Helpful Score: 6
If you aren't a fan of Bridget Jones, you may want to move on to another book. I like Anna Maxted and her writing style. This is a book where you keep cheering the characters on, but see that the story would probably make a better movie as the pace can be a little slow (I can not believe it took three chapters to finally get closure on one of the more exciting points!)
Overall, a good, light read.
Yes, this is chic-lit!
Overall, a good, light read.
Yes, this is chic-lit!
Helpful Score: 3
surprisingly intense chick novel; more depth and texture than is generally found in this type of literature, but a very smooth read
Helpful Score: 2
This is a quirky British novel that I think would fall into the category of "Chick Lit." It's no Bridget Jones, but it kept me interested. Lots of emotional turmoil over love and the loss of a parent.
Helpful Score: 1
I enjoyed this book as something light to relax with. The characters are well developed and the story sails by quickly. I like to mix books like this in with more intense ones. Worth a read if you need something light.
Helpful Score: 1
Maxted is one of my favorite "chick lit" writers. Witty, charming, and fun, her books strike at the heart of the existence of the "women" of today.
Suprisingly depressing chick-lit with entertaining soap-opera style plot. Fairly well-written. 6/10.
Great read - longer than a quick chick lit book. Great author - I recommend all her books!
Quirky British chick lit similar to Bridget JOnes. Pretty funny.
great really touching book
This is my first book by AM and I really enjoyed it. I'll be reading her other books. She had just lost her father and has a hard time dealing with that and everything else.
a woman's book...great laughs
Great chick lit. Funny and intelligent.
A great read... if you like the Bridget Jones genre - you'll like this one!
some engaging characters, some bad behavior, and lots of good chicklit fun
Move over Bridget Jones. Helen can't figure out what her life is all about, but a seried of events help her get on track.
Helen Bradshaw isn't exactly living out her dreams. She's a lowly assistant editor at GirlTime magazine, she drives an ancient Toyota, and she has a history of choosing men who fall several thousand feet below acceptable boyfriend standard. Not to mention that she shares an apartment with a scruffy , tactless roommate, her best girlfriends are a little too perfect, and the most affectionate male in her life--her cat, Fatboy--occasionally pees in her underwear draw.
Then Helen gets the telephone call she least expects: Her father has had a massive heart attack. Initially brushing off his death as merely an interruption in her already chaotic life (they were never very close, after all), Helen is surprised to find everything else starting to crumble around her. Her pushy mother is coming apart at the seams, a close friend might be heading toward tragedy, and, after the tequila incident, it looks as though Tom the vet will be sticking with Dalmatians. Turns out getting over it isn't going to be quite as easy as she thought.
Then Helen gets the telephone call she least expects: Her father has had a massive heart attack. Initially brushing off his death as merely an interruption in her already chaotic life (they were never very close, after all), Helen is surprised to find everything else starting to crumble around her. Her pushy mother is coming apart at the seams, a close friend might be heading toward tragedy, and, after the tequila incident, it looks as though Tom the vet will be sticking with Dalmatians. Turns out getting over it isn't going to be quite as easy as she thought.
This is a laugh-out-loud story in the "BrigetJones" way. You'll feel as if you made a new friend and hold this delicious character with you for a long time.
This was the first Anna Maxted book that i\'ve ever read and i thoroughly enjoyed it. It\'s a book about a young girl getting over her fathers death. But though it\'s a tough subject it\'s still a fun read.
Warm and very funny
Well, I don't fall into either the loveit or hateit camp here, but the book was really pretty good and much more than just a chick-lit. The heroine's father dies in the opening pages of the book, and the story really revolves about the trauma she and her mother have coming to grip with his sudden death. Then it does have the chick-lit relationships frenzy, but some more dark than frivolous.
This was a VERY good book.
"Laugh-out-loud....Hip, readable, often poignant, and always funny." -Publishers Weekly
"Move over, Bridget Jones."
-Cosmopolitan
"Move over, Bridget Jones."
-Cosmopolitan
A fast, fun read chick-lit book.
From Publishers Weekly
Had Maxted published this sharp, witty tale of a British woman's love life and real life before the Bridget Jones phenomenon, Fielding's novel might have been noted as a pale comparison. Written in a hip, readable, often poignant and always funny style, protagonist Helen Bradshaw's story is set in modern-day London, where the 20-something editorial assistant comes to terms with her father's death and her own life. The plot spans one year, beginning with the day Helen learns of her father's fatal heart attack. Helen struggles with GirlTime magazine cracks the whip. A complex part of Helen's healing process is repairing her relationship with her overbearing mother, Cecilia, who, though she mourns her husband inconsolably, eventually finds new direction in her life. Helen discovers real love in the patient and humorous veterinarian, Tom, and she learns enough about real friendship to hold onto her loyal, true buddies Lizzy, Luke and Tina, saving the latter's life in the process. As she stumbles from one crisis to another, Helen is always likable, even if the decisions she makes often make the reader want to give her a good shake. Although the narrative tackles many issues, from the loss of a parent to the horrors of domestic violence, Maxted's bouncy, upbeat tone never falters. Revealing a touch for comic timing and versatility, she paints scenes of hilarious pratfalls, biting sarcasm and heart-wrenching pathos. While comparison between this work and Fielding's is unavoidable, Maxted's laugh-out-loud debut novel will come out ahead.
Had Maxted published this sharp, witty tale of a British woman's love life and real life before the Bridget Jones phenomenon, Fielding's novel might have been noted as a pale comparison. Written in a hip, readable, often poignant and always funny style, protagonist Helen Bradshaw's story is set in modern-day London, where the 20-something editorial assistant comes to terms with her father's death and her own life. The plot spans one year, beginning with the day Helen learns of her father's fatal heart attack. Helen struggles with GirlTime magazine cracks the whip. A complex part of Helen's healing process is repairing her relationship with her overbearing mother, Cecilia, who, though she mourns her husband inconsolably, eventually finds new direction in her life. Helen discovers real love in the patient and humorous veterinarian, Tom, and she learns enough about real friendship to hold onto her loyal, true buddies Lizzy, Luke and Tina, saving the latter's life in the process. As she stumbles from one crisis to another, Helen is always likable, even if the decisions she makes often make the reader want to give her a good shake. Although the narrative tackles many issues, from the loss of a parent to the horrors of domestic violence, Maxted's bouncy, upbeat tone never falters. Revealing a touch for comic timing and versatility, she paints scenes of hilarious pratfalls, biting sarcasm and heart-wrenching pathos. While comparison between this work and Fielding's is unavoidable, Maxted's laugh-out-loud debut novel will come out ahead.
From Publishers Weekly
Had Maxted published this sharp, witty tale of a British woman's love life and real life before the Bridget Jones phenomenon, Fielding's novel might have been noted as a pale comparison. Written in a hip, readable, often poignant and always funny style, protagonist Helen Bradshaw's story is set in modern-day London, where the 20-something editorial assistant comes to terms with her father's death and her own life. The plot spans one year, beginning with the day Helen learns of her father's fatal heart attack. Helen struggles with GirlTime magazine cracks the whip. A complex part of Helen's healing process is repairing her relationship with her overbearing mother, Cecilia, who, though she mourns her husband inconsolably, eventually finds new direction in her life. Helen discovers real love in the patient and humorous veterinarian, Tom, and she learns enough about real friendship to hold onto her loyal, true buddies Lizzy, Luke and Tina, saving the latter's life in the process. As she stumbles from one crisis to another, Helen is always likable, even if the decisions she makes often make the reader want to give her a good shake. Although the narrative tackles many issues, from the loss of a parent to the horrors of domestic violence, Maxted's bouncy, upbeat tone never falters. Revealing a touch for comic timing and versatility, she paints scenes of hilarious pratfalls, biting sarcasm and heart-wrenching pathos. While comparison between this work and Fielding's is unavoidable, Maxted's laugh-out-loud debut novel will come out ahead.
Had Maxted published this sharp, witty tale of a British woman's love life and real life before the Bridget Jones phenomenon, Fielding's novel might have been noted as a pale comparison. Written in a hip, readable, often poignant and always funny style, protagonist Helen Bradshaw's story is set in modern-day London, where the 20-something editorial assistant comes to terms with her father's death and her own life. The plot spans one year, beginning with the day Helen learns of her father's fatal heart attack. Helen struggles with GirlTime magazine cracks the whip. A complex part of Helen's healing process is repairing her relationship with her overbearing mother, Cecilia, who, though she mourns her husband inconsolably, eventually finds new direction in her life. Helen discovers real love in the patient and humorous veterinarian, Tom, and she learns enough about real friendship to hold onto her loyal, true buddies Lizzy, Luke and Tina, saving the latter's life in the process. As she stumbles from one crisis to another, Helen is always likable, even if the decisions she makes often make the reader want to give her a good shake. Although the narrative tackles many issues, from the loss of a parent to the horrors of domestic violence, Maxted's bouncy, upbeat tone never falters. Revealing a touch for comic timing and versatility, she paints scenes of hilarious pratfalls, biting sarcasm and heart-wrenching pathos. While comparison between this work and Fielding's is unavoidable, Maxted's laugh-out-loud debut novel will come out ahead.
