Reviewed by Gabrielle Pantera
“I was on holiday and someone had left a newspaper in a café,” says Millie’s Fling author Jill Mansell. “I picked it up and started reading an article about a girl who found a lost wallet and ended up marrying the owner. That was the starting point. The other idea came from a very well known British author who had a truly terrible review written about her latest book and was devastated by it.”
The only man Millie wants is Hugh Emerson. But Hugh’s wife died in a tragic horseback riding accident and he’s not interested in dating. Millie saves best-selling romance novelist Orla. She decides Millie will be the heroine of her next novel and needs help with the man of her dreams. Orla’s schemes make Millie both heroine and comic victim.
“Millie’s Fling is one that’s been particularly welcomed by readers in the UK,” says Mansell. “It’s fun and frothy and will hopefully make you laugh. My method of planning my books has changed completely. It now closely resembles the methods of Orla, the author in the book. I appear to be turning into her. And, I was investigating singing telegrams, so I saw quite a few. Some were male strippers. They were fun!”
Mansell’s books tend to be long, and Millie’s Fling is no exception with 500 pages. She has so many characters and subplots, but still leaves you wanting more. You get so caught up in the characters and story that it doesn’t seem so long.
Everyone in Millie’s Fling is looking for love. Some of them don’t know they’re looking for love and don’t know what to do when they find it. You’ll want to know what happens to all of the characters. These quests for love make an interesting and entertaining story that has a happy ending.
Jill Mansell’s books have been popular with readers in England for years. Now Sourcebooks is releasing her books in the U.S. She’s written twenty books. Mansell’s books are funny. Her dialog is snappy and witty. And, she throws in a large dose of realism. Her characters charm and quirks will make you laugh. Mansell will keep you guessing. Does Millie get her man or not?
Jill Mansell is a full-time writer who lives in Bristol, the city where she was born. She worked for many years at the Burden Neurological Hospital, Bristol. You can follow her on Twitter.
Rating: 3 stars
Millie’s Fling by Jill Mansell. Paperback, 512 pages, Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark; Reprint edition (September 1, 2009), Language: English, ISBN: 9781402218347
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