Review: WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME TOMORROW? *****

Absence makes the heart grow fonder…doesn’t it? What happens when two people decide to give themselves the year off … from each other?

Annie and Dan were the perfect couple. But now the not-so-newly weds feel more like flatmates than soul mates and wonder where all the fun and fireworks went …
When Annie lands her big break in a smash-hit show that’s heading for the bright lights of Broadway, she’s over the moon. Goodbye remote Irish village of Stickens, hello fabulous Big Apple! But with their relationship already on the rocks, how will Annie and Dan survive the distance?
They’re hitting the pause button on their marriage. One year off from each other – no strings attached, except a date to meet in twelve months at the Rockefeller Centre to decide their fate.
Will they both turn up? Or is it too late for love?

I really, really enjoyed Carroll's previous book Personally, I Blame My Fairygodmother and I couldn't wait to read her latest! Then I learned that it's actually more of a romance story than a proper comedy and I admit I was a little worried as I prefer comedy to just romance, but Carroll pulled it of really well actually!

At the beginning, we're introduced to Annie and Dan, a young couple who have completely drifted away. Annie is absolutely miserable living with his intrusive family in the middle of nowhere and her once oh-so-caring husband is always working and forever letting her down. He's so distant that she can't even tell him how she feels and she feels so trapped. Then finally she gets her chance to escape by starring in a Broadway show - but that would mean moving away for a whole year ...

I must admit I was appalled by how Dan was treating Annie at the beginning. He felt he needed to work so much to help his family that he didn't want to let anyone down, but at the same time he completely failed his wife. Part of me understood Dan, as I'm a bit of a workoholic too, but part of me just wanted to really wanted to give him a very good talking to! Based on his behaviour, I could easily symphatize with Annie and her pain, after being let down SO many times, was tangible. After all that's happened, I can't say I blamed her for escaping to the Big Apple and enjoying her independence for a bit, although I did think the idea itself was a bit drastic, heh.

Once Annie starts enjoying her freedom in NYC, the romance part really starts. Sparks start flying between her and the director Jack, who is a very charming man indeed who could easily sweep Annie off her feet. At the same time, Dan starts missing his wife and he starts reaching out to her again, showing his softer side. I absolutely adored their lovely 'meetings at the moon'.

I loved the gentle romance between Annie and Dan, and on the other hand I quite enjoyed the sparks flying between Jack and her. There were so many twists and turns that I had no idea how the book would end, but I'm pleased to say that I really liked the ending, which made me go all AWWWWWW. :)

There is a fair bit of comedy in this book, which is mostly due to Carroll's narrative, which is typically Irish and thus hilarious in itself - as I've said before, I love Irish authors write, it just cracks me up! Jules was another funny character and I really enjoyed her scenes.
On the other hand, there was plenty of sadness and heartbreak, on top of other serious topics, like drug addiction and alcoholism. Altogether, I thought it was well balanced, plus it was set in the acting world, which I was not very familiar with and so I quite enjoyed reading about it.

Overall, this book isn't just rainbows and butterflies, which turned out to work really well in the end. It features an interesting story with believable, real characters and so many twists and turns to make your head spin, but it ends up making you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Plus the cover is absolutely gorgeous, which is yet another massive plus!
I really can't fault it and while I have almost the whole Carroll's backlist to read, I also cannot wait to see what she comes up with next - it's bound to be a good one!

overall rating:
plot: 5/5 | writing: 5/5 | characters: 5/5 | cover: 5/5

Review: PERSONALLY, I BLAME MY FAIRY GODMOTHER *****

The fairytale ending was just the beginning…
Jessie Woods absolutely believes in fairytale endings. So would you if you had a recession-proof career as a daredevil TV host, a palatial pink mansion, and the dream boyfriend.
But, quicker than you can say Cinderella, her life falls to pieces and suddenly her prince isn't quite so charming, her party-loving friends disappear and even her faithful friend Visa no longer loves her… Utterly heartbroken and jobless, Jessie is forced back home, to live with her stepmum and two evil stepsisters.
Is it time for her to give up on the dream - or will Jessie learn that happy endings can come in the strangest of places?

I've never read anything by Ms Carroll before, but I fell head over heels in love with this book just based on the gorgeous cover and I knew I had to have it! This was the first book I read on the plane to my holiday and it was a fantastic read, even better than I expected!

I've seen it described as 'fairytale gone backwards' or something like that and I think it's quite a fitting description, although Jessie's life only appears perfect, when in fact it's anything but - all her friendships are terribly superficial and she can't even afford the luxurious lifestyle she's been sucked into. When she's thinking things might be improving, her life suddenly comes crashing down. She makes a huge mistake, loses her job, her Prince Charming is gone and she's forced to move out of her pink house now that she's drowning in debt ... Plus the paparazzi are watching her every move! Worst of all, she's forced to move in with her step mother Joan and her step sisters Maggie and Sharon, who spend their days stuffing their faces in front of the TV. And this is when the fun really begins, ha!

This isn't quite the happiest story out there, but despite some more serious issues, the novel is chock full of HUMOUR. The book had me in stitches in places and I wished I wasn't reading it on the plane where I had to contain my giggles, hehehe!

I loved loved loved the characters! Jessie was a bit of a ditz occassionally, yes, but she was just so loveable! I expected some sort of a diva, but she was anything but. She was really down to earth, not high & mighty at all, which was clearly displayed in how she handled her fall from grace - she was determined to do anything to make ends meet and no job was below her, despite her previous fame. I loved her step family too, especially Sharon and Maggie - they were also both endearing characters that only added to the hilarity of the whole shebang!

I enjoyed the story too and I liked the twist, although there were some other bits that were a bit predictable (it was too obvious who she was going to end up with) ... Nonetheless, I have no complaints whatsoever - the story was great to read and with the help of brilliant characters (who transformed quite a bit as the story progressed) and amazing writing it really jumped off the page!

Also, reading this, I've come to the conclusion that nothing beats Irish chick lit - it just has this special charm to it and its trademark humour that I adore and awesome words like 'eejit' and 'minging', hahaha. I also liked how the title and the cover seemed a bit random - until the very end when they both made perfect sense!

All in all, this is an absolutely FANTASTIC read and I cannot recommend it enough, especially if you're a fan of Sophie Kinsella, Marian Keyes, Jenny Colgan and other brilliant wit lit authors! And HELLO, how could you possibly resist a cover like this?! It's one of my all-time favourites and the book is worth buying just because it's sooo gorgeous, I couldn't stop staring at it when I wasn't engrossed into it!

In short: this is a cupcake of a book - too pretty and oh so delicious! I want more, please! :)

overall rating: +
plot: 5/5 | writing: 5/5 | characters: 5/5 | cover: 5/5

Waiting On Wednesday: Two fab August chick lit releases!

This week I'm all excited about two lovely chick lit novels - both released on 5th August!
I looove Alexandra Potter's books, but I have to admit that this cover is not really my favourite, too green & blue (two of my least favourite colours). Loving the sound of the book though!
I haven't read anything by Claudia Carroll yet, but her next book sounds great so I think I'll start with that one!

YOU'RE THE ONE THAT I DON'T WANT
by Alexandra Potter
[5 August 2010]

What if you found your soulmate ... and then discovered you couldn’t lose him?
When Lucy meets Nate aged 18, it is love at first sight. As far as she’s concerned, he’s The One. Caught up in the whirlwind of first love, they kiss under the Bridge of Sighs in Venice at sunset and – according to the legend – are tied together indefinitely.
But ten years later, they’ve almost forgotten about each other. That is, until fate starts to bring them together. Again. And again. And again. It doesn’t seem as wonderful as it had before, but if Nate’s not The One – then why on earth is it proving so hard to break up with him?
A funny and magical romantic comedy about what happens when every girl’s dream of finding her dream man comes very true indeed...

PERSONALLY, I BLAME
MY FAIRY GODMOTHER

by Claudia Carroll
[5 August 2010]

The fairytale ending was just the beginning!
Jessie Woods absolutely believes in fairytale endings. So would you if you had a recession-proof career as a daredevil TV host, a palatial pink mansion, and the dream boyfriend. But, quicker than you can say Cinderella, her life falls to pieces and suddenly her prince isn't quite so charming, her party-loving friends disappear and even her faithful friend Visa no longer loves her!
Utterly heartbroken and jobless, Jessie is forced back home, to live with her stepmum and two evil stepsisters. Is it time for her to give up on the dream - or will Jessie learn that happy endings can come in the strangest of places?
Avon's hot new acquisition presents a tale of princes who turn out to be frogs, Manolo Blahnik glass slippers and not-so-happily-ever-afters!