Tuesday 25 May 2010

Could it Be Magic by Melanie Rose



Pages - 360

Published by Harper Collins in 2009

How could they have made such a mistake? It wasn't possible that I had a husband and four children I couldn't remember. I couldn't have forgotten something like that! This simply had to be a a bad dream after all - a very real seeming dream that would evaporate when I awoke.

Jessica, a single, career girl gets struck by lightening whilst walking her dog and wakes up in hospital to find that she is a different person. She has become Lauren, a wife to a domineering husband and a mother to four children. She cannot believe that it has happened.

When she finally falls asleep, she wakes up as Jessica again. She quickly discovers that she is living two lives. Whilst Jessica sleeps, she becomes Lauren and then when Lauren sleeps, she becomes Jessica.

This plays havoc with both lives and you cannot help but sit back and watch Jessica/Lauren cope with a demanding career in one life and a demanding family in another.

This would not normally be the type of book I would read as I am not a huge fan of chick lit. There is nothing wrong with chick lit and I used to read a lot of it years ago, it just doesn't hit the right spot anymore. So I was a little apprehensive to read this book that was lent to me. My friend was aware that I had recently read The Victorian Chaise-Longue by Marghanita Laski, which involved a woman waking up in a different body, so she thought this one would appeal to me. My god, was she right! I absolutely loved this book. It seems that magical realism has reached the chick lit genre and is settling in quite nicely. I was gripped by this book from page one and found myself flying through the pages, desperate to see what would happen to Lauren/ Jessica by the end. I really really enjoyed it.

Jessica takes to the the double life quite quickly and she makes it look easy. She reminded me of mums who try and juggle work and home life, how they pack everything in during a 24 hour period.

The story has quite a few twists and turns and the ending was really not what I expected. There were a couple of incidences within the book where I felt that the emotion wasn't true to the experience, but I will let the author off, as I really did enjoy the book.

If you are looking for a nice and easy read with a touch of magical realism, then this is the book for you. Enjoy!

11 comments:

  1. A very thorough review, Sounds like a nice holiday read to me. I love the cover.

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  2. Sounds like a lot of fun, I'm adding it to my look for list. Thanks!

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  3. Yes, the cover is really nice. I love magical realism, so this book would be perfect for me.

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  4. Lol, it does sound cute and fun. And I really need those once in a while

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  5. This looks like such a fun read! I don't read very much chick-lit either, but there have been a few fun reads that I liked a lot (Can You Keep a Secret by Sophie Kinsella and Bridget Jones's Diary are two of my favorites).

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  6. This book sounds more like a movie than a book to me. I'm glad you enjoyed it, Vivienne.

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  7. i also like the cover--reminds me a bit of mary poppins, maybe.

    this sounds like the perfect summer read--i'm compiling a list right now and may just add this title to lighten things up a bit!

    hope you're having a great week. :)

    --nat @book, line, and sinker

    ps. every time i visit your blog, your header makes me long for a treat!

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  8. I love books where someone wakes up as someone they don't remember. This one sounds right up my alley. Thanks for the review Viv.

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  9. Apologies, a bit off topic I know but I'm looking for your Friday Finds which my reader informs me is here somewhere. Help, where is it? Is my reader misinforming me?

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  10. Sounds just like my type of book, Viv! Interesting story and a great review. I'll keep this in mind.

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