tamabam

As much as I hate to admit it, I quite liked the Bridget Jones books. And the first couple of Shopaholic ones. I could identify with Bridget and Becky. They kept me in stitches with their adventures as they tried to find themselves, whether it was by keeping a diet diary or being chased by letters from VISA.

Their stories were told in a distinctive, breezy British manner. The wit in the writing and the charm of the characters was what made both of those series so hugely popular.

When I found this book (for free on Amazon - dammit, I should have known better) I was hoping to meet a heroine like Bridget Jones or Becky Bloomwood. Instead, I got Grace.

Grace is a elementary school teacher. During her free time she shops. Her pride and joy is the spare room in her house, which she has converted to a dressing room. She is shallow, materialistic and generally not very likable. She is engaged to a lawyer named Mark, who is equally shallow, materialistic and unlikable. They live in a pretentious little village where they pretend to be vereh impohtant and have dinner parties with their equally important couple-friends.

Grace and Mark have 8 years of DINK bliss until one day Mark tells Grace he'd like to have a baby. This causes a huge crack in their otherwise perfect shallow existence, as Grace is unwilling to have a baby with a man who won't marry her. (I had to agree with this point.) Mark can't understand why marriage is necessary, and they take turns pouting over it.

While Grace is pouting the principal at her school notices her and before you can say "holy crap, I really don't like any of these people" they are texting like crazy and she's thinking about having an affair.

So, suffice it to say that a fair bit of clandestine sex is had (including on a desk at their elementary school and if I ever caught so much as a WHIFF that my kid's teacher was boinking the principal after hours in the classroom I think I'd freak out), Mark turns into a completely different person, smooth and uncomplicated break ups happen and by the end of the epilogue the Grace and Mark have each married different people, one couple have had twins and the other is pregnant, they all hang out together and life is just one big perfect HEA. No hard feelings, no one is uncomfortable and everything is freaking peachy.

No problems with Grace's shopping. Or her sorrow over the loss of Mark's income, and the impact it is having on her shopping. Or the loss of "prestige" because Mark was is a lawyer and Tom is a principal. Or how Grace, who appears to be as deep as a mud puddle, will deal with watching Mark and her good friend have a wonderful, happy, MONEYED lifestyle while she looks on.

I see what the author was trying to do here, and it might have worked for other readers, but I simply didn't like the main characters. As a result none of what she was trying worked for me.

On the bright side? I learned a new British slang word: NAFF. Meaning stupid or lame. Hmm.

1 star.