Queen of Babble

Ilyana Kadushin ably animates the effervescent character of Lizzie Nichols, meddling fashion maven who embroils herself in a French chateau wedding fiasco. While Ilyana Kadushin admirably captures Lizzie's wry yet na•ve worldview, her renditions of some of the accents--the British accent of Lizzie's low-life ex-boyfriend as well as the French and Texan voices of the chateau guests--lack authenticity. Also, when Lizzie talks with her best friend, Shari, or her love interest, Luke, it's hard to tell who is speaking. Vocal character development might have made the gaps left by the abridgment less confusing. Still, Kadushin's chatty tones and reverent descriptions of vintage clothing competently evoke the reassuring optimism of Cabot's world. C.A. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine

May 29, 2006
Cabot, author of the wildly popular Princess Diaries, delivers another charmer, this time taking on the misadventures of a college girl looking for Mr. Right in Europe. Fresh out of the Univ. of Michigan with a B.A. in history of fashion, Lizzie Nichols sets off across the pond to spend the summer with British boyfriend Andrew, whom she barely knows. When Lizzie learns that Andrew isn't the man she imagined, she changes direction and heads for France, where her best friend Shari is working at Chateau Mirac in the Dordogne wine country. En route, she meets Jean-Luc de Villiers, a French-American hottie whose father owns the chateau, and who would be so easy to fall in love with if he weren't already taken. Lizzie discovers sixteenth-century wineries, kir royals and vintage Givenchy dresses stored in the attic, while matching wits with Jean-Luc's ambitious girlfriend. Although blunt dialogue about oral sex adds a titillating edge, the book is sweet to the core.

June 5, 2006
Cabot, author of the wildly popular Princess Diaries, delivers another charmer, this time taking on the misadventures of a college girl looking for Mr. Right in Europe. Fresh out of the Univ. of Michigan with a B.A. in history of fashion, Lizzie Nichols sets off across the pond to spend the summer with British boyfriend Andrew, whom she barely knows. When Lizzie learns that Andrew isn't the man she imagined, she changes direction and heads for France, where her best friend Shari is working at Château Mirac in the Dordogne wine country. En route, she meets Jean-Luc de Villiers, a French-American hottie whose father owns the château, and who would be so easy to fall in love with if he weren't already taken. Lizzie discovers sixteenth-century wineries, kir royals and vintage Givenchy dresses stored in the attic, while matching wits with Jean-Luc's ambitious girlfriend. Although blunt dialogue about oral sex adds a titillating edge, the book is sweet to the core.

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