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Women's Fiction

Asking for Trouble: A Novel

Asking for Trouble: A Novel

List Price: $14.00
Your Price: $10.50
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I couldn't put this book down. It was such a fun read.
Review: I started reading the book at 9pm lastnight and stayed up until 530 am when I finished it. I could not put it down. I kept telling myself that I would just finish one more chapter then go to bed. I one more chaptered myself to the end. Sophy could have been me or anyone of my friends with her insecurities and typical girl body issues. I kept shaking my head with some of the thoughts about herself and thinking my god I have felt that way more than once around a man. Maybe because I read this book coming off of a few contemporary romance novels I would have only changed the ending bit. Or I at least wished that the authour had an epilogue. I wasn't ready to give up on the characters and wished there was a bit more. But all in all this was a fun read and well worth the purchase.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: What a tangled web she weaves ....
Review: What is one to do when one has lied to one's mother? Lie some more, of course! And that is just what Sophy does.

Sophy is a 30ish Brit chick who has lied herself into a pickle. She has promised her guilt-tripping mother that she will bring her beau to little sister's wedding. The problem is that her beau was concocted falsely to appease dear Mother. So what does she do? She calls an escort service! And the reader takes a wild ride.

There is little new about this plot. The storyline has been reworked many times. There is not a whole lot original about the characters. Sophy is a caricature of the other Bridget Jones clones currently on the market. Her love interest is so imperfectly perfect that it is is almost laughable. And yet, I enjoyed this book.

Author Elizabeth Young may not be the most inventive of writers but, aside from a very s-l-o-w start, she maintains the reader's interest and throws in enough amusing twists and turns to send the story on its merry way. Especially enjoyable are the witty banter she writes between her characters.

On the warning side, this book is very British. I hope I am not the only American who felt lost in some of Young's reference to British life and experience. Some Americans may feel a little lost at times. The editing is also spellcheck sloppy. It is too often obvious that some wrong words slipped through the editing process, thus confusing the prose. Lastly, the story starts very slowly. Those who stick with it are well-rewarded, but beware the slow start.

Aside from those warnings, this is a good formula romantic comedy novel that, while somewhat heavy on profanity, refereshingly refrains from the graphic sexual description used by too many current authors. As a bonus for romance readers, it packs a delerious romantic punch near the end of the book. A nice read.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Fluff
Review: A good book, recommendable for a lazy summer day. I couldn't put it down - if only to find out what the next plot twist would be. At times its a little much, but as it is a entertainment only type book it does its job quite well.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: One star for getting words on paper
Review: This book gets one star for getting words written on paper. This novel drove me absolutely crazy! It first starts out with a neurotic mother, and then, come to find out, the daughter is just as neurotic. It's not funny, it's not even cute! This book is just flat out annoying.
I have read so many other great novels lately, and this book ranks as the #1 Don't Read on my list!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best chick lit novels
Review: Sophy Metcalfe is in a bit of a predicament. She has told her family that she is involved with the perfect man - Dominic. Now she and Dominic are invited to attend her sisters wedding, the catch THERE IS NO DOMINIC!! Now, forced to come up with a plan Sophy's roommate suggests she hire and escort....

Enter Josh, the perfect Dominic. Although Sophy is nervous she hires Josh to be Dominic. He attends the wedding with her acting perfectly, and while Sophy is always a bit nervous when he touches they pull off the lie... but the wedding is an entire weekend affiar so they have tons of time to get to know each other. Sophy is uptight at first but little does she know super cool Josh is nervous as well...

This books is so fun. Sophy is a riot... what has she gotten herself into!? The entire situation is so funny you'll love it. Young is excellent at character development.

The new movie "The Wedding Date" with Debra Messing is ROUGHLY based on this novel. I was dissappointed with the movie but I LOVED the book. There are many differences in the book and not just sublties, many of the differences are huge.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Asking for a Great Time!
Review: By now we've all seen the trailers and TV spots for The Wedding Date. I haven't seen this movie, though it looks escapist enough to try and catch. What I have purchased is the book that the film is based upon, Asking for Trouble. This book has, of course, been repackaged under the new name The Wedding Date, but don't let that deter you. This novel is exceptionally written and a ton more laughs than the movie seems. Needless to say, Hollywood has changed so many areas of this story that it holds little resemblance to the novel.

In the novel, main character Sophy is a "Bridget Jones" type character. A slightly overweight, quirky London resident living with two equally quirky flatmates. She is human and real. What she is not is Debra Messing. :-) Anyway, Sophy has made up a false boyfriend, with whom she is "practically engaged." Sophy's mother is of the competitive sort, with her snobby next-door neighbor playing the role of rival. Sophy introducing the world (okay, her mother's circle of "friends") to her boyfriend would solidify her position as queen of the group.

Needless to say, this is a story filled with things not being what they appear. This principle gives this story depth, because it is more realistic. How many times in life have we thought this ourselves?

I also find it interesting that the main character's name is Sophy -- a derivative of Sophie which comes from the greek word for wisdom. This word was derived from Sophocles, an early philosopher. Sophy admittedly is not so wise (She's lying to everyone afterall); however, several key parts of the story are revealed through her thoughts and actions. This is most importantly a story about gaining wisdom of oneself. The author, Elizabeth Young, does an excellent job of revealing this to her readers.

This novel was a page burner... I couldn't put it down. I definitely recommend this read. If you have seen the movie and came away dissatisfied, don't discount this novel! You'll find what was missing and so much more right between the black and white pages of The Wedding Date (aka: Asking for Trouble) by Elizabeth Young

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: This is the first "Chick Lit" book I ever read... and now I have read it 5 times! I absolutely love it, and it has hooked me on chick lit FOREVER! The heroine is hilarious! I love how she overanalyzes everything... women everywhere do. The plot is origional and has some very good twists.
This is the book that I hold all other up to and think, "Will I have close to as much fun as when I read 'Asking for Trouble'?"

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Kept me up late
Review: I really got involved with the characters in this book and when I only had 80 pages left to read, I couldn't put it down to get to bed on time! I look forward to seeing the movie, The Wedding Date, which is based on this book.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A LIKABLE, LAUGHABLE READING
Review:

A familiar voice on the BBC, Jasmine Hyde is the perfect actress to bring sassy, saucy, prevaricating Sophy Metcalfe to vivid life. She reads this likable, laughable British comedy with robust charm. First released under the title Asking For Trouble, Young's first novel is now also a major motion picture titled The Wedding Date. Whatever the title, it's fun.

Sophy is a successful young career woman - according to her mother the operative word here is single woman. Mom will give her no peace until she puts that Mrs. in front of her name. So, to get a little breathing room Sophy invents a suitor, Dominic, who is, of course, everything her mother could ever long for in a son-in-law. Except for the fact that he doesn't exist.

All's well until sister Belinda sets a wedding date and Sophy must produce her perfect Dominic. Ooops! She hires a date for the wedding from an escort service, which doesn't turn out to be such a bad idea after all. But, there are lots of twists and turns in this road to romance, thanks to Sophy's predilection for falsehoods.

- Gail Cooke

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: it was good, but flawed
Review: I could not put this book down - usually a good thing. It WAS interesting and I enjoyed it...for the most part.
But after I was done with it the flaws in it really stood out even more.
The main character, Sophy, is just really bitchy to the man she says she likes (Josh, aka the faux Dominic). I don't see how he could fall for her when she is sniping at him all the time.
Plus, as another reviewer mentioned, Josh's character is very underdeveloped. We don't get a sense of "who" he really is.
All of Sophy's lies were just over the top and came to be almost unbearable to read about. You just wanted to shout at her to "Tell the truth already!" And again, how could a man fall for someone who is so wrapped up in her own lies??? It was so unbelieveable. Sophy was almost unredeemable as a likeable character. And on top of that, she obsessed constantly about what she thought Josh was thinking instead of ever actually coming right out and asking him. (And of course, to further the story she was wrong every time.) I guess that is what one gets for ASSUMING things in the first place!
I don't know whether to recommend this book to you or not. I'd say if you are really that concerned that you won't like it, just borrow it from the library or a friend.


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