The Other Side of the Story : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Great fun, great author...
Review: I have cherished each of Marian Keyes' works ever since finding "Watermelon" on the discount shelf at a local bookstore. Thankfully, her career didn't flounder as Gemma's did. I've always loved her honest, witty style, and how she always has a new and unique way to express what other authors might express using a tired cliche.

I enjoyed how this book alternated between three different points of view, which become so intertwined that even when we were in one's "world" we were learning events of one of the others.

And I'm wondering if Marian Keyes herself won't be reading this review. After all, her characters seem to jump onto Amazon to check out what people are saying about them. Well, Marian, if you're looking at this, it seems to be nothing but praise. I chuckled at how much of this book seemed to be biographical (especially the fan who went mad on Lily when the book she'd made Lily submit to her editor didn't get published)!

If anyone's wondering which of her novels to try next, "Rachel's Holiday" was my personal favorite. It unfolds in such a cool way, gradually telling more and more of the story through flashbacks and revelations on the part of the main character. Ooh, I can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

Rating:
Summary: A fun and diverting novel!
Review: If you're looking for a great beach read ~~ this one is it! Just be sure to have enough suntan/sunscreen lotion nearby because once you open the first page, you won't be able to put it down!

There is JoJo, a literary agent/ex-policewoman. There is Gemma, a party planner in Ireland and there's Lily who Gemma claims that she "stole" her true love from. JoJo is the common denominator between the three characters ~~ she is Lily's agent and who got her first book to sell. Then Gemma's best friend sent JoJo her emails ~~ the ones Gemma wrote after her dad left her mom. All three of them falls in love and their love lives are just as interesting as their literary lives. And this is the story of three women over the course of a single year.

It's funny and sweet, nice and comfy and just a perfect Keyes book as to be expected! I can honestly say that I have read every single one of her books and love them all. She's one of my absolute favorite authors!

This is a not-to-be-missed read of the summer! Pick it up and have fun reading!

4-19-04

Rating:
Summary: This story is told from THREE sides
Review: In this new novel, Marian Keyes has made a slight divergence from her usual style: instead of one female main character, there are three, and at first, their stories seem completely unrelated. The book opens with Gemma, a young event planner whose life turns upside down when her father suddenly announces that he is having an affair. Gemma struggles to cope with her hysterical mother while still nursing her own broken heart: two years before, her boyfriend, Anton, began dating her best friend, Lily. Just as the reader has become thoroughly engrossed in Gemma's life (about 75 pages into the book), the story abruptly shifts to JoJo, an up-and-coming literary agent. JoJo is a beautiful, strong woman who leads an ideal life, with one exception: she is having an affair with her married boss. JoJo's tale leads us finally to one of her clients, Lily, Gemma's former friend. Although Lily is still happily partnered with Anton and is the proud mother of young Ema, she is also consumed by guilt about Gemma. When a little novel she wrote becomes a best seller, Lily lives life as if in a dream, certain that the happiness she has found will not last.

Initially, I didn't enjoy reading the book from three different perspectives: I was dismayed to leave Gemma behind in the midst of her crisis, especially given that it was unclear how her path and JoJo's would intersect. In addition, I found it a little odd that both Gemma's and JoJo's stories were narrated in the third person while Lily spoke in the first person, and I'm still uncertain about the significance of this literary device. As the book continued, however, I began to enjoy the shifts amongst the three women, especially when the connections between them became more apparent. Although some parts of the story dragged a bit, towards the end of the novel, Keyes picks up the pace, and the more frequent changes in viewpoint make for an exciting finish. If you enjoy reading British/Irish fiction or Marian Keyes in particular, you will definitely like this book.

Rating:
Summary: Did Amazon pay for corporate advertising? :)
Review: Just finished and I had to check 1) whether EVERYONE who reads this book goes straight to Amazon Reader Reviews - it's mentioned enough times! 2) post a review, like a predictable being! I loved this book. I think, though, it would be difficult to start with this one and then read the earlier ones like Watermelon (it's good, but this is fantastic). This one shows real development in her skills - the way she handles the plot and interweaves their lives. Reminds me of the kind of books you write essays on, as in, her technique is skilful! I like the way she gives us the mistress-from-afar in Colette and the inside life of a mistress we can't pigeonhole as a mistress in Jojo. Plus, Gemma's lack of self-awareness for such a long time! Had me crying in parts too - esp. Anton's letter to Lily and him crying in the street...Could go on but I'll stop right there! It's brilliant!!!

Rating:
Summary: What Goes Around Comes Around....Or Does It?
Review: Marian Keyes' latest is a true gem which transports the reader to the thirty-something singles life of Dublin and London. With empathy and humor she tells the story of very believable women whose lives intertwine.

Gemma Hogan is a Special Events Planner in Dublin. She has recently lost the love of her life, and to make matters even more unbearable, said love is now happily ensconced with her former best friend Lily and the child they have together. Gemma seems to have enough heartbreak, but now her father has left her mother for his secretary, and Lily has not only captured Gemma's boyfriend but has written a best-selling novel, something Gemma has always wanted to do.

Meanwhile, Lily is not only wracked with guilt over the aforementioned theft of affections, but also having trouble coping with a non-working mate and the lack of money they must exist on. Child-care mishaps and a second novel that is more of an embarrassment than a bestseller add more pressure to Lily's life.

Jojo Harvey, a Jessica-Rabbit clone, enters the picture as the literary agent who represents Lily. But Jojo the dynamic businesswoman is also Jojo the homewrecker as she guiltily pursues a relationship with her very-married boss.

Add one more catalyst in the form of Susan, former best friend of both Gemma and Lily, who has moved to Seattle, Washington. Susan becomes Gemma's sounding board via email and is privvy to the intimate details of Gemma's disheveled life, her desperately needy mom, her non-boyfriend, and a certain chemist who fills prescription after prescription for her. Susan thinks the emails are so interesting to read that she wants to share them. Taking a calculated risk, she sends them to Jojo Harvey who agrees they would make a great book.

It's a merry-go-round of emotions with revenge, rejection, and disappointment having their day along with all the accompanying pandemonium of this inside look into the life of writers, editors, and publishers. It's Marian Keyes doing what she does best---telling a contemporary tale with all the humor and sadness that fills life. This is believable fiction that will appeal to everyone....except perhaps Mr. Burt Reynolds who does not fare too well in this one.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but not good enough
Review: Personally speaking, I am a huge fan of Marian Keyes and have fell in love with her after Watermelon and Sushi For Begginers.

Her book, The Other Side of the Story was a big putdown to her genius. Her introduction was, admittedly, weak. Her humor is practically non-existent in this book. The main reason I buy her books is because of the rich humor in it, I failed to satisfy my needs when reading this book.

However, I loved her down-to-earth way of portraying her characters and events. I suspect that this novel is actually a fabricated autobiography.
For example, in Under The Duvet, she states that she hated it when people came up to her saying that her previous book was better. The character Lily gets Crystal Clear published after Mimi's Remedies and suffers a big downfall nutil she writes another book similar to Mimi's Remedies, which basically saves her.
Another example is when Lily goes to a book-signing and no one comes up to her but all go to Miranda England. Again, in Under The Duvet Keyes described her own first book-signing more or less the same way.
There are many numerous examples to be shared, and only a steady Marian Keyes fan would be able to point them out.

I loved the ending, it was very satisfyingly down-to-earth and realistic.

In conclusion, it has to be said that this is not her best book...But is a must-read.

Rating:
Summary: Like Three Books In One
Review: The Other Side of the Story is written from three different women's points of view. Gemma Hogan is living the high life when she is suddenly summoned home to find that her father has walked out on her mother. Now Gemma is trying frantically to help her mother and figure out what to do about her father.

All the while she's forced to write Emails about the whole fiasco to her best friend Susan who ends up finding Gemma's Emails so clever and humorous that she sends them off to London's top literary agent JoJo Harvey.

JoJo is fighting to make partner and competing fiercely against a co-worker for the position. She's also having an affair with her boss who is married and trying to convince herself that it's a healthy relationship.

JoJo is representing bestselling author Lily Wright who is trying to balance being a new mother with a bad financial situation - and the guilt of stealing her husband away from her best friend Gemma who used to date Lily's husband Anton.

Gemma's always dreamed of writing a novel and getting a book deal that her boyfriend-stealing ex-best friend Lily now has. JoJo may be headed for heartbreak looking for love in all the wrong places trying to convince herself that she can handle a relationship that must be kept secret. But at the same time she's hoping to get caught and finally have her man all to herself. Lily is struggling to juggle the good with the bad and with a heart full of guilt. Marian Keyes' intertwines these women's lives and their connection to each other making for a fantastic read that fans will enjoy.

The Other Side of the Story is like having three books in one. The three stories smoothly transition back and forth between the three women and will keep the reader turning pages to see what drama awaits on the next page.