NetGalley

Reviews Published

Thursday, May 11, 2006

Dreaming helps you make it through the day

Dreaming, when there's nothing left to say
Dreaming, helps to take the pain away
Me, I live in dreams.

So much for one of my favourite Amanda McBroom songs. If you don’t know it, buy it. The reason it’s snorkelling around in my head is because of a book “Always a Bridesmaid” by Jane Beckenham.

“Always a Bridesmaid” is a romance, and it made me understand why so many women turn to that particular genre: from time to time, a woman needs to dream about a tycoon in shining Armani suit who will come and take her “away from all of this”.

What I like about “Always a Bridesmaid” is that it takes place in New Zealand (a rare find in itself) and that it’s not formulaic. Yes, there is an ex-wife who also happens to be the leading lady’s archrival, but no, she is not part of the problem. Yes, there is the alpha male’s brother, but no, there is no silly confusion or misunderstanding between the leading lady and the brother. And there is an adorable four-year old kid who doesn’t miraculously save the day.

And there is a happy ending. Dreaming, no it’s not the same as lies.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Do you read anything written by men?

Yvonne Eve Walus said...

You know, that's a very good question. I do, I'm sure I do. There is... and then there is... no, honestly. Let's see, at the moment I'm reading Geography by... a woman. And before that was... But anyway, there is always Terry Pratchett (YES!) even though there was a time when his Equal Rites was assumed to be by a woman (Terri Pratchett). And there is Harlan Coben. And the guys who wrote Red Dwarf. And when I was a teenager, I read ES Gardner and Ross MacDonald and Patrick Quentin and James McClure.

Anonymous said...

LOL. You can actually list the amount of guy writers you've read! :-) Amazing. Actually I have only read one book by a female (that I am aware of) Dana something. She wrote a horror book about De Sade. The cover looked good and it was recommended to me (by a woman) and I didn't have to pay for it. Which was good, 'cause I hated it.

I also tried Anne Rice(?) the vampire writer. She sucked as well. I never finished the third chapter. Far too descriptive for me. Let my imagination be free, woman!! LOL.

Yvonne Eve Walus said...

I liked Anne Rice's Witch series more than the Vampire series. And I liked her erotic books, the ones she wrote under a pseudomyn.