Summer Book Review: Career Game by Louise Mensch

Purchase |Goodreads

MY SYNOPSIS 

Imagine This: You have everything you already dream of accomplishing by forty. You run a chain of magazines, you have a successful husband, not-quite-successful kids but their trust-fund would cater for that when the time is right.

Except off late you've realized circulation figures for your magazine is sinking. People aren't buying magazines like they used to. Information is everywhere these days. And blogs are killing your market. 

It doesn't end there. Your husband is being an arse. He's suggesting your kids should be transferred to—shivers—public school! And things are getting bad at home with arguments after arguments.

You can't take all that's going with your family now. It's work you run to. Work in a few hours the board of your company are preparing to fire you from.

There's no one to turn to. Someone out there wants to bring you down, you are aware of this—you are in New York after all, and you stepped on many toes to get successful. You've only got your bestfriend who's also a top-dog in the music industry...

Only she's too wrapped up in salvaging her own record company before it goes down the drain.

Topaz and Rowena's turbulent lives summed up for your delight.

My Review. 

I liked this book.

Great storyline. I love titles featuring women with high-powered jobs dominating men's only environments. They usually set my temperature boiling as they are fast-paced and such a turn-on! This title is no different. A star.──★

The main characters are not hard to fall in love with. As I said above, both Rowena and Tapaz were a turn-on for me with their lives every New Yorker would be envious of... unless you delve into their familial lives and realize they are not as perfect as they put across. Very relatable to women who are trying hard to strike the appropriate work-family balance. A star.──★★ 

Some other characters are winning too. There's Maria, the actress who's trying hard to break-in to the world of Hampton-Hausfrau and New-York socialite by hooking a multi-millionaire husband. There's also Joe Goldstein, the husband of Tapaz you ladies would love because it happens he isn't only successful at work he's... good in other areas too. Stars to all these characters.──★★★ 

Suspense is a big thing in this book. You'd be sitting on the edge of your seat for most part of your reading. The sex is also amazing too—lots of squirming moments in your seat.──★★★★

My only problem is I wish other characters could have been fleshed more. There were lots of characters who weren't well-developed and most of them seemed... not so three-dimensional. Otherwise it would have been a five-star read.

So my rating:  Four/Five stars (4/5 stars).

Louise Mensch's latest is available on amazon.

I recommend this to anyone who wants a fast-paced bonkbuster this summer that they can lose themselves into and make lots of book boyfriends or—if they are not in for a relationship—these boys can equally serve as Good book fuck-buddies. If you also want to read a title set between enchanting L.A, and New York and some glamorous locations all over the world, go pick this. Want to read a book of about women who have it all and are about to lose it all, run for this. 

My work not done here. Off to post my review on Goodreads and Amazon.

Sumner Book Review: My Mother's Secret by Sheila O'Flanagan

Purchase|Goodreads 

My Synopsis 

Imagine This: You are happy for your parents! Forty years! That’s a big deal! Forty years of love, forty years of setting the best example for you to follow. Though, really, let’s face it, they set the bar really high when all you’ve been able to handle is some non-serious friends-with-benefits uncomplicated relationships. A few months of orgasmic fun, that is!

Anyway, you are very much sure your parents would love to have a quiet time together. But your older unbearable sis is having none of it. She wants to throw a surprise party for them, inviting friends, family and neighbours. And you’d rather help than have a rolling pin whacked against your head, really. Besides things look like they’d turn up just alright because nobody seems to be complaining. (But perhaps, maybe they are not teetering around town with three tiers of cake or climbing skyscraper ladders to fix up banners).

Except your mum has decided to release a long-kept secret(s). So things are not exactly going to be booze, cutting cake and making speeches.

Roll out your tissues! It’s going to be one heck of a stormy summer party.

Steffie’s life summed up for your delight.

My Review 

I liked this book!

Great storyline. A family book you could get cosy with this summer. So Woman decides on her fortieth anniversary, she can no more live a lie she’s kept for years, and decides she cannot wait another day (why? Why?) to reveal it to everyone during the time her children want to throw her the biggest surprise. During the same time her son is bringing in a girlfriend from Denmark to coax her into marrying him seeing just how happy his parents are. A star!──

★

A fun multiple character-read! As with all other family books, you’d find yourself scrutinizing, turning over each character finding who you best relate with. You would find your inner, dreamy, lovechild in Steffie. You would find your inner bossiness and unbearable nature in Roisin. You might also find your inner-unsettled and fussy nature in Jenny, the mother. A star.── ★★

Other characters make this book great as well. There’s Summer the cocktail-mixer who’s a bit of a hit amongst the older men of the family. There’s Colette, the cousin who’s dumped three men at the altar. There’s Dave, the brother who’s searching for a right moment to propose. You’d also love the meddling aunts who can’t stand how happy Jenny and Pascal are.── ★★★

OMG Moments would make this a great read for you. OMG Moments you’d really find yourself giggling at. A star.── ★★★★

I liked this book. But I really, really wished I could have loved, loved it. I wanted less predictability, more surprise. On a general note, it a good book. So my rating…

My rating: Four/five stars.

Sheila O’ Flanagan’s latest is available on amazon.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants a family read to enjoy this summer. Anyone who wants a multiple-character read which doesn’t make all the characters look the same, sound the same, be the same. Anyone who wants a title with lots of heart, warmth and love should look no further than this.

My work not done here. Off to post my review on amazon, as well as goodreads.

Review: Lily Does L.A by Nicola Doherty (Girls On Tour Series)

MY SYNOPSIS

Imagine this: You have always wanted to be an actress. The joy of being in a theatre, cinema performing behind a camera or in front of an audience gives you a rush you can’t explain. Except the only camera you have ever been behind is that of an ad for a low-quality product on the market which wouldn’t by nay chance emerge the biggest thing close to women’s perfume.

So your cousin invites you up for a wedding in L.A. EL-ay! The Mecca of all the world’s finest people. And some way, just somehow you think you might get your break and become the next biggest thing in women’s perfumes ads close to Scarlett Johansen when you stumble upon a talent scout. Then you find out your cousin’s groom is a film agent.

Really, the universe must be speaking to you.

But then there’s your dad and your cousin speaking to you; warning you, you are not allowed to bring up anything about movies so as not to put the groom in an awkward position than he already is selecting napkin colours for guests.

Do you perhaps need to sit back and help your cousin with all her hectic wedding preparations hoping your dreams would come to life? Or perhaps, take matters into your own hands (discarding the bridal bouquet) to make your own dreams come true?

Lily’s life summed up for your utmost delight.

MY REVIEW.

Pack up your bags, quit your job and go to Hollywood hoping you would land a role in a major picture.  Loved the storyline of this book. Girl gets fired for practicing an accent on a job in a call center, Girl jets to L.A for her cousin’s wedding, Girl goes through all the wedding preparations lining herself up for auditioning for major TV roles. Superb!── ★

If you love books for their heroines, Lily is your one stop. Funny, brutally honest except for the occasional lies needed in order to succeed, secretly pissed at her dad for ditching her mother for the F-Bomb and secretly covets Emma Stone for getting her break younger than her. You would be cheering Lily on all the way considering she’s an ordinary, relatable girl who just wants to make her dreams come true and would stop at nothing just so she could become that famous actress (we all secretly want to be too).── ★★

Some other characters made reading this book fun. Think Alice the cousin who encourages Lily never to give up yet expects her to keep her acting on the down-low all through her days in Hollywood. Fiona, Lily’s soon-to-be step-mum who tries way too hard to win her over. Cynthia, Alice’s Future Mother-In-Law who’s bent on giving the couple a wedding as traditional as possible no matter what it takes. Jesse, the groom’s cousin who’s so law-abiding about everything enough to make you cringe.── ★★★

The ending to this novella was amazing, heart-warming and unexpected. I love that though it was a short-story it wasn’t predictable like a lot of others I have read. A star to the ending.── ★★★★

My rating: Four/five stars.

Lily does L.A as part of Nicola Doherty’s Girls on Tour series is available on amazon.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants something short, humorous and unpredictable. Anyone who’s wanted to follow their dreams should get this book. And if in doubt of something quick and sunny to pack for any holiday you should get this book too.

My work not done here. Off to post my review on Goodreads.