The Woman Who Stole My Life – Marian Keyes
I have been a Marian Keyes fan for a long time – ever since the laugh out loud funny moments in Watermelon. Sometimes I have been disappointed, but usually I find them a fun read with a bit of a serious side.
Here is the blurb for this one …
Stella Sweeney is back in Dublin. After living the dream in New York for a year – touring her self-help book, appearing on talk shows all over the USA and living it up in her 10-room duplex on the Upper West Side – she’s back to normality with a bang. And she’s got writer’s block.
Stella wants a clean break as she didn’t exactly leave New York on a high. Why is she back in Ireland so soon? Who is it who keeps calling? Stella wants to get back to being the woman she used to be. But can she? And should she?
Stella contracts a dreadful disease and spends a lot of time in hospital. While in hospital she develops a connection with her neurologist – she communicates with him by blinking. Later, he turns her sayings into a self-published book, which finds its way into the hands of an infamous celebrity (she is photographed reading it) and so Stella becomes a publishing phenomenon. She gets a book deal, moves to New York (with the neurologist and her children) and goes on a book tour. She is living the life people dream about – I shall leave you to find out how she ends up back in Ireland along (apart from her grumpy son) and broke.
As you would expect from Ms Keyes, there are some hilarious moments. For example, Stella’s ex-husband’s plan to create his own celebrity or her son who is simply too well behaved (for a teenager).
This was a well-written romantic comedy. There are funny bits and serious bits, but more of the funny than the dark.