Book Review of A Life Less Ordinary
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Book cover and blurb
Title: A Life Less Ordinary
Author: Victoria Bernadine
Genre: Chicklit, Contemporary Fiction
For the last fifteen years, Rose “Manny” Mankowski has been a very good
girl. She turned her back on her youthful fancies and focused on her career.
But now, at the age of 45, she's questioning her choices and feeling more and
more disconnected from her own life. When she's passed over for promotion and
her much younger new boss implies Manny's life will never change, something
snaps. In the blink of an eye, she's quit her job, sold her house and cashed in
her pension, and she's leaving town on a six month road trip.After placing a personal ad for a travelling companion, she's joined in her mid-life crisis by Zeke Powell, the cynical, satirical, most-read – and most controversial – blogger for the e-magazine, What Women Want. Zeke's true goal is to expose Manny's journey as a pitiful and desperate attempt to reclaim her lost youth – and increase his readership at the same time. Leaving it all behind for six months is just an added bonus.
Now, armed with a bagful of destinations, a fistful of maps, and an out-spoken imaginary friend named Harvey, Manny's on a quest to rediscover herself – and taking Zeke along for the ride.
Author
Bio
Victoria Bernadine (a pseudonym) is, as the
saying goes, a “woman of a certain age”. After twenty-something years of
writer’s block, she began writing again in 2008.
Victoria enjoys reading all genres and
particularly loves writing romantic comedy and post-apocalyptic science
fiction. What those two have in common is anybody's guess.
She lives in Edmonton with her two cats (The
Grunt and The Runt). A Life Less Ordinary is the first novel she felt was good
enough to be released into the wild.
Links
Twitter: @vicbernadine
Blog:
victoriabernadine.wordpress.com
E-mail:
loveofwords@shaw.ca
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AMJBOSQ
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-life-less-ordinary-victoria-bernadine/1114941600?ean=9780991810215
Other:
CreateSpace:
https://www.createspace.com/4164575
Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/299257
Giveaway
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Book Excerpts
The coffee shop wasn’t very busy. Only a couple of tables were occupied, with
several more people standing in line. Manny sat rather nervously at her table
sipping her third vanilla latte and wondering if she was as crazy as Rebecca
and Daisy claimed. This would be her fourth interview today of a potential
travelling companion and she hoped this guy would be more of a possibility than
the other three she’d already met. Oh, they all seemed nice enough, but Olive
had been jittery and they’d quickly realized their personalities would never
mesh well enough to travel together for six months. Isaac had had a predatory,
speculative gleam in his eyes as he looked her over–and she hadn’t needed
Harvey to tell her to stay as far away from him as possible.
Darius was very sweet and charming, just eighteen, but
he couldn’t pay his own way, and Manny wasn’t about to support him for six
months. He’d shrugged and accepted her decision with an adorable smile and she
offered to call Daisy’s boss, Max, to see if he had any work that Darius could
do. Darius had thanked her and even paid for their lattes, and they’d chatted
for a good forty-five minutes before he’d finally gone on his way. Yes, he
would have been a good choice–and she might change her mind if she didn’t find
anyone before she left in two weeks.
You can always go by yourself.
I know. But it would be more fun with
someone else.
You’ll have me.
Manny glanced at Harvey sitting in the chair across
from her. He was dressed casually in jeans and a button down shirt open at the
throat to show the strong lines of his neck and chest.
You’re not real.
Harvey winked at her. Just checking.
She shook her head and Harvey blinked out of existence
as the door opened and a darkly handsome man walked in. He paused in the
doorway and removed his sunglasses as he glanced around the small room.
Securely hidden in her corner, Manny considered him.
Tall; over six feet. Dark. Handsome, with large, dark
eyes and full pouty lips. His black, tousled hair and dark stubble on his face
gave him a sexy, scruffy appearance. He was slim, with broad shoulders, narrow
hips and long legs encased in jeans.
I’ll bet he has a great ass.
I’ll bet you’re right.
He’s like a younger version of me.
Manny blinked at the man standing in the doorway and
realized Harvey was right. Oh, they didn’t exactly look alike, but they had
similar colouring, and a similar underlying confidence and arrogance in their
stance. Probably something natural when you’re that naturally gorgeous, Manny
thought ruefully, or, in Harvey’s case, that unnaturally perfect.
I’d almost be jealous...if I was
real.
But you’re not–and he’s quite
something. I wonder who he’s here to me...eeet.
Her internal dialogue trailed off as the stranger’s
gaze met hers. He gave a half smile and headed towards her.
Review:
In the author notes about the book the author states the idea for the
book came from the following:
“Then a
LiveJournal friend published a meme, which was: “leave a comment, and I’ll give
you seven actors and you have to come up with a TV series starring those seven
actors.” I thought–what the hell–and left a comment. She gave me: Megan Follows
(Manny); Meg Ryan (Daisy); Gillian Anderson (Rebecca); Michaela Conlin (Leah); Kevin
Bacon (TJ); Esai Morales (Harvey); Karl Urban (Zeke); then I added: Bruce
Willis (Max); and Robert Downey Jr. (Jackson).”
After
reading this comment the book suddenly took on a whole new level of subtext and
plot meaning that added an extra dimension to an already fabulous story. About 8 years ago, I had my own sort of
mid-life crisis and left my job… of course this was because I got very ill and
ended up being disabled and unable to work, but I could relate to Manny and the
feelings of not having anything outside of work and not knowing what there was
in life outside of work and family.
I
loved seeing Manny learn that there is more to life than her self-imposed views
of life in a box. Equally it was great
to see Zeke learn that he could be just friends with a woman.
I
give this book 4 out of 5 clouds.
This product or book may have been distributed for review; this in no way
affects my opinions or reviews.
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