Rita Ciresi

This was my first Rita Ciresi book, and it won't be my last. I opened this book with the best of intentions of only reading for a couple minutes, and ended up devouring it in two hours.

The way Ciresi brings the characters to life, and weaves them into such an intricate and superb story line is pure magic. This was one book that ended way too soon.

I usually don't like this type of book - but Ciresi drew me in instantly. This book made me laugh and cry along with the main character. Chick lit though it may be - it killed. Loved it.

For those who want their chick lit to have a little more meat on their bones, this is a good read. It has a darker tone, as Lisa's wild past threatens her new romance with a straight-laced businessman. Despite Lisa's experiments with sex and drugs, Ciresi rounds out the charachter by giving her a literary streak and a love for Proust. But the shadow hanging over the character is her best friend and cousin, a gay man suffering from AIDS. Far from being light and fluffy, Ciresi manages to show more inject humor into the novel to keep it from being depressing, and enough romance and angst to cement it in Chick Lit-ville. Throughout the book, Lisa struggles with her past and how to reconcile it with her future. I think a lot of people can relate to that better than most vapid chick lit heroines who have little or no conflict in their lives except for how to catch a man. show less

I reluctantly call this "Chick Lit." It's really more perverse, intense and tragic than any other piece of chick lit I've read before. For those of you who want to read this novel, I warn you that the first 122 pages are not earth-shattering. But on page 123, and for the remaining pages, the story becomes more complex, more interesting, more sad. For sure, this is definitely a different form of chick lit, and if you are a little tired of reading books that drop fashion designers' names like show more hot potatoes, then give this novel a try. show less