She's All That

October 3, 2005
Christian chick-lit star Billerbeck has moved on from her popular Ashley Stockingdale trilogy with an engaging new novel that features struggling fashion designer Lilly Jacobs and her two best friends, Morgan and Poppy. The trio met at Stanford, and they couldn't be more different: Morgan's the down-to-earth daughter of a wealthy diamond dealer, while Poppy is a tie-dye-sporting chiropractor who's always prattling on about nutrition and energy. Now in their late 20s, the three are still best friends, and they make periodic trips to a spa when life gets too rough. As the novel opens, Lilly's just been passed over for a promotion, and discovers her boyfriend has been two-timing. She decides it's time to launch her own couture company. Along the way, Morgan gets ensnared in a curious May-December romance, and Lilly falls for a gold-digging Brit she meets at church. As if her plate weren't full enough, Lilly's birth mother, who abandoned her as a baby, turns up out of the blue; what's more, $20,000 of Lilly's start-up money vanishes. But all's well that ends well: Lilly finds true love and is trumpeted as the next Vera Wang. Snappy dialogue and lovable characters make this novel a winner.