Review: Highly over-rated in reviews
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 12 26, 2011
Even though the price was right and I was looking to discover new authors, this author falls flat.The positive - there are a few VERY funny, very relatable moments sprinkled throughout the book. I kept reading until the end like a junkie looking for a fix that matches the initial high but never quite finding it. The funny parts were few and far between.The negative - I love sarcasm and snarky humor which this book definitely has in rare moments. However, the bulk of the book is filled with repetitive nonsense the author has already said numerous times. In fact, I think she must have challeneged herself to see how frequently she could use "Prada". You want to scream "if you love shoes as much as you claim, you would KNOW there are many other recognizable designers besides Prada"!The author, who hints at her age being close to fifty in a few places in the book, comes across (in her writing voice) as a middle-aged woman trying desperately hard to fit in with a younger crowd and seem younger herself. She tries too hard and it is transparent and fake. And annoying.The poignancy alerts. UGH. Just horrible. Who in their right mind would use 1/3 of a supposedly humorous book to discuss the turmultuous relationship with her ex and his consequent suicide? Alerts and warnings to "skip ahead if this doesn't appeal to you" or not. Why is it even in there??? One or two mentions you could possibly get away with if the stories add to the book, but these do not. The stories are random - shoved in at odd places, out-of-the-blue after about every third of fourth "funny" essay - and then the author continues on with her "humor". Just odd. And in terribly poor taste. To make it even worse, it comes across as being only used as "filler" so the author has enough material to fill a reasonable sized book.I also came across a few editing oversights, which happens in every book. But if you are going to be an indie published author, you should be even more critical and careful with typos. And, in a book that falls short of funny, every error is like a blindingly bright neon sign.