First line: OK. Don’t panic.
From the inside cover: Sophie Kinsella has dazzled readers with her irresistible Shopaholic novels – sensational international bestsellers that have garnered millions of devoted fans and catapulted her into the first rank of contemporary storytellers. Now her beloved heroine Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) returns in a hilarious tale of married life, toddlerhood, and the perils of trying to give a fabulous surprise party – on a budget!
Becky Brandon thought motherhood would be a breeze and that having a daughter was a dream come true: a shopping friend for life! But it’s trickier than she thought. Two-year-old Minnie has a quite different approach to shopping.
Minnie creates havoc everywhere she goes, from Harrods to her own christening. Her favorite word is “Mine!” and she’s even trying to get into eBay! On top of everything else, Becky and Luke are still living with her parents (the deal on house #4 has fallen through), when suddenly there’s a huge financial crisis.
With people having to cut back, Becky decides to throw a surprise party for Luke to cheer everyone up. But when costs starts to spiral out of control, she must decide whether to accept help from an unexpected source – and therefore run the risk of hurting the person she loves.
Will Becky be able to pull off the celebration of the year? Will she and Luke ever find a home of their own? Will Minnie ever learn to behave? And … most important … will Becky’s secret wishes ever come true!
My thoughts: I love reading about the many adventures Becky gets herself into and this latest one did not disappoint. The Shopaholic books are light-hearted, fun books and a great escape from the everyday. Becky gets herself into situations that cause you to smile and at times laugh out loud as she works her way through them. Add her now two-year-old toddler, Minnie, who obviously has been watching her mum very closely as she is starting to become quite the shopaholic, too, and you will be crying from laughing so hard. From Becky stuffing her mouth with carrots in an attempt to fool the nanny into thinking Minnie is a good eater, to Minnie throwing herself onto a life-sized mannequin and not letting go, to developing a devious and deceitful way of personal shopping for her clients at The Look, Becky’s life certainly has a flair for the dramatic. The best part is that Sophie Kinsella set up the last chapters to lead perfectly into a sequel – what can we expect next from Becky?
(I borrowed this book from the library.)
I enjoyed this book as well- it was a fun read! I don't think that I liked it as much as the earliest ones, but this is still a great book to escape into.