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kairosdreaming's review against another edition
2.0
I had read the 2nd book in this series by Lisa Wingate a long time ago (Word Gets Around) and I had enjoyed it. Enough that when I saw this first book I decided to give it a read. They can be read in any order as the plots are separate from one another, so that didn't make any difference to my enjoyment of this one. What did make a difference was the fact that this one was almost excruciating to get through.
Mandalay Florentino is a producer from California who has landed in Daily, TX as part of a secret plan to have American Megastar come to town for the top final five, of which a Daily resident will be a part of. Amber Anderson, local talent, is under big wraps for this announcement and it's Mandalay's job to make sure everything runs smoothly. But of course there are always hitches when you have to deal with the paparazzi. She has to deal with her love life too and a new found attraction for a country boy passing through. Mandalay wants to do her best, but she has a lot of things working against her.
There weren't very many characters that I liked in this book. I found Mandalay boring and whiny and she didn't ever seem to do very much. She just had other people do everything for her. Carter was sweet but kind of unbelievable and he just seemed to pop up like a gopher in almost every chapter. Imagene was about the only character I liked as she seemed down to earth and since she took turns being a narrator with Mandalay, we got to know her pretty well. Amber Anderson, who only make a brief appearance was overly saccharine sweet and also an unbelievable character.
Between the slow moving plot and the writing, there was definitely a reason why I didn't enjoy this installment of Lisa Wingate's. The plot leisurely took its course getting to the conclusion with a lot of useless filler. But the writing was the real kicker. Wingate decided to make sure that you knew these people had accents and spelled things out phonetically to illustrate these accents. Charming for about the first paragraph, it quickly grated on my nerves after and made the book difficult to read. She also switches back and forth between Mandalay and Imagene as narrators and while they have different voices, sometimes they run together and confuse the reader that was as well. I should also note that this is considered Christian fiction and much to my delight, there was barely any mention of religion at all making it entirely non-preachy.
Not the best for sure and it makes me a bit hesitant to read the third book in the series. I probably will though just because I don't like to leave anything unfinished.
Talk of the Town
Copyright 2008
359 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2011
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com .
Mandalay Florentino is a producer from California who has landed in Daily, TX as part of a secret plan to have American Megastar come to town for the top final five, of which a Daily resident will be a part of. Amber Anderson, local talent, is under big wraps for this announcement and it's Mandalay's job to make sure everything runs smoothly. But of course there are always hitches when you have to deal with the paparazzi. She has to deal with her love life too and a new found attraction for a country boy passing through. Mandalay wants to do her best, but she has a lot of things working against her.
There weren't very many characters that I liked in this book. I found Mandalay boring and whiny and she didn't ever seem to do very much. She just had other people do everything for her. Carter was sweet but kind of unbelievable and he just seemed to pop up like a gopher in almost every chapter. Imagene was about the only character I liked as she seemed down to earth and since she took turns being a narrator with Mandalay, we got to know her pretty well. Amber Anderson, who only make a brief appearance was overly saccharine sweet and also an unbelievable character.
Between the slow moving plot and the writing, there was definitely a reason why I didn't enjoy this installment of Lisa Wingate's. The plot leisurely took its course getting to the conclusion with a lot of useless filler. But the writing was the real kicker. Wingate decided to make sure that you knew these people had accents and spelled things out phonetically to illustrate these accents. Charming for about the first paragraph, it quickly grated on my nerves after and made the book difficult to read. She also switches back and forth between Mandalay and Imagene as narrators and while they have different voices, sometimes they run together and confuse the reader that was as well. I should also note that this is considered Christian fiction and much to my delight, there was barely any mention of religion at all making it entirely non-preachy.
Not the best for sure and it makes me a bit hesitant to read the third book in the series. I probably will though just because I don't like to leave anything unfinished.
Talk of the Town
Copyright 2008
359 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2011
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com .
alissabar's review against another edition
4.0
Just a fun, fluffy read. I like that she wrote this from two perspectives. It was a much better story because of it.
k_lee_reads_it's review against another edition
4.0
I find Lisa Wingate's books both enjoyable and enlightening. This one was a bit more light hearted than her others, but I did like it.
shammons's review against another edition
3.0
A new author to me, courtesy of this free book I downloaded for my Kindle, from Amazon. I liked it, but I didn't just love it. Maybe it's because I'm a moody reader and I wasn't quite in the mood for this type of book. Mostly, I think, I think that the author just tried a wee bit too hard with the dialogue and the plot. The characters just didn't grab me and the accents and plot were a bit overdone for my taste. Still, I did enjoy it and did finish it, but I didn't just fall in love with any part of it.
readerturnedwriter's review against another edition
4.0
I read the third in this series first on accident and liked it enough to come back and read the first two.
This first one is a fun and easy read. It has cute romance in it and some great character arcs. It isn't particularly fast paced and is a little predictable, but has a happy feel good ending. And the characters are so fun, that's really what makes these books fun to read!
This first one is a fun and easy read. It has cute romance in it and some great character arcs. It isn't particularly fast paced and is a little predictable, but has a happy feel good ending. And the characters are so fun, that's really what makes these books fun to read!
refinishednurse's review against another edition
4.0
I plowed through this book in a day, it was a fun light easy read. It was a good, clean, fun romance with modern day flair set in a quiet town. I loved it! I was thrilled with the story, and the quiet mentions of faith without all the preaching. I would recommend this book to anyone who is just in for a cute story and some giggles.
Originally read 5/2008 reread 8/14
Originally read 5/2008 reread 8/14
janjanjukebox's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Talk of the Town by Lisa Wingate 359 pages
Daily Texas #1
Daily Texas #1
Genre: Contemporary Christian Romance, Inspirational, Women's Fiction
Featuring: Texas near Waco and Austin, Los Angeles, CA, Fake American Idol, Small Town, Paparazzi, Dual POVs. Discussion Questions
Rating as a movie: PG-13 for adult situations
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐½
My thoughts: Page 57 out of 359 - This is exciting and hilarious. I should have stuck with my original lineup.
163 - This book is more hip than her other books. I'm really enjoying the fake American Idol on location plot.
213 - So sweet!
289 - 289 - Amber, this better end well.
163 - This book is more hip than her other books. I'm really enjoying the fake American Idol on location plot.
213 - So sweet!
289 - 289 - Amber, this better end well.
It ends very well. This book had a slower than average build up but, it was quick compared to Wingate's other romances. I almost immediately loved the town and the characters, there was some questionable conversations, but the intentions were heartfelt, maybe she tried a little too hard. If you are looking for an older character the this book is a good option the MCs are in their 30s and 70s.
Recommend to others?: Yes! This book was wholesome and fun. I'm looking forward to the next one.
pcpkalli's review against another edition
4.0
Once I got past the phonetical speaking...I enjoyed the story. This is my first Lisa Wingate book and I'll read another.
amybethune's review against another edition
2.0
Disappointed in this one! I’ve read one other book by Wingate (Before We Were Yours), which was fantastic. I was expecting a fun, lighthearted rom com here, but it felt so overdrawn and tedious. The characters were more like caricatures and I found their accents kinda cringy.