NEW RELEASE
Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Clare Dowling (2013)
Thirty-something Clara and her boyfriend Matthew decided to leave their happy life in London, including good friends, a lovely apartment, and steady jobs, to move to Clara's hometown in Ireland. They've found a wonderful home that is large enough for the both of them and possible children in the future, and it also means Clara is now closer to her mother Anita, who is dealing with diabetes, and her sister Roisin, who is facing her own personal troubles which involve her girlfriend Catherine and the arrival of a new old enemy in town. However, Clara has her own troubles to deal with when she keeps bumping into her ex Jason, whom she didn't split up with in good circumstances. At first, he seems to be supportive and interested in her life but this quickly changes. It didn't take long for me to fall in love with this book and the characters at its core. Clara is a great protagonist and I quickly found myself rooting for her. She and Matthew make an amazing couple and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about them and their strong relationship. There are also some well worked-out secondary characters in the novel, such as Clara's mother Anita (who made me laugh out loud with her specific ways and her love for food) and her sister Roisin, and a fascinating friendly group of neighbours who really added another fun layer to the story for me. This is in contrast to the character of Jason, the boyfriend with whom Clara broke things off with 10 years earlier, who managed to really send the chills down my spine. Clare Dowling's descriptions are spot on and she manages to set the scene perfectly, making the reader feel what Clara is feeling at a particular moment, whether it's joy or fear. It's a gripping and funny novel with a slightly darker and more serious side to it as well; certainly a read I'd recommend to people who are looking for chick lit but with a twist. (LB)
Can't Take My Eyes Off You, by Clare Dowling, is about a woman dealing with a stalker. The summary says: "Clara's been away for too long. So, after ten great years in London, and with boyfriend Matthew in tow, she arrives home in small-town Castlemoy. The family welcomes her with open arms: her diet-shy mother, her closet-living sister and her actor brother who scratches a living doing voiceover ads for chicken. Not everyone is delighted to see her, though. Jason, her long-ago ex, seems to have old scores to settle. Soon Clara finds herself being watched, followed and manipulated from afar. How can she make him stop? And as Clara's dreams of happily-ever-after begin to shatter, will she be able to wrestle her life back?" Can't Take My Eyes Off You is out in March.