Review: "Build a Man" by Talli Roland

American citizen Serenity Holland moved to London with her best friend in search of adventure and possibly a position writing for a tabloid magazine. Instead she finds herself working as a receptionist in a plastic surgery office, and she just happens to be dating (and living with) her boss.

Serenity finds herself longing for more, like a job that she doesn't hate or a boyfriend who will eat more than plain chicken breasts, when Jeremy Ritchie walks in the door of the surgery looking to change everything about his outward appearance in order to make himself more attractive to women. Serenity finds herself instantly inspired to write an article about Jeremy and the changes that he is about to undergo and no one is more surprised than she when her pitch to a major tabloid is accepted. The catch is that both Jeremy and her boyfriend boss can't know that she is writing about them, and Serenity finds herself going undercover.

When the unthinkable happens Serenity finds herself required to decide what is really important to her, and the conclusions that she comes to may surprise even herself.

I can easily say that Build a Man is my favourite Talli Roland novel to date. There's just something about Serenity that made me like her from the beginning, despite the fact that my life has little in common with hers. She's so sincere. She genuinely loves her friends, and she's trying to be an adult in her relationship. Her determination to achieve her goals is charming and the mistakes that she makes along the way just make her more lovable.

The real star of the show, though, is Jeremy. I think that most will agree that he is the perfect hero. Having been hurt in the past he is determined to make himself into a new man and he goes about his task with gusto, but in the midst of this he remains sincere and down- to- earth. He isn't perfect and that's what makes him so endearing. His sweetness is evident throughout the book and I was especially interested to find out how his story ends.

Build a Man is fast-paced, well-written chick lit that I can't recommend highly enough. Talli Roland has a sequel to this one coming out titled Construct a Couple and I've already added it to my wish list. My thanks to the author for sending me this review copy.

Review: "Chosen" by Chandra Hoffman

Chloe Pinter is a caseworker with Portland's Chosen Child domestic adoption program. Despite the fact that domestic adoption can be a difficult program to work in, with low success rates and few children available for adoption, the image of her handing over a newborn to the new parents sticks firmly in her mind. In her line of work she meets with all kinds of birth parents from many different situations, and she clings to the idea that she will be giving these children the opportunity of a better life.

At home things are not quite as ordered as they are at work. Chloe's boyfriend is a free spirit who feels like he is being stifled by their domestic situation. A surfer who never stays in one place for long, he longs to stretch his wings and fly away, with or without Chloe.

Chloe's dream of creating happy families comes to an abrupt halt when three couples become involved in a domestic adoption nightmare. One young pregnant couple, barely able to support themselves, struggle with giving up their unborn child. Another couple have struggled with infertility for a long time but they hope that their upcoming adoption will go through. A third couple, college sweethearts, have been plagued with infertility but are finally pregnant and due to have their baby anytime now. When a baby goes missing, a chain of events is set into motion that will challenge everything that the couples once thought to be true.

I found Chosen to be a compelling and interesting story. I enjoyed the fact that while the focus was on domestic adoption, we get to know the main character Chloe on a more intimate level. We're with her while she's at work, dealing with the birth parents and the potential adoptive parents, but we also get to know her at home while she's dealing with a boyfriend whom she loves but who is a free spirit. This lent a certain personality to the story that helped me to relate to it more directly. We also get to see things from the perspectives of both the birth parents and the potential adoptive parents, which lends an air of authenticity to the story.

While it deals with a sensitive topic, one that few fictional book choose to address so directly, I think that Chandra Hoffman does an excellent job presenting multiple perspectives on the issue. Although some who have read the book didn't care for the ending, that was one of my favorite parts. I thought that the book was wrapped up in a way that way that made sense, despite the fact that it may not have been the most realistic choice. Ultimately Chosen is a gripping story well worth reading for those who enjoy women's fiction with grit.

Thank-you to TLC Book Tours for inviting me along on this tour!

Review: "Beneath a Starlet Sky" By Amanda Goldberg and Ruthanna Khalighi Hopper

Lola Santis is the CEO of a struggling fashion line that is desperate for its big break into the fashion world. Complicating things is the fact that Lola's doctor fiance lives in Los Angeles and she finds herself frequently travelling between the fashion hub that is New York and her "real" life in L.A. Lola's father and brother are both Hollywood directors who are unfortunately in direct competition with each other, which leads to frequent tension in the Santis household. In the midst of all this craziness, Lola's attention hound mother somehow comes to the conclusion that it is a good idea to allow a reality show to be filmed in their house.

When Lola's company's wedding dresses are chosen to feature in the biggest film of the Cannes Film Festival, she finds herself organizing a couture fashion show on a yacht in the middle of the ocean in the hopes of launching the line into the big time. Will she survive Cannes? And will she be able to escape the craziness of her life long enough to figure out what's real and what's Hollywood make-believe?

Beneath a Scarlet Sky was enjoyable enough. The writing was good and the transitions seamless. However I feel that ultimately this novel is one that I will read and promptly forget. I had a hard time connecting with Lola and all of the craziness invading her life and I think that this could be part of the problem for me. The books that work the best for me are the ones in which I can connect with and root for the main character in some way. Lola was nice enough, but while I was rooting for her to find a happy ending I just found her circumstances far too different from mine for me to forge any kind of a connection with her.

It is entirely possible that others who read this book will form a very different opinion from mine. Overall this book had a fun vibe to it, and reading it is similar to reading an entertaining gossip magazine.  I can recommend it to chick lit fans who enjoy good celebrity gossip from time to time (and don't we all?), however in the end this one just didn't work for me on a personal level. I thank the publicist for this review copy.

Review: "Live Out Loud" by Heather Wardell

Amy is a talented songwriter and singer who accidentally falls into stardom when a video of a private performance that she gives is posted on a blog and goes viral. The next thing she knows she's being stuffed into too-tight clothing with matching wigs, she's moved to a more secure apartment, she has her own bodyguards, and she has become the singing sensation Misty Will.

Her willingness to do all it takes to become a music sensation is more than what it seems on the surface, though. Amy loves singing and performing, but what she really needs is the money that her opportunity will provide her with to start the center for troubled young girls that she and her late friend, Giselle, had always dreamed of opening. As Amy becomes more involved in the world of Misty Will, and as the money that she needs to start the center is deposited into her bank account, she starts to reexamine what it is that she truly wants from life and is torn: does she continue being Misty Will or does she start the center and honor her friend's memory? The answer seems clear, but is she making the right decision?

I'm a long time fan of Heather Wardell and there's lots to love about Live Out Loud. My favorite part had to be the underlying message that clearly comes across: live your dreams with no apologies. All too often we feel pressured to do something with our lives that will make others happy, but it's easy to lose sight of what will make us truly happy. Amy struggles with these issues throughout the book as she tries to decide if she should follow her dreams or follow the dreams of her late friend in her memory. I also enjoyed the developing romance present in the book. It felt genuine and realistic to me, and I was happy when Amy was able to find someone able to deal with her instant stardom. The plot was fresh and current. I'm a big fan of The Ellen DeGeneres Show and there have been tons of times when Ellen invites someone on her show who has posted a video of themselves on YouTube and has become almost instantly famous. With all of the technology at our fingertips this kind of thing is happening all of the time and the plot resonated with me.

That being said there was one thing in this book that I had a problem with. Amy, as a character, did not always feel real to me. It had nothing to do with her fame, but with her reactions to certain events in her life. Despite her fame she didn't seem to change a bit, and I didn't find that realistic. She was careful to watch out for others, and she got along with almost everyone that she met, but I think that all of us has an inner bitch that does come out to play once in a while, and that we can't be "on" 24-7. I just wish that she would have shown some kind of selfishness or diva-like behavior along the way. It wouldn't have made me like her any less, I just would have felt that she was more human.

Live Out Loud is well-written, relevant, and interesting, with plenty of things to love about it. I can easily recommend it to my fellow chick lit fans and I thank the author for providing me with a review copy.

Review: "Little Black Dress" by Susan McBride

Antonia Ashton has worked hard to escape her small-town roots and has established a life for herself in the city, complete with a business and a boyfriend. However Antonia's plans go awry when her mother, Evie, suffers a stroke and Antonia needs to return to her hometown of Blue Hills.

Back home Antonia is confronted with a deluge of memories, and the appearance of a  mysterious black dress only proves to complicate things. What Antonia slowly comes to realize is that this seemingly normal little black dress possesses power beyond her wildest imagination. It was the garment that Evie was found in when she had her stroke, and although the paramedics had to cut it open, Antonia brings it home and finds that it has miraculously repaired itself. Even more surprising are the visions that Antonia has as soon as she puts the dress on.

As Antonia spends more time in Blue Hills helping her mother recover and rediscovering old friends, she inadvertently unravels an age-old family mystery and comes to understand more about herself and her family history, all with the help of a little black dress.

Before even picking up this book I was a little skeptical. I mean, a little black dress that has magical powers? I had my doubts as to how that would work into the story, and I wondered if it would lend a sense of disbelief to the entire story. Luckily I was mistaken, and as I read I found myself drawn into the story about hardworking Antonia, her kindhearted mother Evie, and Evie's long-lost sister Anna. The mysteries behind the Ashton family were revealed slowly but surely, and even though I had some ideas as to what was going to happen, I wasn't entirely right, nor did having an idea as to what was going to happen take away from the story as a whole. Even though I don't read what one would call "traditional" mysteries, I loved how McBride was able to weave mystery, family dynamics, and romance into one book, and how she managed to make these elements all work together.

If you don't mind the fact that the one thing that ties the story together is a black dress with magical powers, I think that you'll enjoy Little Black Dress. Well-written and with a plot that managed to suck me in despite my initial doubts, this one is a treat for those who enjoy women's fiction. My thanks to the publisher for sending this review copy.

Review: "Ex-Girlfriends United" by Matt Dunn

I've been a fan of the adventures of Ed and Dan since I read The Ex-Boyfriend's Handbook. If you haven't read that one yet, essentially Ed is unlucky and clueless in love and Dan has had more girlfriends than pairs of underwear. Best friends, the two hope to learn from one another and hopefully they'll have their happily ever after (although Dan's happily ever after just may involve two women and a hot tub!). In Ex-Girlfriends United Ed and Dan are back, although this time it's Dan who is looking for a love life makeover. Dan has never been one for long-term girlfriends, but when his dating life becomes non-existent he starts looking for a reason for his slump. He comes across the website SlateYourDate.com and finds out that his ex-girlfriends have left him some less-than-favorable reviews. Sick of being single, Dan sets out to track down these exes, apologize, and hopefully have them change their rating of him, but when Dan realizes that he wants the first love of his life back, will he be able to convince her that he's changed for good?

Ex-Girlfriend's United may not be as funny as The Ex-Boyfriend's Handbook, but with the return of Ed and Dan, it's just as fun. The first time around Ed was the clueless one, but this time it's Dan's turn. He may be smooth with the ladies, but he has absolutely no idea how to treat them beyond the first date, and he certainly has no clue how to sustain a relationship long-term. Ed, the sweeter and more thoughtful of the two, is willing to step up and lend his buddy a hand, but the road to redemption won't be without its awkward moments.

Well-written and light-hearted, Ex-Girlfriend's United is perfect for any fan of chick lit (or bloke lit as chick lit written by a man is called in the UK) . Other than the fact that it wasn't quite as laugh-out-loud funny as the first book in the series, I couldn't find fault with it, and I definitely enjoyed Dunn's quick wit and easy writing style. This would be great to curl up with when you're looking to beat the winter blahs (don't curse me- the snow is coming people whether you like it or not!) and I've already ordered the next book in the series, which is a great indication of how much I truly enjoyed it. My thanks to Sourcebooks for sending this review copy my way!

Review: "Promises, Promises" by Erica James

Maggie is married to a man who not only doesn't appreciate her, but doesn't even try. He's more concerned with what time his dinner will be on the table than how her day was, even though she spends her days cleaning houses for people with more money than manners, and Maggie's had enough. Ella is a free spirit with a love for specialty interior design, and she's not looking for a man, but one's about to find her. Ethan is in a loveless marriage, and he's sworn to himself that there will be no more affairs, but when he comes across an angel painting a ridiculously expensive mural in his living room, all bets are off.

All three of these people have made promises to themselves, but keeping them may prove to be harder than they thought.

Erica James has penned another winner for fans of women's fiction with Promises, Promises. I thoroughly enjoyed her other Sourcebooks release, The Queen of New Beginnings, and this book was equally enjoyable. James has a way with words, and I find myself sucked into her stories as soon as I pick them up. I felt a special empathy for the under-appreciated Maggie, whose husband is demanding but unwilling to give anything back to her in return. He doesn't stop to think about Maggie at all, and he allows his son and his mother to treat her as their personal slave. Her story line quickly became my favorite out of the three that thread through the book.

Well-written with an interesting plot, Promises, Promises is sure to appeal to the majority of fans of women's fiction. The fact that this story is set in the UK was a special bonus for me, and I look forward to reading Erica James' next release.

Review: "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Her Brother's Shotgun Wedding" by Noreen Riley

Evie Dunleavy is very surprised when her brother Michael calls to say that he is getting married....and that his bride-to-be is pregnant. Michael lives in London, while the family remains in the United States, so nobody has even met the bride! Michael convinces Evie, who is at a loose end at the moment anyways, to move to London on his dime and help his bride-to-be plan the wedding while getting to know her a bit before the wedding. Without any better offers on the horizon Evie accepts, packs everything up, and heads off for an adventure.

Luckily for Evie Michael's apartment is too small for an extended house guest so he sets her up in his friend Nate's apartment. Nate is delicious to behold and charming to boot so Evie knows that she will have no problem staying with him for the next couple of months. She may just have a problem keeping her hands off of him, though, despite Michael's rule that his friends are not permitted to date his little sister.

Despite the long title, A Funny Thing Happened... is a fast and fun journey into the world of chick lit that takes place across the pond. It's filled with lots of laugh-out-loud moments, a heroine who is far from perfect, and a cast of lovable supporting characters. I especially loved the bride-to-be, Charlotte, who is well-bred, sweet, and accepting of Evie despite her downfalls. I've planned a wedding myself (although thankfully I was not pregnant at the time) and I can't imagine being as calm and collected as Charlotte was despite all of the things that inevitably went wrong.

If you're looking for a light read after a long day, and you're willing to overlook the occasional spelling and grammatical errors, A Funny Thing Happened.... is an excellent choice. I would certainly be excited to read another book about the charming and flawed Evie Dunleavy if Noreen Riley decided to write a sequel.

Guest Post by Michele Gorman, author of "Single in the City"

Please join me in welcoming Michele Gorman, author of Single in the City (recently published in the US as an eBook and available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble now!), to The Book Chick! Today Michele shares with us the reasoning behind her decision to self-publish in the US despite the fact that her book was published by a traditional publisher in the UK:


When I decided to self-publish Single in the City in the US as an eBook, I had to think hard about why I wanted to do it. After all, Single in the City was published by Penguin in the UK and many other countries. Did this mean I was rejecting the big publishers, as many writers have recently done, in favour of self-publishing? 


The short answer is no. My experience with Penguin UK was very positive and I will definitely look to work with a big publisher on another book. There are many advantages in a partnership with a publisher. They ensure that the process runs smoothly for instance, and once you deliver the final manuscript for publication, much of your job is done. Self-publishing however, is a bit like planning a wedding. You start out optimistically thinking it will all go smoothly. There are just a few things to sort out right? The dress, and cake. And venue, and music and rings and food and flowers and attendants and guest lists and hotels and seating plans and invitations and and and ... by the time the wedding, er, launch day, arrives you just want to go to sleep.


Another benefit of a big publisher is that they have PR teams and sales teams and editorial teams and cover design teams. In self-publishing the success of the book is all up to you. This is liberating, but daunting too. 


So why am I self-publishing? Well, I’m doing it because sometimes publishers have less faith in the books, and the readers, than we, the writers, do. 


You see, when Caroline and I sold book rights to Penguin (UK), we held back the US rights. We did this because I wanted a US-based publisher for Single in the City’s American launch. After all the main character, Hannah, is American. There’s a strong theme about seeing London through rather baffled American eyes. Caroline and I thought that surely it was a great fit for the US market.


The US publishers we approached had a different point of view. They were all very nice about it but said that the book isn’t right for the American chick lit market. It’s set in London. Readers won’t identify with it, they concluded. 


I disagree. Isn’t it a bit dismissive, and wrong, to suggest that American women can only be interested in books that literally reflect their own lives? If that were true then only mothers of homicidal children would buy We Need To Talk About Kevin, and nobody living outside the 19th Century would bother with Jane Eyre. These books gain wide readership because they deal with universal themes (nature versus nurture, the effects of parenting, family, belonging, love). Single in the City is about taking a chance and establishing a new life. More than 5 million young American women do that every year when they move cities. It’s a fish-out-of-water story. And it’s about finding your feet in life and love. These, too, are universal themes. Those US publishers sold chick lit fans short. 


And that’s why I’m self-publishing. I believe it’s the right decision for this book in this market. Like Hannah, I’m taking a leap of faith.


Thank-you so much to Michele for taking the time to be here today! You can friend her on Facebook here find her on Twitter here.

Review: "Single in the City" by Michele Gorman

Desperate for big change in her life, 26-year-old Hannah drops everything and moves to the UK. She has no job, no home, no connections, and no friends in London, but she's confident that things will work out, somehow. Despite a rough start and a considerable dose of culture shock, Hannah starts getting her new life together in London. She lands a job, although her boss certainly seems to hate her, she meets men, although none seem to be real prospects, and she makes new friends, although they can't quite compare to her best friend at home. As she adjusts to her new life, Hannah learns that the happiest endings are worth the extra work that it may take to get there.

Michele Gorman decided to self-publish her novel in the US (more on that to come when Michele guest posts here tomorrow!) and I'm certainly glad that she did. Single in the City is witty and charming, and it's filled with laugh-out-loud scenarios (salad cream anyone??). I've long been fascinated with England and English culture, and this book allowed me to do more than a little armchair travelling in a city that I would love to someday visit. I appreciated the main character, Hannah. I can't imagine how much guts it would take to just pick up and leave your home country without a job prospect on the horizon. Hannah manages to turn her impulsive decision into a positive one and I loved how she managed to land on her feet (although not without complications!).

Women's fiction lovers will enjoy the underlying romantic plot (I certainly did), but I appreciated that Single in the City touches on the issues of friendship, culture shock, and being willing to take risks in life. It all blended together to create a funny, highly readable book perfect for anyone who enjoys reading humorous women's fiction.

Gorman is doing something exciting that I haven't heard of before. Single in the City will have a sequel, and we, the readers, get to have input into what will happen to our heroine next. Gorman is on Facebook, she has a Twitter handle, and she has a website, and she will be soliciting input as to what direction the new book will take as well be providing us with updates along the way. There have definitely been times when I wished that I could have had input into a sequel, so I think that this is a great idea and I can't wait to read it myself.

Single in the City is now available in the US on Amazon as well as Barnes & Noble. I thank the author for providing me with a review copy.