Before You Say I Do by Sharon Ibbotson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
There are two disclaimers I need to give before writing this review:
1. I am not usually a romance reader. While I do indulge in the odd romance novel, the genre is not one I usually reach for when searching for my next read. In fact, I’m a real cynic when it comes to romance, preferring things on the dark and twisty side of life.
2. The author is my sister. My little (although not littlest) sister. This made the reading experience somewhat more interesting, because I kept looking for the sister that I know in her words.
(L-R Sharon, Deborah – why are there so many pictures of us with wine in our hands?)
Having given my disclaimers, what did I really think of the novel? I have to tell you that I genuinely enjoyed it. It was written with humour, which went a long way to alleviate the underlying tragedy of the story – that both Ari and Tom could have spared themselves a lot of heartache if either of them stopped to ask questions rather than jumping to conclusions based on what they thought they had seen.
There was really great character development in the novel, with the secondary characters being just as multi-dimensional as the two central characters. I particularly loved Luis, (he had some cracking moments), and Stella (some sort of Muggle Rita Skeeter?) was brilliant.
The trajectory of the love story was somewhat frustrating, but I suppose that is typical of the genre, particularly when the author is exploring second-chance love.
Now to the important bit, what I am sure you are all dying to know – did I skim over the sex scenes? Yes, reader I did. Having been forewarned of the perils of delving into Chapters 12 and 22, I was careful to avert my eyes at the critical moments. I love my sister, but there is no way in hell I want to read anything she has to write about people having sex. There is a line, after all.
The next question, did I see my sister in her words? The short answer is that I did. I also claim the credit for the line about waiting for a written invitation, as Sharon heard me yelling that while waiting behind a car seemingly reluctant to move at a roundabout while having the misfortune to be sitting as a passenger in my car. To be fair, the real provenance of that line comes from our Dad, who was quite often known to say that while driving.
I loved the cute reference to one of her previous novels, Hanukkah at the Great Greenwich Ice Creamery, a blink and you might miss it kind of a moment. Sharon you will have your own literary universe soon (Netflix take note).
I really did love the novel – in fact, it is the first time in a long time that I have started and finished a novel on the same day. Really proud of you Shaz, it is a cracking story, well-crafted, and an utter delight to read.
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Deborah Siddoway 