26.4.10

Book Review: Love Letters by Katie Fforde


With the bookshop where she works about to close, Laura Horsley, in a moment of uncharacteristic recklessness, finds herself agreeing to help organise a literary festival deep in the heart of the English countryside. But her initial excitement is rapidly followed by a mounting sense of panic when reality sinks in and she realises just how much work is involved- especially when an innocent mistake leads the festival committee to believe that Laura is a personal friend of the author at the top of their wish-list. Laura might have been secretly infatuated with the infamous Dermot Flyn ever since she studied him at university, but travelling to Ireland to persuade the notorious recluse to come out of hiding is another matter.
Determined to rise to the challenge, she sets off to meet her literary hero. But all too soon she's confronted with more than she bargained for- Dermot the man is maddening, temperamental, and up to his ears in a nasty case of writers block. But he's also infuriatingly attractive- and apparently, out to add Laura to his list of conquests.

Katie Fforde has written the perfect book to sit and enjoy in the sunshine we are having at the moment. I found the aspects of the book that dealt with the publishing industry the most interesting. Katie Fforde's own experience with literary agents and editors allows her to write about the publishing world with great wit and confidence.
It took me a long time to warm to Laura, I felt as though I wanted to give her a good shake every now and again and tell her to get a grip! Dermot Flyn on the other hand was a completely different story. He is a very charming character but he does not lack substance in any way. Katie Fforde shows the pressures placed on an author for their future work when their last book was a roaring success.
Love Letters is a really good read that I would highly recommend.


15 comments:

verity said...

Ooh, I love Katie Fforde and remember enjoing this one.

Dot said...

Verity- She's great isn't she, I have enjoyed all of her books!

Shan said...

This sounds interesting! I love when books have plots that revolve around books!
I've read so much about Katie Fforde and am not sure why I resist picking up her books. Maybe I'll check this one out.

Dot said...

Shan- I've read about 5 of them and enjoyed them all! Hope you enjoy it if you do check it out!

Charlie said...

A book about the literary world, sounds good to me! I've never read Katie's work but have seen it a lot in the shops, her name is eye-catching in itself.

Dot said...

Charlie- I really enjoyed this one, the literary element was very interesting.

Kirsty said...

I really didn't like this one - I love Katie Ffordes writing, but this one seemed a bit rushed to me. I that the main character was a bit of an empty vessel to move the narrative forward tbh. Eek!

Dot said...

Kirsty- I wouldn't say that it is one of my favourite Katie Ffordes but I enjoyed the publishing side of it!

nomadreader said...

I adore Katie Fforde, and this one just came in for me through interlibrary loan (it's not out in the U.S. yet). I'm so glad to hear you liked it. The premise sounds divine!

Dot said...

nomadreader- She's great isn't she, I am still trying to catch up on her previous books.

Meg @ write meg! said...

Sounds fantastic! Books that take place in/around the publishing industry are always really interesting to me. And Fforde is an author new to me! Yay!

Dot said...

Meg-I think that you would really enjoy Katie Fforde's books!

Anonymous said...

I've just downloaded this book of Katie Fforde for my iPad:). Hope to enjoy it. Good luck!
(http://sch1106.mosuzedu.ru/)

Dot said...

Anonymous- Hope you enjoy reading it!

Choc Button said...

I thought this book really excelled in the blossoming relationship between Dermot and Laura, and Laura's growing confidence as she gets to grips with organising the literary festival, but I thought there were parts in the story that were a bit dull.

http://chocolatedigestivebiscuit.wordpress.com/2012/04/15/love-letters-by-katie-fforde/

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