Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

I love all of Sophie Kinsella's books.  I especially like her non-shopaholic series books (but the Shopaholic series is good too).

Lara Lington is the niece of a man who started a famous branch of coffee shops.  Her last name is very recognizable.  The book opens with her family gathered for the funeral of her great aunt Sadie.  The funeral is really sad.  The only people there are Lara, her parents and sister, her famous uncle and his wife and their daughter.  That's it.  And none of them even knew Sadie at all.  And none of them want to be there.  There are no flowers.  Sadie suddenly appears to Lara and insists she can not be buried without her necklace.  This sets off a hilarious chain or events as they try to find the necklace so Sadie can rest in peace.

Through this process Lara really gets to know the 23 year old version of her great aunt Sadie.  They become great friends, have some really fun adventures together and Sadie even inadvertently helps Lara find love.

I loved it!  I loved the characters.  I loved the adventures.  It was all great!

And now I will put in my last will and testament that I want everyone to be served a cocktail or glass of champagne upon entrance to my funeral! :)

I give it 5 out of 5 stars.

At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks

Nicholas Sparks is so predictable.  Most of his stories are about love and they have some tragedy wrapped up in the plot.  I love most of them because they are set in North Carolina, my home.  I chose this one because I was in the mood for a gushy love story that would make me cry.  This one was different.

Yes, it was about love.  There really wasn't any great tragedy.  And I really did not like it.

Here is a synopsis from paperbackswap.com:

Nicholas Sparks brings back two characters from his beloved bestseller, True Believer, in this continuing saga of extraordinary love. There are few things Jeremy Marsh was sure he'd never do: he'd never leave New York City; never give his heart away again after barely surviving one failed marriage; and most of all, never become a parent. Now, Jeremy is living in the tiny town of Boone Creek, North Carolina, married to Lexie Darnell, the love of his life, and anticipating the birth of their daughter. But just as his life seems to be settling into a blissful pattern, an unsettling and mysterious message re-opens old wounds and sets off a chain of events that will forever change the course of this young couple's marriage.

Basically Jeremy starts to doubt his relationship because of rumors and some drama.  It was all very boring and silly to me.  I did not enjoy it at all and I am surprised I even finished it.

I give it 2 out of 5 stars, simply because of the love aspect to the story and it being set in NC.