Chick Literate » Irish chick lit

Rachel’s Holiday

lklawless — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 09:38:18 +0000

Marian Keyes, the queen of Irish chick lit, delved into the serious subject of drug addiction in her third book, Rachel’s Holiday, but managed an amazing job of mixing those horror stories with romance and humor. The end result is a wonderful book about another of the Walsh sisters – it’s funny and sad, serious and playful, and I’ve read it half a dozen times.

Last Chance Saloon

lklawless — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 06:11:49 +0000

Last Chance Saloon is Marian Keyes’s first novel told from multiple third-person points of view. It’s the story of old friends and new loves, growing up and seeing people for who they really are. Between the hair-obsessed actor and the woman who learns that it’s ok to need someone, it will make you laugh and cry.

Cereal Lover

lklawless — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:00:40 +0000

Joan Conway’s Cereal Lover is probably one of the least-known great chick lit novels. The writing style is very similar to Marian Keyes’s* and the story is a little nutty, but that just makes it more fun. This is one of my favorite books – it’s a quick, funny read.

*So much so that for a while I thought Joan Conway might be a pen name. Then Ms. Keyes came out with her 6th or 7th novel and it was clear she just couldn’t possibly have enough time to write under multiple names.

Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married

lklawless — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:00:24 +0000

I love, love, love Marian Keyes’s Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married. Though it’s not perfect (see spoilers, below), I enjoy the story and particularly certain scenes so much that I’m still able to reread it regularly and enjoy it just as much each time I do. I really like Lucy, and overall the book is very funny and believable.

SPOILERS Lucy is blatantly “weightist.” At one point she is furious when she thinks someone is mocking Meredia’s weight, yet Lucy repeatedly does this herself throughout the book.

The whole dealing-with-her-dad’s-alcoholism section is fairly hefty and can be a bit of a drag to read. But it works.

I love the scenes with Daniel at the restaurant, in his car, and at his apartment; and I love the Indian restaurant, and all the roommate stuff, and the work avoidance… it’s all great.

Suddenly Single

lklawless — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:00:08 +0000

I’m sure that Sheila O’Flanagan tried to dumb down the financial market info in Suddenly Single, but even so I couldn’t understand much of it (and there was a lot) and therefore the whole story was far less interesting than it might have been. There was no humor, either, so in the end I found it really boring. I’m all for strong, intelligent female characters, but not at the expense of an enjoyable read.

Watermelon

lklawless — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 06:00:55 +0000

If you were to take a crash course on chick lit, Watermelon, by Marian Keyes, would be required reading. This début novel begins with Claire in the hospital, where she has just given birth to her first child a few minutes before her husband arrives to tell her that he’s leaving her for another woman. Claire’s subsequent breakdown and rebuilding of her life is by turns heart-breaking and inspiring, and it’s also heart-warming and really funny. Even the saddest, most tragic scenes are interspersed with humor – sometimes gentle, sometimes black – which make this a joy to read again and again.