Maybe This Time

Yes, let's start by saying in many ways this is indeed a formulaic romance book. The premise starts with our heroine Andie Miller wanting to completely separate herself from her ex that she divorced 10 years ago by returning the uncashed alimony checks he has faithfully sent to her. He is a remote successful man and she left him when he concentrated on the family business. She is a non-conformer, an independent spirit, who never fit into his family.

You can see where this is going. . . of course she still loves him, even if she's engaged to another man. North Archer, the ex, is really not as cold as he seems and longs for her as well. . .

But this story has other elements and it really was a delightful quick read. See, when Andie shows up, North has a proposition. He needs a nanny for his two young wards stuck in an old rundown house in Southern Ohio that he can't get to but have gone through a succession of other caretakers after their father and aunt died. There are rumors or legends about ghosts and a haunted house but of course North Archer dismisses that.

Andie goes down to meet the kids for a temporary arrangement and gets more than she bargained for as the ghosts begin to interact with her. She learns a lot about the house and why the kids are going through caretakers.

This story really is a fun read and the romance was entertaining as well. I recommend it. Ghosts and humor plus the romance? It's a great combination.

Jenny is at her best with this book. The characters are well rounded, a little crazy, and of course, always always interesting. She never writes the typical formula romance. You never know quite what's going to happen in her books, which is so refreshing, but you are always guaranteed a great story, with memorable characters. I've read every one of her books, and this one is right up there with the best of them. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys good story-telling.

I usually adore Jenny Crusie, and was pleasantly surprised when this book rapidly turned into a ghost story. She's always said we should never try to predict where she's going next. But this book...

She introduced her usual infinite cast of characters gradually, which helped me sort 'em out. But then she started mixing in all kinds of story elements: the romance, the kids, the deranged housekeeper, the ghosts, the TV woman... And they didn't mix well. It was too much; it felt chunky and not integrated. In fact, the TV woman subplot completely fizzles out, while the housekeeper's makes no sense except to provide unlikely twists for the plot. There are a number of dead ends (ha!) that don't lead to anything. This is so odd coming from Crusie, whose writing is generally so tight.

Speaking of tight, there was a lot of repetition in the book. Some bits like the description of the layout of the house, went on forever (and I still was unsure how the house was laid out). The infodump about the various types of hauntings went on for quite some time, though it also pointed out the professor's personality well.

Jenny seems to glory too much in her long, long sentences and paragraphs. I've read some great ones (Agnes and the Hitman!), but the reason for having them seemed to be missing in this novel. In fact, one paragraph in particular stood out like neon. It was at a point in the book where we were supposed to have a huge, heart-stopping BOO! Instead, Jenny gives us a long, rambling sentence. It's butter, it meanders. I had to re-read it four times. Was the heroine having a flashback? Was she imagining something? But this event was supposed to be immediate, deathly danger, very startling. Instead of punctuating it as such, we get a ramble. Has JC gotten to the point now where her editor doesn't point out these bits to her?

The characters are vibrant; the dialogue is sparkling and extremely cheeky--perfect Crusie there. But along about the midpoint I got the impression I was reading a screenplay. I think this would make a great, spooky/comedic date movie. It's got all the right beats, the right shtick scenes (like the first seance), and if they can keep the dialogue that would be great.

Crusie's written a small handful of "didn't quite do it for me" novels. This is one of them, but rest assured that you'll keep reading and caring once you start it. But I also recall that she came back and wrote novels that absolutely knocked me off my feet. My favorites: Manhunting (yeah, I know it's really early but it's so fun), Faking It (I'm an artist too!), Bet Me, Crazy for You (brr!), and Agnes and the Hitman. My Crusie "keeper" shelf is large; yours should be, too.

Not her best.

I absolutely adore this book and as I write this review, I can't believe that I haven't picked up another Crusie book since I read it and basically made my entire book club read it because I just knew it was going to be delightful. That's probably because it doesn't appear that she has put out anything necessarily interesting with a cover that doesn't look exactly like the next one. Years ago, before I picked up Angus and The Hitman, I guess it never occurred to me to read a funny book. I don't mean a book that happens to be funny, like pretty much any of Jane Green's novels, but I mean a laugh out loud, Absolutely Hilarious from Start to Finish book. I think sometimes that we take reading way too seriously (and everything else in our lives, really), and I know a few readers (if not a lot) that could really benefit from putting down all the steamy romances and the depressing literaries and the serious YAs and trading them for this one, if just once in a great while.

Maybe This Time is an Absolutely Hilarious from Start to Finish book. I mean it's kind of sad, at times, and really awkward, but it is hilarious, and it's sexy (seriously why are there not as many gorgeous men in my life that are in this book?), and it's hilarious. I think some of that awkwardness fuels the hilarity, but it works. Jennifer Crusie is one of those people that you wish were your best girlfriends because you'd never cry a day for the rest of your life. Seriously, she is so funny it hurts, whilst presenting peculiarly ethereal imagery that works with her characters. If you were to take any of Sarah Addison Allen's books and strip away the emotional backdrop and the poisoned history and the angst (not that this book doesn't have angst but it's not overly done) and turned up the LOL dial all the way up until it was in the red, you would get this book.

I want to read it again just thinking about it. Talk about an instant mood enhancer.

This was my first Crusie book, and definitely my favorite book to date. It's bizarre, but done in a very smart way. I actually sent this to the girl I used to babysit for because the little girl in the story, Alice, reminded me of her so much (she's driving now, so she can appreciate the witty and sexy elements). The characters are outrageously memorable, and Crusie does an extraordinary job of detailing exactly why you'll like or loathe them. As it turns out, it definitely follows the classic Crusie "recipe" with a strong female lead, working out her decisions with men in a random situation. This one happens to be a haunted house as the sitch, and it's genius. I'd also recommend Tell Me Lies and Crazy For You, both of which are much more realistic, but just as suck-you-in, make-you-laugh, and wanna-kill-him/her/whomever, frustrated-but-love-it WONDERFUL BOOKS!!!

This is the third book I have read by Jennifer Crusie, and I continue to find them interesting and cannot put the book down until I finish it ! Hoping for more!

This is my first book by Jennifer Crusieand I was impressed by the craftmanship in the book, the plot and the characters. Now this book was an impulse buy about Andie who is doing her ex. a favor by caring for his 2 wards after their parents die and several nannies have moved away from the terrible children. Now Andie has been divorced from Noah for 10 years and they do not communicate at all. The way she contacts him is precious and the book takes off from there. Now this is not a boring, straightforward romance, cause Noah is a dweeb and Andie is open, loud, and extroverted. I laughed, read the entire book in one setting and them immediately dialed up the computer and ordered everything Jennifer Crusie has available on the market. Enjoy this book and all of her others.

I always pick up this author with anticipation, but this disjointed tale was not what I expect of Jennifer Crusie. There was not much character development and it was repetitive. It was hard to finish.

My original reason for picking this book? It being set in Ohio. Turns out, it's one of the best "genre" books I've read.

North and Andie divorced 10 years ago, but as she prepares to marry someone else, he has one last favor to ask her. He is the guardian of two orphans living in a derelict house in southern Ohio who have run off numerous nannies, but Andie is just the woman to come in and solve the situation. What she doesn't know is that the house is creepy in more than just looks: it's also inhabited by a number of ghosts.

The beginning of this book was a little rocky. North and Andromeda? Really, your characters are named North and Andromeda? This is why I can't ever take the romance genre seriously. There are weird names without being actually weird. Secondly, the opening couple chapters and the setup of the plot can only be described as cheesy and forced. However, it's worth overlooking, since it quickly turns better.

I haven't ever read another Jennifer Crusie book, but really enjoyed her writing style. Her characters' names might be typical of the genre, but her writing talent isn't. There is genuinely witty dialogue delivered by realistically flawed yet endearing characters (except Kelly). The first seance scene had me chuckling out loud, which is a feat. Alice and Carter were particularly well done, especially the former. You weren't ever quite sure whether you wanted to slap her or hug her (not that I advocate violence against children). It was also easy to root for Andie and North to finally recognize that they needed to be back together, even though there isn't much text devoted to their rekindling romance.

The Ohio setting lived up to my expectations. Having been to the areas she talked about gave it additional creep factor for me (sorry, southern Ohio, but you are creepy). The house was foreboding and the ghosts chilling. I wasn't expecting to find the book scary at all, but it did manage to give me a shiver or two. Crumb fulfilled her duties as ominous housekeeper well, and props to whoever decided to compare her to Mrs. Danvers.

The highlight was really the climax of the book, and I loved the very last scene.

It's hard to pin down what readers to recommend this to. This is not a romance. It's also not horror. It's definitely not a typical paranormal romance. And yet, there is sex and there are ghosts. So, I'm going to go with paranormal chick-lit.

*Characterization: Some characters are better developed and more dynamic than others, though overall it pleased this character-driven reader
*Frame: The 1992 setting was inconsequential (missed the note in the beginning saying it was set then and didn't question it until 3/4 of the way through the book). However, the run-down house in the Southern Ohio atmosphere was a deserving sar
*Pace: A lot of dialogue makes it move faster, though the chapters were of a middle length
*Point of View: Third person, but we're in Andie's head a lot
*Red Flags: Strong language, paranormal elements, a couple of somewhat-detailed sex scenes
*Tone: Witty, ominous