Title: Keep
Calm and Carry a Big Drink
Author: Kim Gruenenfelder
Release Date: December 2013
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Chick Lit
Pages: 384
In Keep Calm and
Carry a Big Drink, Kim Gruenenfelder's delicious follow-up to There's
Cake in My Future, Seema, Nic and Mel are back, adjusting to their new
lives as a bride-to-be, a mother-to-be, and a recently single girl looking for
love
It's been almost a year since Mel, Nic and Seema pulled their magical
charms out of the cake at Nic's bridal shower and most of their
happily-ever-afters seemingly came true. Seema is about to marry Scott in an
elaborate three-day affair. Nic is glowingly pregnant. And Mel... well, Mel
feels as if she accidentally veered off the rails of her life at some point and
isn't sure how to get back on. She recently became single again, she's
been threatened with a layoff from her teaching job, and she has to find
her own place now that Scott is moving in with her roommate, Seema.
Nic thinks
Mel just needs a new cake charm to bring her good luck. . . and decides to rig
the cake pull at Seema's bridal shower.
Desperate for travel, Mel asks for the
passport charm. But, once again, the cake proves to have a mind of its own, and
she pulls a charm she doesn't want, and can not use. Rather than be bound by
the charm's prophecy, Mel realizes she, and she alone, is responsible for her
destiny. A spur of the moment decision takes her to Paris and then Maui, where
she finds herself on an adventure that she never could have imagined,
experiencing the trials and tribulations of a life suddenly and perfectly
unplanned. And, along the way, she begins to learn that, however nonsensical it
may seem, the cake is never wrong... (Amazon)
Highlights:
This book
I felt, really captures that bitter-sweetness of maturing friendships. The ups
and downs that go along with that: the feelings of pride and joy and at the
same time wistfulness as your lives move forward and in many ways your
friendship changes and life pulls you further apart. As friends start relationships,
move in with significant others/get their own place, get married, have children,
start focusing on careers. I think we all have that experience of being so
happy for our friends as they hit the milestones and yet wanting those things
for ourselves and also missing the way things used to be when the friendship
seemed to come first.
I found
the characters to be very likable and relatable, and I like that they were
each experiencing/struggling with things that many of us do: newborns,
weddings, trying to figure out what to do with our lives/what’s next,
relationships, dating, burn-out.
Wishes:
While I really enjoyed the story, there were a few things that I
would have liked to see changed. For one, the story had some plot points that
seemed a bit far-fetched: the broke teacher traveling about Europe, vacationing
in Hawaii for free, and other bits I can’t mention for fear of spoilers. I
can’t completely fault these points as it is escapism fiction, I would have
enjoyed it a bit more if these came about in a bit more of a believable way.
Other than that, there were a few slow points and some minor editing issues.
Overall, this book was an enjoyable escapist Chick Lit read –
fluffy, light and fun. It featured fun, sweet, relatable characters and I loved
getting to revisit my “old friends” again and see where they ended up.
Definitely worth a read, and definitely one that any mid to late twenties or
older can relate too.
**see below for rating and
recommendations**
Title: The
Perfect Match
Author: Kristan Higgins
Release Date: October 2013
Publisher: Harlequin HQN
Genre: Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Pages: 441
What if the perfect match is a perfect
surprise?
Honor Holland has just been unceremoniously
rejected by her lifelong crush. And now—a mere three weeks later—Mr. Perfect is
engaged to her best friend. But resilient, reliable Honor is going to pick
herself up, dust herself off and get back out there…or she would if dating in
Manningsport, New York, population 715, wasn't easier said than done.
Charming, handsome British professor Tom Barlow
just wants to do right by his unofficial stepson, Charlie, but his visa is
about to expire. Now Tom must either get a green card or leave the States—and
leave Charlie behind.
In a moment of impulsiveness, Honor agrees to
help Tom with a marriage of convenience—and make her ex jealous in the process.
But juggling a fiancé, hiding out from her former best friend and managing her
job at the family vineyard isn't easy. And as sparks start to fly between Honor
and Tom, they might discover that their pretend relationship is far too perfect
to be anything but true love…. (Amazon)
Highlights:
Things that I found really enjoyable about this book included:
the characters, the plot line, the side stories, the humor and the cute animal.
I really enjoyed the interactions and dialogue between Tom and Honor, I enjoyed
the romantic tension and I liked the “marriage of convenience, could it grow to
be more” plotline. I found the book to be light, humorous and filled with
characters I could either relate to, feel like I have experienced in real life
or would like to know.
I enjoyed that each of the characters had flaws and baggage,
nobody was completely good or bad and they all felt real. (Even the ones that I
hated). I also really enjoyed the Charlie side-story. I felt that many of the
events while obviously dramatized (this is a romance novel) were relatable to
things that could and do happen in real life – and I loved that the author was
able to make me feel. I laughed and cried during my time reading the book.
Wishes:
Some
things I wish had been a bit different: the desperation of Honor feels, Honor’s
self confidence, and the story start. In the beginning Honor is feeling really
desperate to get married, to have a kid – I’m not going to nit-pick about this
because I do think that a lot of people especially women start to feel this
pressure at some point. I felt that this was real and understandable, I just might
have wished it wasn’t so played up, I mean let us know how she feels but some
of the moments made me cringe in embarrassment for her a bit. As to her
self-confidence, I just felt that while again this was a believable piece, I
would have liked to see her have a bit more confidence and respect for herself
– I get that it was part of her growth but their were a few parts (I’m looking
at you Dana) that made me want to shake her and deal with it for her.
Finally,
while I ended up enjoying the story overall it had a bit of a slow start for
me. So I would have liked for the pace to be a bit more brisk and really grasp
me sooner.
Overall,
I really enjoyed the story and it is one I would have a friend read (in fact
I’ve already lent it out). I enjoyed the author and the book and actually
bought a few more by her to try out. The book played to its genre nicely, and
it is a quick, sweet, emotional romantic read. (Plus have you seen the adorable
pups on the covers?) So if you are looking for a good beach or contemporary
chick lit read with a little romance, definitely check out this author.
Recommendations (based on both of the above romances):
If you enjoyed this book and
are looking for more Contemporary Chick Lit reads try:
Just Breath –
Susan Wiggs
Something Borrowed – Emily Giffin
There’s Cake in My Future – Kim
Gruenenfelder
Unpredictable – Eileen Cook
When In Doubt Add Butter– Beth
Harbison
Rating (for both of the above romances):
3 out of
5 Doxies – Really enjoyed it, read it now!
Jenn
Tale
of Two Doxies
