Unfunny and unoriginal.
Trivial country-club romance from the English author of Drop Dead Gorgeous (2002) and Moving to the Country (2001).
Suzi and Liam and Estelle and Michael meet regularly for mixed doubles, followed by stiff gin-and-tonics (and some anxious consideration of the possible vulgarity of excessive exercise). The snakes in this rolled-lawn Eden: old-school types in blazers who refuse to relinquish control of the charmingly antiquated tennis club to youthful upstarts in nylon track suits. Yet the game’s the thing, and the foursome plays on—but the grass is decidedly greener on the other court to at least one of them. Suzi frets—she’s very much in the middle. Temperamental, red-haired Estelle is her partner in a struggling antiques shop, Liam is her brother, and Michael her lover (whom she doesn’t love). Estelle and Liam, the latter a dedicated schoolteacher, are on the outs; in fact, Estelle has gone so far as to suggest that they all might play more interesting games with some, ahem, new blood. When Liam openly ogles an upper-class blond (despite his Socialist politics), Estelle ditches him. What next, wonders Suzi, who’s more or less content with her relationship with Michael, an immature pharmaceutical exec who plays rock ’n’ roll in pubs and longs to become a middle-aged Mick Jagger. Should she surrender to the raffish, carrot-topped charms of Josh, a strapping contender for her man of the moment, or just keep plugging on with Michael? Though she does have other things to worry about, what with Stan and Terry, the working-class proprietors of a competing shop they’ve just opened next door. And they have the unmitigated gall to advertise. That’s not all: it’s entirely possible that Josh and Estelle might pair off at any moment. After all, they’re both redheads, and one need look no further than that for character motivation, right? Then Liam discovers that long-legged blonds aren’t everything, and Estelle, bored with sulking, returns. Will Josh win Suzi? Will Michael follow his dream? Will Stan and Terry ever stop sweating?
Unfunny and unoriginal.Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-312-31154-0
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Dunne/St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2003
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.
Eleven years ago, he broke her heart. But he doesn’t know why she never forgave him.
Toggling between past and present, two love stories unfold simultaneously. In the first, Macy Sorensen meets and falls in love with the boy next door, Elliot Petropoulos, in the closet of her dad’s vacation home, where they hide out to discuss their favorite books. In the second, Macy is working as a doctor and engaged to a single father, and she hasn’t spoken to Elliot since their breakup. But a chance encounter forces her to confront the truth: what happened to make Macy stop speaking to Elliot? Ultimately, they’re separated not by time or physical remoteness but by emotional distance—Elliot and Macy always kept their relationship casual because they went to different schools. And as a teen, Macy has more to worry about than which girl Elliot is taking to the prom. After losing her mother at a young age, Macy is navigating her teenage years without a female role model, relying on the time-stamped notes her mother left in her father’s care for guidance. In the present day, Macy’s father is dead as well. She throws herself into her work and rarely comes up for air, not even to plan her upcoming wedding. Since Macy is still living with her fiance while grappling with her feelings for Elliot, the flashbacks offer steamy moments, tender revelations, and sweetly awkward confessions while Macy makes peace with her past and decides her future.
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2801-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
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