Carmen Reid

Romance? love?
Pleeeze.
Lust and infatuation.
A very pink book about extremely superficial people and their "problem" presenting themselves to the world: I don't have a thing to wear! Shopping here I come!
The answer to every problem from post divorce depression to a grieving widow is dress up, put a good face on it, esp. in a designer label, and sachet forth and conquer.
But there is a touching side to this story. I wish I could like the character more and the way she coped.

I was really excited to read this book, because I'm somewhat of a shopaholic, and I sell clothing on eBay, just like the main character. However, I was somewhat disappointed in this book.

The way the main character, Annie, speaks was just downright annoying. All the "babes" and "darlin"s that kept popping up drove me crazy. I wanted to slap her! And I just could not believe how quickly she capitulated in her job, or furthered her relationships - seemed unrealistic. Annie was flawed, and not show more in a particularly interesting way.

Underneath the annoying characterization, the premise of the story wasn't bad. I didn't see the twist coming at all, and I did like the main love interest (the one she ends up with at the end). The other characters in this book were much better written (Annie's children in particular).

But, I never really felt compelled to keep reading - I didn't look forward to reading this. Picking up this book was a little like a chore, and once I was halfway through, I was reading just to finish it, not because it was really, really good.

Overall impression: Could have been better! show less

Hahahahaha! Seriously this book is bad. Really bad. In fact I was sure it was written by a pre-teen as it had a very young and naive air about it. Firstly it was centred around the Jewel sisters named Amber, Sapphire and Emerald. Yep they were all named after jewels just to match their surname and Sapphire conveniently works in the antique jewellery trade! So Amber and Emerald decide they are going to steal some jewels from Sapphires employer, sell them in Geneva and live in the sun for a show more few years until everything settles down. Like you do. Emerald sneaks into the building in order to steal the jewels, and finds somebody else is already there with the same idea! At the same time she realises she can’t go through with this robbery as her sister Sapphire will be accused (well duh) so then decides to sneak back out of the building. At the very same time, the alarms go off, she is trapped in the toilets and finds the stolen jewels in a bin. Yes in a bin. So what do you do? Do you climb out the window run off and get on with your life knowing you had a lucky escape, or do you take the jewels, climb out the window and think it’s ok, I accidentally came across them anyway? Yep that’s right, she takes the jewels dropping all three sisters in the shit. Afterwards, Amber and Emerald run off to Geneva, sell the jewels to a collector who is secretly working with the police and then head to the airport with all the money, for NYPD catch up with them. However as the creepy and dim witted lead detective has been ‘involved’ with Amber, he quickly comes up with a pathetically rubbish story, which not only lets them off the hook, but also gives them the reward money for miraculously ‘finding’ the jewels and handing them over to a trustworthy collector, all the way in Geneva!! So as you can tell I was not the least impressed with the plot. Also, these three ‘gals’ originated from Texas and they are extra mature cheesy! The accents are terrible and the phrases sound like really tacky red neck hicks. I’m pretty sure Southern Belles haven’t spoken that way since the 1950’s. An example: After being held at gunpoint in a robbery at the beginning of the book, Sapphires first words (after having a loading gun pressed against her head) was “Oh! My…Oh, my…that was so scary. That was the scariest thing ever.” I seriously think I would be coming out with some expletives if that was me. In fact even the classiest Southern Belle would too! show less

Hilarious and sizzling

Enjoyed book #1 very much. I love clothes and a solid bag so enjoyed this book. We get two potential romances for widowed mom of two, Annie.

I was curious about this book since it was recommended to me. I thought it was really good. We get some chick-lit and romance elements that were well done. And for once we have a character in her mid 30s who is out there getting love. And a widowed mom of two to boot. Annie was kind of a mess here and there, but I couldn't help show more rooting for her throughout the book.

"The Personal Shopper" follows widowed mom of two Annie Valentine. Annie is still reeling after the death of her husband, three years later. She's struggling to make ends meet and is trying her best to stay at the top of the game as a personal shopper at "The Store" where she works. She's also trying to sell things via E-bay and has plans to flip her current home so she and her two kids (Lauren and Owen) can move again. When Annie decides her meeting someone new (and possibly rich) may be the answer to her problems, she starts dating again and hilarity ensues.

We get two love interests in this one, one is a whole mess and I kept cracking up. But it does allow us to see that Annie isn't that great when it comes to men. I honestly was surprised at her since a few decisions she makes had me shaking my head at her (no spoilers).

The chapter headings begin with what a character is wearing and the cost of the items, so get used to that since it seems like something that happens in all of the books.

The ending was very sweet I thought and I liked that we get some clarification on what happened to Annie's husband and we get to see how it's affected her and her children. show less