. What she didn't expect was to become a lifelong convert to the canine cause - not only becoming Sasha's main carer, but a doggie foster carer too.

I really enjoyed this book although some of the pieces have formerly been published as essays in Slate and I think it didn't have a cohesive feel as a result. It's well-written, entertaining and very informative, though - and has given me a soft spot for beagles for life.

Although it's definitely made me realise that it's important to think once, twice, three hundred times before you take on the responsibility of a dog. If you get one like Sasha, your life will no longer be your own! Thank goodness, for Yoffe, it's worth it.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try Marley and Me by John Grogan.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 12, 2007 in American Authors, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 11, 2007 10:07 AM

MORE ON MONDAY: Afloat by Jennifer McCartney

I didn't know what to expect from Jennifer McCartney's debut novel, Afloat. The cover's rather downbeat and the book features parallel narratives: a young Bell working on Mackinac Island for the summer and Bell 50 years later (reflecting on her life. Just to make it even less appealing, the Mackinac narrative is set in the present day (ish) and the other narrative in the future. But it was far from what I expected, in fact it was brilliant.

Um. Not much actually happens really, but it's beautifully written, evocative and compelling. The earlier narrative is really good fun: Bell and the friends she makes on the island work hard and then spend their nights drinking, falling off their bikes (no automobiles are allowed on the island), and falling in love, and the later narrative in which Bell is clearing her house while waiting for a visit from someone from her past, is moving, scary and uplifting.

The characters are wonderfully drawn and real and the horrors of the future are more subtle than you often find in dystopian novels (not to say Afloat is entirely dystopian, it's utopian too), but they're totally believable.

A really impressive first novel. I can't wait to see what Jennifer McCartney does next.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Posted by Keris on June 11, 2007 in Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, More On Monday, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 8, 2007 1:58 PM

BOOK REVIEW: The Art of Undressing by Stephanie Lehmann

After really enjoying You Could Do Better, I was looking forward to Stephanie Lehmann's new book, The Art of Undressing. Except it's not a new book at all! First released in the UK in March this year, The Art... was actually written in 2005. (Those sneaky publishers!) Anyway, the fact that this is a slightly older book might be why I didn't enjoy it quite as much as I hoped I would.

It's about Ginger, a 25-year-old trainee chef who has always felt overshadowed by her mum Coco, a former stripper who now teaches the art of seduction... with Ginger as her mortified assistant. Ginger has a lot on her plate (ha! no pun intended): her sulky teenage stepsister and cold father are still reeling from the death of Ginger's stepmother, who was more of a maternal figure to Ginger than Coco has ever been. Plus Ginger's boyfriend Ian treats her badly, but when she dumps him and tries to seduce Tom, the hottest man at chef school, she doesn't have much luck there either. Does she need to cast off her sneakers and chef's whites and learn to be sexy just like mommy?

That's what the novel can't seem to decide: whether Ginger should conform more to society's expectations of sexually available young women, or whether she should stay true to herself. Whether she's repressed and uptight, or just her own person, with different morals to her mother. At the end of the book, we're left with the tentative feeling that Ginger is starting to relax and be more true to herself without being all uptight about it, but I think the novel tries to please both those people who think stripping is just a bit of fun, and those who find it exploitative. In the end, it doesn't quite please either. And although Tom had his moments of charm, I didn't think he was good enough for Ginger!

I do like Stephanie Lehman's style of writing, she combines real emotion with a fast-paced story, and had clearly done her research on the stripping 'industry' and the food one. The most realistic moments of the book were those which focused on Ginger's complicated family dynamic. Having a "blended family" myself, I thought she portrayed that particularly well.

But I never felt Ginger really learned to feel good about herself, as her own person, and that was disappointing.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Like this? Try Marsha Mellow and Me by Maria Beaumont.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 8, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Girly Stuff, Modern Fiction, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 7, 2007 1:12 PM

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie scoops The Orange Prize with Half of a Yellow Sun

I wish I was more of a gambler as I'd been saying for weeks that this would win: Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (right) has been named winner of the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction, for her novel Half of a Yellow Sun (also a Richard and Judy pick). She scooped £30,000 along with her award - nice!

Meanwhile Canadian author Karen Connelly won the 2007 Orange Broadband Award for New Writers for her debut novel The Lizard Cage. (And that's 10K for her, if you're interested).

[Via BBC News; Image: BBC]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 7, 2007 in Book News, Book related, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, Prize Winners, Recent Release, Richard and Judy | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 6, 2007 11:24 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Two Lipsticks and a Lover by Helena Frith Powell

When Helena Frith Powell moved to France from England she found that the difference between her and the French women around her was glaringly obvious: they all looked effortlessly stylish - and she didn't.

So in Two Lipsticks and a Lover she sets out to find out what is it that gives the French their certain Je Ne Sais Quoi, covering topics from fashion to affairs to the French attitude to sex (much more intellectual than the British one, apparently) .

iI found this a really enjoyable read. What could have been a very superficial book is made more interesting by the inclusion of just the right amount of facts about French food, culture and history. However I couldn't help feeling that maybe Frith Powell buys into the beauty myth a bit too much, being very disparaging about a woman she sees with unshaved armpits. (After all, there's no law that says we have to defuzz all over and spend hundreds of euros a year on face creams, is there? - If there was I might be writing this from the slammer!)

Take it all with a pinch of salt, however, and you might learn something and perhaps even, as the cover promises, 'Unlock your inner French woman...'

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try Bonjour Tristesse by Francoise Sagan.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 6, 2007 in British Authors, Fashion-Lit, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

US Vogue editor Anna Wintour champions Fiona Neill's 'Slummy Mummy'

A more unlikely pairing I have yet to hear of! The perfectly-groomed Anna "Nuclear" Wintour, inspiration for the boss in The Devil Wears Prada, couldn't be much further from Lucy Sweeney, the heroine of Fiona Neill's The Secret Life of a Slummy Mummy, who's often to be found in a state of utter frazzlement.

Yet the latest issue of Vogue features an excerpt of the book, with Wintour saying it "plays with the chaos and comedy of 30-something metropolitan maternity and brings it to an unexpectedly moving conclusion". The book is out in the US on 5 July, and couldn't have had a better endorsement. [Via The Independent, via Booktrade info].

I told you chick lit and fashion were inextricably linked!

Fashion Lit archives.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on June 6, 2007 in Book News, Book related, British Authors, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, New Releases, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 30, 2007 8:57 AM

Read 'Cancer Vixen' online at The First Post

I was surprised (in a happy way) to learn that daily news website The First Post is featuring Marisa Acochella Marchetto's Cancer Vixen online, for everyone to read (yay!) 

I'd still recommend buying the book but you can now see why it's so good by clicking here.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 30, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 29, 2007 3:30 PM

BOOK REVIEW: My Latest Grievance by Elinor Lipman

Frederica Hatch is the happy but precocious daughter of two university lecturers, brought up on campus at the small (although not very well-respected) Dewing College. She's always been doted upon by her loving parents, and treated as an equal rather than a child - so she's surprised to find her father's been hiding the secret that he was once married once before.

When Frederica turns 16, she finds out the truth as her dad's ex wife, the glamourous and incorrigible Laura Lee French gets a job at Dewing and proceeds to manipulate everyone around her...

This is the eighth of Elinor Lipman's novels, and definitely one of her best. As ever, Lipman is witty, stylish and unpredictable and I loved the turns this book unexpectedly took. It even made me  cry towards the end! Lipman is simply a great writer, so despite the name, My Latest Grievance was nothing but a pleasure to read. (Boom boom!)

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try The Inn at Lake Devine by Elinor Lipman.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 29, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 22, 2007 10:03 AM

The Daily Mail book club features Julie Myerson (and more!)

It may not be my favourite newspaper (no offence to its readers!) but the book coverage at the Daily Mail keeps getting better. Their book club choice for May is The Story of You by Julie Myerson, and you can read more about the book and its author here.

If you want to get ahead, their June pick is The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox by Maggie O’Farrell and upcoming authors include More on Monday favourites Bill Bryson and Marina Lewycka (with her new novel, Two Caravans).

Don't forget you still have until July 2nd to enter their first novel competition, too.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 22, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, British Authors, Modern Fiction, New Releases, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 21, 2007 12:50 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: Never Have Your Dog Stuffed by Alan Alda

Never Have Your Dog Stuffed is one of veteran actor Alan Alda's life philosophies. When he was young, his favourite dog died and he was devastated. So his dad had the dog stuffed, as a kind of consolation. But the expression on the dog's face was all wrong, and instead of comforting, he was just scary. It taught Alda an important lesson: you can't go back and change the past, and if you try to, you'll just create a horrifying, upsetting mess.

In this book, Alda shares his other life philosophies, and tells the story of his life - from his childhood growing up among the stars of vaudeville (one of whom was his father) to his marriage, his acting roles, and his near-death experience whilst filming in a very remote part of the world...

I hadn't realised that as well as being an actor, Alan Alda is an acclaimed writer, director and producer - and a highly intelligent and reflective person, too. He hasn't had an easy life: his mother was severely mentally ill and he had a difficult, competitive relationship with his father. Although Alda desperately wanted to be an actor, and started acting at a young age, his success was by no means guaranteed until he was lucky enough to be offered his iconic role as Hawkeye in M*A*S*H.

Books by celebrities are a dime (or rather £1.25 million) a dozen, but this one is a bit different, and digs a bit deeper. It's a chronological history of Alda's life,  but it's also a reflection on what he's learned. And he's learned a lot. NHYDS is an entertaining, heart-breaking and very intelligent read. I loved it.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Like this? Try My Life So Far by Jane Fonda

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 21, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Celebrity Authors, Memoirs, Non Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (3)

May 18, 2007 10:13 AM

The Melissa Nathan award for Comedy Romance

Chick lit fans may know that tragically, popular author Melissa Nathan died in April 2006, aged just 37.

Before she died, she lay out the terms for a prize to be awarded in her name:  The Melissa Nathan award for Comedy Romance shortlist has now been announced.

The finalists include Jill Mansell, Polly Williams, and of course... Marian Keyes.

Carry on over the cut for the full list and more details.

The award ceremony will be held in London on 13th June 2007, and you can read the full list of nominees here.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 18, 2007 in Book related, British Authors, Irish Authors, Modern Fiction, New Releases, Prize Winners, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 16, 2007 5:00 PM

YAY OR NAY WEDNESDAY

If you're a long-time Trashionista reader, you'll know by now what a 'blook' is, but if you're new (hello and welcome!) you might not, so I'll explain: it's just a blog turned into a book.

The annual Blooker Prize for the best blook of the year has just been announced, and the winner (netting himself a nice wad with the $10,000 prize) is Colby Buzzell, whose memoir My War: Killing Time in Iraq most impressed the judging panel. But should it have?

From now on, US soldiers will not be allowed to write 'mili-blogs' about their time in Iraq or any other part of the world. Do you agree this is for the best? Is it okay if their time in the military is over, or is it always too dangerous a compromise to national security? Will more soldiers be traumatised if they can't set down their thoughts? Is it okay to write it all down as long as it's not published, or is it always too risky? Is freedom of expression too important to be censored in this way - or is the military right? That's a lot of questions, but it all boils down to just one:

Should soldiers be allowed to write blogs, books or blooks about their experiences? Tell us: Yay or Nay - and WHY?

Yay or Nay archives.

[Don't forget it's Yay or Nay day at Hippyshopper, Bridalwave, Dollymix, Corrie Blog, Catwalk Queen, Kiss and Makeup, The Bag Lady, Shoewawa and Shiny Shiny, too!]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 16, 2007 in American Authors, Book News, Book Websites, Book related, Memoirs, Opinion, Recent Release, Yay or Nay? | Permalink | Comments (4)

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Gil McNeil

Having recently really enjoyed Gil McNeil's fourth novel, Divas Don't Knit, I'm delighted that she's chatting with us today. Find out her favourite female heroine, her tips for aspiring writers and what she's working on next by reading on...

Please describe your latest book [Divas Don't Knit] in 15 words or fewer:

Can you knit yourself a new life when your old one starts to unravel?

Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?

Mostly at home at my kitchen table, or in my office upstairs but pretty much anywhere I can find a pen.

Your favourite chick-lit book?

Usually the one I’ve just finished, but my favourite writers (who I return to whenever I want a treat) include Jane Austen, Anne Tyler, Nancy Mitford,  Jilly Cooper, and Mary Wesley.

Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?

Again, too many for a neat list, but definitely Bridget Jones, Miss Marple, and Elizabeth Bennett.

What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?

Read as widely as you can, and stick at it.

What are you reading at the moment?

When I’m writing I tend to read non-fiction. At the moment I’m reading a mixture of travel and knitting books.

What are you working on now? (If you can give us a hint!)

The sequel to Divas Don’t Knit.

What question have you never been asked in an interview, but think you should have been? (Tell us the question and answer it too, if you like!)

Would you be interested in all-expenses paid trip to a luxury hotel somewhere fabulous so you can tell our readers how lovely it was?

Yes, no one's ever asked me that, either... Thanks Gil!

[Photo © Jerry Bauer]

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 16, 2007 in Book related, British Authors, Fashion-Lit, Interviews, Modern Fiction, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 15, 2007 5:48 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Baby Proof by Emily Giffin

Emily Giffin is a great writer. We loved her previous books, Something Borrowed and Something Blue, which took the same story from two different angles. Baby Proof takes on a new story, with older protagonists (ooh) and a more weighty subject matter. Would I still enjoy it as much?

Baby Proof is about Claudia and Ben, a couple in their mid-thirties who are happily married and perfectly matched: they both want the same things out of life, which includes not having children. But then one day, Ben drops a bombshell - he wants a baby. Badly.

Within months, they're divorced and both have new people in their lives. But Claudia can't help wondering if she was right to let Ben go so easily. Was she just being stubborn, or is she really Baby Proof?

I really like Emily Giffin's writing style: it's intelligent and thoughtful without losing the reader's interest. I enjoyed the exploration of the issues surrounding having children and the fact that Claudia is a sympathetic character, even thought she doesn't want kids (not always the case in fiction!) However, I'm not sure if it really hit upon the main reason some women choose not to have children, which is simply that they don't want them (and that's okay). Maybe Giffin wanted to leave the story a bit more ambiguous - it's certainly very balanced.

What I really want to talk about is how the book ends, but I can't or I'd give too much away. Let's just say that I would have liked to have known a little more. I felt it was a *tad* of a cop out... But still a great read.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try A Piece of Normal by Sandi Kahn Shelton.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 15, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

TRASHIONISTA RECOMMENDS: Snowbooks

We don't usually recommend particular publishers, but Snowbooks is definitely worthy of a special mention. They're a small press, so turn out just a handful of books each year - but they're all of very good quality. So far we've reviewed Taking The Plunge, Drugs are Nice, Mama Lama Ding Dong and one of my favourite books of last year, Plotting for Beginners.

Not only that, but Snowbooks have a beautifully designed website, with a very interesting blog.

And you can catch up with them on Myspace and Twitter, too!

Related: Literature... on Twitter? | Trashionista Recommends.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 15, 2007 in American Authors, Book Websites, Book related, British Authors, Memoirs, Modern Fiction, Recent Release, Trashionista Recommends | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 11, 2007 11:41 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Upstate by Kalisha Buckhanon

Kalisha Buckhanon's Upstate is an epistolary novel (and I was twenty-seven before I knew what that meant, so for my fellow duh-brains, it means it's told in letter form) telling the love story of twentieth-century Brooklyn-based Romeo and Juliets Antonio and Natasha.

The couple, aged 16 and 17 at the start of the novel, are at high school and in love and planning for the future.

Then one night Antonio is arrested for the murder of his father, found guilty and sent to jail.

The young lovers's world is turned upside down, but they vow to write to each other and to never let their love die...

At first, I worried that some of the Brooklyn teenage dialect would get on my nerves, but it seemed authentic and didn't disturb my enjoyment of the story.

I found this book incredibly moving and gripping - I read it in less than a day, almost forgetting to breathe at times! It's definitely one of the best books I've read so far this year and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

I loved it.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Like this? Try The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman

PS: Upstate also has butterflies on the cover! BUT they are relevant to the story... Whatever next?!

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 11, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Modern Fiction, Rating: 5/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (2)

May 10, 2007 12:41 PM

BOOK REVIEW: Hex and the Single Girl by Valerie Frankel

Valerie Frankel is a well-known name on the US chick lit scene, but isn't quite so well known over here. Her two latest books (Hex and the City and I Take This Man) coming out on the Little Black Dress label should change all that (plus this book was recommended to us by no less than Meg Cabot, so who are we to argue?).

Hex and the Single Girl's Emma Hutch is a good witch. Her skill is telegraphopathy - transporting a picture from her head into someone else's. She uses her powers for good (cos she's a Good Witch), being hired by women to put pictures of them into the minds of the men they're after. Sort of magic matchmaking. Things haven't been going incredibly well, though, and she's in danger of losing the West Village apartment she loves, so when Daphne Wittfield offers her a giant cheque to snare eligible bachelor and computer-whizz William Dearborn, Emma can't resist. Even though she suspects Daphne's interests aren't exactly pure...

But then Emma meets William and, inevitably, falls for him herself. Not only is it an ethical nightmare, it also helps Emma realise it's about time she started dealing with her own romantic life instead of everyone else's. When a friend and former client comes to Emma and asks her to help get her obnoxious boyfriend, Jeff, back, Emma finds that Jeff is mixed up with an embezzlement scandal and will do anything to get Emma off his back.

This is really a quite peculiar book, but I enjoyed it. It's so tongue-in-cheek that's it's almost a parody of a chick lit book, but it's genuinely funny and quite gripping. It's very well-written - as you'd expect from a veteran like Frankel - and the characters are great. Emma's wonderful - funny, sexy and charming - and her best friend Victor's lovely too. Sometimes the humour was a bit broad for me and it was also a bit too farcical in places, but if you don't take your chick lit too seriously, you'll love Hex and the Single Girl.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Like this? Try My Lucky Star by Joe Keenan

Posted by Keris on May 10, 2007 in American Authors, Rating: 3/5, Recent Release, Romance, Supernatural | Permalink | Comments (4)

May 9, 2007 9:08 AM

BOOK REVIEW: Accidental It Girl by Libby Street

I read the beginning of Libby Street's Accidental It Girl, and was hooked:

People hate me.

Some of them openly despise me.

I'd bet a couple dozen would cheer if I were maimed.

People. Hate. Me.

And why do people disapprove of our narrator/heroine Sadie Price so much?

Because she's a member of the paparazzi, of course.

When she's involved in a chase in which she totals her car and gets on the wrong side of Hollywood bad boy Ethan Wyatt, she thinks the damage is only physical. Wyatt decides to try to turn the tables on Sadie, and give her a taste of her own medicine...

I loved the theme of this book - it was interesting to read about a woman paparrazo for a start, and even more interesting to imagine what it would be like to be followed by the paps, and to learn about the tactics they use. I certainly think I'll be more sympathetic when I see grumpy-looking celeb shots in future (the photographer's probably just called them a bitch and insulted their loved ones, not to mention followed them for miles).

The outcome of the story was easy to predict, but I still enjoyed it a lot. (My one small complaint about the book is Sadie kept saying she was 'a paparazzi, when the word for one person is 'paparazzo'... but I'm a bit anal like that so don't let me put you off!)

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try Fashion Babylon by Imogen Edwards-Jones and Anonymous.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 9, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (2)

May 8, 2007 11:48 AM

BOOK REVIEW: More Than Love Letters by Rosy Thornton

As the title of Rosy Thornton’s debut would suggest, More Than Love Letters consists of letters, emails, newspaper articles, minutes of meetings, and more. I love Meg Cabot’s epistolary novels - including Boy Meets Girl - but could More Than Love Letters match up?

In a word, yes. Margaret Hayton is a primary school teacher saddled with what she thinks is an old person’s name. Her name helps her local MP, Richard Slater, assume she’s an interfering old biddy who feels compelled to write to him about everything from dog muck in the local park to VAT on sanitary protection to the EU Emissions Trading Directive. Once Richard realises that Margaret’s actually young - and gorgeous - he becomes more interested in both her and her causes.

Interspersed with the story of Margaret and Richard's burgeoning relationship is that of the girls living in the women’s refuge Margaret volunteers at (called, fantastically, Women of Ipswich Together Combating Homelessness or "WITCH"). Domestic violence, bereavement, immigration and asylum seeking all are touched upon in a genuinely thought-provoking way.

Like A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian, More Than Love Letters manages to balance serious issues with being the funniest book I’ve read for a while (since this one, in fact). I don’t quite know why it hasn’t been given the same attention as Marina Lewycka’s novel (actually, the chick lit cover - featuring, yes, butterflies - probably has something to do with it), but I highly recommend it!

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (non chick lit) or Rachel’s Holiday (chick lit)

Posted by Keris on May 8, 2007 in British Authors, Debut Novels, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 7, 2007 2:00 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: Not Buying It by Judith Levine

Could you go a whole year without buying anything? No clothes, no books (argh!), no cinema tickets or meals out?

What would you do if you weren't part of the consumer economy and only bought the barest of essentials?

And how would other people react?

To answer all those questions and more, Judith Levine (along with her partner, Paul) took on a mammoth challenge: a year of Not Buying It.

Told in chronological order, I found it really interesting reading about Judith's fluctuating attitude to the project, her occasion slips and loopholes and the conclusions she and Paul drew by the end of the year. I find it hard to go a week without buying a book, so I particularly applaud her efforts in that respect, especially when she was trying to navigate the impoverished New York library system. Also interesting was the different issues the experiment brought up in the two areas of the country the author lives: Vermont and New York.

This book was more wide-ranging than I expected: I thought it would be a personal journey, but it looks at issues of world economics, environmental concerns and social responsibility and in this sense is enlightening, if a bit depressing at times! It's a very thought-provoking read, and I can't imagine that anyone who reads it will ever forget some of the lessons of the book.  There really is something for every consumer here...

Rating: 4 out of 5

Like this? Try Sweet and Low by Rich Cohen, or my co-ed Keris's Dollymix column Giving Up...

More on Monday archives.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 7, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, More On Monday, Non Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Self development | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 4, 2007 11:24 AM

BOOK REVIEW: A Piece of Normal by Sandi Kahn Shelton

I promised you I'd be reviewing this week's guest blogger's book, and now: I am! (Stay tuned on Monday for a chance to win a copy).

A Piece of Normal by Sandi Kahn Shelton is the story of Lily Brown, who's happy with her life. (She thinks). She works as an advice columnist for the local paper, lives alone with her four year old son Simon and is still on great terms with her eccentric ex-husband Teddy.

Then her sister Dana, who's been missing for the last ten years, turns up out of the blue, and her sudden appearance shakes up Lily's cosy existence more than either of them could have imagined...

I really enjoyed this book. It's well-written, the characters felt real to me, and I found it very witty (especially at the start of the book, before the emotional trauma begins!) I also found myself really identifying with Lily and getting incredibly angry with Dana, which has to be the sign of a good story. I couldn't believe some of the things Dana did! I wasn't sure how Shelton could make her even half-way sympathetic by the end of the book, but somehow she managed it.

I still cried at the end, though. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 (although it's a 4.5 in my heart)

Like this? Try In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner.

Posted by DIANE SHIPLEY on May 4, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, Modern Fiction, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release, Romance | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 2, 2007 6:07 PM

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Marian Keyes *squeal!*

I wish you could have heard the screams of excitement at Trashionista HQ this time last week when we realised we had our MOST EXCITING INTERVIEW EVER! in the bag. Yes, it's really true! We've hinted, we've teased, we've reviewed her books and talked about her on and on... and now, she's really, really here talking exclusively to you, our lovely Trashionista readers:  It's Marian Keyes, the Queen of chick lit.

Enjoy...

Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer:

Anybody Out There (that’s three words gone already) is a comedy about serious issues and cosmetics (mind you, nothing frivolous about cosmetics!)

Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?

In bed. I would never, ever get up unless I really have to. My husband comes in every few hours and turns me so that I don’t get bedsores.

Your favourite chick-lit book?

There are so many great books, so I’ll go back to the beginning (for me), and say any of the early Jilly Coopers (not that there’s anything wrong with the later ones, but maybe they’re not chick lit).

Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?

Robyn Hudson in the books by Sparkle Hayter – she’s intelligent, independent, feisty, sweet – she’s the woman I want to be when I grow up.

Carry on over the cut for more from Marian, including some very useful tips for wannabe writers, and news on her next novel...

What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?

Firstly, stop talking about it and start writing it – word by word.

Formally set aside time to write – respect your book enough not to try to fit it in, in bitty gaps, around the rest of your life. Better still, try to write at the same time every day – this seems to trigger the subconscious into readiness.

Don’t be surprised if your first efforts are shockingly bad – indeed, expect to marvel at the gap between what you want to say in your head and how it appears on the page. But persevere; chan