F
| JANE FALLON | HELEN FIELDING | JERRAMY FINE |
| SUZANNE FINNAMORE | ANNETTE FIX | ZOE FOSTER |
| MINA FORD | KAREN JOY FOWLER | VALERIE FRANKEL |
| ELYSE FRIEDMAN |
JANE FALLON
Getting Rid of Matthew (2007)
Helen has been having a secret affair with a married man - her former boss - for the past four years. So when Matthew finally leaves his wife, Sophie, and moves in with Helen, you think she'd be delighted. But now she's decided she doesn't want him anymore. So Helen embarks on a campaign to get rid of Matthew, including befriending his wife. One of the best releases of 2007.
8/10
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HELEN FIELDING
Bridget Jones's Diary (1996)
One of the must-read classics of chicklit and a movie starring Renee Zellweger, Colin Firth and Hugh Grant. Singleton Bridget keeps a diary detailing her weight losses and gains, alcohol units, cigarettes and of course, her experiences with men. Her diary opens with Bridget on the way to the New Year's Day Turkey Curry Buffet, where she meets Mark Darcy, a divorced human rights lawyer. Their paths keep crossing, as she has an affair with her womanising boss Daniel Cleaver, a man Mark despises.
9/10
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2000)
In the sequel to Bridget Jones's Diary, Bridget is back and her wilderness years are over - she's been in a relationship with Mark Darcy for a month. But trouble looms ahead for the couple, particularly in the form of Rebecca, one of Bridget's acquaintances who just can't seem to leave Mark alone. With lots of help from self-help books and her best friends, Jude, Sharon and Tom, Bridget deals with a hole in her apartment wall, a Thai holiday that turns into a nightmare and one of her friends potentially becoming a Smug Married.
8/10
Also by author:
Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination; Cause Celeb
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JERRAMY FINE
Someday My Prince Will Come (2008)
Jerramy Fine was raised by hippie parents in Colorado, all the time believing that she was switched at birth and actually came from an aristocratic background. Fascinated by royalty, at six she spies the Queen's first grandson Peter Phillips' name on the Windsor family tree and decides then and there that he's her future husband. She even sends a few letters to him c/o Buckingham Palace. As a young adult, she heads to a faraway kingdom (England) to study and circulate in noble circles. Most of the men she meets are appalling (I actually think she'd have done better with the likes of the Mitchell brothers from Eastenders) but Jerramy just couldn't keep away from any guy with a posh accent and floppy Hugh Grant hair. Having taught herself etiquette courtesy of Debrett's and styled herself along the lines of Grace Kelly, she is soon receiving invites to ring in the new millennium in an Indian royal palace and proposals to marry a gay aspiring politician. Along the way, she rubs shoulders with royals including Princess Anne (Peter's mother), Diana's brother Earl Spencer and Fergie. But just as it looks like Jerramy's time in England has come to a miserable end, her prince appears. It may sound a crazy thing to do but Fine's tale about searching for her Prince Charming and believing in the power of dreams is truly enchanting.
7/10
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SUZANNE FINNAMORE
The Zygote Chronicles (2002)
This is a journal of a first-time mother to her unborn child, from conception to delivery room. It's got some humorous anedotes about life for pregnant women, and even some moments of sadness and drama, but I found it just didn't deliver a story anyone outside the family would be interested in reading.
3/10
Also by author:
Split; Otherwise Engaged
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ANNETTE FIX
The Break-Up Diet (2008)
According to Californian-based Annette Fix, the break-up diet “occurs when a woman discovers she has been dumped by a man she loves more than life and chocolate”. Annette was working as a topless dancer to support her son Josh and her writing career, when her boyfriend Kevin rang to tell her their two-year relationship was over. With candour and humour, Annette details through journal entries how she loses her appetite before she dives back into the dating pool to find a man ready for happily ever after. Tongue-in-cheek recipes such as Guilt Stew, Adrift Soup and Sexual Stir-Fry are scattered throughout to add extra flavour. Annette is one tough cookie, who is willing to bare all literally as she fights to ensure life doesn't get her down. A memoir for those who've lived through the emotional turmoil of a painful break-up. My only problem with the book was a personal one - I just didn't feel any affinity or sympathy for the writer, which meant I wasn't rooting for her or felt she'd earnt a happy ending. But Fix's writing indicates she'd have a strong chick lit voice if she chose to write fiction in future.
7/10
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ZOE FOSTER
Air Kisses (2008)
Hannah has scored the job that other girls only dream about - putting the lip glosses into the glossies. As Gloss magazine's beauty editor, she is inundated with the latest products, invited to all the glamorous launches and cosseted by shiny PR girls. But it's not all champagne and air kisses - she also needs to work hard and look good - after all how good is a beauty editor whose skin and make-up aren't perfect. When Hannah reads about her boyfriend being seen out and about with a hot weather girl, she is devastated. But with the help of her best friend Iz, Hannah throws herself into her new career and back into the dating pool. With each chapter headed with a beauty tip (who knew about cold sores and nail polish remover?), this offers an entertaining insider's view into the magazine world.
7/10
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MINA FORD
Two of a Kind (2006)
Twins Harriet and Hermione Harker haven't seen each other for 15 years - not since a tragic accident and a bitter row drove them apart. Now with Harriet's marriage ending and Hermione falling pregnant to a married man, both set out to track each other down. A real page-turner.
7/10
Also by author:
My Fake Wedding
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KAREN JOY FOWLER
The Jane Austen Book Club (2004)
In California's Sacramento Valley, six people meet every month to discuss Jane Austen's novels. The book club was Jocelyn's idea and she has hand-picked its members. There's best friend Sylvia, whose husband of 32 years has just asked for a divorce; Sylvia's daughter Allegra, who's just broken up with her girlfriend. At 67, Bernadette is the oldest but she shows there's still lots of life left in the old girl. Prudie, at 28, is the youngest member and seems the most together with her French classes and lovely husband. Then there's Grigg, the only man who would seem more at home at a sci-fi gathering.
7/10
Also by author:
Wit's End
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VALERIE FRANKEL
I Take This Man (2007)
When Penny is jilted at the altar by Bram, the mother-of-the-bride immediately swoops into action. Esther finds the groom in the bridal suite, clonks him over the head with a bottle of Dom Perignon and drags his unconscious body back to an unused attic in her mansion. There she imprisons him until he pays for humiliating her daughter. By eating his way through the uneaten reception food, including 80 servings of prime rib, 70 servings of grilled salmon, 50 roast chickens and 30 pounds of shrimp cocktails. He also needs to write all the return labels for the wedding gifts and admit why he got cold feet. But with Bram's father on the hunt for the runaway groom, Esther realises that kidnapping sure isn't a piece of (wedding) cake. Especially when you throw in some suspicious injuries, a mysterious death, a predatory friend and a calculating Russian servant.
6/10
The Not-So-Perfect Man (2004)
As far as her family are concerned, Frieda Schast has been the grieving widow for too long. Her older sister Ilene, whose marriage to Peter is suffering as his waistband expands, thinks her gorgeous and successful colleague David would be the perfect match. But Frieda can't help her attraction to the often-unemployed actor Sam Hall. Does Frieda really need the perfect man or is the not-so-perfect one just right for her?
6/10
Smart vs. Pretty (2001)
The Greenfield sisters - Frank the smart one and Amanda the pretty one - are going to have to put their differences aside to save their family coffee shop. When marketing student Clarissa walks through their door, brimming with ideas such as running a Mr Coffee of the Week competition and renaming the shop Romancing the Bean, it seems their worries are over. Or is more trouble brewing? With a dead body, grudges galore, a revolving cast of characters that are hard to keep track of, and dialogue that's weaker than a skinny decaf latte - this book was nothing like I expected. Look elsewhere if you want a good chick lit read about sibling rivalry.
4/10
Also by author:
Hex and the Single Girl; The Girlfriend Curse; The Accidental Virgin
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ELYSE FRIEDMAN
Waking Beauty (2004)
Allison Penny is an unattractive and overlooked office cleaner, who has to deal with a flatmate from hell, an alcoholic mother and an absent father. So what happens when one day she wakes up as a gorgeous blonde? Do blondes have more fun and is life better when you're beautiful?
5/10
Also by author:
Then Again