Do You Come Here Often?

I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes their chick lit with more of a focus on romance. _Do You Come Here Often?_ is a very well-written novel with great romantic payoff not only at the end, but throughout the story. The main and supporting characters are richly drawn and engaging-- you can't help but root for everyone to find happiness. In some of these types of novels the author is too cutesy or the plot is so unbelievable that it's hard to relax and enjoy the story. But that's not the case with Alexandra Potter. She makes Jimi, Grace, Rhiana, Maggie, and Clive seem like people we either are or know well. She also takes her time developing all the key relationships. To that end, the book description doesn't really do it justice. Grace and Jimi do technically dislike each other, have a one night stand, and then don't see each other for another 13 years, but the motivations and detail that Potter puts into the development of these little hitches on the road to reconciliation are more complex and interesting than the blurb suggests. This is a book worth your time. Enjoy!

Grace Fairley's just turned 31 she is engaged to Spencer, a divorce lawyer, but despite thier sharing of a flat and their "long engagement" (four years) they still haven't set a date... For Grace's birthday Spencer has arraged a dinner at Grace's favorite (though not his) resturant... During the dinner Spencer drinks too much like he always does and Grace is embarassed by him like she always is and decides to leave the resturant after dinner alone... in a dirty cab... on her Birthday... The other main character is Jimi Malik he is about to marry 21 year old model, Kylie. His friends are throwing him a stag party at the same restaurant where Grace is celebrating her birthday, and Grace thinks she recognizes him as the boy who broke her heart 13 years before after taking her virginity and promising to call... She tries to ignore him a suceedes while still in the resturant but ends up sharing her cab with him, trying to act like the past was no big deal to her... After that night and some major thinking about her situation Grace leaves Spencer, for a "break". She is upset about him not having set a date for their wedding and believes that if she leaves him he will give in and commit... also deep down inside she knows that he might not be the "one"... Right before Jimi is about to fly out to Canada for his wedding he recieves a phone call (rather a message through his friend Clive) from Kylie (already in Canada where she was to meet up with and marry Jimi) that the wedding is off.... Jimi mister heartbreaker is crushed and doesn't see how he... Jimi Malik... could possibly be jilted before his wedding...... Jimi comes to terms with loosing Kylie and realizes that she was probably not the "one". Though all this Grace and Jimi become friends again... sharing their break-up stories and attempting to ignore their past. When Jimi, a freelance writer, remembers he is supossed to be writing a peice on his NYC Honeymoon he invites Grace along to play the part of his wife... at first she declines but accepts after groveling from Jimi... Throughout we are exposed to the cheesy radio show "Do you come here often?" run by DJ Dr Cupid and Grace, her friend Rhain and Jimi's friend Clive all enjoy the program, even if for different reasons... Jimi hates it... Grace's volumptous friend Rhain is a single mom frustrated with the dating scene which she calls "the desert". After several terrible dates she decides to write into the show, signing her letter Cindy and see if anything comes of it... she gets on the show and sets up a date with one of the many respondents to the letter, Michael... I don't want to give too much away here but lets just say all of that ties together into one cohesive well written novel... Rhain meets the man of her dreams, the one she least expected... Grace struggles with why Spencer is not crawling back, and if she even wants him to, and Jimi realizes that thirteen years ago he made the biggest mistake of his life when he decide

The story starts on Grace Fairley's 31st birthday. Her fiancé, Spencer, is too busy with his law practice to buy her a gift, but he arranged for dinner at a restaurant and invited Grace's friends. The other main character is Jimi Malik, a journalist and aspiring novelist, who has been an ultra cool playboy. But he is about to marry 21 year old model, Kylie. His friends are throwing him a stag party at the same restaurant where Grace is celebrating her birthday. At the restaurant, Grace sees Jimi. In a flashback, we see how Grace fell in love with Jimi as a teenager, gave her virginity to him, and never saw him again -- until now, thirteen years later. They share a taxi and cautiously start a friendship. When Grace leaves Spencer because he refuses to set a wedding date even though they have been engaged for over two years, the story examines the difficulties of being single. Grace's friend, Rhian, has additional problems as a single mother. Grace and Rhian listen to a radio program called "Do You Come Here Often?" where the DJ gives advice to lonely hearts. Grace's life is contrasted with her co-worker, Maggie, who has a man devoted to her even when she discovers she has cancer. Jimi also becomes single when Kylie dumps him just before the wedding. The story also includes Jimi's friend, Clive, who also listens to "Do You Come Here Often?",and ponders his own single life. The story excels in describing the ache of unrequited love as Jimi realizes he has fallen in love with Grace. But Grace is focussed on what she had wanted with Spencer. Jimi realizes he made a mistake 13 years ago.

Do You Come Here Often? Alexandra Potter Downtown, Jan 2005, $13.00, 384 pp. ISBN: 0743470338 In London, her live in fiancé divorce attorney Spencer wakes up Grace Silverstein to wish her a happy thirty-first birthday forty-five valuable minutes before she has to get up to go to work. Spencer informs her that he is been busy on a case that goes to court tomorrow so he did not buy her a present; he offers her cash to purchase something from him. Grace wonders if after two years engaged and four years together if Spencer is Mr. Wrong for her. Also thirty-one half Indian half Irish journalist Jimi Malik questions whether he is ready for marriage though he is engaged to Kylie. Jimi and Grace meet; they immediately recognize one another because thirteen years ago they both of them had sex for the first time. As they begin to see each other and fall in love, Grace and Jimi know they must end their respective engagements, but also question whether they should commit to a new one. This engaging contemporary romance is more second chance at love than chick lit, but contains plenty of the amusing asides that are a staple of the latter sub-genre. The story line focuses on the likable Grace who ponders how Mr. Right seems more like Mr. Wrong. Adding to her doubts, besides the good intentioned but clueless Spencer's procrastination in his personal life, is meeting her first lover. The key support cast (Jimi, Spencer, and Kylie) are likable protagonists, but the amazing Grace will bring readers coming often to works by Alexandra Potter (see CALLING ROMEO). Harriet Klausner

LIFE'S FULL OF SURPRISESGrace never expected to wake up on her thirty first birthday and realise that Mr Right had turned into Mr Wrong.She never expected to break off her engagement.But then she never expected to go on honeymoon with her ex/boyfriend either.Set against a backdrop of a late/night radio show hosted by Dr Cupid who promises to sort out the love lives of his listeners, this is a romantic comedy that looks at what it's like to be single again, about finding true love and how it can all get very, very complicated...I read and loved all books of this author and can't wait for her next one!