YOU HAD ME AT GOODBYE
by Tracey Bateman
Dancy Ames plans did not include handsome Brit Jack Quinn stealing her dream job at Lane Publishing. But she supposes she can work for him,at least until Jack fires her. Now Dancy is unemployed with no serious plans for the future, and a novel she’s been working on half-heartedly.
When Dancy discovers that her parents are getting back together, her first response is horror,after all, her dad’s been known to have several affairs, and in spite of her mother’s problems, Dancy doesn’t want her hurt again. She’s even more stunned when she discovers that her father has just gotten custody of a teen boy, a boy Dancy never even knew existed. And then her parents decide to give the condo that Dancy has dreamed of all her life to her brother and his bride for a wedding present. Dancy doesn’t know which way to turn. One best friend is planning a wedding, the other is baking up a storm and trying to avoid studying for finals, and the guy that Dancy is interested thinks of her as a pesky younger sister,worse yet, he’s the one who fired her. Will Dancy find God has a plan for her life?
YOU HAD ME AT GOODBYE had me at hello. Maybe I have this totally backwards but I fell totally in love with Jack from the moment he walked into the story, and he had my married heart pounding more that once. What a dream! Dancy isn’t the most likeable person at first, I mean it’s hard to be sympathetic to a woman born with a silver spoon, but soon she grew on me and I cared what happened to her. I couldn’t wait to see where this story would take her.
My biggest complaint about YOU HAD ME AT GOODBYE is that its over. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series, Laini’s story, coming out in June. Ms. Bateman did a stellar job, and in February run, don’t walk, to the nearest bookstore and buy YOU HAD ME AT GOODBYE. Discussion questions are included at the end of the book. $13.99. 280 pages.
Reviewed by Laura V. Hilton
chbookshelf May 7, 2008
Dancy Ames is a spoiled little New York rich girl with her future all laid out bright and shiny before her. She has good friends and a job she loves, which provides a nice little salary in addition to her wealthy Daddy’s credit card, which she uses to purchase all the little “necessities” not covered by her salary. And just to brighten the picture, there’s a coveted promotion on the horizon.
But then handsome Brit Jack Quinn takes a job at Lane Publishing, and Dancy’s plans take a swift nosedive. In no time at all, she finds herself jobless and in need of a new career.
After the initial devastation, she decides the time might be right to finish that novel she’s been kinda sorta working on for…well, forever. But Jack seems to have found a way into even the world inside her head, annoying hunk that he is! And it doesn’t help that unwelcome little surprises keep cropping up here and there and everywhere to add to the general confusion.
With her life clearly on the downslide, Dancy really has no choice but to turn to God for solutions. Can He…will He work things out for a Fifth Avenue princess?
You Had Me at Good-bye is a fun storyline, and an interesting peek into a world where money is no object, and anything over a size two is plus-size. Tracey Bateman has a style all her own, and a unique ability to make readers laugh out loud. At the same time, she paints a heart-warming picture of spiritual growth, emotional development and love in the making.
Don’t miss this delightful romance!
Reviewed by Delia Latham
http://www.delialatham.com