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bookedmybook's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
feistyfoodie's review against another edition
3.0
I thought this was an interesting read, entertaining to say the least but the ending is way too pat and leaves too many loose threads that I really wanted tied up. I was dissatisfied and wanted to hear more; also there was another option for an ending that I thought might work out better but I'm not the author. I recommend this for anyone who wants a light hearted, fun read, but don't expect too much from the plot.
trin's review against another edition
3.0
This would usually be the time when I would ask the largely rhetorical and semi-pathetic question, “Why do I keep reading Sophie Kinsella books?” Well, this time the answer is blatantly obvious—the plot of this one involves amnesia, yo, and I can never resist amnesia—and the question is kind of unfair. Because this wasn’t so bad—far less annoying than the last few [b: Shopaholic|9416|Confessions of a Shopaholic (Shopaholic, #1)|Sophie Kinsella|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327872404s/9416.jpg|3237433] books. Kinsella’s strength has always been her ability to create an amusing, fast-paced narrative, and coupled with the amnesia plot, I really didn’t want to put this book down. However, it also shares many of the same irritating traits as Kinsella’s other novels. The protagonist is once again a flighty, shallow woman who spends most of the book flailing and helpless, wriggling out of scrapes mostly through luck and/or the help of a strong, powerful man. Also, Kinsella really has no idea what it means to be poor. Not only are these novels full of rich people, the “poor” characters still have large country houses (but they smell kind of funny!) or can afford their own flats in London. Uh-huh. I wish I had your problems, ladies.
For what this was, it was fun enough. Actually, in some ways it’s becoming funnier in retrospect, because I’m realizing what the plot reminded me of. In Remember Me?, 24-year-old Lexi wakes up after receiving a bump on the head to discover that she’s actually a very different and successful 28-year-old version of herself who’s lost four years of her memory after a car accident. Which brings to mind a book I read as a teenager, [b: The Other Side of Dark|497714|The Other Side of Dark|Joan Lowery Nixon|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1322513110s/497714.jpg|485858] by [a: Joan Lowery Nixon|129033|Joan Lowery Nixon|http://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1209044147p2/129033.jpg], in which 13-year-old Stacy wakes up after a four-year coma to solve a murder and embark on a vaguely squicky romance with a 23-year-old. Mostly I remember the latter book due to its having one of the most unintentionally hilarious last paragraphs ever: “My cheek glows from the warmth of his skin through his shirt, and I can hear the steady beat of his heart. I put my arms around him. I’m Stacy McAdams. I’m seventeen. And I’m definitely in the right body!” Ahahahahaha. I guess we should all be glad that in Remember Me?, Lexi merely engages in some rather embarrassing activities involving muffins.
Since this review has clearly descended into tangent city, I’d also like to call attention to something that was in no way Kinsella’s fault, but which made me want to laugh/cry almost as much as Stacy’s self-affirmations. Dear American publishers of English novels: We, your readers, are not idiots. We can figure out that, if a novel is set in London, “football” means the sport with the round ball and “crisps” are not some unfathomable food, even more impossible to decode than this “Philosopher’s Stone” I’ve heard stories of. We might, in fact, be reading this book set in London in part to soak up the English atmosphere and indulge our Anglophilia. So you are in fact helping no one when you take a manuscript from across the pond and do a find/replace on all the “British” terms, leaving you with a long scene that involves your heroine making repeated and unintentionally comic reference to a “packet of chips.” Yes, thank you for clarifying that the characters did not just purchase a plastic bag of French fries from a gas station; however, you’ve now got them sounding like poor confused souls with horrible mid-Atlantic accents. NO ONE SAYS PACKET OF CHIPS. Americans say bag of chips. English people say packet of crisps. Please choose one or, better yet, LEAVE IT THE HELL ALONE. Next thing you know all novels will take place in North Generica, because god forbid readers be exposed to something unfamiliar or spend half a second feeling CONFUSED.
[/rant]
So annnnnnnyway…like I said, way way back in my first paragraph, this was actually pretty fun and diverting. Much better than the later Shopaholic books, and a perfectly decent beach or plane read. Or in my case, couch and bathtub read. If you’re in need of some froth, you could do a lot worse. After all, this is froth WITH BONUS AMNESIA.
For what this was, it was fun enough. Actually, in some ways it’s becoming funnier in retrospect, because I’m realizing what the plot reminded me of. In Remember Me?, 24-year-old Lexi wakes up after receiving a bump on the head to discover that she’s actually a very different and successful 28-year-old version of herself who’s lost four years of her memory after a car accident. Which brings to mind a book I read as a teenager, [b: The Other Side of Dark|497714|The Other Side of Dark|Joan Lowery Nixon|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1322513110s/497714.jpg|485858] by [a: Joan Lowery Nixon|129033|Joan Lowery Nixon|http://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1209044147p2/129033.jpg], in which 13-year-old Stacy wakes up after a four-year coma to solve a murder and embark on a vaguely squicky romance with a 23-year-old. Mostly I remember the latter book due to its having one of the most unintentionally hilarious last paragraphs ever: “My cheek glows from the warmth of his skin through his shirt, and I can hear the steady beat of his heart. I put my arms around him. I’m Stacy McAdams. I’m seventeen. And I’m definitely in the right body!” Ahahahahaha. I guess we should all be glad that in Remember Me?, Lexi merely engages in some rather embarrassing activities involving muffins.
Since this review has clearly descended into tangent city, I’d also like to call attention to something that was in no way Kinsella’s fault, but which made me want to laugh/cry almost as much as Stacy’s self-affirmations. Dear American publishers of English novels: We, your readers, are not idiots. We can figure out that, if a novel is set in London, “football” means the sport with the round ball and “crisps” are not some unfathomable food, even more impossible to decode than this “Philosopher’s Stone” I’ve heard stories of. We might, in fact, be reading this book set in London in part to soak up the English atmosphere and indulge our Anglophilia. So you are in fact helping no one when you take a manuscript from across the pond and do a find/replace on all the “British” terms, leaving you with a long scene that involves your heroine making repeated and unintentionally comic reference to a “packet of chips.” Yes, thank you for clarifying that the characters did not just purchase a plastic bag of French fries from a gas station; however, you’ve now got them sounding like poor confused souls with horrible mid-Atlantic accents. NO ONE SAYS PACKET OF CHIPS. Americans say bag of chips. English people say packet of crisps. Please choose one or, better yet, LEAVE IT THE HELL ALONE. Next thing you know all novels will take place in North Generica, because god forbid readers be exposed to something unfamiliar or spend half a second feeling CONFUSED.
[/rant]
So annnnnnnyway…like I said, way way back in my first paragraph, this was actually pretty fun and diverting. Much better than the later Shopaholic books, and a perfectly decent beach or plane read. Or in my case, couch and bathtub read. If you’re in need of some froth, you could do a lot worse. After all, this is froth WITH BONUS AMNESIA.
hollidayreadswithme's review against another edition
4.0
Sophie Kinsella is always an author whose books get me excited. They are fun and flirty. You must be in the mood for a happy-go-lucky read. Something that is going to make you guffaw and say “oh, god” and roll your eyes. Lexi Smart is this everyday 25 year old that just got a proper job, unsure of herself and trying to find her footing. Her literally losing it is the catalyst for the plot.
The book itself went by rather quickly. I enjoyed it. I’m not going to say it was the best thing I’ve ever read but it took me out of myself and engrossed me. There were a lot of issues with the book that I flew by. The justification of cheating, the weak damsel, the loose ends that were left untied.
Lexi spends the book trying to figure out her life and who she was for the three years that she didn’t remember. Of course she is taken aback at the immense splendor that happens to be her life. However, all of the so-called twists were pretty predictable. I knew she was going to end up with the guy she met in the parking garage but I was hoping that she was going to take some time to herself. At the end of the book, she ends up with him after remembering one thing.
I don’t have issues with HEA (Happily Ever After) but the changes in her sister and mother felt instantaneous. I feel like the book worked too hard to make Eric completely unlikable, we find out what “Mont Blanc” is but it doesn’t make any sense that she is hungrily taking advice from some man that she doesn’t know.
I did appreciate the fact that this wasn’t just a romance. It had other layers to it. Although the way it portrayed boss ladies was left a little wanting. More than anything, it was just complicated enough and shocking enough to be entertaining.
2019 POPSUGAR Challenge - A book with a Question in the title
The book itself went by rather quickly. I enjoyed it. I’m not going to say it was the best thing I’ve ever read but it took me out of myself and engrossed me. There were a lot of issues with the book that I flew by. The justification of cheating, the weak damsel, the loose ends that were left untied.
Lexi spends the book trying to figure out her life and who she was for the three years that she didn’t remember. Of course she is taken aback at the immense splendor that happens to be her life. However, all of the so-called twists were pretty predictable. I knew she was going to end up with the guy she met in the parking garage but I was hoping that she was going to take some time to herself. At the end of the book, she ends up with him after remembering one thing.
I don’t have issues with HEA (Happily Ever After) but the changes in her sister and mother felt instantaneous. I feel like the book worked too hard to make Eric completely unlikable, we find out what “Mont Blanc” is but it doesn’t make any sense that she is hungrily taking advice from some man that she doesn’t know.
I did appreciate the fact that this wasn’t just a romance. It had other layers to it. Although the way it portrayed boss ladies was left a little wanting. More than anything, it was just complicated enough and shocking enough to be entertaining.
2019 POPSUGAR Challenge - A book with a Question in the title
geniesurreal's review against another edition
2.0
I read this book through tooth and nail. The reading was a bit bumpy mostly due to the English slang. I had to remind myself I wasn't reading this in American slang so when I read "lift" I have to remember, this is an elevator.
The character was well conceived in the beginning. I mean, if your past few years have been erased by an accident and you suddenly are living the good life I'd be borderline hysterical myself. The only problem is she never stops being borderline hysterical. There was a point in the story when I thought, Jesus, please get a hold of yourself. You need to breath and stop ranting about your entire life in each chapter! Of course she didn't stop. Not until the very very end when she unveils the truths that have haunted her discovered how to make things right.
The one part I found the most intriguing was the drama that went down between her and her ex, Loser Dave.
The character was well conceived in the beginning. I mean, if your past few years have been erased by an accident and you suddenly are living the good life I'd be borderline hysterical myself. The only problem is she never stops being borderline hysterical. There was a point in the story when I thought, Jesus, please get a hold of yourself. You need to breath and stop ranting about your entire life in each chapter! Of course she didn't stop. Not until the very very end when she unveils the truths that have haunted her discovered how to make things right.
The one part I found the most intriguing was the drama that went down between her and her ex, Loser Dave.
mansikwatra's review against another edition
3.0
Generic chicklit. Reminded me why I like watching modern romantic stories rather than reading them.
amanda1793's review against another edition
4.0
Cute. An interesting take on the Amnesiac story line. Interesting because I haven't read a chick lit take on it.
I thought this one was light and funny, laugh out loud funny as Kinsella's novels usually are. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I still have this gnawing feeling that I didn't get the full picture with the audiobook...
I do recommend this one in any form. Good for a laugh for sure!
I thought this one was light and funny, laugh out loud funny as Kinsella's novels usually are. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I still have this gnawing feeling that I didn't get the full picture with the audiobook...
I do recommend this one in any form. Good for a laugh for sure!
faeriesparks's review against another edition
3.0
Again, another hilarious Sophie Kinsella book. I really enjoyed finding out about Lexi's life before her accident and figuring out that things weren't actually as they seemed at first.
smithrachaelynn's review against another edition
2.0
I think this was intended to feel like a rom-com, but I just kept feeling so depressed by this book! It was hard to enjoy the story because I was so sad for this character! Not what I was expecting and in the end, didn’t really enjoy it.