The characters were likable and amusing. I liked Candace of course, and commiserated with her as she went through her men and later job problems. Luckily Candace had two friends (Sex and the City style :) ) that never let her down and were always there for her when she needed to vent. My favorite of the two was of course Monica (with her nicknaming habit that I have found somewhat endearing), but I had nothing to reproach to Christine either. As of the guys, Matt was, of course, perfect. The perfect guy, knowing who he wants and doing all the right things needed to get her ( *fawn* ). I would lie if I said I didn’t like him: smart, nice, with a sense of humor, a perfect match for the heroine.

I was amused to discover there are some similarities between the author and her heroine, Candace. For example the infamous list has actually existed (containing fewer items), as the author is herself the Type A personality that she gave Candace. The bad date experiences in the beginning (that to be honest I have thought to be a bit exaggerated) are actually drawn from real dates the author has been in. These quirks make the story all the more plausible — not that the idea of a gal making a list with the traits she liked in a person (starting from bad dating experiences and traits she saw as insufferable) is that far-fetched. It’s called “discovering one’s tastes” and I must confess I am as guilty about it as the next person (although, not being a Type-A, I never wrote it down or tried to follow it to a T).

All in all the book was a fun read that I have quite enjoyed. To me it seemed that it has described the current dating scene (and world in general) perfectly. I loved the fact that the heroine was conservative when it came to sex (a very rare thing in the novels today) and the fact that she was very good at her work, thus checking all the points on my list of traits I like in a heroine. Overall she’s a very nice girl I would say, and I was happy to see her getting the ending she deserved :)

What I liked most: The small details :) Such as when William orders his coffee on the first day he met Candace, phrasing it as a haiku (of course he didn’t actually try to make it a haiku, Candace heard it like this because she was smitten with the guy, but still, it was haiku none the less :P ). Or the part where Matt knows the meaning of various rose colors… aaaaw :)

What I liked least: There is nothing that I have actually disliked. There is one (little) thing though that has detracted from my reading pleasure.

———–SPOILER—————-
How come William has changed so suddenly and in so many ways? It made him seem a bit cliche and no more than an accessory to the story, there and good when needed, discarded despicable when not. I mean, the change can be a bit explained by “oh, now he’s shown his true colors”. But why? How come? Wasn’t he decided to win Candace back? Why did he suddenly start acting like a jerk? It really didn’t make much sense to me.
——–END SPOILER—————

Recommend it? Chick lit, light reading, funny at times. It reminded most of Kinsella’s books, so if you like the genre you might want to try this one too :)

See also
The blog of the author & book

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