Recent Arrivals chronicles the books that have made their way onto the Today, I Read… bookshelf. Here’s the latest arrival: Scarlett Fever by Maureen Johnson

First line: So let’s set the scene, shall we? Hamlet. In a hotel. But not one of the [...]

Initial thoughts:

When I saw the back cover of this book I laughed. It was adorable, but unfortunately, it cannot be properly rendered in words. Here’s the next best thing: a photo! (Click it for larger, more legible image.)

Now I have to admit something…I haven’t read the first book, Suite Scarlett, but I want to. I want to because I’m eager to read Scarlett Fever and don’t want to interrupt the flow by reading the books out of order. I’ve already purchased Suite Scarlett and now am waiting patiently…or not so.

Anyhoo, this book looks like it’s going to be a hoot!

Book description:

Faced with her family’s financial woes, Scarlett has taken on the job of assistant/indentured servant to a newly minted theatrical agent, professional eccentric Mrs. Amy Amberson. Scarlett ends up at the back and call of a Broadway star (her own age!), dealing with territorial doormen, and walking a small dog with insecurity issues–all while starting her sophomore year at one of New York’s most rigorous high schools.

It doesn’t help that Scarlett’s brain is clouded with thoughts of Eric, her former sort-of boyfriend. She has thousands of things to say to him, if only he would call. And then there’s her new lab partner, the impossible Max, who’s on a quest to destroy what little mind she has left.

Meanwhile, her older brother, Spencer, has become New York City’s most controversial TV villain; her ever-reliable older sister, Lola, is sliding off the rails; and her younger sister, Marlene, most worryingly, has suddenly become…nice

But somehow Scarlett will prevail…right?

Book Details: 352 pages; Point; Pub. February 1, 2010

According to the Vintage release, Nightlight follows a “pale and klutzy” girl named Belle Goose, who moves to Switchblade, Oregon, and meets Edwart Mullen, a “super-hot computer nerd with zero interest in girls.” The vampire-obsessed Belle becomes convinced Edwart is one of the undead after witnessing events she considers otherworldly (”Edwart leaves his Tater Tots™ untouched at lunch! Edwart saves her from a flying snowball!”). [EW]

Found via Jezebel: Sparkle-Vamp goes Geek in Twilight Spoof (hint: read the comments.)

From the Back Cover of Can You Keep a Secret?

Meet Emma Corrigan, a young woman with a huge heart, an irrepressible spirit, and a few little secrets:

Secrets from her boyfriend:
I’ve always thought Connor looks a bit like Ken. As in Barbie and Ken.

Secrets from her mother:
I lost my virginity in the spare bedroom with Danny Nussbaum while Mum and Dad were downstairs watching Ben-Hur

Secrets she wouldn’t share with anyone in the world:
I have no idea what NATO stands for. Or even what it is.

Until she spills them all to a handsome stranger on a plane. At least, she thought he was a stranger…. Until Emma comes face-to-face with Jack Harper, the company’s elusive CEO, a man who knows every single humiliating detail about her…

Three Quick Points About Can You Keep a Secret?

• Point 1: Emma Corrigan bears a striking resemblance to Bridget Jones–not necessarily in appearance, but personality, deed and sheer life circumstances.
• Point 2: This book redefines the statement laugh out loud funny. From beginning to end, I found myself pausing to have a good belly laugh at some of the antics and situations in which Emma found herself.
• Point 3: The British quips and expressions were rather charming from my Americanized viewpoint. Although I’m still not entirely certain what a jumper is, am still unsure whether snogging is kissing or having sex, and it took me a few pages to recognize that having a row meant having an argument, I found reading through it all added to the amusement.

Full Review of Can You Keep a Secret?

Before reading the full review, please note that there may be some spoilers. I tried to keep it vague enough not to spoil the entire story, but be warned. If you’d rather not take any chances, skip the synopsis and go straight to the final thoughts.

Can You Keep a Secret? Synopsis

From the onset, it seems that Emma Corrigan’s life is on the fast track to nowhere and she just can’t catch a break. After the worst day imaginable, just when you believe nothing could get much worse in Emma’s world, a flight attendant takes mercy on her and upgrades her to business class.

When her irrational fear of flying, combined with the turbulence flinging the plane every which way, Emma truly believes she’s going to die and starts prattling off all of her little secrets to the gentleman sitting next to her and she doesn’t stop until they land–still very much alive–and they part ways, expecting never to see one another again.

No big deal until she gets back to work on Monday and finds out the founder of the company, Jack Harper, has scheduled a visit and Jack turns out to be the stranger on the plane–and he remembers everything. As you can imagine, much hilarity ensues as he uses the knowledge gained “under duress” to keep Emma on her toes. But he does far more than that, he completely changes her life.

Since meeting Jack Harper, Emma broke it off with her seemingly perfect boyfriend, told her parents how she truly feels about her cousin Kerry, and had all her private secrets laid out on display and became the ridicule of all her friends and co-workers. Then, to make an already stressful situation even more stressful, she realizes that she knows nothing about the man who knows everything about her. And with the help of her roommate, Jemima, who has absolutely no redeeming qualities that I’ve been able to find, weaves Emma into an even more tangled web with Jack.

Luckily Emma does end up getting the guy. Now, if you believe that I’m giving away the biggest spoiler possible by telling you that, you’re probably not very familiar with the modern fairytale genre. It’s not so much about the end (because you already know there’s a happily ever after), it’s more about how we relate to the protagonist and how she copes with the hills and valleys she encounters on her way to the happily ever after. And trust me, our heroine is quite sympathetic and there are plenty of hills and valleys for her to conquer.

Final Thoughts On Can You Keep a Secret?

From the very beginning, this book was fraught with unfortunate circumstances, miscommunication, misunderstandings, and illogical decisions which all add to the hilarity of this novel.

The main character, Emma Corrigan, who narrates the story in a spunky, and sometimes bitingly sarcastic, way is very sympathetic. More than once, I found myself feeling utterly sorry for her and praying she would get a lucky break or find a secret stash of courage somewhere.

Sometimes, however, the novel became a bit predictable. For instance, when Emma wants to impress Jack by taking him to a posh secret nightclub, she ends up forgetting where it is. It wasn’t difficult to see that coming from a mile away. But, for the most part, the situations that crop up keeps the reader on her toes as it does Emma.

The cast of characters was delightful. Lissy, Emma’s priggish, quirky, and smart best friend/roommate, Jemima, Emma and Lissy’s selfish gold-digging vixen of a roommate, Connor, Emma’s really good looking, but slow on the social uptake boyfriend, and even Emma’s co-workers were all well crafted. The notable exception, however, was Sven who seemed to be Jack’s shadow. It’s not entirely clear who Sven is or what purpose he serves–he just seems randomly placed in the story for no apparent reason.

(Confession: Every time Jemima’s name came up, I couldn’t help imagining Aunt Jemima which made it difficult to connect with her. I finally got over it by mentally renaming her Gemma. She still had no redeeming qualities and frankly, I wondered why Emma and Lissy even put up with her.)

Although the storyline is farfetched–meeting the founder of the company where you work on a flight and blurting out every single one of your secrets to him and then later falling madly in love with him?–it’s a smooth and entertaining read. All the pieces, except a very glaring one–Jack’s big secret which, quite frankly, made me roll my eyes–fit together quite well.

If you enjoyed the movies How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, The Holiday, Bridget Jones’ Diary, and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, then there’s a 99.9% chance you’ll enjoy Can You Keep a Secret?.

Rating: Worth every penny (?)

In a wickedly funny and sexy literary debut, we meet the beguiling, beautiful Dora, whose unique voice combines a wry wit and vulnerability as she navigates the road between reality and fiction. Dora, named for Eudora Welty, is an indiscriminate book junkie – from Tolstoy to Twin, from Flaubert to bodice rippers – whose life has fallen apart. She’s coping with a painful separation from her husband, scraping the bottom of a dwindling inheritance, and attracted to an aspiring playwright who seems to embody all that literature has to offer – intelligent ideas, romance, and an escape from her problems.

Joining Dora in her odyssey is an assortment of memorable characters, including an elderly society hair-brusher, a heartbroken young girl, a hilarious off-the-wall female teamster, and Dora’s apologetic mother, an ex-alcoholic now on the wagon, trying to make amends. Along the way, Dora faces some powerful choices. Between two irresistible men. Between idleness and work. And most of all between the joy of well-chosen words and the untidiness of real people and real life.”

Ms. Bookish’s Quick Take:

Shortly after I finished reading Literacy and Longing in L.A., as I was rummaging around in one of my to-be-read piles, I discovered another, pristine, copy of the book, which goes to show the idea behind it really appealed to me. My quick take? This is one of those books where I didn’t want the story to end – I wanted to follow Dora as she moved into a new era of her life. If you love books, feel like you’re in heaven the moment you step into a bookstore or a library, and you love funny, quirky and literate protagonists, this book is a Must Read, worth five stars here at Today I Read.

The Full Review of Literacy and Longing in L.A.

As the book begins, we don’t exactly catch Dora at her best; she’s immersed in depression and when she’s depressed, she embarks on a book-binge. She stays in her bathtub, reading book after book, and the rest of the world can just stay out there, where they belong.

But even in the depths of depression, Dora’s very engaging. And after all, what book lover hasn’t been enticed by the thought of going into seclusion with a huge pile of books?

We follow Dora as she embarks on a new relationship, a very sexy one that manages to pull her back into the world. We also learn about the shambles of her marriage with Palmer; it’s a relationship that she clearly hasn’t gotten over.

If there’s one flaw in the book it’s that from the moment we meet Palmer, who is one of those “one in a million” guys, with good lucks, prestigious job, and mega bucks, we can’t help wondering why the marriage broke up. Not that we don’t get the answer to this – we do, but it feels a little too neatly tied up.

On the other hand, it’s a good thing that Dora isn’t with Palmer throughout the book. As we follow along on her adventures, we see her grow and change; she effortlessly draws us into her world. It’s hard not to come to love her, and identify with her quest for meaning in her life. We’ve all been there, I imagine, wondering if the answers might come in the pages of the next great read.

The literary references sprinkled liberally throughout the book are great fun, too. It made me want to search through my bookshelves for some of my tried and true classics (although I don’t agree with Dora’s assessment of Jane Austen, despite what Mark Twain thought).

All in all, this is a book that goes down smoothly, in one beautiful glorious reading. I was sad when it ended, not because it has a sad ending (it doesn’t), but because I wanted to continue along with Dora and see how she experiences the next stage of her life. Literacy and Longing in L.A. is a Must Read. After reading this book, I’m definitely adding A Version of Truth, Jennifer Kaufman’s and Karen Mack’s latest joint effort, to my To Buy pile.

Ms. Bookish fell in love with book reviewing through her guest reviews here at Today I Read, and currently blogs about and reviews blogs at Ms Bookish Reviews.