British Chick Lit

British author Holden (Filthy Rich) deftly weaves several plotlines to an ending in rustic Italy, where Galaxia, a blockbuster Star Wars knockoff, is shooting. Darcy Prince, a serious London theater actor, is tapped as the next Hollywood It Girl but questions the system as she is forced on a crash diet. From L.A., with a stop in London to polish her tarnished image, comes almost-washed-up star Belle Murphy. Belle's slimy but gorgeous ex, Christian Harlow, is cast in the film and also casts a spell on Darcy. Emma, Belle's nanny for her adopted African baby, has her own story, bringing several more British families onto the scene. Business and love affairs quickly rise and fall. A touch of scandal is complemented by a drop of sweetness as the good triumph and the evil, or simply shallow, lose. VERDICT The mass of characters would be annoying in less competent hands, but Holden's satirical humor and adept writing shine through. Glitzy fun with appeal for readers of Emma McLaughlin, Plum Sykes, or Lauren Weisberger.—Lisa Davis-Craig, Canton P.L., MI

Isabel Bookbinder, whom we first met in The Glamorous (Double) Life of Isabel Bookbinder, is the quintessential chick-lit heroine: a fallible, ditzy, and ultimately lovable British leading lady. The irrepressible Isabel is full of ambition but has a lot of trouble following through. Having failed to become a world-famous novelist, she now dreams of becoming a "Top International Fashion Designer," but she has no interest in starting at the bottom; Isabel wants to launch her new line now—never mind that she doesn't know how to sew and has never made a dress. Instead, she takes a job as a personal assistant to a fashion magazine editor, and there she finds the fashion world as slippery as a crepe de chine. There's a devastatingly sexy older crush, a designer playing double agent, and a misunderstanding about crystal mesh, the fabric—not crystal meth. VERDICT Readers of British chick lit, especially fans of Bridget Jones's Diary, will find themselves entertained by this otherwise unremarkable novel.—Anika Fajardo, St. Catherine Univ., St. Paul, MN

More relieved than upset when she returns home to find herself unceremoniously dumped by her live-in boyfriend, Tilly Cole is comforted by her best friend, Erin, who lives in a nearby town. By the end of her visit, Tilly has a new job and a home in Roxborough, but she soon discovers that gossip is practically a way of life there. Since most of that gossip swirls around Jack Lucas, the handsome bachelor who catches her eye, Tilly must decide whether to trust her head and what she hears through the gossip mill or her heart and what it tells her when she's with Jack. Mansell (Perfect Timing) manages to infuse moments of hilarity into what is a fairly predictable plot. Some minor characters are entertaining, but the various story lines peter out and fall flat by the end. VERDICT A light read, the story suffers from Mansell's failure to go beyond the surface of some of the more serious issues presented. Those who like their chick lit sprinkled with British humor might find this mildly entertaining. Readers who want more substance should try Marian Keyes's The Other Side of the Story. [Library marketing.]—Natasha Grant, New York