Another Review at MyShelf.Com

Publisher: Harper Audio
Release Date: 04/27/2004
ISBN: 0-06-072295-9
Awards:  
Format Reviewed: Audio Cassette- unabridged
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Genre: Humorous Fiction
Reviewed: 2004
Reviewer: Carisa Weeaks
Reviewer Notes: Some Adult Language
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The Other Side of the Story
By Marian Keyes


      Gemma Hogan’s world is plummeting at the speed of light. She lost the man of her dreams to a woman who claimed to be her best friend, her candy-inventing father has left her mother after thirty-five years of marriage for a woman only two years older than Gemma herself, and her career as an events organizer has started to become one of the inner rings of hell! How is Gemma supposed to meet the man of her dreams when she is babysitting her mother and running back and forth to the chemist’s every day to fill her mother’s prescriptions?

     Lily Wright’s life couldn’t be better. With her new book, “Mimi’s Remedies,” finally shooting up the bestseller chart, and a two-book contract with one of the biggest publishing companies in the UK, her partner Anton, and their daughter Ema have finally found a way to get the life they’ve always dreamed of. There’s just one problem—she can’t come up with a book that will be as popular with the public as “Mimi’s Remedies.” How will she be able to pay for the dream house that Anton talked her into if she doesn’t get another contract with her publishers?

     Literary Agent JoJo Harvey is at the top of her game. With her secret relationship with Mark going better than ever, some of the most important clients like Miranda England and Lily Wright under her guidance, and a chance at becoming partner at Lipman-Hage, JoJo might actually be able to make acne-faced Richie Ghant eat dirt. And things get even more interesting when a woman named Susan sends her friend Gemma’s emails about her chaotic situations to be considered for publishing.

      I’ve got two words for you…Hilariously Brilliant! Keyes’ fluid writing style captures the essence of how each woman’s mind works. Gemma, Lily, and JoJo all have completely different lives—Gemma being from Ireland, Lily being from England, and JoJo being from New York but living in London as an agent—but there are similarities in how they have to handle each curve ball that comes at them. I love how the connections to each of the women grow throughout the story until all three are a part of the others’ lives. It’s an ingenious way to show just how much of a small world it can be.

       Terry Connelly is the best choice they could’ve made for this audio book. Her talent with using different vocalizations for each character really helps complete the three dimensional image that Keyes’ writing evokes in a reader’s imagination.