Very enjoyable book. Had I been able to, I would have read this in one sitting. This book is about a magical little black dress. It's about sisters. It's about relationships. It's about how one choice you make can have a domino affect on other people's lives. It's about the path other people think you should be on might not be the right path for you or for everyone in the future. This book goes back and forth between Evie and her daughter Antonia (Toni) telling the story. Evie the past and Toni the present. It flows really well and the back and forth works. I got sucked into the lives of these characters and started to care for them. I found when I was done I wanted to know a little bit more. I wanted to know more details of their lives. I highly recommend this book. ( )

usan McBride wrote a perfectly charming romance with a touch of magic. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I loved the concept of a dress with a magical spell.

The story is told by two characters, Evie, the mother and Toni, the daughter.

Toni is having dinner with her longtime boyfriend. She thinks he is about to pop the question but instead he gives her a key to his apartment. Disillusioned, she doesn’t have time to give him an answer when her phone rings. Her mother is in the hospital. She rushes out and finds her mother has had a stroke and is in a coma.

Each chapter alternates between Evie and Toni. Evie is remembering her past and her sister Anna while in the coma. Toni keeps herself busy sorting out her mother’s life after she becomes aware that her mother may not have been coping so well since her father’s death as she waits for her mother to wake up.

The story is about a little black dress that Anna bought before her own wedding from a fortune teller. The dress foretold Anna’s future and because of the vision, she cancelled her wedding. It caused hard feelings between her family and the groom’s family who both owned local vineyards. Anna disappeared leaving her family heartbroken.

Evie eventually tried on the dress and saw a vision of her future husband while Toni also gets her chance. Though the women are all different sizes and shapes, the dress adapts to their bodies and makes them all look more desirable.

Toni learns about her mother and aunt’s past and also what she needs to do to be happy. Characters were well rounded with flaws that made them seem more real. I loved the magical aspect of the story and how sometimes things don’t work out the way we want them to but in the end that was what had to be.

Would recommend this book to anyone who likes a little romance spiced up with magic.

Virginia ( )

I loved the story of the relationship between the sisters and the mother and her daughter. The magical dress was believable without being overdone. Not everyone would drop everything to come home and care for a sick parent but Antonia does as soon as she discovers her mother has suffered a stroke. She tends to her mother and discovers what's been missing in her own life in the process. ( )

On the eve of Anna's high profile wedding, she and her sister Evie find a magical black dress. When Anna puts it on she sees her future and, that night, runs away leaving the dress and her marriage behind. Evie is left with her shattered parents and the dress. Through the years the dress shapes the lives of those who wear it. When Evie is found, in a coma, in her attic, wearing the dress, her daughter Tony knows she must learn the significance of the dress and discover all its secrets if she is to bring back her mother.

Little Black Dress is a light-hearted, entertaining read that reminds the reader of stories like Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Garden Secrets. The women in the story are strong and interesting characters who are romantics at heart. The story focuses on women's relationships with each other and the importance of sisters, mothers and friends in our lives. A perfect comfort read for those times when you don't want anything too intellectual. ( )

Little Black Dress is a novel about a grown woman waiting for her love life to start, her relationship with her mother, and a mysterious black dress in their past. Toni Ashton returns to her hometown after her mother suffers a stroke. She leaves behind her long term boyfriend who just popped a questions and her thriving party planning business. While Evie lingers in a coma, Toni attempts to set her mother’s house to right discovering some long hidden family secrets in the process.

It’s a great fun read with a little love, a little mysticism, and a little wine. I love how the story is told from both Toni and Evie’s perspectives. It allows the reader to continually try to puzzle out the story and leave you slightly stunned when you get to the final resolution. Once the story grabs your heartstrings it is impossible to put down until you finish it. ( )