Sophia is a small town girl, but only at heart. In reality she’s a high-powered criminal lawyer living in New York with her equally as brilliant fiance Stephen. In other words, life is good, well… WAS good, until one night at dinner she suddenly develops this “fist-sized” ball (that she lovingly names FB) in the base of her throat. With no medical explanation for her sudden predicament, and a shrink that is as much help at a paper-weight Sophia is on her own, but when her mysterious psychological condition starts to wreck havoc on her life, and her health something has to give. Will Sophie finally give in to her inner self and become her own woman, or will the anxiety stuck inside her eat her alive?

Like I said before, this novel was a little odd, but for all of its quirky dialogue, and flamboyant situations (hello penis lamp) the story was surprisingly profound. Here was a woman that was so stunted by the pressures, and societal expectations of her life that she created a mental condition that eventually started to affect her physically. The sheer fact that Tonya Plank could even think this concept up is astounding, and to put it down (successfully) onto paper is even more noteworthy. Her characters were unlike any I’ve ever read before, ranging from the pornographic to the demure and about 50% of the way in (shockingly) I found myself genuinely caring about their welfare, however, great characters, and an interesting plot do not always mean perfection. There were several moments in which the plot seemed stunted, repeating itself, and even forcing what seemed like “afterthought” details. For example, there were several occasions in which Sophia engaged in phone conversations with her clients… I found each and every one of these calls useless and unnecessary, they did not add to the plot or deepen the significance of Sophie’s job, only acted as a drag to what would have otherwise been a fast moving story.

Overall? Decent read, and an interesting new take on “chick lit.” If you are looking for a (mostly) well written novel with a unique heroine, and a crazy play on feminist equality… this is the read for you, Oh! and lookey what I found.

WINNER OF GOLD MEDAL, 2010 Living Now Book Awards, Women’s Fiction
WINNER OF GOLD MEDAL, 2010 Independent Publisher Book Awards, Best Regional Fiction
FINALIST, 2010 ForeWord Magazine Book of the Year Awards, General Fiction
FINALIST, 2010 National Indie Excellence Awards, Regional Fiction

I knew I had it in me!

Happy reading my fellow Kindle-ites and remember; baby food is still food… but do you really want to explain to a room full of lawyers why you’re eating it?

For a complete book description click image

***½~ (3.5/5)

Unfortunately for Jordan… that’s exactly what it meant.

Jordan is in high school..not that she attends all that much, she would rather spend her time drowning her social anxiety in booze and coke, but being high and drunk is like second nature to her more than attending class is anyways…a way of dropping off the planet or making her “pitiful” existence seem a little more worthy.

What she doesn’t realize (until the end of the book of course) is that no matter how many bottles of her mother’s Peach Schnapps she drinks, her problems are still gonna be there after she’s finishing chacking in the bathroom.

Her life is a back hole…a downward spiral, but to add insult to injury, Jordan can’t leave the house after dark…not since an angry Vampire took up residence outside her bedroom window.

The plot is intriguing, depressing, and hopeful all at the same time.  This is “Amanda Marrone’s” 1st YA novel, and she takes her audience (successfully) on an not so joyfull ride of teenage substance abuse, the ability to recognize failure, and the need to cope with mortality, all the while throwing in a kick ass subplot of “angry un-dead boyfriend.”

I enjoyed “Uninvited”.  It was well written, and in the end had a moral that every teenager should heed to.

There was purple hair, friends returning from rehab, emotional breakdowns, a very uncomfortable basement scene, and one very life altering moment involving a cliff and several screams for HELP!

If you are the parent of a teenager, I advise YOU more than anyone else to read this book…to understand that this could be your child, and to recognize then signs if it is.

If you are a teenager…read it, like it…and then file it away into the “I will NEVER be like this” part of your brain.

And if you are the person looking for an uplifting read…you too should read it, because, while the first 80% will make you very uncomfortable and probably thinking I’ve lost my marbles, the ending will make you smile.

Enjoy and happy reading my fellow narcissist and remember… Not everyone is your enemy…sometimes they are your salvation.

For a full book description click image.

****~ (4/5)