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Cocktails for Three
Madeleine Wickham, who writes the internationally bestsellingShopaholicseries as Sophie Kinsella, has penned an irresistibly dishy and entertaining novel about three savvy young women and the secrets they share over monthly drinks.
Roxanne: glamorous, self-confident, with a secret lover -- a married man
Maggie: capable and high-achieving, until she finds the one thing she can't cope with -- motherhood
Candice: honest, decent, or so she believes -- until a ghost from her past turns up
At the first of every month, when the office has reached its pinnacle of hysteria, Maggie, Roxanne, and Candice meet at London's swankiest bar for an evening of cocktails and gossip. Here, they chat about what's new atThe Londoner,the glossy fashion magazine where they all work, and everything else that's going on in their lives. Oralmosteverything. Beneath the girl talk and the laughter, each of the three has a secret. And when a chance encounter at the cocktail bar sets in motion an extraordinary chain of events, each one will find their biggest secret revealed.
InCocktails for Three,Madeleine Wickham combines her trademark humor with remarkable insight to create an edgy, romantic tale of secrets, strangers, and a splash of scandal.
Roxanne: glamorous, self-confident, with a secret lover -- a married man
Maggie: capable and high-achieving, until she finds the one thing she can't cope with -- motherhood
Candice: honest, decent, or so she believes -- until a ghost from her past turns up
At the first of every month, when the office has reached its pinnacle of hysteria, Maggie, Roxanne, and Candice meet at London's swankiest bar for an evening of cocktails and gossip. Here, they chat about what's new atThe Londoner,the glossy fashion magazine where they all work, and everything else that's going on in their lives. Oralmosteverything. Beneath the girl talk and the laughter, each of the three has a secret. And when a chance encounter at the cocktail bar sets in motion an extraordinary chain of events, each one will find their biggest secret revealed.
InCocktails for Three,Madeleine Wickham combines her trademark humor with remarkable insight to create an edgy, romantic tale of secrets, strangers, and a splash of scandal.
301 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2001
About the author
Madeleine Wickham
20books2,317followersMadeleine Wickham (born 12 December 1969) is a bestselling British author under her pseudonym,Sophie Kinsella.Educated at New College, Oxford, she worked as a financial journalist before turning to fiction. She is best known for writing a popular series of chick-lit novels. The Shopaholic novels series focuses on the misadventures of Becky Bloomwood, a financial journalist who cannot manage her own finances. The books follows her life from when her credit card debt first become overwhelming ( "The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic" ) to the latest book on being married and having a child ( "Shopaholic & Baby" ). Throughout the entire series, her obsession with shopping and the complications that imparts on her life are central themes.
Gemma Townleyis her sister.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/madele...
Gemma Townleyis her sister.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/madele...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,297 reviews
October 1, 2017
FROM THE BLURB
Like everything else in life, change was inevitable. Some changes can happen gradually. Others, like lightning - all at once. An arrival, a departure and a deception crashed down on the secrets of the three friends before they could reach out for the next olive or the bowl of complimentary almonds on the bar table. And suddenly the friendship took on a rather different color. Actually, the color of loneliness. Of hurt. Of introspection. The cocktails mysteriously became undrinkable. Indigestible.
This is simply an entertaining, relaxing, heartfelt, great read. Nothing about this tasteful tale of friendship, trust and loyalty bothered me. It's a feel-good, decent all rounder. A great experience. The wordsmith behind it knows what she's doing.
Roxanne: glamorous, self-confident, with a secret lover -- a married manThe Cocktail Club: Maggie Phillips, or Mrs. Drakeford,(Editor), Roxanne Miller (freelance contributor),and Candice Brewin (senior journalist) at theThe Londonerhad a standing arrangement at the Manhattan Bar in London. Once a month it was cocktail hour for the three besties. They discussed everything except their well-guarded secrets. Life was like a well-shaken rose-tinted martini without the paper umbrella added. Colorful and good in its own splendor. The friendship was as true as the cocktail menu every month. The quality unquestionable, the satisfaction unrivaled.
Maggie: capable and high-achieving, until she finds the one thing she can't cope with -- motherhood
Candice: honest, decent, or so she believes -- until a ghost from her past turns up
...'In Cocktails for Three', Madeleine Wickham combines her trademark humor with remarkable insight to create an edgy, romantic tale of secrets, strangers, and a splash of scandal.
Like everything else in life, change was inevitable. Some changes can happen gradually. Others, like lightning - all at once. An arrival, a departure and a deception crashed down on the secrets of the three friends before they could reach out for the next olive or the bowl of complimentary almonds on the bar table. And suddenly the friendship took on a rather different color. Actually, the color of loneliness. Of hurt. Of introspection. The cocktails mysteriously became undrinkable. Indigestible.
This is simply an entertaining, relaxing, heartfelt, great read. Nothing about this tasteful tale of friendship, trust and loyalty bothered me. It's a feel-good, decent all rounder. A great experience. The wordsmith behind it knows what she's doing.
July 12, 2017
This is probably the most painful chicklit book I've ever read. I love when Madeliene writes as Sophie Kinsella, so I thought I'd give this book a go.
Big mistake.
I've had it out from the library for over a month and I'm finally finished with it.
This one was truly phoned in.
Anyone that couldn't guess what Heather is up to or about to be up to almost from the instant she is introduced, isn't paying attention to the story.
Then there are the characters. None of them are what you call great people. Maggie is drinking while pregnant. Roxanne is sleeping with a married man. Candice is just plain STUPID.
It felt like Madeliene was trying to create some kind of Sex and the City type story with Cocktails for Three, but the end result was really not all that exciting.
I was really hoping for something more glamorous, but that wasn't to be found here. If it weren't such a quick read, once I convinced myself to go on reading it, it would have been truly miserable.
I highly recommend Madeliene/Sophie's other books, but not this one. I have to go and read a Harlequin to bring back the warm fuzzies I expected to get with this book.
Big mistake.
I've had it out from the library for over a month and I'm finally finished with it.
This one was truly phoned in.
Anyone that couldn't guess what Heather is up to or about to be up to almost from the instant she is introduced, isn't paying attention to the story.
Then there are the characters. None of them are what you call great people. Maggie is drinking while pregnant. Roxanne is sleeping with a married man. Candice is just plain STUPID.
It felt like Madeliene was trying to create some kind of Sex and the City type story with Cocktails for Three, but the end result was really not all that exciting.
I was really hoping for something more glamorous, but that wasn't to be found here. If it weren't such a quick read, once I convinced myself to go on reading it, it would have been truly miserable.
I highly recommend Madeliene/Sophie's other books, but not this one. I have to go and read a Harlequin to bring back the warm fuzzies I expected to get with this book.
June 6, 2023
Easy sunbed read - really enjoyed it although I do confess to preferring her writing under Sophie Kinsella name but this is probably her most successful book under the Madeline Wickham name for me.
Four stars.
Four stars.
May 10, 2015
This book was just okay. Honestly, I love Madeleine Wickham when she writes as Sophie Kinsella because the books are light and they usually make me laugh. But this is the second go that I've had with Madeleine Wickham and, even though logically I know it's the same person, I just think that she loses some of her mojo when she's not writing as Sophie Kinsella. This book was a perfect example of that - she had three characters that were okay, but the front says that its "deliciously funny... witty and wicked" and I don't think that I laughed once. Also? I'm getting really sick of this whole 'three friends who meet for cocktails and are supposed to be best friends but really no one knows what's going on in the other people's lives' schtick that some chicklit books have fallen into. And even though I think Wickham was trying to go for the "oh, this is light and fluffy on the outside but look, these could be real women" aspect of things, I still felt like they were caricatures instead of characters. It was alright, but I don't think I would read it a second time and it will be going in the 'for Goodwill' pile.
July 28, 2022
I libri della Kinsella rappresentano sempre una buona dose di leggerezza. Letti come intermezzo tra libri più seri e impegnativi, gli ho sempre trovati divertenti e ironici; le vite delle protagoniste e gli avvenimenti che si susseguono mi hanno sempre strappato molte risate, ma mi hanno fatto anche riflettere. Questa cosa che l'autrice aveva pubblicato anche libri con il suo nome reale (pubblicati in Italia dopo il grande successo che aveva raggiunto) mi ha sempre lasciato un po' dubbiosa (ho sempre creduto che fosse solo l'ennesima operazione commerciale che sfruttava tutto ciò che aveva scritto un'autrice). Proprio per questo ho rifiutato molte volte il consiglio della bibliotecaria che mi aveva consigliato questo libro conoscendo il mio amore per la Kinsella. Cercando su internet ho poi scoperto che i libri che l'autrice ha pubblicato con il suo vero nome sono precedenti al successo letterario di "I love shopping", e quindi temevo che magari fossero molto più acerbi e invece... non ne sono rimasta delusa. Iniziato con scarse aspettative (temevo di annoiarmi), dopo i primi capitoli, mi ha subito coinvolta e mi sono lasciata trasportare dal suo solito stile incalzante.
Anche neLa compagna di scuola(che titolo in italiano molto meglio quello originale), che fa parte dei primi lavori dell'autrice e che racconta le vite e l'amicizia di tre amiche, ho ritrovato lo stile della Kinsella che mi piace. Nonostante si discosti dall'umorismo che ero abituata a leggere negli altri suoi libri e abbia una trama abbastanza semplice è un romanzo carino, scritto bene, scorrevole, coinvolgente, che fa riflettere, con protagoniste tre amiche e tre storie diverse legate comunque tra loro. Insomma è stata una piacevole lettura.
Penso che in futuro, quando avrò bisogno di un libro un po' più leggero, proverò a leggere qualche altro libro pubblicato con il nome Madeleine Wickham.
Anche neLa compagna di scuola(che titolo in italiano molto meglio quello originale), che fa parte dei primi lavori dell'autrice e che racconta le vite e l'amicizia di tre amiche, ho ritrovato lo stile della Kinsella che mi piace. Nonostante si discosti dall'umorismo che ero abituata a leggere negli altri suoi libri e abbia una trama abbastanza semplice è un romanzo carino, scritto bene, scorrevole, coinvolgente, che fa riflettere, con protagoniste tre amiche e tre storie diverse legate comunque tra loro. Insomma è stata una piacevole lettura.
Penso che in futuro, quando avrò bisogno di un libro un po' più leggero, proverò a leggere qualche altro libro pubblicato con il nome Madeleine Wickham.
July 1, 2024
5⭐️.
Cocktails for Three is written by Madeleine Wickham, maybe better known by her pseudonym Sophie Kinsella. An important note is that the writing style in this book is quite different compared to the style she uses as Sophie Kinsella. The typical Sophie Kineslla comedy is absent and is instead replaced with a more realistic slice of life writing. This allows the story to go deeper in the characters' feelings about anxiety, loneliness and belonging. Keeping that in mind, I still really enjoyed this slice of life story about the three friends Candice, Maggie and Roxanne. The three friends are in their thirties and work for the same publisher, the Londoner. They meet up once a month for a night with cocktails.
At one of their monthly meet-ups Candice recognizes one of the waitresses as one of her former classmates, Heather. Candice instantly feels guilt because her deceased father made business with Heather's father which resulted in a massive loss of money for Heather's father. Heather had to change schools because her family could no longer afford her to attend her current expensive school. Candice cannot speak to her mother because her mother has chosen an avoiding approach, pretending that nothing has happened. Candice cannot ignore her family's past and she would like to make up for Heather. However, Maggie and Roxanne have bad feelings about Heather. The two friends know that Candice sometimes is too nice to people and can be taken advantage of. For people that have seen the movie the Heathers, the Heather in this story lives up to the name, having a plan of her own when she accepts Candice's offers to help get her a job at the Londoner and offer to share an apartment with Candice. In the end, Candice have to do lot of work to fully recover from Heather's actions. Heather flees the country and is not held accountable for her actions. Heather present an idea Candice has as her own, she talks badly about Candice to her colleagues, she makes Candice help her with her work and thus making Candice fall behind on her own work and in the end Heather fabricates expense claims to make it look like Candice is exploiting her work for money resulting in Candice being suspended from her work! However, this episode made Candice able to put the family guilt where it belongs - to her father.
Maggie and Roxanne also have their own storylines, also involving family in different contexts. Maggie became a mother for the first time early in the book. She struggles with the transition to a mother, thinking that everyone else seems to manage but she cannot do it. Maggie's feelings of being insufficient to her daughter Lucia were really emotional to read. Cocktails for Three was written in 2000, before the boom of social media. Social media is so available nowadays that it is even easier to compare to not only people in one's physical proximity but to every public user on social media. Had Maggie had Instagram she would likely feel even more insufficient and incompetent when many people make motherhood seem so easy and smooth for them. Maggie finally have honest talks with her husband and mother-in-law to have some changes in her life to make her happy again. Maggie is also accepting to receive help with raising Lucia so Maggie can be a wife, mother and worker at the same time.
Roxanne's storyline may be least relatable one. She has been having an affair with the boss of the Londoner for years, knowing very well that he is married and have children with his wife. Candice and Maggie know that Roxanne is seeing a married man, but not his identity. Roxanne is living for the hope that one day her lover will leave his wife once his youngest son is old enough to handle a divorce. However, that will never happen as the boss finds out that he is having cancer and likely will not have long time left before the cancer wins the battle. He breaks it off with Roxanne to spend his last time with his family, something that hurts Roxanne very badly. She had clinged to the small hope of a life and family with her boss, that she was willing to put herself in such a vulnerable and questionable situation. No one seem to have figured out that they have an affair, but when her lover dies, Roxanne is struggling to keep her face and eventually Candice and Maggie finds out the identity of her lover, shocked that they had not a had clue that is was their boss. In the end, Roxanne accepts a job offer in Cyprus, a step to be able to start her life over without being constantly reminded of her past lover and past life.
Cocktails for Three is written by Madeleine Wickham, maybe better known by her pseudonym Sophie Kinsella. An important note is that the writing style in this book is quite different compared to the style she uses as Sophie Kinsella. The typical Sophie Kineslla comedy is absent and is instead replaced with a more realistic slice of life writing. This allows the story to go deeper in the characters' feelings about anxiety, loneliness and belonging. Keeping that in mind, I still really enjoyed this slice of life story about the three friends Candice, Maggie and Roxanne. The three friends are in their thirties and work for the same publisher, the Londoner. They meet up once a month for a night with cocktails.
At one of their monthly meet-ups Candice recognizes one of the waitresses as one of her former classmates, Heather. Candice instantly feels guilt because her deceased father made business with Heather's father which resulted in a massive loss of money for Heather's father. Heather had to change schools because her family could no longer afford her to attend her current expensive school. Candice cannot speak to her mother because her mother has chosen an avoiding approach, pretending that nothing has happened. Candice cannot ignore her family's past and she would like to make up for Heather. However, Maggie and Roxanne have bad feelings about Heather. The two friends know that Candice sometimes is too nice to people and can be taken advantage of. For people that have seen the movie the Heathers, the Heather in this story lives up to the name, having a plan of her own when she accepts Candice's offers to help get her a job at the Londoner and offer to share an apartment with Candice. In the end, Candice have to do lot of work to fully recover from Heather's actions. Heather flees the country and is not held accountable for her actions. Heather present an idea Candice has as her own, she talks badly about Candice to her colleagues, she makes Candice help her with her work and thus making Candice fall behind on her own work and in the end Heather fabricates expense claims to make it look like Candice is exploiting her work for money resulting in Candice being suspended from her work! However, this episode made Candice able to put the family guilt where it belongs - to her father.
Maggie and Roxanne also have their own storylines, also involving family in different contexts. Maggie became a mother for the first time early in the book. She struggles with the transition to a mother, thinking that everyone else seems to manage but she cannot do it. Maggie's feelings of being insufficient to her daughter Lucia were really emotional to read. Cocktails for Three was written in 2000, before the boom of social media. Social media is so available nowadays that it is even easier to compare to not only people in one's physical proximity but to every public user on social media. Had Maggie had Instagram she would likely feel even more insufficient and incompetent when many people make motherhood seem so easy and smooth for them. Maggie finally have honest talks with her husband and mother-in-law to have some changes in her life to make her happy again. Maggie is also accepting to receive help with raising Lucia so Maggie can be a wife, mother and worker at the same time.
Roxanne's storyline may be least relatable one. She has been having an affair with the boss of the Londoner for years, knowing very well that he is married and have children with his wife. Candice and Maggie know that Roxanne is seeing a married man, but not his identity. Roxanne is living for the hope that one day her lover will leave his wife once his youngest son is old enough to handle a divorce. However, that will never happen as the boss finds out that he is having cancer and likely will not have long time left before the cancer wins the battle. He breaks it off with Roxanne to spend his last time with his family, something that hurts Roxanne very badly. She had clinged to the small hope of a life and family with her boss, that she was willing to put herself in such a vulnerable and questionable situation. No one seem to have figured out that they have an affair, but when her lover dies, Roxanne is struggling to keep her face and eventually Candice and Maggie finds out the identity of her lover, shocked that they had not a had clue that is was their boss. In the end, Roxanne accepts a job offer in Cyprus, a step to be able to start her life over without being constantly reminded of her past lover and past life.
October 26, 2017
I am a huge fan of Madeleine Wickham…or rather, I should say that I am a huge fan of her when she writes under her pen name,Sophie Kinsella.That’s right, the author of this little known chick lit. novel is in fact the hugely famous writer of theShopaholicseries, among other awesome stories (shout out toI’ve Got Your Number,my personal favourite!). Although I’ve read almost all of Kinsella’s novels, I had never picked up one of Wickham’s, until a few days ago.
I’ve ownedCocktails for Threefor about three years now, since I picked it up at a used book sale. It sat on my bookshelf for all this time because I just never felt in the mood for it, having heard mixed reviews about the stories Kinsella writes under her real name. I always opted to read a “proper” Kinsella novel, rather than delving intoCocktails for Three,and I only picked up this novel this week because I wanted a quick read that I would be done with rapidly.
Well,Cocktails for Threeis certainly a quick read, but it is also one that has left me conflicted. I both enjoyed it and found it very slow, and I couldn’t reconcile the fact that Wickham is Kinsella, and vice versa, because the tones and styles of their novels are just so different. Kinsella’s novels are effortlessly hilarious, replete with over-the-top but endearing characters whose dramatic lives still somehow seem to be relatable to the reader.Cocktails for Threeis perhaps even more relatable in the sense that the characters are very average and every day, but for some reason, I just couldn’t make myself like any of the three main characters, Candice, Maggie and Roxanne. It wasn’t until about two thirds into the novel that I even enjoyed it at all, and I felt myself wavering between being excited by the story and feeling helplessly bored by it.
I think, as I just mentioned, my main reason for struggling withCocktails for Threeis that I didn’t find any of the female leads likable. They each have these flaws that are extremely difficult to look past and which I found pretty annoying: Candice is ridiculously naïve and innocent, to the point of making me want to slap her; Maggie is so unprepared for motherhood that she seems not to think it bad to drink or be around cigarette smoke while pregnant; and Roxanne is in the midst of a 6 year long affair with a married man, which is a story arc that has always rubbed me the wrong way, since I first began reading chick lit. I admit that, as I got halfway into the novel, I started to warm up to the three characters, but I still found it hard to ignore Roxanne’s immorality, Candice’s ignorance and Maggie’s selfishness. What’s more, there wasn’t really anything romantic about this novel, and while not every novel has to be a romance of course, I’ve grown so accustomed to how artfully Kinsella writes romance that it made me kind of sad to read a novel of hers that was love-free.
With all that said, somehow, I look back on the novel now and I feel like I enjoyed it. It wasn’t a favourite by any means, but I do have to admit that it breaks the chick lit. mold and doesn’t rely on stereotypes or clichés. I appreciate that, and while I didn’t love the story or the characters, I found the novel interesting enough and was overall happy and occupied while reading it.
This is certainly a hard one to rate… I think I’ll definitely give another novel by Wickham a chance in the future, to see if they all adhere to this slightly different style…but I probably will pick up another Kinsella novel first!
❥❥❥.5 (out of 5)
I’ve ownedCocktails for Threefor about three years now, since I picked it up at a used book sale. It sat on my bookshelf for all this time because I just never felt in the mood for it, having heard mixed reviews about the stories Kinsella writes under her real name. I always opted to read a “proper” Kinsella novel, rather than delving intoCocktails for Three,and I only picked up this novel this week because I wanted a quick read that I would be done with rapidly.
Well,Cocktails for Threeis certainly a quick read, but it is also one that has left me conflicted. I both enjoyed it and found it very slow, and I couldn’t reconcile the fact that Wickham is Kinsella, and vice versa, because the tones and styles of their novels are just so different. Kinsella’s novels are effortlessly hilarious, replete with over-the-top but endearing characters whose dramatic lives still somehow seem to be relatable to the reader.Cocktails for Threeis perhaps even more relatable in the sense that the characters are very average and every day, but for some reason, I just couldn’t make myself like any of the three main characters, Candice, Maggie and Roxanne. It wasn’t until about two thirds into the novel that I even enjoyed it at all, and I felt myself wavering between being excited by the story and feeling helplessly bored by it.
I think, as I just mentioned, my main reason for struggling withCocktails for Threeis that I didn’t find any of the female leads likable. They each have these flaws that are extremely difficult to look past and which I found pretty annoying: Candice is ridiculously naïve and innocent, to the point of making me want to slap her; Maggie is so unprepared for motherhood that she seems not to think it bad to drink or be around cigarette smoke while pregnant; and Roxanne is in the midst of a 6 year long affair with a married man, which is a story arc that has always rubbed me the wrong way, since I first began reading chick lit. I admit that, as I got halfway into the novel, I started to warm up to the three characters, but I still found it hard to ignore Roxanne’s immorality, Candice’s ignorance and Maggie’s selfishness. What’s more, there wasn’t really anything romantic about this novel, and while not every novel has to be a romance of course, I’ve grown so accustomed to how artfully Kinsella writes romance that it made me kind of sad to read a novel of hers that was love-free.
With all that said, somehow, I look back on the novel now and I feel like I enjoyed it. It wasn’t a favourite by any means, but I do have to admit that it breaks the chick lit. mold and doesn’t rely on stereotypes or clichés. I appreciate that, and while I didn’t love the story or the characters, I found the novel interesting enough and was overall happy and occupied while reading it.
This is certainly a hard one to rate… I think I’ll definitely give another novel by Wickham a chance in the future, to see if they all adhere to this slightly different style…but I probably will pick up another Kinsella novel first!
❥❥❥.5 (out of 5)
September 2, 2007
I picked this one up from my friend Dani(new to goodreads) the snippet on the cover proclaims the book to be "deliciously wicked and witty and funny" or something to that effect. Dani gave me her review before lending it out, "it's not deliciously witty and funny but it's pretty good." I must say, I agree. I am a fan of the Shopaholic books so I thought I would give this book a shot and as I am traveling I needed an easy plane read. It was not as polished or funny(actually I didn't find it all funny) as the Shopaholic series and I wasn't particularly invested in any of the characters(although having been a victim of a psychopath myself once I identified with Candice, the wide eyed innocent) but if you enjoy Kinsella's work and want something a little darker, a little less well written, then this book is for you.
February 19, 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 “Mr. Married with Kids is not allowed to mind," said Roxanne. "Mr. Married with Kids has got his wife, after all.” I have been putting off reading this book for two years. Two years, and it is by my favourite author. It has been glaring at me for two years and the guilt got too much for me. I am so happy I caved. It was wickedly wonderful.
The book follows three friends who all work as journalists in the Londoner. Maggie is pregnant and about to start her life in the countryside, without the slightest clue about how to raise children, and is under the guise that it will come to her naturally. Roxanne is cruel, witty, and dating a married man with a handful of children. Candice is the aloof one, who when seeing Heather (Candice’s father scammed Heather’s father out of quite a bit of money), her guilt becomes too much and finds herself in a position where to do whatever will help Heather, is the best route of all. The trio meet once a month for a cocktail evening where secrets are unveiled and what is told may end up tearing them apart.
I’ve read many reviews of this book, I loved this book, and yet I agree with all of them. The characters are not likeable in the slightest. They all make the most obvious of mistakes, they’re rude, and make decisions that have you pulling your hair out. But I loved it. I loved them all so much. I love naughty. I love morally ambiguous. And I love a bad character. There’s something about reading a character you couldn’t stand in real life that keeps you reading on. Perhaps so I can belittle and critique them for the sheer ego boost? I don’t know what it was, but it worked for me.
I will say however, for all the criticisms of the characters personalities. That is not to say that they’re not relatable. Roxanne with her blunt nature and penchant for older men, Candice with her need to please anyone not matter the lengths, and Maggie who really doesn’t have a clue what’s going on despite the fact shes had months to prepare. I see myself in all those characters (I probably shouldn’t admit to that). While reading this book it was like a projection of all my flaws right in my face, maybe it’s why is disliked them so. Yet I loved them in the context of the book. Sometimes I love reading about serial killer in a book because they’re a great, well-written character, not because I’d go for coffee with them.
I’ve recently been reading a-lot more books which span multiple different perspectives, and this book followed suit. It makes for a very easy read, as there’s no points that dip or drag, because there’s so much to be keeping up with. This book had workplace drama, friendship issues, and betrayal. My personal cocktail for a good time.
All in all this was a very easy read filled with drama, betrayal, and a whole lot of fun. I recommend to anyone looking for a quick read.
The book follows three friends who all work as journalists in the Londoner. Maggie is pregnant and about to start her life in the countryside, without the slightest clue about how to raise children, and is under the guise that it will come to her naturally. Roxanne is cruel, witty, and dating a married man with a handful of children. Candice is the aloof one, who when seeing Heather (Candice’s father scammed Heather’s father out of quite a bit of money), her guilt becomes too much and finds herself in a position where to do whatever will help Heather, is the best route of all. The trio meet once a month for a cocktail evening where secrets are unveiled and what is told may end up tearing them apart.
I’ve read many reviews of this book, I loved this book, and yet I agree with all of them. The characters are not likeable in the slightest. They all make the most obvious of mistakes, they’re rude, and make decisions that have you pulling your hair out. But I loved it. I loved them all so much. I love naughty. I love morally ambiguous. And I love a bad character. There’s something about reading a character you couldn’t stand in real life that keeps you reading on. Perhaps so I can belittle and critique them for the sheer ego boost? I don’t know what it was, but it worked for me.
I will say however, for all the criticisms of the characters personalities. That is not to say that they’re not relatable. Roxanne with her blunt nature and penchant for older men, Candice with her need to please anyone not matter the lengths, and Maggie who really doesn’t have a clue what’s going on despite the fact shes had months to prepare. I see myself in all those characters (I probably shouldn’t admit to that). While reading this book it was like a projection of all my flaws right in my face, maybe it’s why is disliked them so. Yet I loved them in the context of the book. Sometimes I love reading about serial killer in a book because they’re a great, well-written character, not because I’d go for coffee with them.
I’ve recently been reading a-lot more books which span multiple different perspectives, and this book followed suit. It makes for a very easy read, as there’s no points that dip or drag, because there’s so much to be keeping up with. This book had workplace drama, friendship issues, and betrayal. My personal cocktail for a good time.
All in all this was a very easy read filled with drama, betrayal, and a whole lot of fun. I recommend to anyone looking for a quick read.
March 13, 2011
maybe it's more of a one & a half star book. i didn't LOATHE it...but i also didn't like it.
the book centers around three friends & colleagues. they all work for a magazine called "the londoner". roxanne is a freelancer who travels the world & writes hotel reviews, as far as i can tell. candice does more investigative reporting, & maggie is the editor. maggie is extremely pregnant & about to go on maternity leave when the book opens. her secret is that she feels woefully unprepared for motherhood. roxanne's secret is that she has been having a six-year affair with a married man. her friends know about the affair but don't know who the man is. turns out it's their publisher at work, ralph allsop. i'm not really giving anything away because it was pretty apparent from the first time he was introduced that he was the guy. candice's secret is that her father was a con man who fleeced many of her childhood neighbors out of their money. candice & her mother uncovered his perfidy after he died.
they meet monthly for cocktails at a cheesy place called the manhattan bar. really, this book is kind of just a "sex & the city" knock-off in that respect. on this particular evening, the waitress that serves them is an old school acquaintance of candice's...& candice knows that her father fleeced this school acquaintance's father out of his money. the waitress is named heather & in order to make amends, candice arranges for her to be hired on at "the londoner".
so...we can all see what happens, right? say it with me: heather is well aware that candice's father conned her father, though she doesn't let on to candice that she knows. instead, she takes advantage of candice's naive attempts to make amends. she moves into candice's flat, takes the job at "the londoner," & tricks candice into doing all her work for her, paying for all her groceries, etc etc. she deviously turns roxanne & maggie against heather & tells her boss that candice is bullying her at work. meanwhile, she filches personal receipts from candice's bedroom & turns them in as expenses to the magazine, setting candice up to look like a thief. by the time she is finished, candice is alienated from her best friends & on the verge of losing her job.
maggie has her baby & feels isolated out on her country estate, being a full-time mom. & you can guess what happens...she slowly slips into loneliness & depression before she finally snaps & admits everything to the home health visitor & her mother-in-law. they arrange for her to get some help & the mother-in-law has a little chat with her son, who starts pitching in more with the baby. maggie decides to return to work & move back to london.
roxanne notices that ralph is losing weight & looking haggard. she hopes it's because he is thinking of finally leaving his wife for her. but actually, he has cancer & is on death's doorstep. rather than tell roxanne this, he tells her to take a posh job she was offered in cyprus. she thinks he's broken up with her & disappears to the south of france for two weeks. while she's away, ralph dies. roxanne is completely wrecked by this & finally confesses her affair to maggie & candice. turns out ralph left roxanne his london house as a way of legitimizing their relationship from beyond the grave. roxanne gives it to maggie for her family to live in while maggie goes back to work.
when maggie takes over at the magazine, she swiftly uncovers all the evidence of heather's treachery against candice & candice is swiftly reinstated. after fighting through the entire book, the three women make up & vow to be friends forever. candice even starts a relationship with the dashing lawyer who lives across the hall from her. the book ends with maggie's baby's christening, at which roxanne dabs a bit of champagne cocktail on to the baby's brow & welcomes her into the cocktail club. i was kind of like, "!!!" about that. no one better splash my baby with alcoholic beverages & act like it's a touching gesture of camaraderie.
the book of course goes into way more detail about all this stuff, but it's all so convoluted & ridiculous, i just can't. the book is also in no way funny or witty. i don't think there was a single humorous line in the entire book. wickham also has a really obnoxious habit of flavoring her dialogue with asides about how someone's "face reddened" or how their "cheeks became warm". in 301 pages, i think there were approximate 297 instances of someone being caught out in a lie by blushing. can i just say that i have never in my life actually noticed someone blushing & used that as the clue that helped me figure out they were lying to me? i don't think it really happens. the characters are also painfully one-dimensional--the brassy perfectionist mama/magazine editor, the seemingly tough jetsetting mistress with the heart of gold, & the innocent well-intentioned dupe. ugh. give this one a miss.
the book centers around three friends & colleagues. they all work for a magazine called "the londoner". roxanne is a freelancer who travels the world & writes hotel reviews, as far as i can tell. candice does more investigative reporting, & maggie is the editor. maggie is extremely pregnant & about to go on maternity leave when the book opens. her secret is that she feels woefully unprepared for motherhood. roxanne's secret is that she has been having a six-year affair with a married man. her friends know about the affair but don't know who the man is. turns out it's their publisher at work, ralph allsop. i'm not really giving anything away because it was pretty apparent from the first time he was introduced that he was the guy. candice's secret is that her father was a con man who fleeced many of her childhood neighbors out of their money. candice & her mother uncovered his perfidy after he died.
they meet monthly for cocktails at a cheesy place called the manhattan bar. really, this book is kind of just a "sex & the city" knock-off in that respect. on this particular evening, the waitress that serves them is an old school acquaintance of candice's...& candice knows that her father fleeced this school acquaintance's father out of his money. the waitress is named heather & in order to make amends, candice arranges for her to be hired on at "the londoner".
so...we can all see what happens, right? say it with me: heather is well aware that candice's father conned her father, though she doesn't let on to candice that she knows. instead, she takes advantage of candice's naive attempts to make amends. she moves into candice's flat, takes the job at "the londoner," & tricks candice into doing all her work for her, paying for all her groceries, etc etc. she deviously turns roxanne & maggie against heather & tells her boss that candice is bullying her at work. meanwhile, she filches personal receipts from candice's bedroom & turns them in as expenses to the magazine, setting candice up to look like a thief. by the time she is finished, candice is alienated from her best friends & on the verge of losing her job.
maggie has her baby & feels isolated out on her country estate, being a full-time mom. & you can guess what happens...she slowly slips into loneliness & depression before she finally snaps & admits everything to the home health visitor & her mother-in-law. they arrange for her to get some help & the mother-in-law has a little chat with her son, who starts pitching in more with the baby. maggie decides to return to work & move back to london.
roxanne notices that ralph is losing weight & looking haggard. she hopes it's because he is thinking of finally leaving his wife for her. but actually, he has cancer & is on death's doorstep. rather than tell roxanne this, he tells her to take a posh job she was offered in cyprus. she thinks he's broken up with her & disappears to the south of france for two weeks. while she's away, ralph dies. roxanne is completely wrecked by this & finally confesses her affair to maggie & candice. turns out ralph left roxanne his london house as a way of legitimizing their relationship from beyond the grave. roxanne gives it to maggie for her family to live in while maggie goes back to work.
when maggie takes over at the magazine, she swiftly uncovers all the evidence of heather's treachery against candice & candice is swiftly reinstated. after fighting through the entire book, the three women make up & vow to be friends forever. candice even starts a relationship with the dashing lawyer who lives across the hall from her. the book ends with maggie's baby's christening, at which roxanne dabs a bit of champagne cocktail on to the baby's brow & welcomes her into the cocktail club. i was kind of like, "!!!" about that. no one better splash my baby with alcoholic beverages & act like it's a touching gesture of camaraderie.
the book of course goes into way more detail about all this stuff, but it's all so convoluted & ridiculous, i just can't. the book is also in no way funny or witty. i don't think there was a single humorous line in the entire book. wickham also has a really obnoxious habit of flavoring her dialogue with asides about how someone's "face reddened" or how their "cheeks became warm". in 301 pages, i think there were approximate 297 instances of someone being caught out in a lie by blushing. can i just say that i have never in my life actually noticed someone blushing & used that as the clue that helped me figure out they were lying to me? i don't think it really happens. the characters are also painfully one-dimensional--the brassy perfectionist mama/magazine editor, the seemingly tough jetsetting mistress with the heart of gold, & the innocent well-intentioned dupe. ugh. give this one a miss.
June 24, 2019
So—the reviews and blurbs printed on this book really misled me. For example, the book wasn’t, “deliciously funny...witty and wicked.” So, hoping for a funny book, I spent almost 100 pages disappointed. However, I stuck it out because the writing and story-telling are very good. When I finally realized that I was reading a book about friendship overcoming outside threats, and about women dealing with the difficulties of modern life, I realized that I was loving it. The next thing I knew, I was sitting in a completely drained tub, still unable to put down the book and dry off. I really enjoyed this story.
May 15, 2014
Three successful young women in the magazine business meet on the first day of every month for cocktails in a London bar and reveal secrets that could undermine their lives and relationships.
This book reminded me of my friends and I which is maybe why I loved it. I appreciated how each woman was at a different phase in her life and the problems each faced. I highly recommend this book for any age. It was funny and the characters were relatable. Enjoy it with your favorite cocktail.
This book reminded me of my friends and I which is maybe why I loved it. I appreciated how each woman was at a different phase in her life and the problems each faced. I highly recommend this book for any age. It was funny and the characters were relatable. Enjoy it with your favorite cocktail.
July 20, 2023
I needed this book. It came to me at just the right time. It was cute, witty, full of cat fights, and just entertaining.
Three best friends dealing with different problems get together for their monthly cocktail hour and then shit hits the fan. The book nailed the new mother inadequate struggles, nailed the naive cringey do gooder, and nailed the sassy adventurer with a big personality. Honestly, how could you make this best friend trio better?
Simple, fun, and sassy. I enjoyed this one.
Three best friends dealing with different problems get together for their monthly cocktail hour and then shit hits the fan. The book nailed the new mother inadequate struggles, nailed the naive cringey do gooder, and nailed the sassy adventurer with a big personality. Honestly, how could you make this best friend trio better?
Simple, fun, and sassy. I enjoyed this one.
July 21, 2021
If you are expecting this to be in the style of Sophie Kinsella, you will be disappointed. Just enjoy it for what it is - a well written non comedy ensemble book with strong characters that you want to read more about.
I would be happy to have new Madeline Wickham books published alongside her Sophie Kinsella novels.
I would be happy to have new Madeline Wickham books published alongside her Sophie Kinsella novels.
January 19, 2010
It's no secret that i love Sophie Kinsella's writing.As a corollary, i assumed that i would like Madeleine Wickham's writing as well.After all,it was by the same author. I wouldn't say i was entirely right. The writing styles are as different as morning and night. Whereas,Kinsella enthralls you with her witty writing, Madeline's writing is more restrained and mature.I haven't read any other Madeleine novel and might run the risk of over-generalizing.
Cocktails for three is about the lives of 3 young with-it women who work for a magazine in London and are best of friends.
Roxanne is a confident and gutsy young lady who has a secret lover whose identity nobody knows.Not even the other 2 girls.
Maggie is the capable editor of the magazine who finds it difficult to grapple with the issues of motherhood
Candice is the quintessential trusting,generous blonde with a troubled past.
The trio meet regularly at a local bar to gossip and catch up with their lives.Their lives change when, unexpectedly Candice's schoolmate turns up as a waitress at their favorite bar.The story is not exactly path breaking and is predictably tame.
Each woman has a different ghost to conquer and as usual the story is about how the women get their act together at the end of it all..Can chick-lits have an ending other than a "happily ever after"?.
I was a little dissapointed with the typecasting related to names.Do all Roxanne's have to be gutsy and spunky?.Similarly, do all Candice's have to be blonde,unsuspecting innocent girls?.The book didn't make me gasp out of surprise at any point in the narrative.
That is where i realized that the Kinsella name hung about this novel's neck like a dead albatross. This book was not meant to have crazy twists.It was meant to chronicle the journeys of 3 young women who were battling 3 different situations. When i started seeing the book in this light,i felt that the book was not that disappointing.It was a standard Danielle Steele-type fare(sans the melodrama and copious amounts of tearing!).Despite the book being devoted to 3 heroines,all 3 characters are etched out well.
The emotions that the 3 central characters go through are also captured very well.However,some emotions like the insecure feeling that Maggie has when her mother in law tries to help her out or the one where Candice feels guilty about the families that her father ruined is a little grating on the nerves after a point as it gets too excessive.
Overall,its a decent read. Not as light-hearted or funny as i would have wanted it to be.If i didn't know that this was written by the same lady who wrote Confessions of a shopaholic, i would probably not judge it this way!.Definitely not my style of writing,but i have promised myself to read a few more Madeleine books to understand her style better.I would stick to Cecilia Ahern or Danielle Steele if i needed a non-humorous chick-lit fix!
Rating: 2 out of 5.
Cocktails for three is about the lives of 3 young with-it women who work for a magazine in London and are best of friends.
Roxanne is a confident and gutsy young lady who has a secret lover whose identity nobody knows.Not even the other 2 girls.
Maggie is the capable editor of the magazine who finds it difficult to grapple with the issues of motherhood
Candice is the quintessential trusting,generous blonde with a troubled past.
The trio meet regularly at a local bar to gossip and catch up with their lives.Their lives change when, unexpectedly Candice's schoolmate turns up as a waitress at their favorite bar.The story is not exactly path breaking and is predictably tame.
Each woman has a different ghost to conquer and as usual the story is about how the women get their act together at the end of it all..Can chick-lits have an ending other than a "happily ever after"?.
I was a little dissapointed with the typecasting related to names.Do all Roxanne's have to be gutsy and spunky?.Similarly, do all Candice's have to be blonde,unsuspecting innocent girls?.The book didn't make me gasp out of surprise at any point in the narrative.
That is where i realized that the Kinsella name hung about this novel's neck like a dead albatross. This book was not meant to have crazy twists.It was meant to chronicle the journeys of 3 young women who were battling 3 different situations. When i started seeing the book in this light,i felt that the book was not that disappointing.It was a standard Danielle Steele-type fare(sans the melodrama and copious amounts of tearing!).Despite the book being devoted to 3 heroines,all 3 characters are etched out well.
The emotions that the 3 central characters go through are also captured very well.However,some emotions like the insecure feeling that Maggie has when her mother in law tries to help her out or the one where Candice feels guilty about the families that her father ruined is a little grating on the nerves after a point as it gets too excessive.
Overall,its a decent read. Not as light-hearted or funny as i would have wanted it to be.If i didn't know that this was written by the same lady who wrote Confessions of a shopaholic, i would probably not judge it this way!.Definitely not my style of writing,but i have promised myself to read a few more Madeleine books to understand her style better.I would stick to Cecilia Ahern or Danielle Steele if i needed a non-humorous chick-lit fix!
Rating: 2 out of 5.
July 21, 2019
The book was cute except I can't stand when pregnant ladies drink cocktails. Yuck!
December 31, 2016
Loved the story.. The three friends, their friendship, their issues and the writing. And was surprised at the end to discover that the author was Sophie Kinsella writing in another name.
July 20, 2020
Lättläst mysig bok utan överraskningar men det är inte det man är ute efter i den här typen av bok.
Hade dock helt fel förväntningar på boken. Trodde det skulle vara en rolig lättläst bok.
Lättläst var den men rolig är fel beskrivning.
Beskriver vänskap, hur lätt det kan gå fel. Nybliven mamma, älskarinna och dåligt samvete. Dock på olika personer.
Hade dock helt fel förväntningar på boken. Trodde det skulle vara en rolig lättläst bok.
Lättläst var den men rolig är fel beskrivning.
Beskriver vänskap, hur lätt det kan gå fel. Nybliven mamma, älskarinna och dåligt samvete. Dock på olika personer.
April 19, 2013
Funny quips amid troubles. Not short-lived champagne fizz of ambitious or frivolous rich, more bitter beer of everyday (female) human woes. Outer conversations and inner thoughts both sound real. Situations resolve believably with resources we have seen, no deus ex machina out of the blue. Ordinary working people accept misfortunes, quietly realize truths, move on, bolstered by unconditional friendship (love). "We shouldn't keep secrets or put on acts for each other. None of us should ever feel we have to struggle through on our own." p282.
Every month, threeLondonermagazine colleagues gossip over cocktails in the same old bar. Writer Candice, guilty, gullible, gives job and flat room to crazy Heather, whose family collapsed after money lost to Candice's swindling father 'Good-Time Gordon ". Editor Maggie fears imminent birth although supportive husband Giles likes isolated rural acreage. Freelancer Roxanne hides Mr Married with Kids.
Hints are plentiful "flash of hostility" p33, not dreams or prophecies, annoying. I like Wickham aka Sophie Kinsella, so still fun read. Feels more down to earth than some Cinderella gets the prince marketed in same niche.
Every month, threeLondonermagazine colleagues gossip over cocktails in the same old bar. Writer Candice, guilty, gullible, gives job and flat room to crazy Heather, whose family collapsed after money lost to Candice's swindling father 'Good-Time Gordon ". Editor Maggie fears imminent birth although supportive husband Giles likes isolated rural acreage. Freelancer Roxanne hides Mr Married with Kids.
Hints are plentiful "flash of hostility" p33, not dreams or prophecies, annoying. I like Wickham aka Sophie Kinsella, so still fun read. Feels more down to earth than some Cinderella gets the prince marketed in same niche.
December 2, 2013
frankly, i dont read this book front to end. i simply skip the pages where Heather are in. i hate the Heather part. even when they first met her. i know that she is up for no good. how stupid for candice to not know it. duh! so i just read the first half of the book, without skipping any pages, then grew tired of Heather than skipped most of Heather part, then resume reading all when Candice realize that Heather was nothing but a scumbag i.e when Roxanne secret lover, Ralph (i forget the name already) died from cancer.
and i totally opposed to the fact that Maggie wouldnt return back to her job just because she is having baby. i mean come on, having a baby means that you have to end your career? which century do you lived in? i was this closed to not finished reading the book and pick up other books to read when i jumped to the half end (as if mentioned earlier, the part where Roxanne secret lover died.) here, as if they just wake up from their sleep, the character realize everything. Candice realize that Heather was a slug. Roxanne realize that she should not blame Candice for her lover's death and Maggie, realize that she could be a career woman even if she had babies. then, i enjoyed the rest of the books.
though googling, i realize that many women out there simply love this book, i found that i just like the half end of it.
and yet, i felt like i should pick other books at the fair. i could not help to felt that this book simply did not worth my RM8 (though i know it is cheap. ) because i still felt like i have watch something similar to this before this (at hallmark maybe) as i seem to know the ending before i read it.
and i totally opposed to the fact that Maggie wouldnt return back to her job just because she is having baby. i mean come on, having a baby means that you have to end your career? which century do you lived in? i was this closed to not finished reading the book and pick up other books to read when i jumped to the half end (as if mentioned earlier, the part where Roxanne secret lover died.) here, as if they just wake up from their sleep, the character realize everything. Candice realize that Heather was a slug. Roxanne realize that she should not blame Candice for her lover's death and Maggie, realize that she could be a career woman even if she had babies. then, i enjoyed the rest of the books.
though googling, i realize that many women out there simply love this book, i found that i just like the half end of it.
and yet, i felt like i should pick other books at the fair. i could not help to felt that this book simply did not worth my RM8 (though i know it is cheap. ) because i still felt like i have watch something similar to this before this (at hallmark maybe) as i seem to know the ending before i read it.
August 9, 2011
i think i've read everything sophie kinsella's written, but this is my first foray into madeleine wickham. it is not, as my husband assumed from the title, about a threesome, but about three best friends who meet at a bar once a month for cocktails. each is hiding a deep secret from the others but in the end, they all come out in a cathartic rush of relief and friendship.
as another reviewer pointed out, the cover advertises "cocktails for three" as "deliciously witty and funny." funny it is not. it has that shopaholic feel to it where one of the characters in particular keeps doing things so completely idiotic that you want to scream "NOOOO" at the book. that said, it was enjoyable. you could read this on the plane or on the beach or in the bathtub and have yourself a fine old time.
as another reviewer pointed out, the cover advertises "cocktails for three" as "deliciously witty and funny." funny it is not. it has that shopaholic feel to it where one of the characters in particular keeps doing things so completely idiotic that you want to scream "NOOOO" at the book. that said, it was enjoyable. you could read this on the plane or on the beach or in the bathtub and have yourself a fine old time.
Read
June 10, 2013As much as I love all the books Wickham writes as Sophie Kinsella, I have found that I just don't like anything she write under her actual name. This book was horribly depressing from the get-go. One character is being taken advantage of by a girl she's trying to help, and you can see where it's all going -- she'll probably lose her job and friends because of it. Another character just had a baby and is dealing with postpartum depression. And the third character has been in a relationship with a married man for 6 years, always hoping he'll leave his wife, only to have it all end when he finds out he has cancer. Yes, CANCER! So, I just couldn't do it anymore. It wasn't worth wading through anymore of this depressing and un-enjoyable crap in the hopes that it might all end happily.
June 19, 2007
Aidan loaned me this book. I think I may have traded for my Jenny McCarthy collection, though unintentionally. I liked it, then I didn't because it was way too predictable, but now I like it again. It is about 3 friends, one a new mom, one a likely alcoholic who is her boss's mistress and the other being taken advantage of by ablast from the past.
February 5, 2019
Stupid Candice and more foolish Roxanne, a doubtful Maggie and a treacherous Heather.
A good for nothing cocktail club and a mildly good setup but awfully crafted story we could sniff after few pages itself.
A good for nothing cocktail club and a mildly good setup but awfully crafted story we could sniff after few pages itself.
August 28, 2018
This book was a premiere for me. It was my first time reading Sophie Kinsella under her real name, Madeline Wickham and to say I was surprised might be an understatement.
Where she writes with spunk and wit, great humor and engaging characters as Kinsella, as Wickham feels less playful, more restraint and the characters are not as lively. You could say I prefer her style as Kinsella, to say the least.
The book chronicles the lives of three women in their early 30s (they are all the same age right?) who work for the same London Magazine and are best friends who regularly meet for Cocktail Nights.
Maggie, smart, career woman and chief editor, struggles with her pregnancy and move to the countryside.
Roxanne, spunky freelancer who travels the world and steams with confidence and having an affair with a married man.
Candice the generous goody-two-shoes and liked by everyone.
It gives off a certain Sex and the City flare, with stand-ins for Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte, but minus the terror that is Carrie Bradshaw.
I gotta say, for most of the part it was an enjoyable and light read, not particularly memorable or engaging but perfect if you just want to turn off your brain and relax.
Maggie‘s story was probably the most realistic (except the over the top rich husband), having a young mother struggling between her love for her family and the urge to go back to work and on the edge of postpartum depression is interesting to read about and probably relatable to a lot of women.
When it comes to Roxanne and her married man it’s hard not to feel conflicted about how morally wrong her affair is but at the same time Wickham does a solid job making her at least sympathetic in her situation.
The characters are not the deepest, but are alright.
The problem comes from Candice and the "main action" that happens during the story. When Candice meets and old friend from school, a girl who’s family was ruined because of shady actions Candice‘s father committed, everything that follows is very predicable and feels more like a High School Teen drama than something happening between adults.
Candice feels guilty for something her father did, though she herself was still a kid and had nothing to do with it, and tries to make it up to the girl, Heather. And obviously Heather seems nice and thankful at first, but turns into a psycho who tries to ruin Candice‘s life.
Deep sigh.
The predictability doesn’t really bother me, more how over the top this whole drama is and how grown women act like teenagers. Heather is laughably obvious, she only misses a mustache to twirl and Candice is so frustratingly stupid it makes you want to punch her repeatedly with a frying pan.
And the solution to all the drama seems way too easy. Why build up so much if it just blows over like that?
If it weren’t for that storyline I might have given the book 3 stars, but it unfortunately dragged the whole book down for me.
Where she writes with spunk and wit, great humor and engaging characters as Kinsella, as Wickham feels less playful, more restraint and the characters are not as lively. You could say I prefer her style as Kinsella, to say the least.
The book chronicles the lives of three women in their early 30s (they are all the same age right?) who work for the same London Magazine and are best friends who regularly meet for Cocktail Nights.
Maggie, smart, career woman and chief editor, struggles with her pregnancy and move to the countryside.
Roxanne, spunky freelancer who travels the world and steams with confidence and having an affair with a married man.
Candice the generous goody-two-shoes and liked by everyone.
It gives off a certain Sex and the City flare, with stand-ins for Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte, but minus the terror that is Carrie Bradshaw.
I gotta say, for most of the part it was an enjoyable and light read, not particularly memorable or engaging but perfect if you just want to turn off your brain and relax.
Maggie‘s story was probably the most realistic (except the over the top rich husband), having a young mother struggling between her love for her family and the urge to go back to work and on the edge of postpartum depression is interesting to read about and probably relatable to a lot of women.
When it comes to Roxanne and her married man it’s hard not to feel conflicted about how morally wrong her affair is but at the same time Wickham does a solid job making her at least sympathetic in her situation.
The characters are not the deepest, but are alright.
The problem comes from Candice and the "main action" that happens during the story. When Candice meets and old friend from school, a girl who’s family was ruined because of shady actions Candice‘s father committed, everything that follows is very predicable and feels more like a High School Teen drama than something happening between adults.
Candice feels guilty for something her father did, though she herself was still a kid and had nothing to do with it, and tries to make it up to the girl, Heather. And obviously Heather seems nice and thankful at first, but turns into a psycho who tries to ruin Candice‘s life.
Deep sigh.
The predictability doesn’t really bother me, more how over the top this whole drama is and how grown women act like teenagers. Heather is laughably obvious, she only misses a mustache to twirl and Candice is so frustratingly stupid it makes you want to punch her repeatedly with a frying pan.
And the solution to all the drama seems way too easy. Why build up so much if it just blows over like that?
If it weren’t for that storyline I might have given the book 3 stars, but it unfortunately dragged the whole book down for me.
January 29, 2024
First of all, I was totally surprised to find that Madeleine Wickham is a pseudonym for Sophie Kinsella. I love Kinsella and kind of got the same vibe with this book, but it really was much more depressing than humorous. That being said, I was totally invested in these characters and kept turning the pages to see how their lives would unfold. All three women work at a London publisher and meet for cocktails, without fail, on the first of each month. Candice has been there for 5 years, but she comes across as totally naive and sheltered. Although she has had to have a tough core since her father was a con man who robbed people of their money (unbeknownst to her, of course). Roxanne is a tough cookie, outspoken, who has had a secret affair with a married man for years. Maggie is the editor, an excellent executive, but she's pregnant, taking a leave, and lives in a fancy home in the country with her husband. They're so different, but their friendship is strong. Unfortunately, some things come between them, causing problems. Most especially, Candice meets a girl from a family that her father defrauded and feels guilty about her, so she takes her on as a friend, helping her along, which causes irritation with her other friends who think she's using Candice. Interesting interactions, with each of the women facing her own demons. I did think the book was rather depressing, but it didn't stop me from wondering (and hoping) about the outcome. Overall, I enjoyed it and will look for more from this author.
June 2, 2018
Een boek van Wickham/kinsella spreekt de buikspieren normaal aan. Bij dit boek bleef ik toch wat op mijn honger zitten. Het verhaal nam vaak sprongen van het ene personage naar het andere dat het soms moeilijk maakte om te volgen.
De 3 vriendinnen die elke eerste dag van de maand afspreken in de manhatan bar hebben ieders hun eigen leven met eigen geheimen. Ze zijn elkaars beste vriendin maar als puntje bij paaltje komt is het blijkbaar toch ieders voor zicht.
Als Maggie moet gaan bevallen, trekt ze zich terug in de Pine en laat ze Candice en Roxanne achter.
Roxanne is al 6 jaar samen met Ralph maar op het moment dat ze denkt dat ze van minnares naar partner gaat gaat maakt hij gans de relatie gedaan. Als dan nog blijkt dat hij zijn terminale ziekte voor haar verborgen heeft valt zij in een zwart gat.
Candice komt Heather tegen, een kennis uit het verleden die heeft geleden onder het gedrag van haar vader en zij gaat het allemaal goed maken. althans dat denkt ze toch.
Pas op het einde komt de ware vriendschap boven.
De 3 vriendinnen die elke eerste dag van de maand afspreken in de manhatan bar hebben ieders hun eigen leven met eigen geheimen. Ze zijn elkaars beste vriendin maar als puntje bij paaltje komt is het blijkbaar toch ieders voor zicht.
Als Maggie moet gaan bevallen, trekt ze zich terug in de Pine en laat ze Candice en Roxanne achter.
Roxanne is al 6 jaar samen met Ralph maar op het moment dat ze denkt dat ze van minnares naar partner gaat gaat maakt hij gans de relatie gedaan. Als dan nog blijkt dat hij zijn terminale ziekte voor haar verborgen heeft valt zij in een zwart gat.
Candice komt Heather tegen, een kennis uit het verleden die heeft geleden onder het gedrag van haar vader en zij gaat het allemaal goed maken. althans dat denkt ze toch.
Pas op het einde komt de ware vriendschap boven.
July 19, 2019
3.5 out of 5 stars
This is my first book with Sophie Kinsella writing as Madeline wickham and I really enjoyed it. Three friends meet up for cocktails once a month and are very different.. Roxanne is glamorous but is with a married man, Maggie is about to become a mum for the first time and cadice is an honest and lovely lady who when confronted with her past struggles. We start with one night at the cocktail bar meeting a cocktail waitress starts a chain of events that changes all three of them. They are all so different and each of their stories is interesting and relatable but what I love best is the fact that this isn’t about romance but about friendship. Yes I enjoyed this and yes I will read more of her books as I found the writing good and cozy. If you ever need a good chic lit to read then definitely pick this up..
This is my first book with Sophie Kinsella writing as Madeline wickham and I really enjoyed it. Three friends meet up for cocktails once a month and are very different.. Roxanne is glamorous but is with a married man, Maggie is about to become a mum for the first time and cadice is an honest and lovely lady who when confronted with her past struggles. We start with one night at the cocktail bar meeting a cocktail waitress starts a chain of events that changes all three of them. They are all so different and each of their stories is interesting and relatable but what I love best is the fact that this isn’t about romance but about friendship. Yes I enjoyed this and yes I will read more of her books as I found the writing good and cozy. If you ever need a good chic lit to read then definitely pick this up..
December 31, 2020
Tralasciando il fatto che già leggendo i nomi dei personaggi si capisce cosa succederà e come andrà a finire la storia, pare che per l'autrice non esista donna che possa vivere e addirittura sentirsi realizzata senza un uomo al suo fianco - anche quelle che lo sembrano, poi sono intimamente tristi di non avere un figlio con il tizio ricco, intelligente, affascinante e innamorato di turno, di non poter essere la madre perfetta, di non essere sposata con figliolanza.
Sempre la solita solfa insomma. Per un paio di ore di distrazione va anche bene, anche se ho letto altri libri sullo stesso genere molto più frizzanti e divertenti di questo.
Sempre la solita solfa insomma. Per un paio di ore di distrazione va anche bene, anche se ho letto altri libri sullo stesso genere molto più frizzanti e divertenti di questo.
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