Please Don't Stop the Music by Jane Lovering
| Please Don't Stop the Music by Jane Lovering | |
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| Category: Women's Fiction | |
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Reviewer: Sue Magee
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| Summary: A debut novel which deals with secrets, disabilities and attraction. One to buy and an author to watch for the futue. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 304 | Date: February 2011 |
| Publisher: Choc Lit | |
| ISBN: 978-1906931278 | |
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Shortlisted for Romantic comedy Novel of the year, 2012
Jemima Hutton makes jewelled belt buckles and she's determined to make a success of the business – and to keep a dark secret which she's shared with no one. She's camping out in her friend's spare room and another friend is allowing her workshop space. It is just working until the woman she supplies exclusively decides that she's not going to stock her any more. Jemima is down to walking the streets of York looking for someone who will stock her buckles. She's all but given up when she meets Ben who says that he'll stock the buckles in his guitar shop. But Ben has secrets too – and he's determined that, come what may, he's not going to share them.
It was three years ago when I first encountered Choc Lit Publishing and since then I've been consistently impressed by the standard of the books they publish. Yes – it's chick lit and you're not going to end up struggling through something that was written with the Booker Prize in mind, but it's at the upper end of the genre, with good writing, romantic content and, best of all, a real story that you can believe in. Have a look at their website and you'll see what I mean.
They've also got a good record of publishing debut authors and Jane Lovering is in that category. This is a good book but I suspect that there will be better to come from this author as she develops her craft and allows full rein to her glorious sense of humour. She's got a very good plot here and some characters you really warm to. It's a couple of days since I finished the book and I've been wondering about them, as though they're people that I know. There's a sensitive hand with disabilities and problems; you can understand why people hate them, but they don't diminish the characters in your eyes.
There is one character I must mention. Saskia is just about a pantomime villain – you're ready to boo as soon as the name appears and she lacks much in the way of redeeming features, but I loved her! I howled with laughter at some her put-downs and I had a perfect picture of her in my mind's eye. More please!
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.
For more of York we can recommend Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson.
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