Title and Author: Ain't She Sweet? by Susan Elizabeth Philips
Publisher: Piatkus Paperback
Publication Date: February 3rd, 2005
Paperback/Hardcover: 400 Pages
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Summary:
In high school Sugar Carey had reigned supreme. She alone had decided what or who was cool. Her spiral perm had been the perm against which all others were measured, and her opinion on which boys were acceptable to date the only one that counted. A beautiful, blonde - if not always benevolent - dictator, she had a reputation for being the wild child in her home town, the girl most likely to set the world on fire, and leave a trail of destruction in her wake. When she left home she swore she'd never return. Only now, fifteen years and several husbands later, she's run out of money, luck and options. But Sugar arrives back home to discover that everyone else is living her life. Her half sister is married to Sugar's high school sweetheart, the teacher she schemed to get fired is now a successful novelist and owns her old house. She also discovers that people have long memories - especially where Sugar is concerned.
Ania's Review:
I really like Susan Elizabeth Phillips’ books, so I knew that I was in for a treat with ‘Ain’t She Sweet’. As per usual it did not disappoint.In ‘Ain’t She Sweet’ Sugar Beth Carey, with three failed marriages in her wake comes back home to Parish, Mississippi after fifteen years of being away.
If it was up to her she wouldn’t be coming back at all, but given that she’s poorer than a church mouse and in desperately need of money, her only choice is to try and find a valuable painting that’s somewhere around her late aunt’s cottage.
But coming back isn’t so easy, especially when the teacher that she got fired in high school (now a famous author) is living next door in the big house that used to belong to her family, and he along with the rest of the town are hell bent on making her feel the full weight of her past peccadilloes.
Colin Byrne hasn’t forgotten the woman who ruined his career on purpose and now a successful novelist, and best friend to Sugar Beth’s favorite victim Winnie; he is intent on driving her away as fast as possible. But what started out as revenge becomes something else entirely and he finds himself impossibly attracted to her.
Their verbal exchange is a new form of foreplay and he soon realizes that the former wild child is now a full grown beautiful woman, full of integrity and her own set of principles.
I enjoyed tremendously Sugar Beth and Colin’s relationship. Susan Elizabeth Phillips never fails to entertain and one can rejoice in her character’s extremely witty banter. As their sexual awareness grows the reader can fully understand why they’re perfect for each other.
What I really liked was the fact that Sugar Beth owned up to her faults and never once tried to excuse her past behavior. One can understand the reason she humiliated Winnie so, it was nothing other than a daughter’s cry for attention, one that really didn’t make her any better for it.
This book is about reconciling with one’s past without actually expecting any kind of forgiveness. In fact, Sugar Beth doesn’t want anyone’s sympathy, not that she’d get any, after all she did, she’s not trying to atone for her past sins, she knows she can’t, but that doesn’t mean she feels any less guilty of what she did.
‘Ain’t She Sweet’ was a delightful read, and even though I could do without the whole Ryan/Winnie drama, it made a somewhat good subplot to the book.
If you like the kind of book where the relationship between the character’s is a constant source of witty comebacks and sexual innuendos and in the end their animosity towards each other gives way to something completely unexpected yet so incredibly satisfying, I say you give this one a go.
Rating: 4.5 stars - Somewhere between Captivating and Mesmerizing
5 comments:
I came from Cym Lowell's Book Review Party Wednesday (BRPW).
You know, this is so not my genre, but your review has bloody convinced me to give this book a go :)
Cherry Mischievous
www.cherrymischievous.com
NEW FOLLOWER.
I love Susan Elizabeth Phillips too. Have you read CALL ME IRRESISTIBLE? It was good...I loved the one where the cover is the girl in a car and she goes to Italy....I can't remember the name, though. Now this is going to bother me.
Anyway....great blog....Stopping by from Cym Lowell's Book Review Party.
Stop by my blog to see my book listed on Cym's linky and for a giveaway of NIGHT TRAIN by Clyde Edgerton...courtesy of Anna Balasi of Little, Brown and Company.
Contest is on until July 25.
Hope to see you there.
Elizabeth
http://silversolara.blogspot.com
SEP does write fun sort of quirky heroines and sexy heroes! Thanks for linking at Cym's.
Sounds like a must read. Great review. I am a new follower and would love a follow on my blog. I am giving away Fifty Shades of Grey on my blog. Ends tonight. Hope you'll hop over and enter. Thanks.
Donna
http://mylife-in-stories.blogspot.com
THANKS for stopping by my blog and following.
Great blog you have.
New E-mail subscriber now.
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