Book Review: Kissed in Paris

Book: Kissed in Paris 

Genre: Chick Lit, Romantic Comedy, Action Adventure 

Authors: Juliette Sobanet 

Cover Critique:

Stunning, dazzling, very stylish cover! I love the collage of bright colours here – orange, yellow, green, red and of course there is the trademark of Paris, Eiffel tower in the background. This is, so far, my favourite cover in 2012.

Book Blurb:

“You are in Paris, the City of Love. You must not be so controlled. Here, have another glass. I promise you, it will not hurt.”

When 29-year-old event planner Chloe Turner wakes up penniless and without a passport in the Plaza Athénée Hotel in Paris, she only has a few fleeting memories of Claude, the suave French man who convinced her to have that extra glass of wine before taking all of her possessions and slipping out the door. As the overly organized, go-to gal for her three drama queen younger sisters, her anxiety-ridden father, and her needy clients, Chloe is normally prepared for every disaster that comes her way. But with her wedding to her straight-laced, lawyer fiancé back in DC only days away and a French con-man on the loose with her engagement ring, this is one catastrophe she never could have planned for. As Chloe tries to figure out a way home, she runs into an even bigger problem—the police are after her due to suspicious activity now tied to her bank account. Chloe's only hope at retrieving her passport and clearing her name lies in the hands of a rugged, undercover agent named Julien who has a few secrets of his own.  (Blurb Courtesy: Amazon.com) 

Review:

This is the story of an impulsive girl (Chloe), who is robbed by a French conman (Claude). She decides to trust an undercover agent (Julien) who is apparently trying to save our heroine from the clutches of police in the hope to recover her passport so she can fly back to America in time for her wedding (which is in next few days!). Does this sound like a promising premise for a well-written novel? And the answer is, YES!!!

This madcap romantic comedy (I would not call it the usual chick-lit, it is much better than that!), is full of thrills and adventure and the more it progresses, the faster it gets, like a furious car race with more U-turns and twists at every step of the way. With the sensational opening chapter, which perfectly sets the tone, mood and setting of the story, the writer drives the story forward in fifth gear and takes the readers for a “wild ride”.


The book gives a splendid tour of France (not just Paris!) and its beautiful countryside as a backdrop while the French agent (the hero) and the heroine run to get their life in place, but the more they try to solve things, the more they get entangled in bigger mess. While the story is written from first person perspective, it follows the hero to lead them from one situation to another.

The character of Chloe and Julien is brilliantly carved by the writer. She not only gives them signature traits (such as Chloe’s love for chocolate croissants and Julien’s bad habit of smoking) which make the characters memorable, but also gets into the hidden crevices of their minds, to reveal their secret desires (i.e. how Chloe finds Julien smoking hot) and conflicts (as Chloe decides between Paul and Julien) to the readers. There is a certain amount of craziness to their behaviour which adds to the momentum of the story.

What I loved most about the novel is that it does NOT have typical chick lit ingredients like BFFS, whining and sulking by the heroine or the search for a perfect gentleman. On the contrary, this novel has thugs, tattooed badass men, suspicious activities by our hero (Julien) who is street-smart and not really trustworthy. To know how he leads (rather misleads!) our heroine, read the novel!

You can understand how much I enjoyed every bit of the novel, from the fact that it kept me up all night long! I was up till 6 in the morning turning the pages swiftly to finish it. This is the first novel in many years that interrupted my sleep and left me craving for more (the previous one was “Zoya” by Danielle Steel which I would recommend as well). Seriously, I did not want this excellent novel to end. It was so much fun – “pure escapism” and that is why, equally hard to bid farewell to the characters!

Final verdict: Highly recommended for the natural flow in the story, unconventional and gripping writing style of the author, flawless execution of original plot, unforgettable characters, exotic French scenery and laugh-out-loud crazy adventure. A must-read for those who enjoy a little bit of eccentricity to spice up the routine.

Review Girl Rating: 10/10

“I would like to thank Juliette Sobanet for sending me a free copy of this book, for the purpose of reviewing it on my blog. You can buy this book from Amazon, by clicking here.” 

Want to read this book free? Then, click here!

Was this review helpful? Have you already read this book? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? Tell me in the comments section below! 

Book Review: Treasure Me

Book: Treasure Me

Genre: Romantic Comedy/Mystery/ Contemporary Fiction

Author: Christine Nolfi

Cover Critique:

The cover is somewhat straight-forward and simple like a textbook with dull colors. It gives me an impression that I picked one of the books from the classical literature section. I am saying it as a good thing because I am fond of classics! I like the cover as it is well-fitted to the theme of the book but it needs to be perked up a little.

Review: 

A ‘bold and beautiful’ female thief named Birdie and a nosy but handsome investigative journalist Hugh come together in this sizzling romantic comedy as they uncover the mystery of the treasure left by Birdie’s ancestors. In this “peel the onion” kind of mystery, each chapter unfolds one layer after another in the form of clues. As Birdie gathers all the clues to hunt the family treasure, lots of other ambiguities emerge to the surface. With many twists and turns that follow in the story, the complexities grow as the plot thickens!

While she works as a part-time waitress in old town Liberty’s restaurant, “The Second Chance Grill”, she gains trust and support from her newly made friends, keeping her actual identity and motive ‘a secret’ from the people of Liberty. But how long will she be able to keep her criminal instincts a secret? Will Birdie succeed in finding the treasure: bags full of precious gems? Or Is she going to be exposed by someone whom she dared to trust? Will she be able to leave the life of a criminal and start afresh? Most importantly, will she learn to trust her guts and build relationships? There is thrill, there is adventure and of course, there is romance!

The story starts with the main character, Birdie Kaminsky pick pocketing an old guy and running away from him, finally landing at her tiny apartment and managing to escape with the help of her good-hearted neighbours. Soon we see her setting off to Ohio, to a small town named Liberty. The writer uses “flashback” technique to tell the readers about her family background. She belongs to a family of con artists and criminals. Her mother, Wish Kaminsky lures rich gullible men and then vanishes with all their wealth to a far off place.

The writer lends an emotional touch to her character showing that even a thief has a heart. Birdie longs for family and friends and affection which she could never get in her childhood as she got dragged along with her mother from one town to another, stealing and running heists. But unlike her mother, she wants to settle down in her life and leave illegal stuff. Thus, the reader starts to feel sympathetic towards her.

She is hoping to gain a lot of wealth very soon (as she sets off to Liberty to discover the family treasure) to fulfill her dream of living a normal life. But even this shortcut is filled with many hurdles which she has to pass to reach the jackpot! She has just got one clue with her, “Liberty safeguards the cherished heart” and that she is somehow related to freedwoman of Civil War, Justice Postell whose picture she finds hung on the wall of the restaurant, “The Second Chance Grill”.

Things get a lot spicy with the entry of cynical journalist Hugh, who also comes to this restaurant to expose a scam for his next article. The plethora of engaging characters, each holding their charm and uniqueness work as perfect catalysts to advance the story. We come to know angry cook Finney, easy-going waitress Delia, the ever-amusing Theodora, wise teenager Blossom, depressed father Landon, strict boss Bud and several other secondary characters. The igniting chemistry between the hero and heroine of the story is a treat to watch as the novel advances towards its end.

As I started reading the first chapter, I felt that this book is not going to be an ordinary book, because of the ways in which the writer uses “literary techniques” at her disposal. Starting the book with a female thief doing a lot of ‘action’, gave me an adrenaline rush which I think is a perfect start to the story. The mood for some thrills and excitement is set right from the start! It definitely grabbed me and I was turning pages fast to find out what happens next.

There is a lot of “dramatic visualization” to describe the characters of Theodora and Hugh as well as Birdie which made me feel as if the reel is going on in my mind and I could imagine in great picturesque detail, what they were doing. The writer gets into the skin of the characters which pulls the reader close to the characters in spite of their faults and eventually you come to like them. The characters made me laugh, cry, feel sorry for them, despise them, get angry at them as they go all berserk, but most of all, I loved them!

The writer has a perfect blend of words when it comes to define characters, incidents and even beautiful scenery. For example, there is so much poetic beauty in these lines:

“A moist haze settled over the countryside reflected through the glass. Sunlight pooled in orange puddles beneath the hills as the blue of night bled into the horizon.” 

What an amazing vivid imagery! The writer does not shy away from using  metaphors and personification whenever it is required to highlight the intensity of the scenes. We see that there are sparks flying all over the place as Hugh and Birdie collide with each other. To describe the sexual tension between the two, the writer describes Hugh’s desire for Birdie in these lines:

“He was a red blooded male, which meant he was hardwired with the need to bed her. So his programming was infected with a bad case of lust. Emotionally, he was the Sahara Desert."

The writer uses “back-story” in the form of narration, dialogue, and even recollection to take out all the pieces of the puzzle before putting them together and placing them one by one to complete the maze. This is probably one of the reasons that in spite of so many characters, the reader does not feel lost or confused. There is not one boring line or sequence. The chapters are long but the advancement of the story is faced-paced with a lot of activity to keep the reader engaged. The only thing which the book needs is re-editing as it suffers from a few typos, other than that, I do not think that there is any loophole in story or form.

I think this book was out-an-out entertaining and I won’t be surprised if this series becomes a regular drama series on television or turns into a Hollywood project. There! I said it! Highly recommended due to great plot, excellent writing style (which proves great writers do not need traditional publishing methods to succeed!) and of course, the tangy witty banter between Hugh and Birdie!

Review Girl Rating: 9.5/10

“I would like to thank Christine Nolfi for sending me a copy of her book, “Treasure Me” for the purpose of reviewing it on my blog. To know the review rules and policy, click here. To buy this book, click here.”

Book Review: Size Eight in a Size Zero World

Book: Size Eight in a Size Zero World

Genre: Chick Lit/ Contemporary Fiction/ Women’s Fiction


Author: Meredith Cagen


Cover Critique:
The cover is so stylish. With fashionable ladies gracing the cover, it perfectly matches the women-centric theme set in the backdrop of posh NYC. Very apt and convincing! It has got this "Ooo la la" factor and I like it!


Review: 

This is a story of a thirty-something married working woman, Lindsay Chandler. She lives on the Upper East Side of New York, in a posh apartment, with two school going children (Kristen and Jake) and her husband, Grant. To complete this picture perfect family, they have a dog as well, named Digby. But the truth is that her life is not as perfect as it looks. Being a misfit among the trophy wives of rich men, she yearns for a life of meaning and a burning desire to fill the vacuum inside her. We see that her relationship with her husband is as chaotic as it can get and we learn that she is extremely unhappy and craves for her husband’s care, love and attention.

On the other hand, her husband does not only have a “don’t give a damn” attitude towards her and kids but is also filled with egotistical male-chauvinistic demands, which he expects (rather orders) Lindsay to fulfil. Lindsay not only performs all household chores but also her job, which do keep her occupied but not enough to fill the emptiness in her married life. When she encounters a handsome bachelor (addressed in the novel as, “The Man Upstairs”) living in the building, she starts to fall for his physical charm, much like a “desperate wife” hungry for attention. An extra-marital affair starts and the reader is taken on a whirlwind of relationship problems, lust, love, temptations, social taboos and a journey of self-discovery for Lindsay.

If you are thinking that it is just another chick lit with a non-serious, superficial story, then you are wrong. The story can be read on many levels. The title serves double meaning: apparent and underlying. The apparent meaning is of course about the physical appearance of Lindsay which does not match the Upper East Side ladies who are thin, one-dimensional and blonde. But underlying meaning would be that she is like an outsider; a misfit in the shallow world of trophy wives.

The novel beautifully narrates the story of a woman who wants to re-invent herself and her failing marriage gives her the golden opportunity to analyse her self-worth and potential. On this journey of self-discovery, with the support of her friends, she finally comes to understand the complicated world of adult relationships and masked personalities which make her realise that she was living in a world of illusions and day-dreams.

The novel is written from the point of view of female protagonist and the opening chapters are filled with her constant whining about house chores, her husband’s indifference to her needs and her wish to land on a better job profile. While Lindsay’s complaints irritated me a little, they did not put me off at all. On the contrary, the novel hooked me from the beginning and made me want to know how her character develops and grows in the coming chapters. As the dilemma of Lindsay’s marital life is laid in front of the reader from the start, the theme of the novel gets wide and clear with all its complexities that are sure to follow.

The writer keeps the chapters short yet meaningful as we witness a whole lot of activity going on from first chapter till the last. So, as the pace does not slow down at any point of the story, it keeps the reader totally absorbed. Half-way through the story, I was so much engrossed in Lindsay’s character, that I could feel and imagine what she was going through in her life. In spite of its mature and complex story line, the writer does not digress from the plot, which is extremely remarkable!

There is also a lot of thought put into the secondary characters. There is quirky Jodee (her friend who is more like her sister), sex-expert Tanya (who is her best friend and a great aunt to her kids), helpful guy Ryan, smart kids, her compulsive mother and a very loud father. While the character of “The Man Upstairs” is complete and original and other characters are also believable, surprisingly the character of Grant is the epitome of all-bad, so much so that it looks fake and plastic! Since the story is told from first person’s POV and the readers see characters from Lindsay’s eye, it is justified to an extent. Overall, it is a smartly written book.

The ending of the book is bound to make you happy, but I will not spoil it for you. Read to find out what she decides for her future life. I will recommend it to all, especially working mothers and housewives who can empathise and maybe even learn something from Lindsay’s story. The readers get a glimpse of modern lifestyle and the changing rules of marital relationships in this social satire. A well-rounded novel which is worth a read!


Review Girl Rating: 8/10

“I would like to thank Meredith Cagen for sending me a free copy of her book, “Size Eight in a Size Zero World” for the purpose of reviewing it on my blog. To know the review rules and policy, click here. To buy this book on Amazon, click here.”

Book Review: Seattle Girl

Book: Seattle Girl

Genre: Chick Lit/ YA Fiction/ Romance

Author: Lucy Kevin

Cover critique:

The cover holds your attention in a second with its striking colours, contrasting black and white on a sharp blue background. The girl on the cover standing in stylish clothes holding a purple umbrella and a matching purse, displaying a lot of attitude in her body language and posture, works very well with the title of the book, “Seattle girl”. I simply love the cover! It is very appealing and eye-catching!

Review:

The story revolves around Georgia Fulton who has lots of dreams and aspirations as usual like any other youngster of her age. She is an ambitious, feisty and smart lady who wants to host her own radio show one day and make a career out of it. As they say, nothing comes easy in life; so she goes through many rough patches, like doing unpaid internships and working as a part-time cocktail waitress at a bar, to keep struggling and hoping that one day she will make it to the finish line and cross all barriers on this bumpy road of life! As Georgia says,

“I hate to admit this, but I wanted to get on the air so bad that I pretty much wished and prayed for the other DJs to get sick.....Anything to get to sit in the driver’s seat. Anything to live my dream."

While on her way to become a future “Seattle Girl” (the name of her own radio show), she encounters many men, who make her learn one thing or the other about adult relationships, dating pitfalls, the meaning of real love, pure lust and even herself! On the plus side, she has got the help of her loyal best friends, Diane (sexy blonde) and Seth (desperate gay) who stick by her side always. Well, I would not spoil it for you, so read it to find out how she deals with crazy, strange, embarrassing and even risky situations to become a woman with an identity of her own.

From the beginning till the end, the progression of the story is fast-paced, racing from one situation to another. The chapters are short and you keep turning pages to know what and who will Georgia confront now. The story is told from the perspective of the female protagonist and the writer makes good use of dialogues and witty lines to communicate the character of Georgia to the readers. She (the writer) hardly takes help from long and boring descriptions and keeps it more direct and personal all along. The secondary characters of Seth and Diane are also well-developed and save the story from getting dull and boring at times. The writer uses several pop culture and popular chick flick references to keep it current and trendy. The plot is quite predictable and one can easily figure out after reading first two chapters that with which guy she will finally end up (well, she dates like six guys to be sure!). The novel qualifies as a perfect beach read, with not much twists and turns to follow.

While the book slightly touches on the topic of generation gap, parent-child relationship, peer pressure and other general issues which a youngster goes through in his/her life, the novel fails to offer more in terms of plot development and a profound story with meaningful conflict leading to climax. I did not like that the book relied heavily on provocative sexual instances and harsh swearing and focused less on the romantic development between the hero and the heroine of the story.

The book uses a lot of American slang and obscene language as well as explicit situations like cage dance and exotic dance parties which came as a shock to me, because I am used to of chick lit books which use subtle hints of romance and comedy but have a great theme to keep the story intriguing, such as Katie Fforde’s “Highland Fling” or Jill Mansell’s “An offer you can’t refuse”.

The last chapters are abrupt as if the writer is short of time and rushing to end the story. I found the hero’s character half-heartedly sketched as it had the potential to be developed completely and left me wondering why the writer did not put a lot of work into it. Also, the book needs to be proof-read for several grammatical errors. Since it is Lucy’s earlier works and she has released three more novels (Falling Fast, Sparks Fly, Gabrielle) after “Seattle Girl”, I am hoping that they would offer much more improved work of her skills as a writer. Overall, the novel is a fine read.

Review Girl Rating: 7/10

"I would like to thank Lucy Kevin for sending me a free copy of her e-book, “Seattle Girl” for the purpose of reviewing it on my blog. To know the review rules and policy, click here. To buy this book, click here.” 

Other books by Lucy Kevin:

Movie Review: Rio (2011)

Movie: Rio (2011)

Genre: Action & Adventure, Animation, Kids & Family, Comedy

Rated: G

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg Anne Hathaway Jamie Foxx Jemaine Clement Leslie Mann

Brazilian director Carlos Saldanha and Blue Sky Studios combine again after the hit series Ice Age in this latest animated adventure film, which focuses on the adventures of domesticated Macaw named Blu, who gets the taste of the wild and learns to fly like a free bird. 

Much comfortable living in wintry Minnesota in his cage with his best friend and bookstore owner Linda (Leslie Mann), Blu’s life gets quite complicated when he is moved to the exotic land of Rio to mate with his female counterpart, Jewel (Anne Hathaway). Being a bird who does not know how to fly, Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) seeks the help of a group of wise-cracking and smooth-talking city birds along with the street-smart and beautiful Jewel, to cross all odds and discover the meaning of freedom and flying. The adventure starts when Blu and Jewel are kidnapped by a group of animal smugglers and a scary and evil cockatoo, Nigel (Jemaine Clement) follows them to assist the smugglers. There begins a chase that never seems to end as the people in Rio prepare for the biggest carnival. Nerdy macaw, Blue will have to conquer his fears and learn to fly if he has to attract the free-spirited Jewel and survive in Rio.

As much as this kid flick is a visual delight, it falls short in narration and screenplay. Rio becomes a splash of colours, lacking in a genuine storyline and boring characters with some awkward jokes and an endless chase which drags the second half of the movie at a snail’s pace. It comes out as more of a spectacular travelogue in 3D than an entertaining, full of fun, action-packed, wholesome animation for adults and children alike. While the visual palette is charming and lush to the core and leaves spellbound, there is less effort thrown in the actual story.

There is a hang-gliding sequence where Blu and Jewel piggy-back on a glider as it soars past the Christ, the Redeemer statue and over the city, which is stunning in its diversity of visuals thrown in to make you realize that animation technology and 3D effects can make an uninteresting movie look spectacular. The music of the film has some good tracks but nothing too memorable.

The only part I enjoyed truly was when the monkeys come on the screen with their rap and dance and some “monkey business”. What I really disliked was the scene when Blue and Jewel glider is coming down and bumps everyone on the beach including the bum of a lady in a bikini. The bum-lady (her face is not shown) gets kicked by the ball on her bum and the whole scene looks extremely inappropriate for a kids movie as well as sloppy, because the scene was not required and turned out to be disgusting for many (I could gauge it from the way parents started making remarks in the cinema while watching it).

The first half of the movie is fast paced and keeps you engaged, but once the chase begins, it gets monotonous and stops making any sense. There is not much good quality romance or comedy like you see in Disney movies, but the heavy dose of dull adventure which will work for kids aged between 3-10 years. It cannot be enjoyed equally by adults and the concept of family flick goes down the drain. If you have nothing better to do on a weekend and want to have some popcorns and drink while sitting comfy in the cinema, go for it. Otherwise, wait for “Gnomeo and Juliet” DVD release and till then, take your kids for some bowling fun!
Rating: 6/10

Movie Review: Tangled

Movie: Tangled 

Genre: Animation, Kids & Family, Musical & Performing Arts, Comedy

Rated: PG

Starring: Mandy Moore Zachary Levi Donna Murphy


Classic fairytale takes a fresh turn in Disney’s 50th animation film, Tangled, as directors Byron Howard and Nathan Greno tell the adventurous tale of Rapunzel, long-haired beauty with magical locks, who frees herself from the clutches of evil witch, with the help of handsome thief, Flynn Rider.

Tangled is a roller-coaster ride of fun, adventure, comedy and romance. The film is about Rapunzel who has lived her whole life in a mysterious tower with a friendly chameleon, Pascal and her evil mother. She possesses long flowing golden hair, but is unaware of the secret of her mother which is hidden under her tangled hair. On her 18th birthday, she wishes to leave the tower to see the floating lights which appear on her birthday every year. As her mother refuses to let her fulfil her wish, she leaves the tower along with the “most-wanted” yet charming thug, Flynn, to discover the truth about her life. Together, they pass through many dangers with the help of a feisty horse, Maximus and kind hoodlums on this nail-biting, action-packed expedition of their lives.

It is a journey of self-discovery of a submissive girl who turns into a self-assured and confident princess. Rapunzel’s character shares many similarities with previous favourite heroines, Pocahontas(1996) and Anastasia(1997). All of them present determined heroines who are willing to take risks to find their own true potential and undergo a transformation from subdued to self-aware and strong individuals. Yet, all of them hold stark differences as well which make them unique and remarkable. Though, Rapunzel is definitely a lovable character, my all-time favourite animation film heroine still remains Anastasia!

Disney is known for adapting classic fairy tales such as Cindrella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Aladdin and The Princess and the Frog (2009). What I really like about Tangled, is that in spite of putting a modern twist, it improves the tale and does not spoil its old charm, perfectly fitting for today’s generation. My most memorable scene would be where Flynn and Rapunzel are sitting in a boat and the whole sky is filled with floating lights. The scene simply sticks in the mind because of its extremely striking 3D visuals, which take you in a dream world, full of romance and passion.

Tangled promises impressive musical score given by Alan Menken (who wrote the songs for Aladdin and many other classic Disney films) but I won’t rate it as good as the songs of Aladdin or Anastasia which take me back to my childhood days. The astounding 3D effects are certainly one of the reasons you should watch this and be mesmerized. I would recommend that you get the 3D boxed set if you are a sucker for Disney romance tales like I am!

Tangled hits Blu-ray, DVD, and 3-D Blu-ray March 29, 2011


Review Girl Rating: 9/10