Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Vanity Fare, by Megan Caldwell

Molly is in a precarious situation.  She is separated from her husband Hugh, who recently lost his job, and has no mean to support their son, Aiden.  Luckily, Molly is hired to do some freelance copy-writing for a soon to be opened bakery.  Between playing Power Rangers, dealing with some extreme narcissists  scrounging up money to pay for therapy, and trying to rescue her mother from her own financial dire straits, Molly discovers much about herself, including a love for forbidden tasty morsels of various kinds.

This is, quite possible, one of if not the best piece of chick lit I have ever read.  In general, chick lit tends to be hit or miss for me, and often seems trite and dumbed down.  Not this book; there are son many references and parallels to major literary works that it was like a treasure hunt.  I loved all the puns on the titles of classic works, as well as the Byronic hero in the form of the character Nick.  

The characters in this story really pop.  I love Molly and all her neuroses.  She does not fit the mold, in so many ways, and that is what makes her so adorable.  She shows her vulnerability, and becomes all the stronger for doing so.  Similarly, the character of Nick is easy to adore.  I loved his character being revealed in layers.  Even the supporting characters are quite vivid, without being a distraction.

I just found there was so much to love about this book.  Discussion of delicious sweets?  Check.  Discussion of classic literary works?  Check.  A lovable if bumbling female protagonist you cannot help but root for, the perfect amount of romance and steam, and a healthy dose of snark?  Check, check, and check.  Add to this the bonus of several amazing recipes at the end of the text!  This is a great read for lovers of classics looking for something lighter to break the monotony, as well as tried and true chick lit lovers.  This delicacy is best served with a nice hot cup of coffee.  

I received a review copy courtesy of TLC Book Tours in exchange for my honest review.  See the rest of the tour here.

 tlc logo resized



If you liked this review, please rate it (and others!) as helpful on my Amazon profile. My Amazon Profile

3 comments:

  1. Tiffany! I'm so glad you liked it. I very much appreciate your taking the time to read and post a review.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  3. WOW!! This sounds like a really fabulous book! The main character sounds like someone I would really love.

    Thanks for being on the tour!

    ReplyDelete