Wednesday 27 July 2016

Book Review - Strictly My Husband by Tracy Bloom

Amazon UK
Title: Strictly My Husband
Author: Tracy Bloom
Format reviewed: Ebook
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Self Published
Publication Date: 27th July 2016
Rating: 5 Stars


Couples who dance together stay together... 

Laura loves it when Tom takes her for a late night tango around the kitchen after their friends have gone home and they’re avoiding the washing up. She can’t dance but who cares when no one is watching? 

All that changes when Tom arrives on the doorstep with Carly, a professional dancer, and announces he’s offered her the spare room to rent while she performs in a show that Tom is directing. 

An outraged Laura doesn’t feel like dancing with Tom anymore but Carly does. It only takes two to tango, and given Tom’s history who knows where it could end? Will Laura be the one left watching from the sidelines whilst Carly waltzes off with her husband’s heart? 

Couples who dance together stay together – or do they? 

Strictly My Husband had me giggling right from the start and kept me thoroughly entertained for the duration of its amusing story. Written from a variety of view points, there are the five friends/relations that get together on a regular basis, and then there is the newcomer to the group. 

Carly is the focal person in the story, and yet all we know about her is from everyone else's points of view. She is a talented dancer who Tom has decided to take pity on and let lodge in his house, while she performs in the Halloween show, Tom is putting on at Wonderland. What Tom neglects to do is mention Carly to his wife before they arrive home together, and as a result Laura, is suspicious from the start about Carly. 

Laura is a market research analyst, and we do get to see some funny market research focus groups occur, who is married to Tom a dancer, and now head of Entertainment at Wonderland. Laura has a very analytical mind, and manages to convince herself that by the end of the run of this month long show, that Tom will have cheated on her. 

Then there is Laura's friend Hannah, who just doesn't seem as interested in her husband Jerry as she used to be. Jerry is a larger than life bloke who has barrels of enthusiasm for everything, but doesn't always follow his ideas through. I loved the scene with the 7 foot inflatable crocodile, as well as his transformation as the book progressed. 

There is a strong dance theme running through the book, with Laura and Tom being big fans of Strictly, in addition to the Halloween show being produced, that is called Malice in Wonderland, and is a zany, spooky, scary take on Alice in Wonderland, with big production numbers, but Tom explains his concept better than I can in the book! 

Amy is Tom's assistant, but she is one of the stand out characters in the book, she is not big on park policy, and makes it clear to everyone her thoughts. She is strong willed, and not afraid to speak her mind, and some of her explanations to people as she "corrects" them, or "informs them" of something had me laughing out loud. 

There is a lot of fun to be had in Tracy Blooms latest book, that feels as though it should be a big hit. It has her typical comedic timing, some down to earth characters that are relatable too, and some memorable scenes.  Occasionally Laura's pontificating was driving me slightly mad, but I could completely understand where she was coming from, and some of her arguments to try and persuade herself she is correct do make a great deal of sense. 

Utterly enjoyable novel that will get you in the mood for the next series of Strictly Come Dancing. 

Thank you to Lawsome Book and Netgalley for this review copy. This was my honest opinion. 

Happy publication day to Tracy Bloom. Strictly My Husband is out now! 

1 comment:

  1. Ooooh, love Strictly! Love the sound of this. Thanks for sharing, Rachel! :) xx

    ReplyDelete

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