This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
Reviewed by Kira Slaughter
Frankie Rowley is far too practical to believe in karma or fate…
Work obsessed Frankie is also far too busy to spend time with her family or friends. They all reckon the strongest relationship she has is with her phone. (And why not? At least it never judges her when she cancels dinner for the millionth time.) So when she loses that precious phone on a crucial business trip to San Francisco, Frankie is beside herself- her life was on it.
Sure, Frankie can make and take calls on a hired phone, but it’s not the same. This new phone isn’t a part of her like the old one. And the last straw is when she starts getting texts meant for someone else- someone called Aimee. This Aimee seems like a lot of fun, and clearly her family loves to keep in touch, but why is Frankie getting her messages?
Bad enough that she has lost her old phone, but now Frankie is supposed to share her new one with some stranger. Frankie goes on the warpath, but she is in for some surprises when she blunders into Aimee’s life. And the biggest surprise of all is how your life can be changed forever by losing a phone.
Frankie may not believe in karma and fate, but suddenly they seem to believe in her…
I have to admit that, although I’ve heard good things about Niamh Greene’s books, I’ve never actually read one until now. When I received this through the post I was immediately attracted to the gorgeous cover, with the scene of San Francisco in the background.
The story focuses on Frankie, who is obsessed with work and is almost killing herself trying to prove that she can make a success of her publishing company. She has little or no time for family or friends, and only tends to spend time with her iPhone and her somewhat boyfriend Gary (who, I must say, I didn’t really trust from the beginning).
At first I didn’t really warm to Frankie, she seemed quite cold and the fact that she never wanted to spend time with her family didn’t really sit right with me. Although I wholly sympathise with her as she deals with her two brothers and her mother’s mollycoddling of them. I have first hand experience of how Irish mammies are with their boys!
As the story progresses and Frankie goes on her travels to San Francisco, I found myself gradually warming to her as she tries to hunt down a reclusive author, and builds a friendship with Rosie, a woman she met on the plane on the way over. I couldn’t help but love Rosie; she was funny, outgoing, and seemed to bring Frankie out of her shell.
The added mystery of who this Aimee girl was really added to the story and it was one of those instances when I tried to read as fast as I could to find out what happens. When the whole thing comes to light, the tale is poignant and heart warming, and a few times I had to stop reading and turn away, pretending that I had something in my eye. Oh and the fact that there was a tall, dark and handsome man thrown in gave it that extra edge! When I found out how this man was connected to Aimee, I just wanted to jump into the pages and hug him.
The concept of the story is brilliant, and I defy you not to be affected by the poignancy of it.
7/10
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