Ralphs Party

I was in a real reading slump when I picked up the copy of Ralph’s Party that I purchased months ago and it has sat in my reading pile since then. I had just given up trying to read a friend’s popular fantasy recommendation which I will not name here - of what she said was “the best book ever” (which it wasn’t at all) and I had to force myself through and ended up giving up and desperate to find that something special book that restores my faith and love in the written word. I pick up Ralph’s Party and am immediately interesting in the dialogue, characters and the intertwining storylines. I am a huge Lisa Jewell fan, read all of her titles I can get a hold of but this is her first book and it is pure magic. Buy this book! Fall in love with spirited and free Jem and the wonderful Siobhan! Next book on my list, the sequel: After the Party. Dear Lisa Jewell, if you ever see this review please know that your book has made me fall in love with books again. Thank you so much!

If you love the Brit romantic comedies then you will love this one. Because of my job, I have to do a lot of heavy reading; it is so refreshing to pick up an entertaining page-turner like this one!! It is on par with the Bridget Jones books and much better than Amanda's Wedding, Jemima J and Confessions of a Shopaholic. This book is light, fun and an easy-read. Check it out!

Lisa Jewell is getting to be one of my favorite authors (after Nick Hornby). What I like most about her is the very colorful and well defined characters she creates. I immediately got an image of each of the characters and this made the story more enjoyable.Ralph's Party is the story of several inhabitants of a London Apartment Building and the interwining stories they share. The story focuses on two friends - Ralph the eccentric artist and Smith the dour banker, and their flatmate Jem who is the object of desire of both of them. Who wins - you'll just have to read and find out. Not to be forgotten are Karl, the smooth-talking DJ and his overweight girlfriend Siobhan who is just discovering her inner beauty. And standing in the wings, is Cheri, the beautiful but evil upstairs home-wrecker who would destroy them all.Ralph's Party is the story of friendship, lost love, found love, inspiration, and being thankful and grateful for what you might have. Several of the characters are not, and thus lose something wonderful and beautiful in their lives. This is a book I could not put down. The story keeps taking countless plot twists and turns. Like a rollercoaster, moves fast and you never know what is waiting around the corner. I read the book in the airport, on the train, during lunch and whenver I could. It will make you laugh, make you cry and make you think. Ralph's Party is one party you'll thoroughly enjoy and one which you will stay to the end.I also loved Thirtynothing (see other review). Lisa Jewell is a product of this new wave of British writers (like Nick Hornby and Isabel Wolff) who know how to tell a story and how to create colorful yet believable characters.I can hardly wait for Ms. Jewell's next book "One Hit Wonder". I have aleady ordered it.

I had read "Thirtynothing" several months before "Ralph's Party", having not been able to find RP in the bookstore at the time. Thirtynothing was a wonderful read, you can see what I thought of it in my review on that title's page. I therefore had high expectations for Ms. Jewell's debut novel, "Ralph's Party". I was not disappointed. In fact, I think I liked this book even more. The intertwining storylines are all engaging and appealing, though I tend to enjoy such non-linear narratives (see the film "The Five Senses" for a similarly constructed plot - though totally different in tone). Jewell's ability to construct characters that you care about from the first paragraph is truly remarkable. There isn't a character in the book that you won't have some degree of empathy for, especially the "long committed" couple, the subtleties of modern relationships are drawn with a sure hand. If you haven't read this book, or had reservations about doing so, order it now and anxiously await Ms. Jewell's latest release.

This is a little gem of a book that the author wisely kept under 300 pages. I loved the story of Ralph and Jem, who find their way to one another through the trials and tribulations of her, first, being with his best friend and, then, Ralph's jump-starting himself as an artist with Jem as his inspiration. Another couple, a radio deejay and his live-in-girlfriend of fifteen years, come to a heads-on collision over his infidelity, which he shares with all of London on his radio show. I read this in one gulp. I found this novel more original than so many of these single people in present day London stories. It could be because this is the author's first novel and so her voice is very fresh. It may also be that she seems to have caught the males' points-of-view so well in the story. Women writers often have men behave as women would like men to behave but not as they really do. Jewell does not fall into that trap.

This is a great book. The story totally engrossed me in the charachters' lives. I read this book in 2 days, everytime i put it down, i couldn't wait to pick it up and start reading it again. I loved how this book gave the view points of ALL the charachters instead of just one of them, you really understand how all of them feel. I got so involved that i even cried from being so happy for the charachters! I recommend this book to anyone with a love of good, fun, engaging reading.