Reviewed by L.D.Y.

Mass-market, 470 pages, 2001

Rating: 10/10

Reason for Reading: I saw it at the library and it looked cute – good for a quick, light read.

Synopsis: Jamie jets off from England with her best friend Izzy in pursuit of a Las Vegas double wedding. True, they have no grooms, but surely, isn’t half the fun trying to find a pair of Vegas high-rollers that fit the bill?

Why you should read this book: A light and fun book, with Izzy and Jamie meeting a wild assortment of men, including strippers, a guy fixated on fish, and various Elvis impersonators. Jones manages to veil the ending to give the reader some suspense, unlike a lot of books in this genre where the eventual love match is obvious within the first twenty pages. Another success: Jamie is human, but more apt to express self-doubt than self-hatred. Huzzah! Too-rare chick lit characters that you’d want to hang out with rather than pity.

Why you should avoid this book: The girls’ objective (find a man, marry him – within a month) may seem shallow, but hey, at least it’s out in the open from the beginning. Also, no fault of the author, but there’s at least half a dozen glaring typos – a publishing company could at least respect their readers enough to put a little more effort into the editing process.

Opening paragraph:

We’re on our way to Las Vegas to get married. Admittedly we’re a little light on grooms – only Izzy has a fiancé and she has no intention of marrying him – but still, we’re optimistic: with statistically one wedding taking place every six minutes, the air in Vegas is practically 70 per cent oxygen, 30 per cent confetti.

Fabulous quotes:

Being the older women, he is clearly waiting for me to make the move so I sidle over to where he’s standing at the top of the escalators and give him a ‘Go ahead – I’m all yours’ look.
Falteringly he inches closer, looking entirely embarrassed.
‘Errmm,’ he begins.
‘Yes?..’ I smile indulgently, tingling with expectation.
‘The security man won’t let me in the games area unless I’m accompanied by an adult…’ he mumbles.
I’m gobsmacked, ‘Oh, right, I-‘
‘Would you mind saying you are my mum?’

My jaw dents the floor. I look at him in absolute wonderment. The cheek! Just how old does he think I am? Oblivious to my mortification he continues to look imploringly at me.
‘You just have to walk in with me…’

Perhaps it isn’t entirely necessary to drag him in by the ear but I feel it adds authenticity.

‘Actually, I just gave up my office job,’ I add quickly.
What do you do now?’

‘This!’ I say, waving my arms around. ‘Vegas!’ I’d feel silly telling him about the newspaper article because chances are I’ll be working in CJ’s uncle’s gift shop within a week.
‘Hence the dice?’ he asks.
‘And the baby roulette wheel!’ I say, jangling my wrist.
‘Oh yeah! Wow, this actually spins!’ He’s moved in pretty close to discover this. He smells soooo divine.
He touches the engraved heart-shaped locket. ‘Is your boyfriend in here?’

‘He’s not that small!’ I laugh. ‘Actually, I don’t have one. Right now.’

Also Recommended: by Sophie Kinsella; Shopaholic Takes Manhattan by Sophie Kinsella; Fly-Fishing by Sarah Harvey.

Also by this author: The Love Academy; Café Tropicana; The Paradise Room; On the Road to Mr. Right; I Love Capri; The California Club.

© Lisa Yanaky 2003-2007