In Phoebe Fox’s The Breakup Doctor, Brook Ogden is a licensed mental health counselor who specializes in relationships: how to improve them and how to give them up gracefully. Her expertise – and sanity – are called into question when her own relationship falls apart, leaving her friends and family to wonder, who counsels the […]
Category: Chick lit
Tell Him About It
If I had to sum up Holly Kinsella’s novel Tell Him About It in a single word, it would be “meh.” The slow-paced story is very predictable and the characters’ endless inner thoughts are obvious and repetitive. Worse, the viewpoint switches between characters constantly and confusingly, even within a single paragraph. Several of the characters […]
Animate Me
Despite its male protagonist, I think women are more likely to enjoy Ruth Clampett’s Animate Me than men. The author tried to offer a man’s perspective, but it still feels very chick lit-y to me – which is no bad thing, just surprising. In any case, it’s a cute story for the most part about […]
Crazy in Love
If you like a little paranormal activity, some shady businessmen, and a murder or two mixed in with your love stories, Lani Diane Rich’s Crazy in Love might be right up your alley.
Happy(ish)
Despite the instant dislike I took to Cara Trautman’s Happy(ish) during the opening scene, I kept reading and kept thinking “I really don’t like this.” I even re-read the mostly glowing reviews on Amazon, hoping to find one that shared my aversion to it.
Accidents Make the Heart Grow Fonder
It’s a cute premise, but the accidents in Tara Mills’s Accidents Make the Heart Grow Fonder cross the line into ridiculous more than once. Then, inexplicably, there’s a long stretch of injury-free dating, and then more accidents. Other than that, and the fact that I found Jackson’s interest in Sabrina somewhat farfetched, it was a […]
Elly in Bloom
Elly in Bloom, by Colleen Oakes, is the floweriest book I’ve ever read. I know I’ve read other chick lit featuring florists, but this one describes flowers and bouquets and wedding arrangements in exquisite-verging-on-excruciating detail. It’s kind of fun, but it gets a bit tedious.
Winter Wonderland
If you’re ready to visit a snowy paradise, you could do worse than to read reading Belinda Jones’s Winter Wonderland. A hands-on travel agent is at Québec’s Winter Carnival, where she meets handsome and mysterious men with secrets and secret identities.
Smart Mouth Waitress
The eponymous heroine of Dalya Moon’s Smart Mouth Waitress is an 18-year-old named Perry who has been left in charge of taking care of her father and younger brother while her mom is off on a creative quest. Perry decides it’s time to find a boyfriend and lose her virginity, and her first step on […]
Perfect for You
While it’s not quite a Harlequin romance novel, the fairly graphic descriptions in Perfect for You make it a bit steamier than run-of-the-mill chick lit – which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I liked the story a lot, I cared about all the characters, and I enjoyed the various subplots. As for negatives, the sabotage […]