Title: The Truth About Ellen
Author: Sarah Louise Smith
Publication: Crooked Cat Publishing Ltd. (19 May 2015)
Summary: When Ellen starts dating Tom, a member of the band she adored as a teenager, she can’t believe how lucky she is. She neglects to mention that she's a huge fan because that just wouldn’t be cool, would it? Ellen also keeps quiet about how she once spent an evening with Tom’s ex-bandmate/ex-best friend Jasper, her long-term celebrity crush. Tom doesn’t need to know about that, it’s all in the past. That is until Tom and Jasper get back in touch… and the truth threatens to ruin everything Ellen has ever dreamed of...
What I Think
Most of us have, at some point in our lives, had a celebrity crush. I was not really a boy band fan, but my celebrity crushes were/are Colin Firth and Richard Armitage. Therefore I can, to an extent, relate to how Ellen feels when she meets Tom Green, "who wrote the lyrics and played the bass in Four Ape"; a mixture of awe and feeling lucky, but also wanting to hide how big a fan she was and play it cool. Unfortunately for Ellen, playing it cool isn't really her thing.
Ellen is an extremely likable character and the thing that I possibly liked the most about her was her sense of independence. In a lot of chick lit novels the main characters can get so caught up in the moment that they lose their sense of self. This is not the case in The Truth About Ellen.
I've read all of Sarah Louise Smith's previous novels and didn't hesitate when I noticed that a new one was being released. I even started reading it without reading the back cover. I knew I wouldn't be disappointed. I sped through it and was surprised - but in a good way - at the ending. How does it end? You'll just have to read it to find out!
About the Author
Sarah Louise Smith lives in Milton Keynes, UK, with her husband, two cute cats and a loopy golden retriever. She has an extremely lovely step-daughter and spends most of her free time writing, reading, cooking, and taking long walks.
She’s the author of four chick-lit novels: Amy & Zach, Izzy’s Cold Feet, Independent Jenny and The Truth About Ellen, all published by Crooked Cat Publishing Ltd.
About the Book
Title: Don't You Forget About Me
Author: Alexandra Potter
Publication: Hodder (19 July 2012)/Amazon Kindle
Summary: Tess is heartbroken when Seb breaks up with her and can't help blaming herself. If only she'd done things differently. If only she could make right all her regrets. Drunk and upset on New Year's Eve she wishes she'd never met him. But when she wakes up to discover this dream has come true, she realises she has a chance. To do it all over again. And to get it right this time.
What I Think
Tess Connolly, the main character of Don't You Forget About Me, is a little ridiculous, but not totally unlikable. There are a couple of cringe-worthy moments when I can't believe girls like this really exist and furthermore that other people, presumably also girls, want to read about them. At times the character seems so shallow, and frankly quite stupid too, that I can't believe I didn't stop reading immediately.
What saves this book is that its moral is sound: don't pretend to be something you're not. In order to keep her boyfriend Seb happy and their relationship thriving, Tess is constantly trying to be something she's not, often with disastrous consequences. This message of being true to yourself is reinforced by the character Fiona, Tess' flatmate, who not only is the most unhealthy health & beauty editor, but she's prepared to adopt a fake persona to fit in with the 'posh set'.
Throughout the year that we follow the characters they discover more about themselves and who they truly are. With this new-found knowledge they are able to form better and stronger relationships with the people around them and ultimately be happier.
About the Author
Alexandra Potter (b. May 8, 1970) is an award-winning British author who previously worked as a features writer and sub-editor for women's glossies in both the UK and Australia. In 2007 she won the prize for Best New Fiction at the Jane Austen Regency World Awards for her bestselling novel, Me and Mr Darcy. Her novels have been translated into seventeen languages and her latest novel, You're the One That I Don't Want, is being adapted into a film. She now lives between London and Los Angeles and writes full-time.
