REVIEW: Everything’s Coming Up Rosie by Kasey Michaels
Dear Ms. Michaels,
Most of your books have worked for me on some level. Some much better than others. When I saw a great review of “Everything’s Coming Up Rosie” I was psyched. I’d read 2 chapters of it before I saw a not so great review but I already knew that this is a book which will either strike a reader positively or negatively. My grade is towards the upper end of the scale but it’s still not an A read for me.
Rosie Kilgannon and Doug Llewellyn have never met but they already share one thing in common: neither wants to be at the week long wedding party of Doug’s cousin’s daughter. With beaucoup cash to spare, Bettie and George, who are having marital problems of their own, are determined to wow their friends, neighbors and family members with THE society wedding of the year. Too bad that they can’t seem to see or don’t seem to care that a) the bride really doesn’t want to marry the groom b) the groom is an asshole c) there’s another man who really loves the bride and she seems to like him too and d) the two friends of the groom who just suddenly showed up look more like mafioso types.
Well, no matter because Doug and Rosie see all this and make a pact to not only try to fix all this but watch each other’s backs for the week to avoid Bettie’s attempts to match-make them with other people. Both think that they’re not ready to settle down and decide to enjoy a brief “no strings” fling. But as the week progresses and their efforts to straighten out the wedding mess intensify, will “Bachelor of the Year” Doug and free spirited Rosie fight their attraction or give in to love?
Rosie is a rare bird. She actually comes across as the type of person she’s written to be. She’s supposed to be eccentric and free spirited and for once in a blue moon, this type doesn’t grate on my nerves and make me want to hit my head against a brick wall. Mainly because she also has common sense and you never push a scene too far for laughs. Doug is mainly the straight man in the book, there to respond to Rosie’s actions and thoughts. It’s not that he’s not a nice guy because he is. He doesn’t brood or suddenly turn angsty and always acts the gentleman. He just usually seems a half step behind Rosie and maybe could have used a bit more oomph.
I tend to agree with the reviewer who likened this book to an operetta. It’s light, frothy and fun with the main emphasis on the hero and heroine while the secondary characters serve mainly as props to propel the action. It’s hard to believe that no one has noticed what a schmuck the groom really is or wouldn’t care that the bride appears close to tears so often unless it’s to give Rosie and Doug a chance for more witty dialogue. And in the dialogue, this book shines. I wouldn’t say it’s a laugh out loud book but it’s a smile a lot and chuckle often book. I’d give it a B.
~Jayne
