I picked this book because it was free on Amazon and I needed a quick read for a long wait at the hospital (don't worry I'm fine. Just waiting for a friend to have a procedure done. She's fine too).

I had mixed feelings throughout reading this novel and almost put it down a few times for the overtly obvious happily-ever-after and cliches that are in the book. Her sister is an irresponsible young mother, her mother is over-the-top loud, and obnoxious, and she's the responsible older sister. I do wish the ending was a bit better since Jules waits for a man to rescue her instead of find it herself then finding him. Don't get me wrong I like that she ends with him, but I was hoping that she would find her own identity first since most of the book she's doing a lot of search for herself and who she is. I wanted more from it.

I loved that the book is told differently--entire through her diary entries which sometimes was frustrating since the Jules was purposefully not saying things to her diary so she could remain in a state of denial. But the book is a nice quick read and contains numerous hilarious moments. I'm not sure yet if I want to read the remaining books in the series or not especially since the author jumped into the book to congratulate me as the reader for making it halfway...why? why would she disrupt my reading? That was one of the moments I almost put the book down. I hate when authors do that...just let me enjoy your book baby.

I also felt that this book is in the middle of a series or the second book of a series. I just felt like I was missing something. Later, I found out that there's a prequel when we find out about Juliette and Nick's courtship or dating.

I did enjoy Juliette's quirky family and their antics cracked me up. Alex's seriousness and his dry humor added to the hilarity of the book. Aspects of the book had a very Bridget Jones feel to it since you never know what type of hilarious trouble the female character will get into. ( )

A holiday read.
This is not a book I would normally have chosen but our book group wanted it for this month, so I thought I'd give it a go. It was an easy enough read, although rather predictable and the ending was a bit rushed. It felt like a cross between Sophie Kinsella (Shopaholic books) and Helen Fielding (Bridget Jones).
I cringed at the appearance of the author half way through, congratulating us for getting this far, I hope this does not become an author trend.

Juliette Duffy and Nick Spencer have a young baby and are planning to make it official and get married. They are living in London in Nick's mother's flat. Helen is the mother-in-law from hell, appearing almost daily, unannounced, complaining about anything and everything. I'm not keen on books that announce on the front cover that they are hilarious, as I rarely laugh in books, but some of the best moments were Juliette's come-backs to Helen.

Juliette and Nick's baby, Daisy is adorable but doesn't sleep well. Juliette is constantly exhausted, which will ring true to many mothers. Just getting out, without smears and marks on her clothes, is a major achievement. The issue with weight and dieting was a bit tedious, and very Bridget Jones's Diary, ditto the diary format, which felt rather too familiar.
Juliette bravely decides to run the London Winter Marathon, which was a nice touch. Then there was Alex, a childhood friend from a wealthy background, hmmm, way too predictable, but I won't add any spoilers.

By the way, I live in Dubai and there is no shortage of bikinis available - not just burkinis and Juliette supposedly discovered. ( )