Shopaholic & Sister: A Novel

This one had some twists! Wow! I think the thing I hated most eas them changing the best man's and Luke's right hand man's name and characters name and personage to an ENTIRELY different human being! From Michael a very likeable guy who liked our main heroine, to Gary... not a guy we like at all as well. Otherwise the book was hacked with teItts and a great book.

I love the Shopaholic series, and although she can be annoying at times, Becky Brandon has an endearing quality and I can't help but like her. Yes, I do want to strangle her at times for being so darn naive and overenthusiastic, and I feel that in this book she is so over the top. But, even more annoying was her sister, Jess...what a b----! Of course, I knew it would work out in the end, but I couldn't stand Jess on her high horse. And, who the heck is so darn cheap?! I'm all about being thrifty and finding a good bargain, but she was acting like a homeless person! Other than those annoying points, overall, it was good and I enjoy Kinsella's style & wit. I did like the earlier books in the series better, but still a fun, easy read.

Sophie Kinsella has done it yet again, and taken the presumably one-note concept of a shopaholic to new heights of character development, plot twists and comedy! The introduction of skinflint Jess, a newly discovered sister, holds a mirror up to Becky's obsessive devotion to conspicuous consumerism and lays the groundwork for conflicts so far reaching as to put Becky on a life-threatening mountain climb (in kitten heels!) and further throw her into conflict with her new husband's major client by staging a protest march against him! The story has Becky on a roller-coaster ride from one crisis to another, and in-between there is plenty of pathos and sentimentality as our favorite chick lit heroine learns by hard experience the precious value of friends and family. I simply can't wait to read more by this author!

I'll admit it--I'm kind of hooked on Kinsella's Shopaholic series. They're run and fast reads, and always good for a few laughs. However, "Shopaholic and Sister" disappointed me, especially in the beginning. Main character Becky, master shopper and master spender, unfortunately comes off as whining and self-centered throughout most of the first half of the book. At times her attitude is that of a small child (I.e., when she tries to "steal" her best friend Suze away from another friend. Please! Most of us left that kind of behavior behind us at middle school). There is little self-reflection or self-examination. Instead, Becky spends and spends and hides and hides her spending from her husband and I don't know, yawn, yawn--who cares, eh? After the sister she never knew she had shows up in, the pace changes and it's almost as if Kinsella finally finds her groove (it's hard not to wonder why her writing is so lackluster in the beginning. Was she writing on deadline? Was she uninspired or tired of her character or simply struggling through the way most of us struggle through as we write?). Sister Jess is Becky's opposite: Sensible, thrifty and no-nonsense. It's the standard odd couple scenario, and while this contrast initially fumbles, the vibe is eventually established and the book takes off in the second half, mostly due to the way Jess endears herself to the reader. I'd recommend "Shopaholic and Sister" as a light read on a plane or train, and I'd also recommend reading the beginning fast and then settling down (with a nice stash of expensive chocolates) and thoroughly enjoying the second half.

The adventures of Becky Bloomwood, now Becky Brandon, continue. Becky and Luke are finishing up their monster round-the-world honeymoon (in a great scene, Becky has a moment of enlightenment when she runs barefoot across hot coals in pursuit of souvenir bracelets) and have to return to "real life." But a huge surprise is waiting for Becky upon her return--she has a secret sister! As others have noted, the basic premise of all these stories is the same: Becky can't control her spending or her tendency to fib in order to avoid confrontation and spare the feelings of others. With the introduction of her sister in this book, another trend, one that ties this series in with other popular "chick lit" series (e.g., Twilight, 50 Shades), emerges: female relationships. These kinds of books are generally noted for their male-female relationships, normally with the heroine snagging a rich handsome husband, but equally important in my opinion, if less obvious, are the relationships between the heroine and her female friends and relatives. Part of their "coming of age" story is that of a woman finding her place in a community of other women, and negotiating her relationships with them. As part of the growing-up process, our heroines have to learn to recognize the similarities between them and other women, especially other women in their families, and that's what happens here with Becky and Jess. Which is not to say that this isn't largely a lighthearted description of Becky's shopping trips and the crazy scrapes she gets herself into, because it is, but it's also about something much more important (and female-friendly) than that.

This book was different from all the others in the series. Becky goes to a different location the last half of the book, and lots of new characters are introduced. Becky's enthusiastic aproach to her new sister was so refreshing. She never gave up trying to win her sisters approval. Her enthusiasum really shows in the end when Becky almost risks her life trying to see her sister. The end is very exciting and thrilling with a huge twist that is very unexpected. You don't have to read the other ones in the series to enjoy this one. I recommend it to anyone who wants to read a novel that will make them laugh, cry, and be on the edge of your seat (or couch which is where i read usually).

Rebecca Brandon (nee Bloomwood) is back and ready to shop in Sophie Kinsella's "Shopaholic and Sister." Becky and Luke are still on their honeymoon, 10 months after the wedding. Unbeknownst to Luke, the honeymoon has actually been one, very long, world-traveling, shopping spree for Becky. When the happy couple returns to London, Becky finds her familiar world has turned upside down. Suze, Becky's best friend, has replaced her with an insuffrable woman named LuLu. Luke, who had been totally laid-back and relaxed on the honeymoon, has returned to his uptight and condescending businessman attitude. And Becky's parents deal her the final blow: Becky has a sister. Apparently, Becky's dad Graham fathered a child several years before he met Becky's mum. The child, Jessica, is now a grown woman and has sought Graham out. Becky is thrilled by the news. At first anyway. But then Becky meets Jessica and finds out the worst news yet: Jessica hates shopping. Becky Bloomwood is a hysterical, bumbling, and completely endearing character. Kinsella has created a character that is totally loveable, because of her many flaws. Kinsella's works are a fabulous addition to the chick lit genre and I look forward to each of her novels! I highly recommend this novel and all of Kinsella's other works.

This book is the fourth in a series of Shopaholic books that follows the life of Rebecca Bloomwood. In this book Rebecca and her husband are on their honymoon when they get an invitation to the christning of the twins of Suze (Becky's friend) They decide to go back to England and surprize everybody, but they dont expect how things have changed since they have been gone. Fist Suze has a new best friend and Becky's father has another daughter whom she did not know about When Becky tries to get to know Jessie (her sister) things do not go as planned. Jess is the opposite of Becky and that causes some problems between the two of them. When Luke (Becky's husband) goes out of town Becky goes to visit Jess, but finds her unwilling to forgive her for the things that she said to her. She even goes so far as to say that they might not even be sisters. After being stranded on a mountain in a rainstorm they form a sisterly bond and Becky helps Jess work on a protest. The book ends at the protest when Becky relizes two things. One, that Luke is one of the people involved with the opposition of the protest and two-that she is pregnant