Queen of Babble in the Big City - Meg Cabot

Oh, Queen of Babble, how much I missed you.

I read the first one and its follow up really quickly, since it is an easy, chick lit type of book. This book took Lizzie to New York City, where she is determined to make it on her own in the fashion world. Make that wedding gown designer, to be precise. To save money, she skips out on moving in with her best friend, and goes straight to her rich boyfriend's apartment instead.

Lizzie's mouth often gets her into trouble (hence the titles and all), and I can't believe she was able to keep a few secrets in this book. Her mouth first gets her into trouble (although it turns out to be a blessing in disguise) when she offers to work in a vintage wedding dress shop for free in return for the experience. The problem? She still needs to pay her bills, of course! So she lands a job at a law firm in the mornings, and after a series of events befriends one of the firm's high-profile clients. Who just happens to be getting married. And desperately needs help renovating her soon-to-be mother-in-law's hideous wedding dress.

Lizzie to the rescue! Not only does she refurbish the dress, she manages to land in the papers and therefore, promote the shop. Which of course lands her a full-time position working with wedding dresses. In the process, she learns the hard way how difficult it is to make it on your own after college, and how to deal when your best friend tells you she's gay and just left her long-time boyfriend (that was a shocker), and learns to communicate effectively with her boyfriend. Who just happens to make a proposal of his own in the end.

Cute, fun, quick read. Highly recommended for my chick lit fans. But read the first one first.

True Colors - Kristin Hannah

From the inside flap:

The Grey sisters have always been close. After their mother's death, the girls banded together, becoming best friends. Their stern, disapproving father cares less about his children than about his reputation. To Henry Grey, appearances are everything, and years later, he still demands that his daughers reflect his standing in the community.

Winona, the oldest, needs her father's approval most of all. An overweight bookworm who never felt at home on the sprawling horse ranch that has been in her family for three generations, she knows that she doesn't have the qualities her father values. But as the best lawyer in town, she's determined to someday find a way to prove her worth to him.

Aurora, the middle sister, is the family peacemaker. She brokers every dispute and tries to keep them all happy, even as she hides her own secret pain.

Vivi Ann is the undisputed star of the family. A stunningly beautiful dreamer with a heart as big as the ocean in front of her house, she is adored by all who know her. Everything comes easily for Vivi Ann, until a stranger comes to town...

In a matter of moments, everything will change. The Grey sisters will be pitted against one another in ways that none could have imagined. Loyalties will be tested and secrets revealed, and a terrible, shocking crime will shatter both their family and their beloved town.

With breathtaking pace and penetrating emotional insight, True Colors is an unforgettable novel about sisters, rivalry, forgiveness, redemption - and ultimately, what it means to be a family.

I found the three sisters' relationship to sometimes mirror that of mine with my own sister. We are complete opposites, and everything about these 3 girls is different as well. It was easy to get hooked into the story, but I found it disappointing that it covered decades of story in one book, and sometimes with a lack of transition.

The fact that the Greys' father is all about appearances was a little off-putting. In a story such as this one, where you have a small town family who everyone knows, and a huge ranch that eventually keeps the town churning, it's sad that the family wouldn't be closer as a whole. Then again, they all did go their separate ways emotionally after their mother died.

When Vivi Ann begins dating Luke, not knowing that Winona is in love with him, the chain of events is set in motion. Winona, too proud to speak up, sits back in frustration as her sister ultimately breaks Luke's heart. Vivi Ann scars the family's name when she has an affair with a new Indian in town, and then marries him and has his child.

But when he is accused of, and later convicted of, a horrible crime, it's obvious to everyone in town that Vivi Ann will forever be the reason the family was torn apart, and the reason for all the town gossip.

But then, in yet another fast forward, all is almost forgotten until Vivi Ann's son announces his quest to meet his father. When some new evidence comes to light that could possibly prove his father innocent in the crime he was convicted of years earlier, Winona does the right thing, what she should have done years ago, and helps set him free.

And they live happily ever after.

It Had to Be You - Sarah Webb

This is the story of 3 friends, all living different lives in the sleepy town of Burnaby, Ireland. While the girls lead different lives (one is married with kids and running for local office, one is a bookshop manager who can't seem to get it right with men, and one has 2 very different jobs and a rough boss), they still meet up for coffee and to dish on life and love.

As always, some surprising twists create for drama and tension - although I didn't feel the book reached a good climax - it was more anticlimatic for me. Paige, the married and pregnant woman running for local office, survives setbacks that only come about when people go grasping at straws to get the "never seen before" picture of the local politican. In the end, she wins the race, of course, and becomes Deputy.

Paige's friend Molly, the bookshop manager, gets a huge surprise one morning at work when it's announced that the owner is selling the shop. It doesn't stop there - the new owner smells fishy, and he comes with an adorable son who is conveniently drawn to Molly. Can she get it right? (Obviously, this book is a happily ever after, and she does).

Kate, Molly's housemate, has 2 totally different careers - she's a (closet) shoe designer who moonlights as a matchmaker - can't get it right with men. She chases her old flame to Boston (from Ireland!) and realizes he's the same creep he always was. Crushed, she settles for the one she should have said yes to all along. (Nice guys finish last, right?)

I know this was an Irish bestseller, but I think it could have done a little better job at explaining Irish politics for Americans. Paige was a Councillor, but then ran for Deputy - but I don't really understand what each one is equal to in U.S. politics. For me, this was a large part of why I picked up the book (I love politics - from the sidelines), so I wasn't completely satisfied. However, this is still a fast and easy chick read for those seeking one.

Time of My Life - Allison Winn Scotch

Jillian Westfield pretty much has it all. The house in the burbs, the successful husband, the gorgeous baby daughter. But she can't quite put the past to rest. She constantly thinks of the "what ifs" from 7 years ago, when she broke up with her boyfriend Jackson and met her now-husband Henry. She wonders what it would be like if things had unfolded differently with Jackson...

And then Jill is sent back in time one morning, 7 years in the past. No husband, no daughter, but instead, the career she built in advertising and the apartment in the city with her ex, Jackson. She is aware that she was sent back in time, so with the knowledge of the way her life did turn out, she makes decisions she thinks would improve her life from the past: better work, a smoother relationship with Jack, etc. She finds out that life isn't what it would have been, of course...but that she loves and misses the life of the present.

The book was good, but a little too cliche what with the "what would I have done differently if I could relive the past?", and I found it a little ironic that she is sent back into the past to face the music of her relationship with her ex...Jack. As in Jack and Jill. Am I the only one who caught onto this?

All in all...it took me too long to read this, which is always my sign that it's not a favorite. I will say though, that it did remind me to cherish what I have...and to not worry about "what ifs." Life just is what it is.

The Smart One and the Pretty One - Claire LaZebnik

From the back:

Smart, successful Ava Nickerson is closing in on thirty and has barely had a date since law school. When a family crisis brings her prodigal little sister Lauren back to Los Angeles, Lauren stumbles across a forgotten document - a contract their parents had jokingly drawn up years ago betrothing Ava to their friends' son.

Frustrated and embarrassed by Ava's constant lectures about financial responsibility(all because she's in a little debt. Okay, a lot of debt), Lauren decides to do some sisterly interfering of her own and tracks down her sister's childhood fiance. When she finds him, the highly innapropriate, twice-divorced, but incredibly charming Russell Markowitz is all too happy to reenter the Nickerson sisters' lives. And always-accountable Ava will soon realize just how binding a contract can be...

The story was a little far-fetched I thought - whose parents draw up a contract for their eldest daughter to marry someone?! It sounds so medieval. And Ava! Oh, Ava. I didn't know one girl could be so clueless at love and fashion and be sooo stubborn! But I did love how she used her legal knowledge to trap her sister into becoming more financially responsible (actually sounds like something I might do...) but it ended up backfiring because Lauren went ahead and used their parents' contract to hunt down Ava's childhood friend. Of course, being the chick-lit that it was, everyone came out happy in the end.

This book reminded me a lot of my relationship with my own sister. She is more like Lauren and I am more like Ava, and no one in our family would disagree with this statement. I think I was drawn to the story simply because of the relationship between the girls.

Some Like it Haute - Julie K. L. Dam

From the back:

"Alex Simons, style writer, has landed in Paris for fashion week, her heart beating in perfect tempo with the hallowed words Prada, Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo. She's blissfully unaware of her approaching fate: a public humiliation captured on TV, a shot at an exlusive on the season's hottest designer, and falling in love with Nick Snow, the cutest straight guy in France. But while her hormones are still raging, the subject of her scoop mysteriously disappears and she gets a painful reminder of something she already knows: Men can break your heart - even if they're harder to resist than a sample sale. Now, as fast as she can say "Do you accept Visa?" Alex takes matters firmly in hand: First shop, then get her story, and then get her man..."

I tend to like books more when I can relate to any of the characters, and I sure found myself relating to Alex in several ways. Firstly, I'm a writer at heart (journalism school does that to a girl), and fashion is a passion of mine. Secondly, Alex's wit is amazing, and at times I found myself thinking outloud, "that is something I would say!" In fact, one of the best lines of the book is something I've often said myself:

"I don't have a clue about wine. You're talking to someone who picks wine bottles by how nice the labels are."

While I mostly found the writing to be easy to follow and clever, the part about the famous designer disappearing just seemed a little too-far fetched. And the surprise twist of a reality show involving Alex's new man made me roll my eyes.

However, the wit stayed with me, and I loved the banter between Alex and Nick, so I'm going to recommend this book to you dear readers!

Queen of Babble - Meg Cabot

I found myself laughing out loud several times while reading this. I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked it up, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Lizzie Nichols is the title character in this chick lit, and her big mouth often gets her in trouble. When she "graduates" from college and travels to London chasing a boyfriend she barely knows, she inadvertently sets herself up for the summer of her life. Things don't work out with that loser of a boyfriend, and she heads to France, where she stumbles upon a dashing man on the train ride there and spills her guts. Really spills her guts. It's so hilarious you just know she's going to see him again!

And she does, of course, because it's his father's house where her best friend is staying in France for the summer. And it's there where the truth comes out about her college education and plans for the future, her relationship with her now ex-boyfriend, and her crush on the guy she met on the train.

Of course there this book has a sequel. Two actually; Queen of Babble in the Big City, and Queen of Babble Gets Hitched. And of course I want to read them now.

Chasing Harry Winston - Lauren Weisberger

I did finally finish this chick lit. I don't have much to say about because my first thought after finishing it was "if this took me over 2 weeks to finish, it really wasn't that good."

And another thing, I have been busy with work, soccer, events, friends, my other blog, and various other distractions that I can't give this blog the time it needs.

Sooo, I'm on a break until further notice.

Remember Me? - Sophie Kinsella

Imagine heading out to the club with your girl friends, having a cocktail to relieve the stress of work, heading home early befause your father's funeral is the next day. Then imagine waking up and it's 3 years later...and you have no recollection of the last 3 years.

This is what happens to Lexi Smart, a twenty-five year old woman working a crappy going-nowhere job with a loser boyfriend. Only she wakes up in a private hospital room, with a hot husband and designer gear. But has no idea how she got there.

I liked this breezy story, and I think I mostly loved the connection between Lexi and Jon, her husband's architect, with whom she was having an affair before her accident gave her amnesia. I like how determined she was to piece her life back together, with little help from her husband - who turned out to be a selfish twerp. I liked Jon from the moment he saved Lexi from her horrible driving skills a few days after her accident. I liked how she really did try to love her husband, to be a good wife, and she tried to ignore the excitement she really did feel with Jon.

And yes, it was a happy ending. It is a Sophie Kinsella novel after all.

Something Borrowed - Emily Giffin

I finished this book last night - what a fun, easy read; total chick lit, exactly what I was in the mood for this weekend. I recommend this book to everyone - it's a true test of friendship and it's full of irony. I had a guess as to how it would end, and I was right about almost everything, but there were a couple major surprises I didn't anticipate - which leaves me wanting to read the next book, Something Blue.

One of the best parts of the book is when Rachel, the main character - the half of the friendship who always ends up getting less than the other - is in London visiting a friend and is reflecting on the past couple months. It is just an ordinary part of the book, but it struck me because it had me feeling reminiscent as well. The story is told from Rachel's point of view, and these are her thoughts:

"Songs and smells will bring you back to a moment in time more than anything else. It's amazing how much can be conjured with a few notes of a song or a solitary whiff of a room. A song you didn't even pay attention to at the time, a place that you didn't even know had a particular smell."

I have always felt that music brings back a wave of nostalgia, at least for me. Everytime I hear a song from when I was little, I'm back in my mom's car with my little sister, and I can sometimes even remember where we were going. Same thing goes when I hear even one or two lines of a popular song from high school. It's ironic to me that I was just thinking about this days ago, and then a book summarized my exact feelings. This is why I read so much; I always feel connected to the book in some way!

I'll probably start a new book later today - either Barack Obama's The Audacity of Hope, or The Slow Moon by Elizabeth Cox, which was just loaned to me by a friend with the quote, "It's soooo good!"