Author: Jill Mansell
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Publication Date: July 2018
Genre: Chick Lit / Contemporary Romance / Women’s Fiction
Buy the Book: Amazon | BN | Audible
Description: It's not that Janey Sinclair isn't happy to see her sister—she just wishes that she could have arrived in a less dramatic fashion. Waking up at seven a.m. to Maxine waiting at the door wearing a borrowed wedding dress and with a police escort wasn't how Janey planned to start her Sunday.
Still, life's never dull when Maxine's around, and Janey, who's rebuilding her life, is delighted that her sister's back in town. So when Maxine sets her sights on glamorous fashion photographer Guy Cassidy, Janey knows there's no limit to the mischief her sister will make in order to dispatch the competition. Little do they know that the competition is a lot closer to home than they think...
My Thoughts: This was such a delightful story that led me through several storylines with minor characters. In addition to the aww factor and humor I have come to expect from this brilliant author, I also got a little teary eyed and choked up. An author who can successfully draw out multiple emotions from the reader is an author that should be on everyone’s to be read list.
Janey and Maxine are sisters but are so different in personality, morals and ethics that I would never suspect they were related had I not known this going in. Where Janey is down to earth and grounded in her life, Maxine is very flighty and, at times, very selfish. I was surprised at how much I actually liked Maxine, however, but underneath her vain exterior she deeply cares about her sister and wants the best for her.
I thought Guy Cassidy was an intriguing character and his children were wonderful characters. I remained in the dark for most of the book with the direction the author was taking this character and have to applaud how it turned out because it was so apparent that Maxine had her sights on him, I could not picture Maxine as stepmother material.
In addition, the author created very vibrant and interesting characters with Bruno, the flirtatious restaurant owner, who is trying to seduce Janey even though he is in a relationship. Sculptress Thea, Janey and Maxine’s mother, who meets Oliver, Guy’s estranged father, and begins a whirlwind affair. Janey’s husband, Alan, who vanished without a trace two years ago and has left Janey wondering what life has in store for her next.
This story moves at a fairly moderate pace and I found the character’s behaviors appropriate for the situations they were in. I also thoroughly enjoyed the backstory about Guy and Oliver’s relationship as well as Thea’s with Janey and Maxine’s father. This story had so many details to take in but Mansell’s writing made it easy for the reader to understand all of the characters.
My Final Verdict: I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy happy endings even if the road getting there is long and twisty. Readers who enjoy contemporary romance and women’s fiction will enjoy the relationship driven plot of this story. Having read many of this author's books now, I am always excited to see her name come up in my new release notifications.
Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, who provided an advance reader copy of this book via NetGalley.
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