Review: Flawless, belly laughing romantic comedy.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 4, 2013
Squeeeeeee!!! I'm so so excited about this book!I was truly honoured to get my grubby paws on a super early ARC of Dazzled and I can't tell you how much I can't wait for you all to read it.It's no secret that I absolutely love Jane Harvey-Berrick's writing. I loved the controversial, steamy journey of Sebastian and Caroline and then more recently, the totally mind-blowingly original, heart wrenching story of Lisanne and Daniel inDangerous to Know & Love. The woman is already a genius in my book. And now she's written a comedy!!!So, when I found out that she was writing us a rom-com, naturally, I was intrigued. And sneaky little me managed to wangle a copy before it's even got a proper cover or release date. Let me tell you, this book will rock your socks off.This is the hilariously funny story of Miles and Clare. It is set partly in London, partly in LA. Miles is an out of work actor, living in London, who has just been fired from his most recent job. Aww, poor Miles. Clare is his girl-next-door bestest buddy. But there's a problem... Clare is totally in love with Miles, the boy she has known her whole life. And he, being a man and all, is oblivious. He's friendzoned her and that's that.'I'd been dazzled by him my whole life. And it wasn't fair. For either of us.'So, when Miles gets a part in a huge new movie and moves out to LA, Clare goes out there to keep him company. Miles has always been pretty damn gorgeous, but the film industry, or the Biz want him preened and perfect for his new role."Jesus, Miles. You're scruffy, your hair's a mess, your eyebrows need plucking, your teeth are obviously British, you're gonna have to start working out and damn it, stop chewing your nails!"And so begins the gym routine, the diet, the spa appointments and the media training. Enter brand new, buffed, plucked, ripped and jaw droppingly beautiful, move-star Miles! And out come the flawless, skinny, super-model lookalikes. So, of course, now Clare will never get her dream(y) man!Jane's account of the ups and downs of Miles' journey into super stardom is fabulous! Clare is relatable, down to earth, feisty and doing it for all of us normal, junk food loving, girlies with insecurities and a few too many wobbly bits.There are many low points in a woman's life, but when a bloke who's been within a hair's breadth of getting his hand down your knickers decides that he's rather watch a children's sci-fi programme made with puppets fifty years ago, you can't get much lower. Just saying.Both of these characters are 100% loveable. Miles is completely different from our typical heroes. He's shy, unsure of himself, has a bad case of foot-in-mouth syndrome and is definitely the more submissive of the two lead roles. Clare is his rock. She's organised, bossy and sharp tongued.There were so many moments in this book when I wanted to squeal `That is sooo me!' Yes, sometimes I just need to pretend that chocolate is calorie-less.'Everyone knows that if you break the chocolate first, the calories fall out. Right?'Yes, I have totally inappropriate fantasies about men that are way out of my league.'Oh you'd better believe it, baby! I'd ride you till you passed out from exhaustion, feed you a bacon sandwich, hose you down and start again.'And yes, sometimes, silly, stuck up, little ho-bags really do need putting in their place!"I'm just allergic to cheating trollops - it makes me break out in sarcasm."I don't think I'll be giving away any major spoilers by saying, Miles and Clare get it on. Yep, by the end of the book, our super sweet, totally undiscerning hero falls head over heels for his slightly chubby, one-of-the-lads BFF! *le sigh* Adorable.'I felt like my lungs weren't big enough to breathe her in, and my heart couldn't beat fast enough to love her the way I wanted to.'So, turns out Jane has many talents. She can write steamy, serious, deep, dark, thought provoking, heart breaking... and now, ladies and gentlemen, she delivers a flawless, belly laughing romantic comedy."One day I'm going to buy you your own chocolate fountain - and then I'm going to dip my d*** in it and see how much you really like chocolate."I really really can't wait for you all to meet Miles and Clare. Stick this on your TBRs and enjoy a good, light hearted, fun filled friends-to-lovers romance.Dazzled StatisticsSteam Rating (out of 5): ♥♥♥Ending: HEASeries: ✗Can this be read as a standalone? YesThemes:Movie starFriends to loversHot guy/ordinary girlWarning. This book includes...Nothing that I can think of that would offend people. Perhaps a little sexual content but nothing too explicit.Writing: GreatReview by Smitten's Book Blog.