Potential ARC giveaway for What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen



I managed to snag an ARC of What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen.  I know that this is a biggie guys and I can't wait to start reading the book.

Although I am not sure yet, I am thinking of doing a giveaway of this one when I am done (hopefully by mid-February or so) and was wondering what the interest level would be.

With all the giveaways on blogs these days, I find that doing a giveaway is not always the best idea, but I know that this one is a book that is on many TBR piles.

If you would be interested, or know of someone who would be, leave a comment below.  If i get enough interest, I will do a giveaway :)  thanks!!!



IN MY MAILBOX - Week Ending January 28, 2011

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It is that time of the week again!!!  I have to say that book wise, this week was pretty quiet (I wanted to say pathetic).

The list is short, but here it is:

From Abe Books:

Malled my Unitentional Career in Retail by Caitlin Kelly

From the publicist:

Between a Rock and a Hot Place: Why Fifty is not the New Thirty by Tracey Jackon (requested for review from Harper Collins)

That's it for this week.

From the

REVIEW for The Romeo and Juliet Code

Thank you, thank you to the wonderful Nikole at Scholastic Canada for sending me this book.

TITLE:          The Romeo and Juliet Code

AUTHOR:     Phoebe Stone

GENRE:        YA

RATING:       4 Stars

At first, I wasn't sure if I would love this book as it is set during World War II and I don't normally like novels that are set far into the past, especially if it involves the war.  Having said that, when I read the small blurb on the author's page, I thought it might be something that I would enjoy and I was completely right!

Yes, this novel is definitely about the war and this is one of the main themes in the book that propels the storyline foward.  However, the main character Felicity who is only 11 and lives in England gets firsthand knowledge about what war feels like.

It starts with her parents "moving" out of England and ending up in Maine with her relatives. Everything is new and she does not really understand why she has to leave her beloved England - but as she slowly, but surely discovers through experience, words and feelings, nothing is as it seems and life will never be the same again - thanks to the war and its ravages.

This story is both cute in many ways and very sad and poignant.  The author "teaches" both Felicity and the reader about the perils of war, intertwining the book's messages with Felicity's own daily happenings, including some unanswered questions about what is going on right under her nose.

I loved the pace of the storyline and I loved the subtle (at times) and not so subtle (at times) messages about life and how to live it to the best of your ability with the people you love, despite what is happening around you. This novel is about hope and friendship and accepting each other.

Loved it.

REVIEW for Moolala

A big thank you to Jesse at Random House Canada for sending me this book!

TITLE:               Moolala

AUTHOR:          Bruce Sellery

GENRE:             Personal Finance

RATING:            4 Stars

I am a huge fan of personal finance books, especially since it took me years to get my own financial house in order.  I am, therefore, always looking for "inside" information and ideas on making sure that I don't get into debt again and, at this point in my life, make sure that I save and invest to the best of my ability.

Finances are tricky and that is why I love this type of book.  Bruce Sellery is another no-nonsense author who exposes (yep, exposes) the stupid things we do with our money and why, but more importantly how to stop doing it and to completely turn our financial views around.

Firstly, he focuses on being honest and tells it like it is, never making me feel stupid, but rather, as though I have been looking and focusing on the wrong things.  The author is great at pointing out the "whys" and "how to" - making my thinking process about money, finances and savings a little bit less stressful.

I felt, as I read this book that I had my own personal money coach sitting next to me.  This book covers pretty much everything you might want to know when it comes to stupid things people do with their money - with a solution to each stupidity!

Written for the lay person (me!) it is a must have. I have read and re-read a number of passages already and plan on using this one as a reference book.

REVIEW for Famous

TITLE:                Famous

AUTHOR:          Todd Strasser

GENRE:             YA

RATING:            4 Stars

Thank you to the wonderful people at Simon & Schuster Canada for so kindly sending me this book.

The first thing I will say about this book is that you have to really be focused on it to be able to follow it all.


The plotline is very interesting, especially since it centers around celebrity and moral decisions that need to be made by a young adult who somehow has managed to take photographs of celebrity Willow that many people would pay alot of $$$ to get their hands on.

This plotline made me actually sit back and think - what would I have done, at that young age? I like to think that I would have taken the moral road, but since I have never been in the situation - who knows????

This is the strength of this YA novel - the morality -vs- immorality of celebrity and all the people who surround them - wanting fame, glory and more and more $$$ all the time.

However, having said that, I have to get back to my initial point - this book is told from a variety of perspectives, which I have to admit had me totally confused in the beginning. I am not a fan of this type of storyteling and I have to say that the book would have worked just as well if told by only one point of view, but once I got use to the constant changes of "voices" I found myself thoroughly enjoying this one.

I won't divulge the ending - suffice it to say that the story was one worth reading.

REVIEW for Wild Geese

Once again, a big thank you goes out to Red Deer Press for sending me this wonderful book.

TITLE:                  Wild Geese

AUTHOR:             Caroline Pignat

GENRE:                YA

RATING:              4 Stars

Wild Geese is the sequel to Greener Grass which is another book that I reviewed for Red Deer Press a whil ago.

Wild Geese introduces us to two main characters find themselves in Ireland during the famine and then to Upper Canada in an attempt to find a better life, despite everything they have to endure.

I am kind of ashamed to admit that I don't know much about alot about issues like the famine or even what was happening in Upper Canada during this time frame.  This is one of the reasons that I love reading these beautifully written books.  Secondly, these books are often incorporating Canada which I love to read about in a novel.  Finally, I love that the characters in this book are strong and persistant - despite everything they are going through.  It makes me appreciate just easy life really is today.

The pace of this book was perfect and I found the description of the various locations just perfect - not too much details - which can easily drag the story down!
I love, love it.

REVIEW for the Series Finale of Medium

Of course, this blog is about reviewing books, however, I do occasionally review other things and I thought I would take the opportunity of reviewing the SERIES FINALE of one of my favorite TV shows - MEDIUM.

Now, I have to say that I don't have alot of "favorite" shows, in fact, for the most part, TV sucks these days.  Having said that, I love and never miss an episode of:

• Rescue Me;
• Criminal Minds;
• The Good Wife;
• The Mentalist;
• Medium;
• The Big Bang Theory;

That's it - other than that, I watch TVLAND and great oldies like All in the Family.

Anyway, unfortunately the stupid execs at CBS decided to cancel Medium, right in the middle of their 6th season - not sure why as they never really explained it. I have to say that Medium has always been on the bubble - even while it was on NBC.  Yep, I can't really figure it out - crappy and insulting to our intelligence shows like "South Park" and "Trailer Park Boys" are up and running, but quality shows such as Medium get bounced off - its an insult!!!!

All of this brings me back to the series finale which aired on Friday, January 21.  I was not home Friday night so I ended up watching it on Saturday afternoon.  I should have just skipped it - it was horrible. 
****SPOILER ALERT****

In short - Alison dreams (which is the basis of the show), Joe dies and we end up in the Back to the Future Delorean time machine.  This episode was all over the place - in the present, in the near future, back to the present and into the far away future.  It was confusing and annoying to go back and forth.  But what was really horrible was the writers thinking they could kill off "Joe" and still give us an episode that we would appreciate.

Medium is about Alison's abilities to talk to dead people, its about murder and mystery but it was always, above all else - about family and friendship - and this episode, in one fell swoop, toppled all of this.  By killing off Joe, leaving Alison and her very young children to deal with grief - the writers have removed the joy this family had for each other.  Instead, we find Alison crying and arguing with her youngest daughter throughout most of the episode.  Marie (the youngest Dubois) is mad and frustrated, Ariel is pregnant and detached and we don't even see Bridget. 

As for the friends - we do get a few good scenes with the DA (now the mayor) but the Lee Scanlon character comes in for about 20 seconds, touches Alison's shoulder and then walks off the stage.

I could go on and on - but I have to wonder why the writers felt the need to make the final episode  so depressing, confusing and basically the complete opposite of what they had been producing over the last 6 years - quality writing.

I could understand if they had no warning but, apparently, the writers and actors were quite aware that their show was ending and had plenty of time to write a quality script.  By the way, where was Patricia Arquette's voice in all of this?  I know that she had quite a lot of "say" in what goes on with the show.


The only other time I can remember feeling so frustrated about a series finale was with the TV show "Third Watch" - I still haven't quite gotten over that one either.


To the writers of MEDIUM and to CBS - thanks for nothing.

REVIEW for The List - Part of the Chick Lit Plus Reading Challenge 2011

  

This is the third book I am reviewing that is part of the Chick Lit Plus Reading Challenge 2011!

TITLE:                  The List

AUTHOR:             Carmen Shirkey

GENRE:                Chick Lit

RATING:               3 Stars

I am such a fan of chick lit that I was thrilled to discover an actualy chick lit book that I had somehow overlooked.

The List is a "true" chick lit - in fact, the author acknowledges that her novel is all chick lit - which, of course, made me incredibly happy!


So, why the 3 star rating? The book is, unfortunately, a little bit boring AND incedibly predictable. In fact, I had the ending figured out by about page 20 of the book, which seriously removed the pleasure of reading the storyline for me.


Of course, chick lit is not known for its intricate plotlines, but this one was so basic and easy to figure out that it felt a little bit like an insult.


I did enjoy the various description of dates the main character went on - as anyone who has ever dated could certainly identify with this part of the book. The friendship with the 3 women was also fun, however, the rest of the book falls short on some level.

IN MY MAILBOX - Week Ending January 23, 2011

Another week has slipped by – although I have to admit that this week has simply whizzed by considering how many things I had booked for the week and next week seems just as busy. I am happy  because Spring is getting closer and, of course, so is BEA!!!

In the meantime, here is what I found in my mailbox this week (I did manage to find some time to read though):

BOOKS:

From the Book Depository: (Still receiving books that I ordered in December -it looks like they are playing catch up over there):

•Flirt Club


•The Latte Rebellion


•The Education of Hailey Kendrick


From Abe Books:


•Babe in Boyland

From Chapters:

•The Science of Single (which has one of the ugliest covers I have ever seen)

From the publicist:

•Famous (requested from the publicist)

•Rhymes with Cupid (requested from the publicist)

MISCELLANEOUS
From CSN Stores:


•Cuisinart 9 cup food processor (for review) (it is gorgeous and a godsend for someone who is as culinary challenged as I am). Now, if I can find the time to a) read the manual and b) spend some time in the kitchen with an actual recipe that asks for lots of dicing, slicing and chopping!

REVIEW for Choker

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for sending me this book!

TITLE:               Choker

AUTHOR:          Elizabeth Woods

GENRE:             YA

RATING:           4 Stars

Okay, Choker was a great, great book and was a total surprise - especially if you rely on the first few pages - which are deceptively ordinary - making you think you are going to be reading the typical "high school" story of a young girl trying to fit in.


In actuality, this book is about a young girl trying to fit in, its about a young girl trying to rekindle an old friendship and its about people disappearing in a creepy, mysterious, scary manner.

In fact, after the first few pages, I started getting that tingly feeling up the back of my head - as I read and read the engrossing story - why are people disappearing and is Zoe the reason why?

Very well written, the author has a knack for building up the suspense - just at the right pace. The details in the story are perfect - giving us just enough information for us to be able to picture the scene and the people. The character development is excellent and I have to say that I had no clue who was responsible for what - actually I could not figure out the ending -until the end.

Perfect, creepy, spooky, engaging and totally surprising read making you wonder if you ever really know someone.

IN MY MAILBOX - WEEK ENDING JANUARY 15, 2011

Okay, this is weird, I wrote this post earlier today and I did see it posted on the site, but now, it seems to have completely disappeared - so I am retyping it once again!!!!

I feel as though I did not get that many books this week, but really, when I read the list over, I see that I did, indeed, get quite a few books after all. Its funny cauz it does not feel that way though - I guess I can never get enough books - can you say A-D-D-I-C-T-I-O-N???

In the mail:

• Discovery of witches (just arrived for review);
• Beyonders (from the publicist);
• Belladonna (from the publicist);
• Ask Amy Green , book 2(from the publicist);
• The Visconti House (from the publicist);
• Moolala (requested from the publicist);

From the Book Depository (which I ordered in late December):

• Can't Think Straight;
• Tales of a Yoga Studio;
• The Nomination (I am super excited about this one as it is the last novel written by one of my favorite authors of all time - William Tapply);

From Chapters Bookstore (yep, caved in and actually spent money on a book in 2011):

• The Idiot Millionnaire;

From the library (borrowed):

• The Anorexia Diaries (read this one before but wanted to reread it);
• Monk (season 8) DVD;
• Everwood (season 1) DVD;
• Rescue Me (season 5) DVD:

Unfortunately, you can only check out a maximum of 3 DVD's at the same time or I would have walked out with Third Watch (season 2) DVD and Law and Order SVU (season 8)!!!

That's it for this week.  What did you get?

REVIEW for Never Too Late

A great big thank you to Shannon at HarperCollins Canada for so graciously sending me a copy of this book!

TITLE:              Never Too Late

AUTHOR:        Gail Vaz-Oxlade

GENRE:           Personal Finance

RATING:         3.5 Stars

I read Gail's previous book about becoming debt free and enjoyed it, so I was thrilled to be able to read this one about a subject that is close to my heart - retirement.  Although I am not yet retiring, it is something that I have to consider.

Having said this, I enjoy Gail's no nonsense attitude about money and this is the strength of this book for me.  If you want to hear it "like it really is" without any bull, then reading this book about retirement will set you straight.  In fact, in the preface, the author tells us pretty honestly that she is going to write a book that is completely different from the "standard" retirement books we usually read.

The reality is that this book does actually contain some important information - including the fact that NOT everyone needs to save 70% of their "revenue" for retirement.  Also, the author encourages us to start saving - whatever little amount and this is a theme that is repeated often throughout the book  - "don't get discouraged if you started late - just put something aside".  I liked the overall tone of the book - made me feel optimistic and that every little bit helps. 

She also does a fine job of describing the QPP and CPP plans and the differences - which, of course, is highly appreciated since it means that for once, we are reading a book about retirement that is addressing Canadian residents.

Now, for the less positive aspects and why I gave this book 3.5 stars.  Firstly, this book is guilty of the same thing that I find in pretty much every personal finance book - whether it is about retirement or debt reduction - it pretty well addressed couples ONLY and on top of that, those who have homes of their own.  What if I am single and renting and don't plan on changing any of that? does this mean I should not get any type of advice?

In defense of this book, this is something that is pretty common - for some reason, the people who write personal finance books/magazines, etc. don't seem to factor in single people - which is odd since there are a ton of single and/or divorced people out there.  Secondly, while in some areas of the country, owning your home is "the" generally accepted rule, the truth is that where I live - tons of people rent - because the rents are much cheaper and there are a lot of rentals available.

This is where this book fell apart for me.  Otherwise, it was an informative and honest read.

REVIEW for The Inner Circle

Thank you to the wonderful people at Hachette for sending me this book!

TITLE:                The Inner Circle

AUTHOR:          Brad Meltzer

GENRE:             Thriller

RATING:            4 Stars



Once upon a time I was a huge fan of Brad Meltzer and then I hit a few of his books that were not as entertaining and I stopped reading his stuff.




However, the Inner Circle sounded like a great read and I found myself completely engrossed in the storyline from the very first few pages. Of course, there has been, of late, a huge increase in the “historical – present day’ type of novel – easily compared to the DaVinci Code (which I hated by the way) and Inner Circle reminded me of this type of genre.


Actually the storyline is quite clever if a little far fetched. Our main character Benjamin meets up with his long lost Clementine who is asking for his help. As it turns out Benjamin’s job is about old documents and archives, some of which are directly associated with the President.


While Benjamin is trying to impress Clementine by showing her a vault where the President reads classified and, for the most part, priceless documents, they ‘discover’ an old dictionary and immediately start to wonder why the President would have kept it from being discovered.


Yep, like I said the storyline is just a tad ‘out there, but I have to say that I completely loved to read this book. The pace is perfect and the suspense is extremely engrossing. I found myself anticipating the next move (and the next page).


The ride is a little crazy and I loved every moment of it. It kind of reminded me of the National Treasure movies – completely off the wall and so much fun that I have rewatched them over and over again – much like this book I suspect.

REVIEW for Prom and Prejudice

Thank you Scholastic Canada for sending me this great, great read!

TITLE:                   Prom & Prejudice

AUTHOR:              Elizabeth Eulberg

GENRE:                 YA

RATING:               4 Stars


I am an adult who absolutely enjoys reading a good “teen angst” book, especially if it is set in a school setting (not sure why, but there you have it).


Along comes Prom and Prejudice – which, apart from its completely clever title, fulfilled pretty much every one of my “teen angst” expectations and then some. From the very first page, I found myself completely engrossed in the storyline about our main character, a “scholarship” girl who finds herself thrown to the wolves in her exclusive school.




Lizzie is actually a very likeable character who is simply trying to survive the craziness of being in a school where money and prom are the only two things that count. Fortunately, the author chooses to give Lizzie a true friend – one who actually lives in that world, but has seen the good in Lizzie and managed to look pass the “scholarship” thing. This is actually one of the main plotlines as it will serve to propel the story forward quite a lot throughout the book.


Unlike some other similar storylines, the author has chosen to “make” some of her wealthy characters actually quite likeable – which works very well for the storyline.

Jane, Lizzie’s best friend needs to be fleshed out a little bit more and frankly, at times, I thought that Lizzie was going a bit overboard in trying to “be there for Jane” at every passing moment. I loved the Charles character who is, surprisingly, Jane’s romance and NOT Lizzie’s – which is not to say that Lizzie does not fall for someone – but is the feeling returned? That is the question.


The character of Darcy was a bit “blah” for my taste. I don’t really “get” what his problem was with Lizzie in the beginning of the book and I found him to be a bit of a contradiction – which at times was simply tedious.

Finally, although the Lydia character was crazy – crazy – it worked for me. She managed to propel the story forward and managed to make me feel sorry for her and hate her at the same time.


I have to say that the entire package here, for the most part, worked well and my only real complaint is that this book is way too short. Part 2 perhaps?

REVIEW for The Low-Down

This book was on my "to buy" list, so a huge thank you goes out to Simon & Schuster for sending me an ARC!

TITLE:               The Low-Down

AUTHOR:          Lo Bosworth

GENRE:             Non-fiction (YA)

RATING:           3 Stars

Ever since I got a copy of this book, I looked up a lot more information on both the author and the story content - out of curiosity.  In fact, I had this book on my list way before I found out that the author is actually fairly well known and this book is an extension of her website.

For those of you who are looking for a good novel, this is not the book for you.  Rather, this book is more of an advice book about relationships and dating, which sort of blends in some rather generic stuff as well as some more "personal" experiences from the author.

While the reading is not horrible, I have to admit that there really isn't that much new here.  Some stories are okay and entertaining, but overall, I have to say that the book was a tad flat and somewhat typical.

As I am not a YA,  it is obvious that the book was not aimed at my demographic, but I think that a sign of a good YA (fiction or not) is that it should cross over into any world, all the while being enjoyable and informative - this was not really the case here.

Not a bad read, just not that stimulating.

IN MY MAILBOX - 2011

I always enjoy reading other people's posts detailing the books they received over the week so I thought that for 2011 I would start participating again.  I would love to hear what you got in your mailbox this week.

I am very lucky - I work with some of the greatest and most generous publicists!  I have also had the opportunity of working with some great debut authors as well as authors who have been in "the biz" for a while and it is all thanks to my love of reading :)  I am grateful.

• Lipstick Laws by Amy Holder (chick lit hey!!!!)  (from the publicist)
• Choker by Elizabeth Woods   (from the publicist)
• The List by Carmen Shirkey (I ordered this one from Amazon)
• Cloaked by Alex Flinn (from the publicist)
• Pink by Lili Wilkinson (requested from the publicist) (more chick lit!!!)

That's it for this week - I am thrilled that I got some great chick lit :)

REVIEW for Junkie - A True Baltimore Story

Thank you to author Tia L. Lincoln for sending me a copy of this powerful book!

TITLE:                       Junkie- A True Baltimore Story

AUTHOR:                 Tia L. Lincoln

GENRE:                    Addiction

RATING:                  4 Stars


I read alot of memoirs about addiction and recovery and let me tell you, I have read my share of hard core storylines.


Having said that, Junkie - A True Baltimore Story is one of the hardest and most honest addiction tales I have ever come across.

Poochie never felt as though she fit in - until she discovered the amazing abilities of Heroin and, of course, crack cocaine. Her downwhirl story begins much earlier than when she takes that first "shot", but rather shows us that a junkie can easily and most often be one "in the making" way before they take that first hit of the drug.

What I loved about this story is the development of Poochie and how she constantly chooses the path of destruction, despite the fact that she, on many levels, knows better - the story of every addict.

The tale is harsh, honest, brutal and extremely well told. For anyone who is or has been addicted and for anyone who loves an addict, some part or all of this story will resonate with you.

This book is not for the faint of heart - its hard to read and made me cringe, cry and feel fear, sometimes all at the same time!

However, this book is an important addition to the world of books on addiction - telling the truth about this disease.

REVIEW for At the Crossroads of Terror

Thank you to Phenix & Phenix literacy publicists for sending me a copy of this book.

TITLE:                  At the Crossroads of Terror

AUTHOR:             Lenny Emanuelli

GENRE:               Thriller

RATING:             4 stars

I hesitated when I received the request to read this book because, honestly, I find that most "thrillers" now a days are boring and highly, highly predictable. 

While I can't say that At the Crossroads of Terror is not high literacy art, I have to say that I found myself immediately drawn into the plotline - how do you prove that you are NOT guilty of murder, especially if you are just an average person with average financial means?

What I also enjoyed about this book is that it takes an honest and very unflinching look at sexual abuse, in fact, the author is associated with RAINN (The Rape Abuse and Incest National Network).

Now, for the things I did not like as much - the book cover - it looks cheesy and gave the book the look that it was "self published".  I think that this story is a good one and deserves to be read by thriller lovers - however, I would not have purchased this one off the shelf with the current book cover - this NEEDS to change and quickly.

If you are looking for a good paced thrilled, that challenges you to find out things you may never have wanted to know about sexual abuse, then this is the book for you.

THE JOYS OF DECORATING - DARE TO BE DIFFERENT!

I have gone on record as "officially" being pretty pathetic at decorating, which means that I need as much help as I can possibly get!

However, I do have a flair for the original and when I saw this round chair I actually felt inspired to decorate by doing something different and these chairs look perfect for the new "look" that I am striving for.

I also feel very, very proud of myself as I am actually choosing furniture that shows my creative side (who knew I had one of those?), my somewhat ecclectic side - not to mention my frugal side (these are a great deal).

If I keep this up, I may actually end up with a home that I am completely in love with -and it only took me 48 years to get there :)

REVIEW for A Girl Like You

 My second chick lit review for the Chick Lit Plus Reading Challenge 2011  

Thank you to HarperCollinsUK for sending me this book.

I am such a fan of chick lit and Brit chick lit is THE best!


A Girl Like You was a fun, entertaining read that is exactly what a good chick lit read should be.

Of course, most chick lit books do stretch reality a little bit, but I don't care, A Girl Like You was so engrossing that I felt as though this one was way too short.

Abigail has learned the hard way that some relationships are so definitely NOT forever. She needs to learn how to date again and this, of course, is one of the central premises of the book and frankly, the funniest part. I loved reading about Abigail's fears and tribulations with the "losers" she somehow ended up with. It makes me feel better about all the jerks I dated in my lifetime :)

The story of Abigail slowly, but surely discovering her "dating feet" is charming and no story would be complete without the "right" guy - or is he really?


I loved, loved this charming story.

REVIEW for Waiting for No One

A big, big thank you to Red Deer Press for sending me this wonderful book.

TITLE:                   Waiting for No One


AUTHOR:              Bev Brenna

GENRE:                 YA

RATING:               4 Stars

Waiting for No One has one of the most beautiful book covers that I have ever seen and it drew me to the poignant and sweet storyline that I found incredibly compelling and wonderful.

Taylor Jane Simon has Asperger's Syndrome and is struggling to live the life she wants to live.  Finding her way in life and making the right choices are a constant "must" and this book explores beautifully how people, especially young adults suffering from diseases can "deal" with their medical issues, all the while forging ahead and making some of their dreams come true - in short - being a regular teenager.

This book is both compelling and difficult to read, but the prose is beautiful and the author clearly has an in depth and personal understanding of the good things and bad things that come with Asperger's Syndrome.  The author gives her main character a depth that is rich.

I loved it!

REVIEW for There's Cake in My Future - 1st book in the CHICKLIT READING CHALLENGE 2011

Choosing which book would be the first chick lit for the Chick Lit Plus Reading Challenge 2011 was easy as I had been looking forward to the release of this one - which released on December 21, 2010.  I completed the reading of it in 2011, so I am including it in the challenge.

TITLE:               There's Cake in My Future

AUTHOR:         Kim Gruenenfelder

GENRE:            Chick Lit

RATING:         3 Stars

I had a lot of problems rating this book.  It is an easy and breezy read.  I mean, its a "true" chick lit release - something that is becoming more and more uncommon in this day of "supernatural" novels......so I am totally grateful for THAT!

Having said that, I think that the thing that bugs me the most about There's Cake in My Future is that I did not like ANY of the characters - in fact, for the most part, I found myself wanting to smack them at some point or another in the storyline.

Gruenenfelder chose to go the route of the 3 character perspective which, at the best of times, is not really a favorite method for me, still, I had high hopes.

The book started off great, with the 3 girls hoping (planning) their futures based on charms that will be found in Nic's shower cake.  Except, that things don't quite go as planned and the entire rest of the book is basically based on the significance of the charms each of the girls did find.  I thought this was a very cute and clever idea and I was immediately immersed in the storyline.

I think my least favorite character was Nicole - who is supposedly the "one" who has found Mr. Right and is soon getting married to, apparently, Jason AND his daughters.  I have to say that this storyline felt as though it took over the book and I found it to be the most annoying of the three plots.  Nicole is a writer who is out of a job with no apparent desire to really do anything except procrastinate AND be manipulated by her future husband, his ex wife and their two "adorable" daughters.  I gritted my teeth everytime the story shifted to this character who had no backbone, no life and apparently very little self esteem.

Having said that, the other two characters were not that great either - somehow going through the entire book with only one goal - to find 'the" guy.

While I realize this is a central theme in chick lit and I usually enjoy it, I found these three women demeaning - to themselves and to the women they are 'representing'.

I did enjoy the breezy tone of the writing and the strong friendship these women share and I also liked the pace of the work, which is something this author is always very good at.  I liked the dialogue, for the most part, although at times, it could sound a little over the top.

Nonetheless, I did read the entire book and was kind of sorry it ended, but I think that may have more to do with the fact that I just finished one of the only chick lits being released on the market than it was about coming to the end of a really great read.