Chick Lit Classics is a new feature here on Chick Lit Reviews where we highlight the classic books of the chick lit genre. These books form the backbone of Chick Lit and we hope our readers enjoy the books we choose.

This week’s Chick Lit Classic is… SOMETHING BORROWED by Emily Giffin. If I had to rank my favourite ever chick lit books then Something Borrowed would be very very high on the list. I’m actually due a re-read of it at some point this year, particularly since the film is in the works (squee!).

Rachel Miller and Darcy Rhone have been best friends since childhood. They’ve shared birthdays, the horrors of high school and even boyfriends, but while Darcy is the sort of woman who breezes through life getting what she wants when she wants it, Rachel has always played by the rules and watched her stunning best friend steal the limelight. The one thing Rachel’s always had over Darcy is the four-month age-gap which meant she was first to being a teenager, first to drive, first to everything …but now she’s about to be first to thirty. And Darcy still has a charmed life. On the eve of her thirtieth birthday, Rachel is shocked to find herself questioning the status quo. How come Darcy gets a glamorous job at a PR firm and the perfect boyfriend, while Rachel grinds away at her despised job as an attorney and remains painfully single. Is it just luck? Or, looking back at their friendship and their lives together, is it a bit more complicated than that? Then an accidental fling complicated everything, and it’s time for Rachel to make a few hard choices. And she’s forced to learn that sometimes true love comes at a price…

What did you think of Something Borrowed?

Chick-Lit author Rowan Coleman is back this summer with another book, and as always I’m very much looking forward to it. It’s not due out for a while, 19th August to be precise, and there’s no cover yet but we’ll post it when it’s available. It was actually originally titled The Making of Ellie Woods but after a chat with Rowan on Facebook, I found out it’s now to be called The Happy Home for Broken Hearts, a better title if you ask me! Here’s the synopsis in the mean time:

“When Ellie Woods is widowed and left to raise her son, Charlie, alone, suddenly the cosy family home she’s cherished and felt safe in, echoes with the faded memories of a once happy family. Despite rapidly-growing Charlie and his demanding teenage need for space and independence, Ellie can’t help but feel she’s rattling about the big house like a ghost herself. And without her noticing, her haven has become her cage, albeit a gilded one. So, at her sister’s suggestion, Ellie decides to rent out some rooms. Gradually, their lives become filled with an eclectic crowd of lodgers. And Ellie, forced at last to step out of the pages of the romantic novels she so lovingly edits, once more learns to live again…”

Top Tips for Life is a book compiled of tips taken from Toptips.com, a website created by author and journalist Kate Reardon to allow real women to share advice. The tips cover everything from raising toddlers and communicating with bolshy teenagers, to how to hula hoop properly and get rid of those awful burn marks on the bottom of your saucepan.

If you’ve got a problem with your life, your home or your kids, then Top Tips might be the book for you.

Read the rest of this entry »

Leah and I want to send our congratulations to the fabulous winners of all the RNA Awards which were announced yesterday at a special party held by the RNA. We’re really thrilled that 2 fabulous chick-lit authors, Jane Costello and Louise Douglas, both won awards for their fabulous books, and they are all thoroughly deserved. We hope they have continued success and here is the complete list of book award winners.

People’s Choice Award: Missing You by Louise Douglas

Romantic Comedy of the Year: The Nearly Weds by Jane Costello

Lifetime Achievement Award: Maeve Binchy & Joanna Trollope

Romantic Novel of the Year: Lost Dogs and Lonely Hearts by Lucy Dillon

Love Story of the Year: Animal Instincts by Nell Dixon

You can see a full list of winners and a rundown of the day at the RNA’s website.

Huge congratulations to author Jane Costello for winning the Romantic Novelists Association Romantic Comedy of the Year with her superb novel The Nearly Weds! Both Leah and I loved it, and are both really pleased for Jane, she deserves it!

More awards winners coming as we find them out!

I absolutely loved Jane Beaton’s debut novel Class which I read early last year and I was so thrilled when I received a copy of Rules a month or so ago. I enjoyed the book just as much as Class and I’ll be reviewing it on Friday. We were offered the chance to interview Jane, and here are her answers!

1. Tell us about your second Downey House book Rules.

Rules is about Maggie Adair’s second year of teaching at Downey House boarding school- she’s come from a rough comprehensive school in Glasgow and has found the refined world of a girl’s boarding school a very steel learning curve. She has to decide whether to follow her head or her heart; to return to Glasgow to do her bit for deprived kids, and marry her childhood sweetheart Stan, or to stay in Cornwall and see if she has a chance of being with the quirky English teacher at the local boy’s school, David MacDonald.

We also meet the head teacher, Dr Deveral, four second year pupils at Plantagenet House- Simone, the scholarship girl; Fliss, the unhappy teen, Alice, who is full of confidence and mischief, and new girl Zelda, an American whose father is serving in the local army base. She stirs things up a bit!

2. What can you tell us about the third book in the series? Does it have a title yet?

The third book is called Lessons, the fourth Tests. I can’t say TOO much about them yet I’m afraid!

Read the rest of this entry »