Easily Amused

Book Title: Easily Amused
Author: Karen McQuestion
3 out of 5 Stars

Plot Background:

Lola is about to turn 30, and when her younger, meaner sister announces that the wedding is going to be on Lola's birthday, she needs a plan to show everyone that she is not the pathetic older sibling. Having recently moved into a house on King Street, left to her by her late aunt, she is not only dealing with all of her family drama, but being immersed into the King Street lifestyle, which involves block parties, searches for lost dogs, and a group of neighbors who are in constant contact. Meanwhile, Lola's best friend Hubert moves in with her, following a messy breakup with his girlfriend. Lola finds herself torn between two men, and torn between keeping to herself or joining the King Street madness.

My Thoughts:

This book is the second novel by McQuestion that I have read, the first being A Scattered Life, which I loved, so I came into this with pretty high expectations. Expectations aside, this was a pretty good book, there were some things I wasn't a huge fan of, but for the most part, this was exactly the kind of book I needed to read right now.

The first thing I really liked about the book was that Lola is hilarious. I laughed out loud at her inner monologue at times, and I really felt I could relate to Lola's humorous view on life. McQuestion is a very witty writer, which is something I loved so much about A Scattered Life. I also felt that Lola was a good example of the modern woman, shes insecure and realistic and funny, but surprisingly strong at times when her sister is being mean. I really connected with her, which sometimes in 'romantic comedy' type books I have a hard time doing. So many times the romantic books make women look like silly swooners and it was nice to see a character so realistic.

I also felt that Lola's friends were relate-able. Her friend Piper has a small baby, and is constantly having to tell Lola that she cant talk or having to leave early because of the baby, which reminded me so much of my own friends with children. Piper's husband Mike also made me laugh a little because of how formal he is with Lola, much like my friend's husbands.These characters weren't over developed, and in a way that vagueness about them that made it easier for me to relate them to my own friends and family.

I also liked the huge contrast of Ryan and Hubert. Ryan, the suave guy with the fancy car, the money and the mysterious travels, who is going to be Lola's date is so transparent and typical. Then there is Hubert, the teacher who drives the VW Beetle, who likes to read Aunt May's diaries and cook chicken, is more mysterious to me than Ryan. Hubert has more depth, and Ryan is like a shallow puddle that looks deeper than it is. I loved how obvious their differences were.

This brings me to my next point, the obviousness of some things. The book was very predictable. I knew from the second chapter what would happen, who would end up together, and how it would go down. There were times that I was a little disappointed because the author went for the obvious, but then other times I found this a little comforting. You can always count on the rich, mystery man to say something a little jerky, and you can always count on the sweet male friend to make it all better. Personally, I felt that more depth to the story might have been added if Ryan really was perfect, Lola's choices might have been made a little harder and she might have had a little bit more personal transformation at the end than what actually happens in the book.

Overall the book wasn't bad, but when I finished it, I felt like I had just watched a cheesy romance movie. I did enjoy reading it, I needed something a little bit lighter to read, and it delivered the much needed comic relief. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a light quick read, great to read by the pool or while enjoying a cup of coffee.

Here is a link to the Kindle edition of the book, of you can use the Amazon search box for a paper copy:

http://www.amazon.com/Easily-Amused-ebook/dp/B003X28734/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1348343516&sr=1-1&keywords=easily+amused

Happy Reading!!!

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