Rating:  Summary: Mildly Entertaining, Poorly Written, Very Diasppointing Review: I must confess that I've read the bulk of the Red Dress Ink books. I don't expect something deep when I read them, but I do expect for them to provide some easy-to-read and at least fairly well-written.While I won't say this book was an entire waste of time, the first problem I had with it was an editing issue. I think I counted 10 grammatical/spelling problems within the first 20 pages, that any spellcheck could/should have caught. Considering who Red Dress Ink's parent company is, I would think they can afford some pretty good editors, so I'm not sure what happened there. The plot itself kept me interested for the first two-hundred pages or so and I'm pretty sure that's how many pages it should have been done in. The story itself is simple enough -- an agony aunt (never heard that term here in the US...but she's similar to a Dear Abby type columnist and hosts a radio show) named Lizzie gets a letter from a woman asking for help in saving her marriage. Lizzie and the woman begin to correspond and develop a textual friendship. Meanwhile, Lizzie meets a man and begins to date him and, seemingly within a matter of seconds, is madly in love with him. Of course it turns out Mr. Perfect is actually married and while I may be giving a little too much away, the book is equally unsubtle in its foreshadowing. In terms of character development, some are very well-developed, some are very poorly developed, and some the author makes a VERY strong attempt at trying to show different perspectives of a character, but falls short. A great literary work? Not even close -- terrible spelling, poorly done foreshadowing, and some pretty whiny, weak characters. Entertaining? For the first couple-hundred pages, perhaps. If you're an avid reader you'll probably find yourself picking this book apart (as I did) more than enjoying it. If your primary choice of reading is a paperback romance novel, you may like it just fine. I DO think the author has potential, though, so if you like this genre keep an eye out for her =)
Rating:  Summary: Chick lit can be SO much better than this flat one... Review: I read a LOT of books of this genre (and admit to liking chick movies as well), but here's the thing: just because the character is a single 20 or 30-something on the lookout for love does not a story make. This genre is so popular that the criteria for a story must be low...sell, sell, sell! The characters are SO FLAT I didn't even care if they got together. Their relationship was based on sex (we get NO dialogue hardly at all between the two), so why should we root for this affair? The only character who is vaguely interesting is the "other woman" (his actual wife) and I didn't like her either. Not only do the characters need depth, but the story draaaaaags on and really doesn't take us anywhere. There is no richness to the setting. It's all just cookie-cutter boring. There is hope! If you want some good chick lit with character development, try getting some Fiona Walker books and skip this one. Marian Keyes is fun too (except for Angels). I just find it hard to identify with an adultress with no personality, I guess! Please don't waste the money and borrow it if you insist!
Rating:  Summary: A really good and enjoyable read Review: I read this book over the holidays and loved it. It is well written and shows insight into human relationships and their problems with great humor. I really did not want it to end but had to know what happens! Well done - I will look out for more by this new talent.
Rating:  Summary: If you like Sex & The City, you'll love this! Review: I read this from cover to cover in one sitting, I just couldn't put it down. It was witty, well-observed, and uplifting. Made me laugh out loud, and at times cry out loud too. A feelgood story for those of us unlucky in love, but still hopeful...
Rating:  Summary: May be the worst romance novel ever published Review: I sincerely believe this book was a bet -- that someone could write a completely formulaic, dry, badly-written novel with ridiculous dialogue, and people would still buy it. Well, I was one of the chumps who did! Aiyiyi. Here are some examples: "Lizzie's voice rumbled and squeaked into action and her first syllable came out grudgingly. Her tones were definitely less dulcet than normal, and she could only just hear what she was saying." ... and that was just when talking to her roommate! How about after a date: "As they turned into her road Lizzie looked at her watch for the first time since one o'clock. It was nearly seven. 'Thanks, Lizzie. I've had a great afternoon.'" And, her best friend jokes: "Sorry to have bothered you in the middle of everything. I always forget the times of day when everyone else has time to talk are when you are at your busiest." ...if this kind of thing can get published by Red Dress Ink, I wonder who can't?? This is honestly the first time I've felt I deserve my money back!
Rating:  Summary: A new twist on the oldest story in the world. Review: Man and woman get married. Eventually they drift apart. Man has an affair. Who's the heroine of this story? Usually, it's the wife. But in a delightful turn of events, this time you're rooting for the mistress. The beauty of it is, you still feel some sympathy for the wife. And the cheating husband. Jane Sigaloff's book is original and really honest in its emotional conflicts. You believe in the love between Lizzie and Matt, but you also know what they're doing is wrong. The flipside of this story is that Lizzie's best friend was once the wife in a similar situation and this fact only causes more interpersonal conflict. It's a wonderful story, but the Brit Speak can be a little too much at times for Americans not familiar with it. Hence three stars instead of four.
Rating:  Summary: You won't be disappointed Review: Name & Address Withheld should be bought, not checked out at the library. This book is worthy of entering your chick-lit collection. I fell in love with the characters...well most of them. I was not very fond of Lizzie's flatmate, but I did fall in love with Matt and Lizzie. This book has some strange spelling and I'm not sure if it is correct in Britain but I found it rather annoying. I live in America so I didn't know if it was normal for British English. It is not like Red Dress Ink to miss such noticable misspellings so I assume it was meant to be that way. However, this book will be one of those up all night reads so get to the bookstore!
Rating:  Summary: You won't be disappointed Review: Name & Address Withheld should be bought, not checked out at the library. This book is worthy of entering your chick-lit collection. I fell in love with the characters...well most of them. I was not very fond of Lizzie's flatmate, but I did fall in love with Matt and Lizzie. This book has some strange spelling and I'm not sure if it is correct in Britain but I found it rather annoying. I live in America so I didn't know if it was normal for British English. It is not like Red Dress Ink to miss such noticable misspellings so I assume it was meant to be that way. However, this book will be one of those up all night reads so get to the bookstore!
Rating:  Summary: Disappointing from Red Dress Ink Review: Okay, so I am a total lover of chick-lit in general, and especially Red Dress Ink. So I have to say, WHAT WERE THEY THINKING? This book was really bad. Basically, the book is about Lizzie, an "agony aunt" who gets a letter from Rachel, a woman who suspects her husband is having an affair. He is -- with Lizzie. So after 300+ pages of Lizzie whining to her friend Rosie about what she should do, and trying to break up with Matt numerous times, the BOOK FINALLY ENDS. There are no subplots, just this one main plot. Lizzie is annoying in the fact that she acts ridiculous, and keeps going back to Matt, who is married. He keeps professing his love and sending flowers, but if he's so in love, WHY DOES IT TAKE HIM OVER 300 PAGES TO LEAVE HIS WIFE? Ahhh.. This was more like your traditional romance novel, definitely not chick lit.. Disappointing, since I really love Red Dress Ink, and usually love the books they come out with. Hopefully they won't keep up being like this.. Don't waste your time
Rating:  Summary: A good story Review: Seems that Red Dress wanted to get out of the 20-somethings, every guy who sees me loves me pattern it has fallen into and offers this -- a story about the other woman. And the author pulls it off quite nicely. Usually you don't want to root on a cheating hero and his mistress, but the story unfolds nicely -- albeit a bit too predictably at times -- into a happily ever after. We hope. The author's voice is fresh and although this is definitely more BritLit with it's references and terminology, it's a good, quick read.
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