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Book Summary InformationAuthor: Sophie Kinsella Edition: Mass Market Paperback Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published) Published: 2009-09-29 ISBN: 0440242401 Number of pages: 448 Publisher: Dell
Book Reviews of Remember Me?: A NovelBook Review: not a fave Summary: 3 Stars
Remember Me? is the newest standalone novel by Sophie Kinsella who is probably best know for her Shopaholic series. A series which has long since grown dull for me and so I've looked forward to these standalone novels that Kinsella has started to churn out.
Remember Me? is told from the point of view of the main character, Lexi Smart, who wakes up one day to find herself in the hospital and that the last thing she remembers was a night out on the town with the girls. An event which happened over three years ago. Back in 2004, Lexi was a nothing special girl with scraggly hair and crocked teeth but she loved life and was surrounded by good friends. In 2007, Lexi seems to be living every girls dream of the perfect life. Her hair is straight, her teeth are perfect and she's married to the most gorgeous millionaire. Only somehow along the way she has grown to be uptight and has lost that close group of friends that made the old Lexi just a little less ordinary.
The book centers around Lexi trying to figure out just how her life has changed so much over the three missing years. And all the various mistakes she makes in her perfect world now that the old Lexi has returned. These mistakes are supposed to be funny and are supposed to endear Lexi to the reader. However, I never laughed once and just kept thinking how annoying Lexi was. I also kept waiting for the big reveal, those little hints of how the 2007 version of Lexi came to be and was never fully satisfied with the little crumbs of information that were handed out. This slow reveal made the novel drag out for me and when some major bits were finally revealed they seemed anticlimatic and almost didn't seem to fit into the story.
This book wasn't horrible, I've definitely read worse, but it wasn't great either. I didn't get that feel good guilty pleasure feeling that normal comes from reading a "chick lit" novel. This book was definitely not one of Kinsella's best and will probably make me rethink buying her next standalone book in hardcover...or at all. This isn't a book that I'd recommend to others.
In Short: An unimpressive book that fails to deliver the promise of a light hearted brain candy novel. I don't think that I laughed once during this entire book which is something that I've come to expect from a Sophie Kinsella book. This book was definately not worth the hardcover price of it and will probably make me think before buying her next novel in hardback as this book left little impression on me. Its a quick read, however I've read better and not sure if this is something that I'd recommend to others.
As originally posted on my blog Ticket to Anywhere
Summary of Remember Me?: A NovelWhen twenty-eight-year-old Lexi Smart wakes up in a London hospital, she?s in for a big surprise. Her teeth are perfect. Her body is toned. Her handbag is Vuitton. Having survived a car accident?in a Mercedes no less?Lexi has lost a big chunk of her memory, three years to be exact, and she?s about to find out just how much things have changed. Somehow Lexi went from a twenty-five-year-old working girl to a corporate big shot with a sleek new loft, a personal assistant, a carb-free diet, and a set of glamorous new friends. And who is this gorgeous husband?who also happens to be a multimillionaire? With her mind still stuck three years in reverse, Lexi greets this brave new world determined to be the person she?well, seems to be. That is, until an adorably disheveled architect drops the biggest bombshell of all. Suddenly Lexi is scrambling to catch her balance. Her new life, it turns out, comes complete with secrets, schemes, and intrigue. How on earth did all this happen? Will she ever remember? And what will happen when she does? Behind The Book: A Note to Amazon Readers from Author Sophie Kinsella It's hard, in hindsight, to say exactly how a book comes into being. There are so many ideas and themes that get explored and discarded along the way; so many layers that are built up. Plus it's a bit like having a baby?once the hard work is over it becomes a blur! But with all my novels, I usually start with one little kernel of an idea--and gradually build it up over months of thinking, plotting, the "coffee shop stage" as I call it. With Can you Keep A Secret? it was: what if you told someone all your secrets? With Remember Me? it was: what if you woke up and didn't recognize your life? What if you lost three years of memory--and everything had changed in that time? All my books involve some kind of wish-fulfilment; some kind of escapism--whether it's shopping, or a whirlwind romance, or stepping off the career treadmill--and Remember Me? is maybe the ultimate form of wish-fulfilment. What if you didn't recognize your life... because it had become so perfect? The image that kept coming to me was of a girl, blinking up at her Greek God of a husband, whom she doesn't recognize. It made me giggle every time I thought about it. And so I created my amnesiac heroine Lexi, and her perfect new glossy, unrecognizable life--from the new shiny teeth to the designer handbag, to the perfect millionaire husband. The potential for comedy was irresistible. Another theme I wanted to explore was identity, which I've always found fascinating. Our lives take unpredictable turns and we all change over time. But it's so gradual we don't always notice it. Would your younger self recognize your older self? Put another way, if you woke up tomorrow in the year 2011... what would you find? I grew incredibly close to Lexi whilst writing this book, and really felt all her ups and downs. I laughed and cried and cringed at every embarrassing moment (of which there are plenty!) I think of all my heroines she has maybe the biggest challenge to face and journey to make--as her biggest obstacle is herself. I hope you enjoy her journey!
Women's Fiction Books
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