ive never read those chick lit books

Yes some of these books are rubbish, formulaic (sp)and with no depth of characterisation but others can bring a wry smile of recognition.
I will admit that I love Nora Roberts books though I acknowledge that they usually follow the same story; the men are usually nice and troubled, not so horrid so you wonder why anyone would bother.The writing is good and they make me smile.
Wonderful if you could have a mid-winter day when it has snowed, you've been out and come home frozen but happy and want to curl up on the sofa with a book and a mug of hot chocolate!!
Should I write fantasy as I don't know where everyone else in the house has gone while I'm luxuriating!!

i have to put a good word in for marian keyes, i think her books are hilarious - of course they are all hte same but there is a comfort in that. i never read heat though, that is the literary equivalent of a fruit shoot imo.

She's always marketed as "chick lit" but Lisa Jewel is great. IMO a cut above other crap of this type

Apologies:
Eamonn should be "twinkling". I'm not sure what twinling is. And I know "basically" has two Ls. Comes of typing late...

Honestly, any 'writer' of this sort of tosh who takes herself seriously should be shot.

C'mon!

It's comedy at its worst, so bad, it's sort of good.

I found it more honest than chick lit.

At least, you always knew it was a crock of shit from the second you picked it up!

Dear lord, Unquiet!

You are a genius, you know!

K, that's it, I'm going back to 'writing' 'romantic fiction'.

NOTHING to do w/'chick lit'.

LOL!

Easiest way I ever made a buck.

Sounds like a right royal bag 'o' shite to me

"Jocasta Williams is a a girl on a mission - to get back her life after being dumped by the One True Love of her life, Will Bastard.

Jocasta's new job at the We Rock! PR agency and her feisty new chums Saskia and Sasha have her back on her feet - and soon, life is a constant round of celeb parties, evenings with the girls and shopping for little black dresses.

But fate's about to intervene in the form of her twinling Irish plumber, Eamonn. What's his secret connection to Will Bastard? How can Jocasta help her gay best friend, Tim, to overcome his shyness? And, most of all, will she ever be able to have it all?"

Basicaly, it's that sort of thing. Repeated ad nauseam, with a few names and details changed...

My first ever 'chick lit' was Marian Keyes. I found her writing to be hilarious.

They're aimed at a certain type of woman, I was her 10 years ago and totally overdosed on them. I cannot face reading them now.

That said, I have just read "The Rise And Fall Of A Yummy Mummy" by Polly Williams and I wouldn't want to call it chick lit, it seems unfair because she writes so well, it just happens to be aimed at women, about women.

I totally agree though, the titles 'Shopaholic' blah, spiked heels, man hunts and all that tosh. I'm just not wasting my time on it any more.

Have to admit, embarrassed to be seen reading them wtih their lovely pink covers. But some are really funny and the writing can be good. I think good writing is good whateve the genre. I love a good mystery and chick lit is much the same, some are really well written and witty and some are formalistic and boring. POint being, there is intelligence in some of them. You need some recommendations. my first "chick lit" book I ever read was I don't know how she does it by alison pearson and I laughed out loud because I found she hit on experiences I had felt or lived, of course exagerrated for effect but I really liked it alot.

Thanks Drosophila, I might even buy hat for my next book club meet!

Here it is

Drosophila - that book sounds really good, what was it called?

have you read Anita Shreve, she writes historial novels, with loads of research in them, but they just really good stories and very easy to digest. She wrote a great one called Resistance about the Dutch resistance movement - it taught me loads about how people risked their lives to save Jewish people during the war, but was a great story too.

the films make me despair of life. 'secrets of a shopaholic' as a film? what is this world coming to? ffs.

you're a wise woman. they're shite.

I bought one recently (3 for 2 offer is my excuse). It was called 'Recipe for a Perfect Marriage' and I quite enjoyed it. Usually I don't enjoy them but this one rang bells with me as the one of the main characters lived in my home area and had a life very similar to my Mum/Granny. It jumped between rural Ireland in the 20s and 30s and New York present day.

I realised that it is a time in Irish History that is rarely written about. The fact that women were 'sold off' or 'matched' and that a dowry was still needed. Something that happened to my granny. She had to marry a man in his 50s even though she had a beau.

So for a chick lit it highlighted something that doesn't get talked about much.

I can't read women's magazine's - just can't get that exited about diets, make up, clothes and cooking and TBH and I think they are very one dimentional.

Haven't read chicklit apart from B Jones - but have been reading Meave Binchy during this pregnancy - its completely predictable and naff - absolute white sliced bread for the brain, but am so tired it kind of does the job at the moment when I'm too nackered to concentrate on a proper book.

Do like Anita Shreeve though and get cross when people describe her as Chick Lit.

Yep they are crap but then you don't have to concentrate very hard and at the mo my brain can't cope with anything heavier - possibly Hello but then dh has banned that!. But you do need shoes to be happy!!!!! or better still boots!!! Howver I do find the desperation to find a man and settle down quite annoying! Yes, I am married and settled but obvsiouly wasn't always and did enjoy my singledom!

Oh, they're a pile of poo but that;s what makes them so readable when you ony have 15 minute slots of peace and quiet to read in

I quite like them on occasion and some are even reasonably intelligent and witty. But possibly a bit challenging for a Heat reader

Some are Ok but the majority blur into one!

mills and boon are ace, much better imo

have never read any of those books...they would bore me to tears, hate the covers with loads of cartoon silettos, handbags and stuff.

Ditto the films.