Amanda Foreman

Advantages: Frothy, light, funny, witty, easy to read
Disadvantages: A bit too shallow for some?

...Mel is a likeable, unambitious twenty-something who works for a stationary company, who's life has been slightly a mess since her commitment-phobic boyfriend upped and left for America a year ago. She lives with a dumpy recluse called Linda who she knows nothing about, and her best friend is Fran, a sarcastic man-eater aspiring actress. The two of them have a vague 'friend' called Amanda, who announces she's getting married. To Mel's old university crush, Fraser, who owns a pile of rubble (unknown to Amanda, who is busily an at home feature deal with OK), inherited from his father. Amanda is a petite blonde PR girl, all sports cars and leather trousers. She's snobby, gorgeous and all the men love her. She also happens to be filthy rich, thanks to her father who spoils her mercilessly. It is obvious that Amanda is marrying Fraser... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: interesting story
Disadvantages: hard to get in to

...Amanda Brookfield is one of my favourite authors and I tend to anticipate her new books with relish. She tends to write about normal everyday people who seem to have more than their fair share of ups and downs in life. This is exactly the case with her latest offering 'Life Begins' which centres on an almost forty year old divorced woman and her rather unpredictable life! The central chaaracter is Charlotte Turner who is recently divorced from Martin with whom she has a somewhat acrimonious relationship. They do however have to keep communicating with each other because of their thirteen year old son Sam. Added to this Charlotte has a difficult relationship with her own mother but she does have a good support network of friends. As the story progresses her complicated life becomes even more complicated due to Sam getting into... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: thrilling, brill twist at the end
Disadvantages: none

...which tourists rarely discover, this book lets us have a glimpse, according to Lola there‘s a sinister undercurrent to all the Mediterranean beauty. The characters are well drawn, new facets come to light all the time, even after seven years of marriage Lola and her husband don’t seem to really know each other. Her mother-in-law, who she calls ’the cobra’ in her emails, is given only small room but she’s nevertheless a decisive factor in the end, at least in my reading. About the author: wherever you look, you always find the same information about her, namely: “Amanda Prantera was born and brought up in East Anglia. She went to Italy for a brief holiday when she was twenty and has lived there ever since.” She’s written ten previous novels, the only other one I’ve read is ‘Letters to Lorenzo’ (see my review), also highly recommendable... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful