Love by the Book

December 22, 2014
Lauren Cunningham leaves her family, relationship, and career in Maine for a new adventure in London—and the promise of meeting hot British men. Although she lands a great job, makes friends, and does plenty of partying, none of the men she meets seem to stick around for more than a few dates, despite her insistence that she isn’t looking for a serious relationship. So Lauren changes paths and attempts a more scientific approach: over the course of 12 months, she tries the tactics outlined in 12 different dating manuals, from modern guides to a tome on Victorian etiquette, noting her successes and failures along the way. As she’s employing her mixed bag of dating strategies on would-be suitors with nicknames like “Sleepy Eyes” and “Bike Guy,” Lauren actually does learn a thing or two from each book. Naturally, though, the man who’s going to give her the happy ending is the one guy who knows what she’s up to, and the only one who’s never been one of her experimental subjects. In Pimentel’s debut, her portrayal of a variety of relationship dynamics—some traditional, some not—and her diverse cast of characters is a refreshing twist on a well-worn formula. Unfortunately, the overall trajectory is still one that any chick-lit reader will have seen before, right down to the passionate kiss in the final chapter.

Jayne Entwistle gives Lauren, an American living in London, a fitting American accent. Lauren delivers her story in the first person, recounting how difficult it is to find "someone to have sex with." She has left her husband to live it up in London--drinking, smoking, and partaking of as many men as she can. She uses a different dating guide each month to help her find potential hookups, summarizing each guide's effectiveness at the end of this book's chapters. Entwistle's narration is fine--she captures Lauren's personality perfectly--but one wishes for more of Entwistle's delightful English accents and less of Lauren, although she seems to find what she's looking for in the end. M.M.G. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine