Rating: 
Summary: A breath of fresh air
Review: This perhaps may be the most outrageous pairing by Susan Elizabeth Phillips - a self-help guru and an actor with a bad-boy reputation? You can't help but be skeptical. Yet Breathing Room is Ms. Phillips most exhilarating effort crafted by tight research of Tuscany that segues from Guarnacci Etruscan Museum to its delicacy porcini.Dr. Isabel Favor decides to retreat to Tuscany after her accountant cheated on her and the loss of her fiance. Her stablizing mantra crashes - and at the spur of the moment she engages in a quickie with hot-shot actor Lorenzo Gage after some chemistry sparks between them at a side-walk cafe. He happens to be the owner of the farmhouse she has rented. That's when you marvel at Ms. Phillips's ease and affection with her characters where clever quips and banters reveal their insecurity and how the pensive and cool-headed Isabel suits the chivalrous Ren to a tee with equal emotional needs. Ren is a cynic who believes Isabel is too good for his sordid past and hedonism; Isabel discovers life isn't something you can compartmentalize. The mystery aside, Breathing Room succeeds with deadpanned humor and believable characterization. She deftly explores the foundation of marriages and love with a fallout between her side ensemble - Tracy and Harry. She tackles the differences and emotional chaos between the matured Isabel and Ren realistically and convinces us this fairy-tale ending is here to stay. Their triumph is as much an enlightening for us - that true love comes in all kinds of packages.
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't even finish
Review: I was so disappointed when I started to read this book, and just couldn't get into it. It just made me hungry...due to the fact that she talks a lot about Italian food, and when I am board I just eat,,and this book was very boring to me. I got 1/2 way through and decided there was nothing it the book for me.
Rating: 
Summary: My first disappointment by SEP
Review: Well, this was my first disappointment by SEP. It was an original storyline, but the way the romance came together was not all that entertaining to me. First it drug-out, then it became predictable, then the end had a scene which was totally dramatic & unbelievable (I can do unbelievable in a fantasy type book, but not this type). More than one of the secondary characters were totally irritating & I just wanted to slap a couple of them sometimes... it did not endear them to me at all. Anyway, I just couldn't get into this story.
However.... SEP has always been excellent in the past & I won't hesitate to try another of her books!
Rating: 
Summary: She has become an auto-buy, and that's saying something!
Review: This book was witty, hilariously funny, but laced with real issues that happen in real life. The characters were well drawn and believable, the writing felt natural and flowed well. There were a few moments of cheese or silliness, but overall, this book was definitely worth the money. Susan Elizabeth Phillips is one consistently good author who keeps her ideas fresh and is not afraid to put a twist on things (i.e. the first encounter between the characters in this book was so unexpected!). Bottom line--buy it.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing Novel
Review: I'm sorry to say that this book is a great disappointment if you are looking for a great (lighthighted?) romance and plotline. The secondary plot is quite unnecessary - you literally can skip those passages (I did!) just to finish the book. Ren's disguises in public just annoyed me somewhat. Not worth buying.
Rating:
Summary: One of her bests!
Review: I think this is one of SEP's best books. I love how she uses dialogue and narrative to drive the story with very little exposition. The characters are vivbrant, alive and believeable. And she really ups the stake's for Isabel's character by taking away everything she treaures and forcing her to face her own vulnerabilities and failings. Top notch work!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read
Review: Ms. Phillips has written another great one. I have just finished reading Breathing Room, and I absolutely loved it. But then I have been a fan of Ms. Phillips since I read Fancy Pants when it came out the first time. I have since read all of her books, except for Just Imagine. I loved the characters of Dr. Isabel Favor and Lorenzo (Ren) Gage. I loved how their relationship evolved, quite humorous, will definitely make you laugh out loud while reading it. If you liked her other books, First Lady, Fancy Pants, Hot Shot, and so many of her others, you will definitly love this one.
Rating:
Summary: A superbly read novel of complex characters
Review: This book was a joy to listen to, its not terribly exciting in the action sense, it doesn't have long detailed descriptions of sexual action. What it does have is a complex set of characters who reveal themselves and evolve under the power of a love that both try to deny. First let me congratulate Kate Fleming as the reader, she does a superb job, not only with the voice inflection but conveying the tone of the words, it is worth the audio edition just to hear her read it. Rather than saying "he said disgustedly" she will deliver his lines in a disgusted tone so the words are almost unnecessary. It is treuly amazing how an accomplished reader can enhance the enjoyment of the material itself. Ren and Isabel are interesting complex characters that I found myself getting more and more involved with as the story progresses. At the start they both are living a kind of fantasy and denying the reality of what they are like. She believes herself perfect and can't tolerate any imperfections in herself, he believes he has no redeeming qualities at all and can't tolerate any hint otherwise. As they come together and start to unravel, the journey is sometimes painful, sometimes joyful and it is only the power of their love that can keep it moving forward. The love that both sees as a threat to their way of life and thus to be avoided at all costs. The tension and change in them is well crafted and made me want to keep listening. There are some subplots about the mystery at the well and the ex-wife but its mostly about Ren and Isabel. I heartily recommend this story for anyone who is interested in well-written dialog and interactions and wants to watch two very real seeming people become intertwined and mature.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect book for snoozing
Review: I must say that this book was absolutely boring. Finishing this book was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. The characters are boring and predictable. It took me about 3 months to finish this book because I hardly ever picked up except when I was extremely bored. Please, save yourself some time and money and pass on this one.
Rating:
Summary: Slightly Boring
Review: This is the first novel I've read by Susan Elizabeth Phillips and I must say that I was not impressed. I began reading this book several months ago, and could not get into the plot. It wasn't until the book had been closed for 2 months until I decided to pick it up again. Nothing remotely exciting took place until the very end, and even then, it wasn't much to talk about. This isn't the worst book I've ever read, but not what I would consider 'entertaining'. If you are looking for a book that is unpredictable and entertaining, this book is not for you.
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