Another sweet chicklit read that I came upon by reading the review in Entertainment Weekly. Jennifer Vandever’s story revolves around main character Sara, who studies the letters of Charlotte Bronte, and the lives of her siblings, working towards a PhD. When her fiance, also a scholar, leaves her to pursue a fellowship in Paris, her life sort of falls apart.
Sara’s attempts to put it back together take her from New York to LA, to Paris and in between. A funny cast of supporting characters includes Claire, a Princess Diana, Naomi Wolf-inspired “scholar”; a hilarious gadabout Denis whose life is a consistently evolving poem; and her new lover Mr. Emmons, a semi-recovered coke addicted Hollywood producer.
It’s a sweet book, and a good quick read, although I did find myself scanning, which tends to happen when I’m so tired that I can’t entirely focus on the page. Granted, I caught myself most of the time and went back to actually read what I’d slipped over.
All in all, one of my favourite chicklit reads of the year. Funnily enough, I generally abhor anything that reminds me of Victorian literature (the genre has not been kind to me), but the Bronte connection seems to work well in this novel.