Sushi for Beginners : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Okay- Last Chance was her best
Review: Not my favorite by any means. The best parts where the last 5 chapters. I will try her new book and hope it perks my interest. THis one did not

Rating:
Summary: Better than Angels, but not that much better....
Review: SUSHI FOR BEGINNERS by Marian Keyes
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I know there are a lot of Marian Keyes fans out there that have loved this book, SUSHI FOR BEGINNERS. This is only my second book I've read by her, ANGELS having been my first, and I gave it three stars. SUSHI FOR BEGINNERS I am also ranking three stars, but it's close to 3 ½. Here's why:

I think Marian Keyes has a gift for creating funny characters. I do find myself chuckling as I read her books, and that is a good thing. On the other hand, the problem I have with her characters is that they don't always seem "real". She has them do illogical things, or they may end up with someone that I can't see how it even happened. When I say "illogical", I don't mean "silly" or "crazy". What I mean is that she doesn't think her characters out all the way, so that she has them behaving in ways they shouldn't.

Because of this, I find myself rather disappointed by the end of the book. This was the case with SUSHI FOR BEGINNERS. Without giving it away, I did not see how one main character ended up with another character (some of the signs were there, but their interactions with each other were not enough, in my opinion, to have them put them together as a couple). I also did not see any chemistry or any reason for one or the other to want to get together. It just did not make any sense. On the other hand, I did approve of another couple getting together, because it made a lot of sense and I was also rooting for them.

To sum up, SUSHI FOR BEGINNERS is about a start up magazine in Ireland and the employees that work for it. Ashling Kennedy has just been sacked by another magazine, and finds herself working for Londoner Lisa Edwards at the new "Colleen" magazine. Lisa is known to be a [...] when it comes to the work place and focuses so much on her career that her marriage has fallen apart. At the start of the book, she is already separated from her husband and buries herself in work to try to forget him. Ashling is also dealing with a broken relationship, and is afraid to start up with someone new until she hits the comedy club circuit with friends Ted and Joy and meets a comedian, Marcus.

The good thing about SUSHI FOR BEGINNERS is the fun you'll have with the characters and the chuckles you will have when you read about them. If you don't take this book seriously, you will enjoy it. For those who are looking for a much better written book, this is not it. I suggest trying a book written by Jane Green.

Rating:
Summary: I normally LOVE Marian Keyes, but...
Review: this book dragged on FOREVER. I kept at it, thinking, "It's Marian Keyes, it's gotta get better!" Alas, it was slow throughout. I liked the premise, I liked the characters, but I was happy when the story was over.

Rating:
Summary: Ok read!
Review: This book starts really slow; it took me about 250 pages to get into it. Great ending though!

Rating:
Summary: Starts slow but gets better
Review: This is the sixth Keyes novel I have read. Generally, I find that she provides average-to-good reads, although for the type of fiction she writes, I find her books to be a bit too long. This novel was no exception, as the first half of the book really dragged; in particular, it was hard to get into the story because one of the main characters, Lisa, was not at all likeable. However, the book definitely picked up in the second half, when the characters became more three-dimensional and better developed. The story centers around Lisa, a hotshot London magazine editor who has been banished to Ireland to start up a new magazine; Ashling, the plain Jane who gets a job as an assistant editor of the magazine; and Clodagh, Ashling's gorgeous best friend who feels smothered by her roles as wife and mother. All three women are trying to sort our their work and love lives while also dealing with demons from their respective pasts. The cast of supporting characters adds interest, including Jack, Lisa and Ashling's boss; Joy and Ted, Ashling's supportive friends; Boo, a homeless man who Ashling befriends; and Oliver, Lisa's estranged husband. My actual rating of this book is three and a half stars: if you can hang in there through the somewhat boring first half, you'll be rewarded with several unexpected twists in the second half. A worthwhile read for fans of Keyes, but perhaps not for others.

Rating:
Summary: 3.5 in reality
Review: This was a pretty decent book as far as chick lit goes. Keyes fans are not likely to be disappointed. The story has plenty of humor and would be a very good beach, airplane, rainy weekend type of book. Probably worth purchasing in softcover if at a reasonable price and definitely worth checking out from the library.

The story is about 3 girls: Lisa, Ashling and Clodagh. I really disliked Clodagh as a character. She is supposed to be Ashling's best friend but you would never want a friend like her in real life. I think I'd rather have enemies! Lisa is a workaholic - your stereotypical career woman. She's very interesting and quite mean -- a combination that makes up for the drama that Ashling's life lacks. So: you have a nice girl, a mean girl, and a girl who is mean but doesn't know it. The 3 different types of women give the story momentum. Drags on a bit more than necessary but overal a worthwhile read. Closer to a 3.5 than a 3.0 but I am not giving a 4 because like most chick lit it was relatively predicable.