Kate Hetherington is approaching 30 and so desperate to
find someone special that she's already tried every
approach to meeting men in London, including speed dating.
Her married friends tell Kate she's a hopeless romantic and
warn her that she'll never find someone who meets her
standards. On the Internet, Kate finds an auction for the
perfect book, "THE HOPELESS ROMANTIC'S HANDBOOK." She buys
it and begins to read it devotedly in her pursuit for the
perfect guy and true love.
While she's following the quaint advice in the Handbook,
Kate meets a bartender named Joe, an American actor who
seems perfect. She's swept off her feet, just as the book
predicted, but as their relationship continues, she begins
to wonder whether it's truly as good as it seems. At work,
Kate is the interior designer on a struggling television
show called "Future: Perfect," which is similar to the more
popular extreme makeover shows, but on a smaller budget and
on British cable. The show's snobbish and malicious
celebrity presenter makes the job unbearable, and Kate is
hopeful work will improve. When Joe becomes involved with
the television show, Kate may need more advice than her
trusty handbook can provide.
The term "hopeless romantic" is often used disparagingly,
but Gemma Townley reclaims it beautifully in this
novel on behalf of all romance and chick-lit readers and
other romantic types. Kate's character is completely
believable in her uncertainty, her desires and her
disappointments. Her ingenuity develops from a hesitant
designer to a confident woman as she learns to trust her
own judgment. The excerpts from the handbook were overdone,
but Kate's charming friends and antagonizing coworkers drew
me into her story. This humorous British romance gives
romantic readers some hope!
In Townley's latest hilarious and heartfelt novel, Kate
thinks she has found the answer to her troubles: a handbook
for hopeless romantics like her. But when her budding
romance isn't quiet what she had hoped, Kate is left
wondering if true love is a myth.