What I Did for Love: A Novel [Hardcover]

This book is pretty much a spin-off of Jennifer Aniston's real life story. A funny-face, sitcom-princess marries and then is dumped by the best looking actor in Hollywood. He leaves her for an actress famous for her unusual beauty and dedication to world humanitarian works. The story begins after the divorce, when Georgie (the heroine) accidentally gets drugged by a groupie in LV and wakes up married to her former sitcom costar - a man she detests and who treats her really, really badly.

The book does have all the elements I love about SEP - the quirky characters, funny situations, and witty dialogue. While I did enjoy reading it, at the end of the day it left a bad taste in my mouth.

First - I never liked the hero Bram. For the first half of the book he is just despicable. And while small clues show that perhaps he isn't what he seems, his underlying motivations are still entirely selfish and self-centered. At the end of the book he does redeem himself, but even that seemed like a case of `now that I've really figured out what I want, I really want to get what I want.'

Second - My favorite character in the entire book was Chaz, Bram's housekeeper. She way overshadows either Georgie or Bram.

Third - I kept thinking that I've read this book before. The dialogue especially seemed so similar to other SEP books that sometimes I could even place it. The ending reminded me of `Match me if you can.' While the premise was original, a good lot of the execution felt recycled.

Fourth - One of the reasons I like SEP is because her books are focused on humor and characters and fun. The sex, while present, isn't usually heavy-handed. That didn't seem true in this book. The hero and heroine were married, but absolutely hated each other. Their sexual relationship was like a fling or a recreational event (which they both openly admit), and not an outcome of genuine feelings for each other. Yuck.

So overall why I enjoyed the hilarity and absurdity of this book, too much of it just didn't work for me.

***SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS***

I love SEP and I own many of her previous books. What I love the most about her novels is that they can make you laugh and cry. Okay, I've never cried before but I have felt very emotionally attached/touched. Anywho, What I did for Love worked and didn't really work for me on many levels.

Worked:
First, you can depend on humor. There were a few points in the book where I found myself grinning or laughing like a crazy woman.

Second, she brought up some real issues that she hasn't really in the past such as drugs, prostitution, weight problems, etc. It made her characters more flawed and human and relatable.

Didn't Work:
First, I couldn't NOT think of Georgie York as Jennifer Aniston.
Georgie's ex-husband, a gorgeous blonde movie star, leaves her for another woman. Who coincidentally happens to be his costar in a movie and she is also an accomplished, talented, sexy brunette who does charity work and promotes global causes!! AND she was pregnant!

Secondly, I have to say this...very few sex scenes! Of course, they get it on in the book, but there's really only one scene that I can recall that was "descriptive." The rest of the sex scenes were more just like...oh...and they slept together. I think it was because of this that...

Thirdly, I kind of found it hard to believe that they fell so in love. They wasn't a strong emotional connection. As young costars, they had their beef with each other. On Georgie's part, rightfully so. Bram's, not so much. But they DID separate for years. They DID hate each other their entire acquaintance. But forced intimacy made them realize they loved each other? There was delightful and witty arguing (which I LOVE)...but I never really saw what was so great about Georgie OR Bram.

Fourth, I never connected to Georgie York or Bram Shepard. I love SEP's spunky and intelligent heroines and tough and confident heroes. Neither Georgie nor Bram really shine compared to SEP's previous characters.

Overall, I enjoyed it. What I Did For Love is not SEP's best work, but it is STILL better than a LOT of other romance novels out there, past and present! I don't regret buying it at all. It is well worth the hardcover price. It really didn't touch me the way her novels have in the past, but it was still pretty good.

I would give it a B-.

And ps. for those of you who were hoping to catch up with Glitter Baby Fleur Savagar and "Bird Dog Caliber" Jake Koranda...they appear in the novel but you never hear them speak! Their daughter, Meg, is a character in this novel, but they themselves are only referenced in conversation. I'm kind of sorry for that. It would have been nice to see what they were like now.

So I am one of those people who love celebrities....I subscribe to People magazine, am usually on top of all the latest gossip, and am a sucker for famous hollywood love triangles...for all these reasons, this was a great book!

SEP ranks as one of my top 3 authors....along with Judith McNaught and Lisa Kleypas. What sets SEP apart from ALL other authors is her unique and signature humor. I can't describe it, but you know when you are reading a SEP book because her use of humor is so distinct....fans know exactly what I'm talking about!

This book, while maybe not QUITE as good as some of her "gems" like Heaven, Texas, Nobody's Baby But Mine, and It Had To Be You, is still penned by the resident genius Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and for that reason is a must read...maybe not a must buy, but great all the same.

What I Did For Love contains one of the sexiest and most erotic love scenes I think I've ever read...I can't believe other reviewers have yet to comment on it! It takes place in a erotic toy/negligee shop called "Provocative". This part of the book is so original, steamy, and fun, that you'd be well served to read the WHOLE book just to get this chapter. It is great fun!

I get what the others are saying about the love story/emotional chemistry being lacking between Georgie and Bram, but I did understand their hang-ups and motivations. This book contains THREE love stories (another signature SEP find). I enjoyed all the secondary characters, but the relationships did feel a bit rushed....maybe just TWO romances in one book would've been more doable.

Overall, worth the wait. The best part about waiting for a SEP new release to come out is revisiting some of her "oldies but goodies" that never fail..I haven't decided if What I Did For Love will constitute one of those, but if it doesn't I have plenty others to pick from....I love that Glitter Baby!

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 126 reviews  3.5 out of 5 stars