4 stars for A Hopeless Romantic by Harriet Evans.
I choose to give this book a go because I like the book cover. Somehow, a lone girl tipping on the edge of the fountain with overhanging heart-shaped leaves just tug at my heartstrings. At the end of it all, I am glad to say it is a decision I do not regret because the story is worth my time reading.
As the title suggests, A Hopeless Romantic is about romance and the hopelessness of being one such person. Laura Foster, 28 years old, is a dreamer, a hopeless romantic who falls in love easily, too easily in fact and is as blind as a bat when things go haywire. She believes in meeting The One and every man she meets has the potential to be The One after the first five minutes as she drifts off to her Laura Land making fantasies about the man she has just met. However in place of meeting The One, she always fall in love with the Wrong One, and the most inconvenient person at that.
Laura never seems to wake up from her romantic fantasies. Instead of learning from past relationships gone bad, she fleets from one to another until her personal life goes into a downward spiral such that both her job and relationship with her bestie take a turn for the worse.
I am so glad when the author introduces Laura's grandmother for the wisdom of this elderly is priceless. As the author dictates, Mary Fielding is still very much beautiful as she has been 3 decades before and carries her age with an elegance that has nothing to do with branded clothes or fine airs. As I read on, this granny character brings to my mind the Chinese proverb "the older the ginger, the better the spice". Not only is Laura's Gran not judgemental, she has the acumen to break the situation down for Laura and dish out very insightful advice.
Having never met my grandmothers, both paternal and maternal who pass away before I am even born, I greatly envy the special relationship Laura has with her Gran. She is indeed very lucky to be able to talk with her Gran over anything that is on her mind, be it life, family, work, relationships and love. The conversations between Laura and her Gran are always heartwarming and filled with much love and concern.
The entire story is made up of 4 parts. Part 1 is about Laura and her life in London. Part 2 concentrates on Laura holidaying in Norfolk with her Gran and parents. Of the 4 parts, this is one I enjoy the least as the pace is very much slower in tandem with the holiday mood. Part 3 sees the return of Laura back in London again and her attempts to box up memories of the past. Part 4 transports Laura back to Norfolk to wrap up some unfinished business. It is a section that evolves around a thought-provoking topic: Do people fall in love with each other because they simply fall in love or because it is convenient?
All in all, A Hopeless Romantic is a good story about the cold hard facts of life, about how totally different the reality is and can be. It is a story on life, love, family ties and relationships intended for the soul. It also brings across the message that it is a blessing to be filled with the capacity to love and that one should be proud of this trait and use it wisely.
Publisher: Pocket Books
Publication date: 9 Oct 2007
*** Favourite quote ***
Every time was the last time. Every time was the first time.
~ A Hopeless Romantic
Harriet Evans
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Laura Foster is a hopeless romantic. It is her most endearing characteristic, yet consistently leads her into trouble. Friends and family look on with amused tolerance – until Laura’s inability to tell reality from romantic dreams causes betrayal and a …
*Blurb from author's website*
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