I liked this book, but I didn't like it as much as Lucy in the Sky and other books by Paige Toon. I get a feeling that her books tend to get darker and heavier. The story is pretty complicated and the book didn't leave me with that easy, happy feeling you usually get from reading "chick lit" books. Most of the time I had no idea where this story was leading, which is a nice change from the predictability that you usually have in that genre. But I must say that I almost feel a bit depressed after having finished it, because the story was so tough to read and it seems like life gets tougher and tougher for the characters as you read on. In fact, they had to live through so much, it feels like they must be the unluckiest people on earth.
As usual with Paige Toon books, as soon as I started reading, I HAD to finish it. I like that about her a lot, she has a gift of making her readers want to read on and on and on.
But I think it wouldn't have hurt to make the whole story, including the life stories of the characters, a tad lighter, a bit happier. After all, it's still suppossed to be a nice and light read, not something that leaves me a bit unsettled for the rest of the day after finishing it.

The main character Poppy finds a phone in a trash bin and starts texting with the guy it used to belong to (Sam). Poppy's also only a week away from her wedding with a guy she's only known for half a year (Magnus).
Needless to say, Poppy is getting to know Sam better and in the week leading to her wedding, things between her and her fiancè are getting complicated. But I like the way the story's formed and I really like Sam.
The end may be a little too much (you'll see for yourself), but all in all I can recommend this book. It's fun and light-hearted, but it's also a page-turner and, simply speaking, very cute.

The story's really cute.
A bit too much kitsch and a bit too unrealistic, so I'd call it the perfect "chic-lit" book.
I also enjoy that it is set in Chicago, unlike most other books from that genre.

I find the sex-scenes a bit too expansive - sometimes I felt more like ready soft porn than a romance.

But it's really refreshing that the main character is actually smart and funny. In most books of that genre the main character is some insecure girl without a real career who's just waiting for the rich, incredibly good looking and successful Oxoford-educated guy comes round to rescue her from her dull life.

In this book, the main character takes action herself(at least sometimes), has a brilliant career, and is really good-looking herself. Okay, Kyle is still incredibly rich and good-looking, but at least the women in Julie James' books are emancipated.

I also really like that the reader gets an insight of the man's view on the situation, as the book every so often switches to tell the story through Kyle's eyes.

NO. No, no, no.
I used to like the books by Paige Toon, but after that one I don't think I'll be able to ever read one again.

I find the book highly offensive to Germans - apparently Paige Toon never even bothered to spend any more thought about the country than maybe five minutes of google research to find out that there's an area called Upper Bavaria.
Seriously, I'm not sure what kind of country she imagines Germany to be, but her depictions about Lukas' lifestyle, the main character's German boyfriend, are ridiculous.

(SPOILER alert)

He's from a family so rich that he can drive a Porsche (unlikely, but okay), has his own German servant follow him to Cambridge and live there(highly unlikely, but okay), said servant is about twenty-five and seems to be owned by the family, because they decide that he has to move back to Cambridge after he has left it to go back home (Man. The money must be really good... so, fine, STILL okay), and Lukas has an arranged marriage to a girl called Rosalinde, because she is from "a very good family" (WHAT??) AND Lukas won't inherite any of his father's wealth, because he's not the first-born son (impossible under German law - but I guess Paige Toon was to occupied with clichées to look that one up).

Apart from that, the main character Alice is insecure (willing to give up all her plans and life for her boyfriends) and also comes across as quite arrogant towars foreigners (Hey everyone, did you know already that people can only be fluent in English when they grew up bilingual?)...

So all in all. No. The story is ridiculous enough as it is, but all the unauthentic deatils of the story made it impossible for me to enjoy this read.

Habe das Handy nach einer Woche zurückgeschickt.
Gründe:

- Der Akku war nach einem halben Tag (!!!) halb leer.
- Das Handy hat sich ständig ausgeschaltet
- die Verarbeitung hinten ist echt miserabel.. die Akkuklappe ist so dünn und klemmt so stark, dass man jedesmal Angst haben muss, sie zu zerbrechen
- Das Handy zeigte zwar vollen Netzempfang an, hatte aber keinen oder hat ihn schnell verloren. Dachte, es wäre dann wenigstens mitten in München nutzbar, aber auch da hatte es dieses Problem.
- Der Kalender ist absolut unübersichtlich.

Fazit: Das Handy kann man nicht wirklich verwenden. Es sieht von vorne sehr schön und edel aus, ist es aber leider nicht.