NEW RELEASE
Personally, I Blame My Fairy Godmother - Claudia Carroll (2010)
Jessie Woods believes in fairytales. She believes in happily-ever-afters and glass slippers - that is until her own-happily-ever-after falls apart. Jessie, having worked her way up at Channel Six, has got her own hit show called Jessie Would. So what if she has mountains of debt from spending more than she makes? So what if her gorgeous sports car has been repossessed? She still has her beautiful mansion (which she is renting and is a little too pink for her liking) and she also has a gorgeous, rich boyfriend called Sam. What else could a girl want? Well, Jessie is about to find out life isn't all warm and fuzzy when she is suddenly sacked from her cushy job after accepting a new car live on air. After becoming a tabloid magnet with loads of bad press, her darling Sam wants nothing to do with her. Neither do her so-called friends. Down and out, with no money and no home, Jessie is forced to do the unthinkable: move back home with her stepmum and awful step-sisters, Maggie and Sharon. She hasn't spoken to them in years, ever since her dad died, but with nowhere else to go, TV's former golden girl must go back to her roots. At first, Jessie is reluctant to leave the house for fear someone may notice her and alert the press. Her step-sisters just sit around watching TV all day and night and they have no social life at all and soon Jessie is joining them on the couch for hours on end. Changes are in store though when Maggie and Jessie finally break the ice and develop a friendship. When Jessie's old friend, Steve, re-emerges and offers to take a chance on Jessie when no one else will, she jumps at the opportunity to earn some money again. But things aren't always what they seem and some friends are really Jessie's biggest enemies. For this girl, the fairytale ending is the beginning of a life that is better and more fulfilling than she could have ever expected. Hilarious and heart-warming, Jessie is a character you won't soon forget. (AS)
One of the books on our must-read list this year is the latest novel from Claudia Carroll (she of the very long title). Personally, I Blame My Fairy Godmother is a Cinderella-inspired tale of "princes who turn out to be frogs, Manolo Blahnik glass slippers and not-so-happily-ever-afters". The summary says: "Jessie Woods absolutely believes in fairytale endings. So would you if you had a recession-proof career as a daredevil TV host, a palatial pink mansion, and the dream boyfriend. But, quicker than you can say Cinderella, her life falls to pieces and suddenly her prince isn't quite so charming, her party-loving friends disappear and even her faithful friend Visa no longer loves her. Utterly heartbroken and jobless, Jessie is forced back home, to live with her stepmum and two evil stepsisters. Is it time for her to give up on the dream - or will Jessie learn that happy endings can come in the strangest of places?"