contemporary

I must say I disagree with the reviewers that deemed Green's latest book as predictable or boring for several reasons. First, the book is difficult to put down because it is funny and well-written. Second, Green (throughout all of her novels) has demonstrated how women (especially) grow mentally and emotionally from one's early 20's into one's 30's. So, yes, this book is much more "adult" than say, Jemima J, Bookends or Mr. Maybe, but To Have and To Hold, digs deeper to the relationships that many of us experience in our 30's. Even if you are skeptical, give the book a try. It's a great, fast read that will surely become one of your favorite Green Novels.

I loved Mr. Maybe and Jemima J by Jane Green, so I thought I'll read her newest novel, which is titled Spellbound in UK. It's the story of Alice, and her husband, who's constantly cheating on her. Too many descriptions and the story is going too slow. And then, suddenly, Alice changes totally. This book really got me frustrated, annoyed, depressed, anything but to have a good time ! I forced myself to finish it, but I couldn't, because it was really too hard to continue until the end.

Like many other reviewers, I found this (my first book by Jane Green) to be a mildly entertaining beach read but ultimately disappointing. It was spoiled for me by Green's rather wooden style of writing, flat, unconvincing dialogue and one-dimensional characters. A pity, because I thought the author did an excellent job of creating a sense of place and I could tell - even though I didn't enjoy this book as much as I'd hoped - that she could do much better. I look forward to reading her other novels.