The Best Things - Mel Giedroyc Kartoniert (TB)

Based on the blurb, the gushing quotes from other authors, and of course the fact that this is written by the lovely, funny, warm Mel Giedroyc, my expectations for this debut novel were sky high.Sadly, it didn’t take long for them to be shattered.The Best Things is the literary equivalent of sitting down to a feast, only to discover that the chef has forgotten the seasoning. There is no enticing aroma, no delightful bursts of flavor. As John Torode would say, this is a bland and confused plate of food. I sent it back to the kitchen half eaten.The premise was sound — a rags to riches story in reverse. But everything about the execution was off. The pace was agonizingly slow, the laborious scene-setting mind-numbingly dull, and the structure chaotic. It could have been saved by a cast of sparkling, engaging characters, but the Parkers and their acolytes (with the rare exception of granny Bronwyn) were the least likable bunch I’ve ever come across. Almost all attempts at humor were facile and cringeworthy.The story needed to be more focused, the characters more sympathetic, less stereotypical. And the bankruptcy — the trigger to the Parkers’ downfall — needed to happen far, far sooner.I really, truly hate to write a negative review, as I have enormous respect for the effort that goes into writing a novel, and I do love Mel and her TV persona. I rarely DNF a book, but by the time I’d waded my way through the first third of this, I’d completely lost interest and really didn’t give a hoot about what happened to the Parker family.So, sorry, but this one just wasn’t for me.Thanks for reading my review. I hope you found it helpful. You can find more candid book reviews on my Amazon profile page.

Das Buch will witzig sein. Die Logik bleibt dabei auf der Strecke.