A Gaggle of Book Reviews

I read two books one after the other that pulled me towards islands and home - The Land of Mango Sunsets and The Lace Reader. On the surface, they are very, very different - one is about a Manhattan Society woman and the other is about the history of lace and the women who create and “read” it (like fortune telling). However, both books are about women coming home to themselves, rediscovering family, and succumbing to the lure of the island. They are both beautiful stories that will touch your heart. Take a day with a lounge chair and some boat drinks, and read them both - you won’t be able to put either one down.

The Land of Mango Sunsets: A Novel is a beautiful book by Dorothea Benton Frank. Miriam is a Manhattan society woman who has fallen out of favor since her ex-husband left her to marry his mistress and raise their children. At first, Miriam is most concerned about proper behavior and the importance of moving up within the society of wealthy volunteer women. She is somewhat estranged from her children & grandchildren, and has her parrot Harry and her gay third floor tenant Kevin for friends. However, she is so caught up in what she believes she should be doing that she doesn’t see her loneliness.

Things begin to change for Miriam after renting her second floor to a new tenant and taking a trip a visit to her childhood home - an island off the coast of South Carolina. Her mother is there focusing on organic foods, gardening, and living green. Miriam is put off by this “hippie living”, especially when her mother and a friend share a joint during a walk on the beach. After she returns to Manhattan, she begins her metamorphosis - from “prissy” Miriam to a more relaxed “Mellie”. As these changes progress internally, Mellie opens herself up to her family, working past the pain from the divorce years ago.

This story pulls you into Miriam/Mellie’s life, and holds on to you until you are finished reading. If you have been in pain or closed off from the world in any way, her story will inspire you. I was lucky enough recently to see a butterfly emerge from its chrysalis. Just as the butterfly takes time to dry its wings and strengthen them, the characters in The Land of Mango Sunsets emerge from their cocoons, and huddle together before spreading their wings. It’s a beautiful story that I doubt you’ll be able to put down!

The Lace Reader is a novel by Brunonia Barry. Towner Whitney is much younger woman than Miriam, but she is also called back to her childhood home, this time by the disappearance of her great-aunt and mother figure, Eva. The novel starts with a passage from “The Lace Reader’s Guide” - a guide to the reading of fortunes in lace. The quotes continue throughout the book, along with the narrator’s memories of her Aunt reading lace, and reading lace herself. The Lace Reader website does a great job of explaining the world in which Barry has set the story - Salem, MA and the surrounding towns in the 1990s with some poetic license thrown in (the island home, Yellow Dog Island, is not a real island off of Salem, though the Miseries, Children’s Island, and so many other landmarks are).

I’ve got to believe that Barry lives or lived in the area. There is one scene where Towner’s brother Beezer and his friends showing his fiancée Anya the statue of Salem founding father Roger Conant near the Salem Common. At a certain angle, it looks like he is, um, pleasuring himself. Driving past that statue for years as a teenager myself, I thought my friends and I were the first ones to notice it! There are so many little truisms in the story about the area, it calls to me as someone who has grown up on the North Shore, and then moved back.

Barry has created a world within The Lace Reader that is a rollercoaster of emotions and self-discovery. Towner returns to her hometown and home island after years hiding from them. She finds herself needing to face the demons that had her in a psychiatric hospital as a teenager, demons she has hid from for so many years. Just as Towner needs to face reality and the past, the town does as well - there are modern-day Calvinists trying to persecute the witches who have found sanctuary in today’s Salem.

As a reader, one wonders about Towner’s opening paragraph in Chapter 3:

My name is Towner Whitney. No, that’s not exactly true. My real first name is Sophya. Never believe me. I lie all the time

I am a crazy woman, … That last part is true.

At first, one discounts this - sure, she had been in a psychiatric hospital as a teenager, but that was years ago. As the story unravels, however, and Towner’s first person narrative is interspersed with Detective Rafferty’s narrative, it becomes more foggy - what is true? We see how Towner’s mother, May, has dealt with her sister’s physical abuse - she runs a sanctuary on Yellow Dog Island for abused women and children. Towner herself has had electric shock therapy to rid herself of visions, leaving large gaps in her short term and long term memories. What is true memory, and what is made up as protection?

Towner’s family is filled with “Lace Readers” - women who can see a person’s future in the lace. Her Great-Aunt Eva had done so professionally to much success, and Towner is also graced with the gift, though she refuses to use it if at all possible - she sees only destruction and death. It is really only in a town such as Salem (with psychics and witches everywhere) that refusing to use such a talent is seen as a character flaw. It is fascinating that even as Towner tries to avoid the lace, we see her world spread out for us like a piece of lace - which threads lead toward the answers the characters and the readers seek, and which ones are tricksters, leading to a dead end. The Lace Reader keeps us following the patterns until the very last words of the last page - “The End”. There is no way to put it down until you have read it all.

Please do yourselves a favor and pick up The Lace Reader and The Land of Mango Sunsets soon. Transport yourself to an island, and find the world there.

I completely and utterly loved Pamela Ribon’s first book - Why Girls Are Weird : A Novel, despite some reluctance to read it based on the book synopsis on the back. The synopsis sounded somewhat annoying, but the book itself was a wonderful fun, amusing, read that was hard to put down. Our library system had no copies, so I donated mine to the library so other people could read her wonderful book.

I was thrilled to receive Why Moms Are Weird, by Pamela Ribon through the library system. It is another fun read, and is also very difficult to put down. I had thought that this was a sequel to the first book, but it isn’t - it is a completely different story. This book is about a daughter who leaves her life in LA to help her mother and sister in Virginia after her mother has been hurt and lost a job. The book follows her mother’s oddities (collecting everything on earth, for one), and the daughter’s various coping mechanisms. The characters are very well developed, and I truly cared about what happened to each of them. It’s lovely to see a fun, lighter novel that still has very well-developed secondary characters.

I highly recommend both of Pamela Ribon’s books - they are a great way to unwind after a day spent chasing children or some other exhausting work!

I had to go to the ER recently. I had just finished a great book, so I grabbed what looked like a good book from my library stack. I wanted one I had received in large print, as it makes it easier to read when I’m in pain. In my mind, any book (or series of books) that can take your mind off shortness of breath, pain, and an ER visit is worth a review!

Julie Kenner has written other bestselling books, but the Demon series (Carpe Demon and California Demon, plus the newest Demons Are Forever) stands out as spectacular. In this series you have a mother who at first seems to be completely normal - she has a husband, a teenager, a toddler, and all the joys and problems that go with those. And then you find out she has a past as a Demon Hunter trained by the Vatican! Unlike most books, she is written to truly interact with her kids, who are actually written as normal children. The people seem real, and Kate’s dilemmas about Demon Hunting include her angst about putting her toddler in day care - it’s a welcome change from the many books where the kids are magically cared for in the background while the mom is the center of attention. These kids get their fair share of mom’s time. The depth of emotion behind the character of Kate is also unusual. Her first husband (and Demon Hunting partner) died, and she is now married to a wonderful man - but she and her daughter cannot forget their love for her first husband.

Carpe Demon introduces us to Kate, teenage daughter Allie, late husband Eric, second husband Stuart, toddler son Tim, and best friend Laura. We learn of her history as a Demon Hunter raised in the Vatican as an orphan. We watch her dilemma between keeping her family together (and her son out of day care) and saving her town from Demons. This is a page turner of the best kind! Julie Kenner builds her characters into people we want to go have coffee with - all the major characters have depth, and the twists she builds into the plot aren’t what you expect.

California Demon picks up a few months after the first book left off. The theme of the book is secrets - the secret Kate is keeping from her husband, the secrets Kate and her daughter find out her first husband was keeping from her, the problems in her best friend’s marriage, and others. The story is gripping, yet has some wonderful funny parts. Plus the parts that make you teary - Kate’s love for her late husband, as well as her daughter’s love for her late father are superbly written. As with Carpe Demon, the characters are all incredibly well fleshed out and real. The twists and turns of the plot keep you fascinated, and then surprised. I am left wondering if the author knows something about the world that we don’t know… are there really Demon Hunters and Demons out there?

I have one nit-picky problem - the subtitles of all 3 books is “The Secret Life of a Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom”. And yet no one plays soccer. I understand that “soccer mom” is used to describe stay-at-home moms in suburbia, especially those with minivans, but still. It’s one of my pet peeves. But that’s really my only problem with the books.

When Demons Are Forever was released, it definitely lived up to the wait - check out the series!

I’ve been reading a lot. I’ve been reading good books, too. Just not books I could whole-heartedly recommend. There were little things that bothered me, or even big things. I have a huge stack of books I am planning to read, and not enough time to do so - winter seems filled with Things To Do.

But then I found it - The Book I Couldn’t Put Down! Perfection. There’s a sequel out, too - and I’m so glad I read it just before the sequel came out, that way I don’t have to wait too long for more. This is one Adult Lit book that doesn’t fit into neat categories, either.

Confessions of Super Mom, by Melanie Lynne Hauser is a wonderful book. Truly. The title is disarming - it sounds like a book you would want to avoid, because it would be another silly book about a mom who does it all, and irritates the reader while she does it.

NOPE! Instead, this is the story of a divorced woman who has a “Horrible Swiffering Accident”, where she tries to clean a stubborn stain in the bathroom while forgetting to turn on the exhaust fan. When her teens come home and wake her up, she finds that she now has super-powers! her hand is like a scrubby, and her finger shoots cleaning liquid!

Super Mom (aka Birdie Lee) has a geeky teenage son who helps her create a superhero outfit, she has the geeky love interest who helps out, and even the evil plot in her town to foil. It is a mix between a superhero comic, chick lit, a mystery, and a good laugh. I’m sure I’m not the only one waiting impatiently to read the sequel - Super Mom Saves the World!

After writing entries about Demonic Goodness, Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Series, Vampire Romances and other reviews, I kept finding great paranormal/supernatural books. All of them are fun, and most have some romance in them. Each world is unique - vampires (for instance) can be evil beings who kill their “prey”, or they can be fun folks who drink bagged blood. Magic can be performed by regular people, or by a separate race of Witches or Wizards. While many books on this list could be also listed as Romances, others are Mysteries, some are Historical Fiction, and others stick straight to the Sci-Fi/Fantasy genre. The big thing they have in common is a peek into a world that is outside of our own (as far as I know … ) I’m listing them alphabetical by author, as there is no way I’m going to try to pick favorites! (so don’t ignore the ones that aren’t at the top!)

Keri Arthur has a fabulous series about Riley Jensen - a half-vamp, half-werewolf who works to help keep the paranormal community in check in Australia. This is a world where everyone knows about the paranormal world, and there is a special law enforcement community just to deal with them. The bad guys also have clones and evil bio-tech folks trying to steal samples of DNA. You never really know who’s side someone is on, you have to keep guessing. Plus some great romance. A great combination. Series begins with Full Moon Rising.

Michele Bardsley has started a great series where a small town has been changed into a vampire town - a vampire who was temporarily insane turned an entire town of single mothers into vampires. The kids end up swapping schedules too, so school happens during the night. There are, of course, bad guys who are trying to get rid of some of the good vampires, and there’s always some difficulty getting the right folks to realize they were meant for eachother, but this is a fun & romantic series that will leave you waiting for the next book to come out! Series begins with I’m the Vampire, That’s Why.

Annette Blair’s series of Witch books is set in Salem, MA (near us). She uses some of the landmarks, but also has some poetic license (which she does identify at the end - too many authors don’t do that). These books are a mix of real magic and straight-up romance with pretend magic. There’s enough magic in the air around Salem, though, that these should be on a list of supernatural series! Series begins with The Kitchen Witch.

Jim Butcher created the Harry Dresden series, which was on Sci Fi channel for a while. This is another world where the paranormal has come out of the closet a bit - Harry is a wizard, and he’s in the yellow pages. Harry tries to earn a living as a wizard, and helps out the city’s Special Forces police, plus dealing with vampires, bad wizards, and people who just don’t pay their bills. It’s great to read a series where the wizard is struggling to pay the bills, as opposed to most of the other series where the paranormal hero is independently wealthy. Series begins with Storm Front.

MaryJanice Davidson teams up with her husband, Anthony Alongi for the Jennifer Scales series - a young adult series about a girl who can turn into a dragon. Add in some tension due to normal teen angst AND magical people, and you get a really fun series. Series starts with Jennifer Scales and the Ancient Furnace). Don’t miss MaryJanice’s many other series - Fred the Mermaid (starting with Sleeping with the Fishes), the Undead/Queen Betsy series (starting with Undead and Unwed), and her other great books.

Christine Feehan has written 18 books in her Dark series - all with a mix of romance, suspense, and plenty of paranormal activities. In her world the Carpathians are an ancient race who require blood to survive and (usually) can only come out when the sun is down or obscured. As male Carpathians age, they lose emotions and the ability to see the world in color - this only changes when they turn Vampire (start killing those from whom they take blood) or meet their life-mate (the woman to whom they are destined). The Carpathians are a race worried about extinction, so they search the world for women for their men (either other Carpathians or human women with psychic skills) and for bio-technology to understand how to keep their children alive. The Vampires and various societies out to get Carpathians (thinking that they are vampires) act as the suspense, along with these ancient men having to deal with the strong-willed modern-day women! Series starts with Dark Prince.

Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire series will enthrall you - what would happen if vampires came out of the closet after synthetic blood was invented? Our heroine is a waitress in a bar in Northern Louisiana - she’s human, but she can read minds. Vampires show up as “blanks” to her (very appealing to someone who “hears” everything people are thinking!), and so she gets drawn into their world. A fascinating series about humans with special powers, vampires, werewolves, shape shifters, and the politics of the supernatural world - with some great romance, too. Series starts with Dead Until Dark.

In the world of Kim Harrison’s Rachel Morgan series, humanity and the paranormals are on equal footing after a bio-engineered illness knocked out most of humanity through tomatoes. Humans live with the “Interlanders” - vampires, witches, weres, pixies, etc. I don’t just like the series because the heroine shares my first name, but that doesn’t hurt! This series has a fantastic perspective on how the magic of Witches works, differences between types of vampires, and the inner workings of the new police structure. It’s also a series about friendships, and how important they are. Series starts with Dead Witch Walking.
Dean James has written a completely unique series of supernatural books - his vampire is Simon Kirby-Jones, a gay writer who also solves mysteries. Simon is in England, with an assistant who is titled and a huge flirt. Not only is Simon one of the few gay vampires I’ve read about, he is also one of the few that solves mysteries, rather than romances. In addition to all that, he takes pills to make him not need blood - he still needs very little sleep, but he is also losing out on the cool vampire tricks like changing form and reading minds (and garlic is still deadly). Is it really worth the trade-off? Series begins with Posted To Death.

Julie Kenner is an Austin writer who penned the fabulous books I reviewed in Demonic Goodness. In addition to those, she has written a 4-book series about superheroes. These are the decedents of the Greek Gods and Goddesses (or the superheroes who the Greeks named as Gods & Goddesses), and much of the tension and story surrounds possessions of their great-great (etc) grandmother Aphrodite. While the supers are special, are Halflings (half-mortal, half super) have powers as great as those with undiluted blood? And who is acting for who - the sides seem to shift a lot. Great fun, suspense, and yes - great romance, too. Series starts with Aphrodite’s Kiss. Don’t miss her Young Adult series about vampires in high school, starting with The Good Ghouls’ Guide to Getting Even.

Susan Krinard has written a couple series about werewolves (or loup-garou as they prefer). She started in the present day, but has moved to a historical werewolf series set in the late 1800s. These are romances, but they are also filled with the paranormal and wonderful bits of information about different eras and areas. The paranormal is still underground in her books, and sometimes the genes for werewolves will skip generations. The modern day books are Prince of Wolves and Prince of Shadows. The historical series starts with Touch of the Wolf.

Kathy Love has written some incredibly unusual, romantic, and fascinating vampire novels. Can YOU picture a vampire in a mobile home working at a bar with karaoke? Or a vampire who has found love, but has given himself amnesia? Much less a vampire night club owner who becomes enthralled with a woman trying to end the vampire’s dependence on blood? Her imagination is impressive! Her four novel series follows a family of vampires in a world where the paranormal is still hidden, but the underground world is strong. The Young Brothers series starts with Fangs for the Memories.

Katie MacAlister is about to release the fourth book in her Aisling Grey series - Holy Smokes. Aisling is a the mate of a dragon (who takes human form), she has a minor demon in dog-form as her pet, and she is also trying to train to become a Guardian. She really has a lot going on, add to that people keep dying near her, so she has to figure out what is happening (or risk getting arrested herself). Aisling is also trying to actually earn a living - something that most supernatural folks aren’t worried about. This underground magical world draws on the world within the Moravian Dark Ones series, but the characters don’t overlap. You should read the Dark Ones series, too, though! Aisling’s series starts with You Slay Me.

Erin McCarthy’s vampires are in Vegas - a sunny city, so they only come out at night, or else they stay in the casinos they own. This is another series where each book focuses on a different character, and you learn their story. This is a world filled with intrigue - vampire politics, drugged blood, and kidnappings. Of course, like any good vampire book there is plenty of romance and fun, too! First book in the series is High Stakes.

Kimberly Raye has written very funny novels about a woman vampire looking for the right man, so she starts up a dating service - for humans and for vampires. Her world of fashion accessories & great shoes, is rocked when she ends up investigating some murders and being under investigation herself because some of her clients are involved. She is also having trouble settling down with the right vamp - she needs a “born” vampire rather than a “turned” vampire, as only the “born” vampires can procreate. Of course, the guy she’s hot for isn’t in the right category! Book 3 (Your Coffin or Mine?) comes out on September 25, 2007, so it’s a short wait to find out what happens next. First book in the series is Dead End Dating

Stephanie Rowe’s books are another series filled with romance and humor. However, in hers there is a dragon stuck in dragon form (they can usually change to human form at will), a guardian of the goblet of eternal life (which is now in the shape of an espresso machine), and Satan, junior. There’s enough in this series to turn your thoughts of the supernatural world on its head, and you’ll be laughing as you do read. And wait for book 4 to be released in November, 2007 … Series starts with Date Me, Baby, One More time

Michelle Rowen’s two novels (of a projected 5) are about a woman who was turned into a vampire by a rogue vampire, and she is trying to learn how to cope with her new life. Her character is different than a lot of new-vampire women, as her “creator” is a bit of a nutcase. She also gets the fun of having vampire hunters coming after her. Of course there is a sexy vampire who acts as her mentor, so it really all balances out in the end. The first book in the series is Bitten & Smitten.

Lynsay Sands has written a fabulous series about the Argeneau family of long-lived vampires - each book follows one of the family members as they find their true love. This is romance writing that really sucks you in (heh). This series is also a different take on vampires and our world than what is usually seen - the vampires drink bagged blood from a blood bank, and they are normal members of society - writers, video game artists, etc. Another difference in her books is that there are female vampires looking for their male mates - very different from the male vamps only norm in paranormal lit. The first book in the series is A Quick Bite. 3 new books will be released in 2008 - 1 each for the first 3 months!

Shanna Swendson has written a series of books that are fabulous fun - a human (Katie) is recruited to work for a magical company. Katie is one of the rare people not affected by magic, so she needs to help the company keep itself safe from other magical people pulling tricks. Not quite enough romance for my hopes, but there’s lots of nice tension, and great characters. The bad guys keep winning enough to make things extra-interesting, and the good guys aren’t perfect - even though it’s supernatural, it all feels very real. I love when I can see the characters in my head as I’m reading! Never mind that Katie’s boss is Merlin - that should be enough to get you to read the books! The series begins with Enchanted, Inc., and the 4th book will come out in 2008.

I hope you can find some books you enjoy on this list - it should keep you going for a while! I’ll be researching a sequel, of course!

This review is part of a MotherTalk blog tour, and I received the book from the publisher to review.

I had a list of books to review this summer, and also a list of books I was looking forward to - several of my favorite authors had new releases this summer. Often the books to review become books I look forward to - the description grabs me hard enough that I can’t wait to read it. Sometimes the book itself lives up to that expectation, and sometimes it doesn’t. Flirting in Cars by Alisa Kwitney far exceeded that expectation, and left me grateful for a rainy, relaxing day where I could just sit and read without having to put the book down for very long.

Alisa Kwitney creates wonderful characters - a single mother named Zoë who is estranged from her Orthodox Jewish family, her fourth grade daughter named Maya, and love interest named Mack. These characters, as well as the secondary characters, jump off the page - reading Flirting in Cars feels almost like you are sitting down with Zoë, chatting about her life. Zoë and Maya leave New York City for a year to move to a very small town 2 hours away so that Maya can attend a school specializing in helping children with Dyslexia learn and feel self-confident.

I’m the mother of a child with learning disabilities (including trouble with reading), who is about to go into the fourth grade. Flirting in Cars gives one of the most accurate depictions of a child of this age - the mix between longing to be independent (Maya loves the long school days and time spent working with horses) and the need for closeness (after the move, Maya is afraid, and wants to cuddle in her mom’s bed). It’s a really difficult age to portray, and I think Alisa Kwitney deserves a special accolade for Maya’s character.

After Zoë and Maya move to the small town, Zoë’s fear of driving becomes a real problem. New York City’s excellent public transportation and taxis let her live easily without driving. However, in a small town she needs a driver to get groceries, to meet Maya for lunch, and for all her other errands. Luckily, she’s a freelance writer, so she can work from home on her laptop, but she ends up needing a driver a lot. Mack starts as her driver - he also works as a driving instructor (who wants to teach Zoë to conquer her fears and learn to drive), and several other jobs, like most folks in the small town.

When Zoë starts investigating some land deals within the town, and the possibility of corruption and ecological damage, she starts to really become invested in the town. The tugs within her between small town and big city pull hard within her. The added dilemma of her relationship with Mack (fling or serious? is the age and class difference important?) also wrenches inside Zoë. Flirting in Cars lets us into the lives of these characters as we devour the book, unable to put it down until we find out what will happen next.

I loved Flirting in Cars, and while I really want Alisa Kwitney to write a sequel, I will also keep an eye out for her next book. I’m loaning my copy of Flirting in Cars to a friend this afternoon, and highly recommend you go buy a copy or request it from your library - it’s a great summer read that you will enjoy - I doubt you’ll be able to put it down easily!

How to Sleep with a Movie Star, by Kristin Harmel, is a great novel about journalism, celebrities, romance, and jealousy. I first found Kristen’s work when I read her fabulous essay in Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume, but her name was misspelled as “Kristin Karmel”, which made it difficult to find her! I finally found her website, and read The Blonde Theory earlier this year and loved it. I couldn’t wait to read more, but the library didn’t have How to Sleep with a Movie Star, so I had to wait for the opportunity to buy it.

Kristin Harmel has written a story about Claire, an entertainment/celebrity journalist (youngest senior editor ever!) at a Cosmo rival woman’s magazine. She’s used magazine-type headlines for each of the chapters, which helps the humor-level of the story. Claire has prided herself as being very professional with everyone, and the benefits of that professionalism are great - she is one of the first people that celebrities are willing to talk to after or during a crisis. Being successful so young has meant, though, that she has people who are jealous of her job and either assume she slept her way there or they want to sabotage her job.

In How to Sleep with a Movie Star, Claire is in a relationship that is going south when she interviews the very handsome and genuinely nice Cole Brannon. Of course, everyone at Mod is envious of her opportunity to interview this eligible bachelor, especially Sidra, a fashion editor who has always been incredibly jealous and snide to Claire. The interview with Cole goes surprisingly well, and Claire has to remind herself that she has a boyfriend (even if he hasn’t been attentive lately). She also has to remind herself about keeping her professional outlook:

I had always vowed that I would keep my emotions completely removed from my job. … No crushes allowed. And here I was making googly-eyes at Hollywood’s Most Eligible Bachelor. What was wrong with me? … After all, it was his job to charm me if he wanted to appear to be a good guy in the media.

Several of random and unforeseeable circumstances lead to Cole and Claire sitting in her apartment rather early in the morning when Sidra stops by to pick something up. Of course, Sidra jumps to conclusions, and nothing Claire or Cole says could dissuade her.

The story continues, pitting Sidra and her co-conspirators against Claire and her morals/professionalism. The story becomes incredibly absorbing, and it’s almost impossible to put down. You’re rooting for Claire, of course, but the nastiness emanating from Sidra’s camp is truly awe-inspiring. Claire is also incredibly inspiring as she perseveres through the problems that ensue from Sidra’s sabotage. While “How to Sleep with a Movie Star” is a very catchy title, the book could also have been called “How to Persevere when it seems like everyone is against you”! I love how Kristin kept her character from being either overwhelmingly depressed or overly optimistic. Claire perseveres through rotten times and career problems, but she does so in a way that feels incredibly real - and it makes those of us persevering through our own mess hope for a fairytale ending!

Within the book, there needs to be celebrities beyond Cole, of course. In many novels about characters mixing with celebrities, either all the celebrities are fake or the author uses all real celebrities except the one involved with the main character. Kristin Harmel did a mix - about 2/3 of the celebrities mentioned in How to Sleep with a Movie Star are real, but the other 1/3 are still very well represented, with discussions about all of them. This mixture of authentic and author-created celebrities makes the story seem all the more real - having Ben Affleck mentioned as another Bostonian like Cole fits, but Kristin also has several invented celebrities talk to Claire as well.

This was a great book, fun to read and very absorbing. A definite thumbs up - go pick up a copy while you wait for the February 2008 release of Kristin’s next book: The Art of French Kissing!