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megtrotman's review
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Genuinely a bit baffled about this book. As Mel is quite a recognisable and funny presenter, you expect her voice to be fairly prominent as the author of the book, but instead you get a bit of a jumbled mess - a voice that is often trying too hard to be funny with very random bits of morality thrown in.
The concept of the book is good which is why it's such a shame that it's not very well written. The pace is completely off - some events of the book you spend ages on without much point and other bits we could have stayed with and got a better book as a result.
Mainly though, the dialogue was the nail in the coffin for me. I think Mel was trying to write the dialogue in an exaggerated, stylised way which can sometimes work but unfortunately it didn't work in this book and it meant that most of the dialogue came off as completely unrealistic and quite a lot of the time, just very weird.
The concept of the book is good which is why it's such a shame that it's not very well written. The pace is completely off - some events of the book you spend ages on without much point and other bits we could have stayed with and got a better book as a result.
Mainly though, the dialogue was the nail in the coffin for me. I think Mel was trying to write the dialogue in an exaggerated, stylised way which can sometimes work but unfortunately it didn't work in this book and it meant that most of the dialogue came off as completely unrealistic and quite a lot of the time, just very weird.
intweed's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
An enjoyable read. The beginning didn’t completely grab me but once I was into the story I found myself making time to read some every day. The pace really picks up in the final third of the book, which I read in one sitting.
I was totally rooting for Janice. Frank sounds insufferable as his present and former self.
jo_bookworm's review
5.0
When famous people for something other than writing then write a book, there is always an element of doubt and trepidation. Looking back at reviews now I have read it, seemed to be very much of the love it or loathe it variety but shows you that not all books are for everyone, despite who wrote it.
I could hear the author’s voice as if she was telling me the story as we got to know Sally and Frank Parker. They had it all literally and then one day they didn’t.
Sally is living a half life, she has everything, she doesn’t even have to think. She has people to do that for her, whether it be ferrying the children a few yards to school, to the cooking and the laundry. She just needs to get up and be there, be part of those groups in the suburbs who are simply trying to out do each other. Whether it be home décor, shopping, holidays or clothes. Think Margot Leadbetter but in the 21st century!
However Sally is in for a rude awakening and thankfully so were some of the more unpleasant characters in the book.
Sally has to think. She has to save herself from her husband Frank as well as save him from himself. Then there are the children, Stephen, overweight and addicted to online games, Cleo who has no sense common or otherwise and her interactions were aspiring and so astute they were laugh out loud funny. Mikey, the wheeling dealing eleven year old girl who is going places if only they would listen to her. Then niece Emily, the academic exceeder who feels she has no place in the family anymore.
Add to the mix, a Welsh great granny, a couple of strange uncles and a few dogs and tractors and you have a real mix of a book about what you really need to survive. The trappings of life do not always fulfil what you most want and need.
I was pleasantly surprised at this book, it made me laugh about some of the ridiculousness of the situations but also there was some rather empathic moments especially with the children, which gave it added pathos. What I liked the most, that for added impact perhaps, the author really laid on thick about how much ‘stuff’ they had, whether it be electronic devices, decorations and ornaments from around the world, thirty two named lawnmowers, a pool house, a rack of BBQs and the envy of every other resident in the suburb who were all trying to emulate or be better.
Pure escapism but with an undercurrent that this is a world that does exist and that actually being in that world seems quite frightening. Some great characters to love, loathe and hate!
I could hear the author’s voice as if she was telling me the story as we got to know Sally and Frank Parker. They had it all literally and then one day they didn’t.
Sally is living a half life, she has everything, she doesn’t even have to think. She has people to do that for her, whether it be ferrying the children a few yards to school, to the cooking and the laundry. She just needs to get up and be there, be part of those groups in the suburbs who are simply trying to out do each other. Whether it be home décor, shopping, holidays or clothes. Think Margot Leadbetter but in the 21st century!
However Sally is in for a rude awakening and thankfully so were some of the more unpleasant characters in the book.
Sally has to think. She has to save herself from her husband Frank as well as save him from himself. Then there are the children, Stephen, overweight and addicted to online games, Cleo who has no sense common or otherwise and her interactions were aspiring and so astute they were laugh out loud funny. Mikey, the wheeling dealing eleven year old girl who is going places if only they would listen to her. Then niece Emily, the academic exceeder who feels she has no place in the family anymore.
Add to the mix, a Welsh great granny, a couple of strange uncles and a few dogs and tractors and you have a real mix of a book about what you really need to survive. The trappings of life do not always fulfil what you most want and need.
I was pleasantly surprised at this book, it made me laugh about some of the ridiculousness of the situations but also there was some rather empathic moments especially with the children, which gave it added pathos. What I liked the most, that for added impact perhaps, the author really laid on thick about how much ‘stuff’ they had, whether it be electronic devices, decorations and ornaments from around the world, thirty two named lawnmowers, a pool house, a rack of BBQs and the envy of every other resident in the suburb who were all trying to emulate or be better.
Pure escapism but with an undercurrent that this is a world that does exist and that actually being in that world seems quite frightening. Some great characters to love, loathe and hate!
awhittz's review against another edition
2.75
Great observations but a tad long and complicated plot-wise.
megantee's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
annebrooke's review
2.0
This is very much a disappointment - I think the set up is probably quite good, but the whole thing is so fast paced and off-the-wall that it's frankly exhausting. Lots of things happen at breakneck speed for no apparent purpose, but I remain unconvinced of the point of it all. I think it would be better with a lot fewer characters and if there was just the immediate family to focus on. This might have been a much better book if written by a far more skilled novelist but, sadly, that wasn't to be.
cleg11's review
3.0
Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.
Everything is going well for Sally, Frank and their children when the stock market crashes. Frank and Sally lose everything, Frank can’t cope and leaves Sally to deal with the fallout. At first she buries her head in her sand and thinks it will sort itself out until she realises Frank isn’t going to of any use as her starts to suffer from narcolepsy. Sally takes the bull by the horns and with the help of their children takes matters into her own hands, holds her head up high and deals with the fallout.
Took a long time for me to get into the book but the ending was better than expected.
Everything is going well for Sally, Frank and their children when the stock market crashes. Frank and Sally lose everything, Frank can’t cope and leaves Sally to deal with the fallout. At first she buries her head in her sand and thinks it will sort itself out until she realises Frank isn’t going to of any use as her starts to suffer from narcolepsy. Sally takes the bull by the horns and with the help of their children takes matters into her own hands, holds her head up high and deals with the fallout.
Took a long time for me to get into the book but the ending was better than expected.
geeniebean29's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
jmatkinson1's review
3.0
Thirty years ago Sally fell in love with Frank, a wide boy entrepreneur, now she is married to multimillionaire hedgefund head, on valium and feeling out of control with her life, her children, her friends and her staff in her Leatherhead McMansion. Then overnight everything falls apart and Sally realises that things will never be the same again.
Celebrity novels go one of two ways, either they are wonderful (eg. Graham Norton) or they are like this one. My expectations were high, Giedroyc is a funny woman and her non-fiction articles in magazines have been supremely entertaining, but this was such a disappointment, it felt like a story 'phoned in' using every cliche of the genre. There are a funny episodes but overall I couldn't wait to reach the (predictable) end.
Celebrity novels go one of two ways, either they are wonderful (eg. Graham Norton) or they are like this one. My expectations were high, Giedroyc is a funny woman and her non-fiction articles in magazines have been supremely entertaining, but this was such a disappointment, it felt like a story 'phoned in' using every cliche of the genre. There are a funny episodes but overall I couldn't wait to reach the (predictable) end.