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A review by readbooks_eatapples
The Austen Playbook by Lucy Parker
4.0
Update on reread: same impressions, past me was correct about needing a reread for a boost. Past me had no idea it would still be 2020 two years later. I did forget how stressful the story is, with poor communication and unhealthy relationships all over the place. It was nice to visit the characters again, though. Except Sabrina, who is 100% awful and unredeemed.
First read:
I've been skipping over this and Parker's other books for a while now because they sounded so frivolous and a bit boring, honestly. I'm glad I took a shot, starting with the second of this series because these contain almost everything I love about this genre. The characters are complex and interesting, the situations aren't terribly trite, the writing is excellent, and the plot is always relatively solid. The only real exception here is the kind of flat villainess, who is constantly compared to a snake that everyone hates. She's more caricature than character, and the self-serving nature of that character didn't seem to be great at self-preservation. It was still fun to hate her though.
The humor in these is perfect for me. I wish there were fifty more of Parker's books to have handy when I'm feeling like a pick me up. I have a feeling I'll need a reread, what with 2020 being such a nightmare.
First read:
I've been skipping over this and Parker's other books for a while now because they sounded so frivolous and a bit boring, honestly. I'm glad I took a shot, starting with the second of this series because these contain almost everything I love about this genre. The characters are complex and interesting, the situations aren't terribly trite, the writing is excellent, and the plot is always relatively solid. The only real exception here is the kind of flat villainess, who is constantly compared to a snake that everyone hates. She's more caricature than character, and the self-serving nature of that character didn't seem to be great at self-preservation. It was still fun to hate her though.
The humor in these is perfect for me. I wish there were fifty more of Parker's books to have handy when I'm feeling like a pick me up. I have a feeling I'll need a reread, what with 2020 being such a nightmare.