Everything was pointing to this book being rubbish. The cover art is pretty crap. It doesn’t scream ‘sophisticated writing that’s going to whisk you away into a story that feels so real you’ll…’ I don’t even know how to end that sentence.
Then the book starts with author’s notes informing us that this is the author’s first ever completed novel, and she had real issues getting it published. Oh joy. I’m definitely in for a thrill here.
If this was a movie, it’d be an action comedy. Or a comedy action. It had a lot of action and a lot of comedy. There were shots fired, car chases, stabbings, people getting run over, explosions, and lots of kissing. But it was interwoven with a sense of humour that kept me smiling as I turned the pages. It was the kind of humour that made you chuckle to yourself or snigger quietly as you read on the train, leaving people wonder what you’re reading or watching.
The story is told in first person by Isabel ‘Stan’ Stanley. She is hilariously self-deprecating. It’s a weird kind of humour too, because the other characters keep commenting on it, which makes sense when you’re reading, but looking back makes you realise that the author was kind of laughing at her own jokes. Never mind, I was laughing at her jokes too, so all good.
Despite all the action, despite the deaths, despite the bad guys doing bad things, it was a light hearted romp of a read, and I really enjoyed it. I’d recommend it as a perfect holiday read, something to read at the beach, or if you’ve had too much of reading dark, intense, brooding kinds of books.
I know humour is individual and you might not enjoy it the same as I did, but definitely give it a go. I was pleased I did. I gave it four stars.
