eBook Millie's Fling ePub

When Millie bolted from her boyfriend's oh-so-romantic proposal in Lover's Lane that they move in together (the cheapskate just wanted to save money on his rent) to the side of a would-be jumper, she little realized that her reflexive action would change her life forever. That would-be jumper was best-selling romance novelist Orla Hart, determined to end it all over the heartbreak of her husband's latest affair. But Millie convinced her to give life a second chance -- and when the flamboyant, larger-than-life Orla takes stock of her career and Millie's (lack of a) love life, she concocts an outrageous plan. Millie will be the fictionalized subject of her next book, a literary, true-to-life account of a working class girl's struggle to find love. When Millie first accepted Orla's offer it was merely as a lark -- but having a multi-millionaire author as one's fairy godmother proves more complicated than she'd imagined. Soon Millie is juggling more male attention -- from more unlikely quarters -- than she's seen in an age, but when the one man who actually makes her heart leap isn't a part of Orla's plotline, will she ever realize her own happily ever after?

People, sometimes nothing of a chick lit will do. And if you're at all like me, an Anglophile at heart, a British chick lit is a dream come true. After seeing reviews of Mansell's titles around the blogosphere and purchasing an e-book or two on sale (and promptly losing track of the titles in my Kindle's packed files), I finally decided the holiday weekend was the perfect time to give one of Mansell's novels a try -- and goodness did that risk pay off in spades.

Millie's Fling is a delightful, frothy confection of a novel, replete with humor, misunderstandings (both comic and heart-breaking),and romance. Clocking in at roughly five hundred pages, Millie's Fling is quite a bit longer than I'm used to when it comes to breezy, entertaining fiction of this ilk -- and honestly it could have used a bit of judicial editing to tighten the storyline. But when you're having such fun indulging in pure, fluffy escapism it's hard to fault story length when you've become so wholly immersed in the story's world, with characters who, foibles and all, have become friends.

Mansell as an apparent knack for peopling her novels with delightfully zany, very human characters, relatable in both their triumphs and heartaches. And here, at least, she favors large casts of characters -- for though this novel is called Millie's Fling, that quickly proves to be something of a misnomer. This is hardly a chick lit about one woman's search for love and fulfillment -- in a welcome turn significant page time is given to her entire circle of acquaintance. Her benefactress-cum-employer Orla and her struggling marriage, her housemate Hester and her romantic travails, her affably eccentric, divorced parents, and all of the men who dance in and out of this circle of women whose lives are rife with romantic possibilities receive significant page time. More than one woman's story, this little novel could perhaps be more aptly likened to an ensemble comedy like the film Love Actually -- this is a novel love wherein each experience is as unique and fully realized as the colorful characters that spring from its pages.

While the novel started a bit slowly, once the characters and premise where established the pace picked up and my fingers flew through the pages. Like comfort food or, better yet, chocolate, Millie's Fling is pure, unadulterated escapism at its finest. This is a novel and world that is a joy to lose oneself in, peopled with characters you can't help but love (even when they're incredibly stupid) and a few twists that may surprise you. I absolutely love Mansell's sense of humor and laughed out loud more than once descriptiosn of between Millie's job as a gorilla costume-wearing kissogram to Orla's well-meaning attempts at matchmaking (and Orla's payoff at the end of the novel? PRICELESS). The perfect summer read, for sheer fun my introduction to Mansell's fiction cannot be beat -- and I'll definitely be checking out her other novels sooner rather than later.

I have recently started reading some of Jill Mansell's books, and I have completely fallen in love with her writing. Her characters are always very in depth and I just love the quirky dialogue that they share. Millie's Fling was no exception. Millie was a character that I couldn't help but love. She was quirky and kept finding herself in interesting situations. I loved her first ever conversation with Hugh, and watching the friendship develop between the two of them was wonderful. They had some of the greatest banter out of all of the characters.

Hester, Lucas, and Orla were all amazing supporting characters. One of my favorite things about Mansell is that she really develops her supporting characters, and I can't help but love them just as much as I love the main characters. Lucas was a womanizer that I wanted to hate but just couldn't. He was so cocky and so funny that I couldn't help but love him, even though his behavior is at times appalling. Mansell still gave him some redeeming qualities, which I loved. Hester, poor Hester, who is so confused and often finds herself in messy situations regarding Lucas and her boyfriend, Nat. Even when she was making bad decisions, I was always rooting for Hester to find her happy ending, just as much as I was with Millie. And Orla, what a meddler! She worked so hard to get Millie's love life the way she wanted it, and even though she was constantly on the wrong track, I loved her for her efforts.

And Hugh, of course I fell in love with Hugh just a little bit. Even when he was being a complete idiot, I still loved him and wanted him as my own hero. This book was just fabulous, and I would definitely recommend it! Thank you to the author for writing another gem!

Got this title for free from Amazon as it sounded like a very promising read that I might end up liking. While reading it you learn of Millie who ends up coming to the attention of famous author Orla after she saves her while she was at her lowest point after a painful break up with her man. Considering how women can sometimes bond over certain things like loser boyfriends the two quickly bond and Orla is suddenly inspired by the idea for her next novel. She'll set up Millie with a man and then write a novel loosely based on the experiences that Millie has over the course of the summer and the romance.

The rest of the book we watch as Millie navigates her way through they men that Orla thinks she should be with and men she herself is attracted to. We read about her and her roomates adventures over the course of the summmer and some things are funny and some things make you laugh. Does Millie end up getting the happy ever after she has been hoping for or does she push men away when they realize they might end up being the subject of Orla's next romance novel. I enjoyed this book so much that since I have purchased quite a few other Jill Mansell books and have not been disappointed yet. If you are looking for a light but absorbing read this is a good choice to check out. Since it's set in England I may have even learned the definition of a few new words and what those words mean on the other side of the pond.

Another Bridget Jones's Diaries type book. Quite annoying in some places, especially mid section of the book. Occasionally it becomes quite strenuous to watch the author trying hard to be light, entertaining, witty and humorous. But generally entertaining enough. Do not seek for depth, development of characters, there is no such thing. Tip - for readers in their early thirties.