I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I think Gemma Townley is the best living chicklit writer out there. Even better than Jennifer Weiner (and I heart her too). Even better than Marian Keyes (she kicks ass, she does). But it’s the level of sophistication that Townley’s books manage that keeps me coming back and thinking about them in comparison with the rest of the pack.
Learning Curves manages to be absolutely girlie; I mean it contains many, many of cliches known to the chicklit genre. But there’s an extra spark there in Townley’s fresh, invigorating prose that takes the book to a different level. It’s so absolutely well written, well plotted and clips along at a dazzling pace.
Not to mention the fact that Townley is so adept at creating cute, quirky but relevant characters. In this particular book, post-eco-“warrior” Jennifer Bell, whose father left when she was still a wee girl, infiltrates his company at the behest of her mother (wanting more information about possible shady deals). Her parents haven’t seen each other in years and one of the charming sub-plots involves what really happened in their marriage.
Of course, Jen meets a man—the delicious publisher Daniel Peterson and, of course, falls in love with him. And I know it’s the unwritten chicklit rule that the road to said romance must always be rocky, but how Townley makes it all happen remains both bright and refreshing. It’s not knowing that Jen won’t remain undercover for long in the MBA program at her father’s firm that matters, it’s how Townley achieves the emotional high points that take the plot from point A to point B.
All in all, a bright spot in my anemia-addled brain that can’t seem to finish a book to save my life. Despite all the things Zesty keeps telling me to read.