Review: All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins
by Kristan HigginsContemporary Romance, Chick Lit
Publisher: HQN Books (July 27, 2010)
ISBN-13: 978-0373774586
384 pages
Review copy received from publicist
Synopsis from Amazon.com:
One Happily-Ever-After Rocking Chair…I've extolled the virtues of Kristan Higgins's novels here before. I love her intelligent and current sense of humor and the great heroines through whom she expresses it. Her characters, main and secondary, are always unique and utterly charming. The heroes she creates are subtly sexy and usually possess some quirk that simultaneously repels and draws the beloved heroine. And the romances are gradual, comfortable and completely realistic. All I Ever Wanted adheres to this formula while managing to feel fresh and fun.
and no sign of any forthcoming babies to rock in ol' Georgebury, Vermont. For Callie Grey, turning thirty means coming to grips with the fact that her boss (and five-week fling) is way overdue in his marriage proposal. And way off track because Mark has suddenly announced his engagement to the company's new Miss Perfect. If that isn't bad enough, her mom decides to throw her a three-oh birthday bash in the family funeral home.
Bad goes to worse when she stirs up a crazy relationship with the town's not so warm and fuzzy veterinarian, Ian McFarland, in order to flag Mark's attention. So Ian is more comfortable with animals…. So he's formal, orderly and just a bit tense. The ever-friendly, fun-loving and spontaneous Callie decides it's time for Ian to get a personality makeover. But dang, if he doesn't shock the heck out of her, she might actually fall for Vermont's unlikeliest eligible bachelor….
Callie's perpetual cuteness and friendliness serves as a great foil to Ian's personality. He's a shy and formal man with a good heart who initially comes across as grumpy, rude and cold. Callie's need to make everyone like her, combined with her attraction to Ian's dangerous good-looks, make for a engaging friendship-turned-courtship. Callie is so lovable and, although she's one of those super-friendly, happy people, she never came across as annoying. Her loneliness and issues with rejection make her relate-able. Likewise, Ian's seemingly cool attitude is just a mask donned by a guy who's been hurt and doesn't know how to connect with others. His bluntness and dry wit make for some great dialog between him and the compulsively polite Callie.
The addition of Callie's ongoing work and family drama are great subplots and connect well with the development of her relationship with Ian. The diverse, well-drawn and hilarious secondary characters do their part too and are what makes the novel truly standout among fellow contemporary romances.
So far, I've read four Higgins's novels, including: Too Good To Be True
, The Next Best Thing
and Catch of the Day
. All I've Ever Wanted has become and instant favorite of mine amongst her books.Grade: A-
Visit Kristan's site and blog for more info about her and her novels.
Other reviews:
Dear Author - B
Pop Culture Junkie - 5/5 stars
Book Binge - 4.5/5
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3 Comments:
So far, all reviews have been very positive. I have never tried any KH books, maybe this is the one. Thanks for the review.
This is definitely my favorite of hers too, along with Just One of the Guys. So good!
You have GOT to read Just One of the Guys. It is brilliant too.
@ Scorpio M. - This is the perfect one to start with.
@ Allison - People keep telling me to pick that one up so I'm definitely buying it ASAP!
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