Farm Fatale: A Comedy of Country Manors

This is a very funny, humorous book. City folk move to the countryside and have to deal with the gossipy locals. Rosie wanted to live in the country all along. She moves there with Mark who is only going because his newspaper is paying him to write a column about it. Funny situations happen in their lives which lead to a breakup. But Rosie finds romance with Matt Locke, the rock star who lives in the area. The entire book is really cute and funny. At first I was alittle worried about the british slang since I am from the USA. But the story moves along quickly and is very easy to follow. A great funny read if you are looking for a light fun book.

"Farm Fatale" deals with Rosie, an illustrator/artist, who aspires to move to the countryside in order to escape the hustle and bustle of city life. Her boyfriend, Mark, an aspiring columnist was reluctant to move until his paper offered him a column to write about life in the country. There, the couple met fascinating characters. They managed on both of their small incomes to get a cottage and met up with interesting neighbors which include hippies, farm owners, and etc. Rosie was adjusting well but Mark grew more resentful as his few attempts to submit his column was rejected. At the same time, Samantha, an arrogant, supposedly know-it-all aspiring actress was also moving to the country because it was trendy to do so and she hoped to conquer the local social scene. Meanwhile, Rosie gradually realized that Mark was getting unbearable. Her love life was getting more complicated with the encounter of Jack, a farm boy who was down to earth and later a brief encounter with Matt Locke, the recluse rock star.I think this book is funny, light and very entertaining. My only complain is that the author tried to emphasize both Rosie and Samantha as the main characters but gradually it becomes apparent that Rosie is really the main focus. The Samantha storyline just sort of drift off. This is not the typical chick lit book with predictable outcome but in fact is very different. I find it quite exciting especially with the second half of the book and the author leaves you wanting for more. I think the author did a great job in developing the book's secondary characters and giving them diverse personalities which makes the book more fascinating.

Farm Fatale is an entertaining story of a London couple that moves to the country and the "excitement" that happens from there. I found the characters to be captivating and real. Rosie is the typical fairytale girl who falls into a deep dark well and comes out with a dozen roses, and the guy. Never have I read a story that depicts the country and it's people better. I laughed throughout the book and cried at the end. A wonderful book for any time anywhere. You would most likely have to enjoy British authors to get some of the humor.

This book was an impulse buy for me, based on nothing more than the title and the summary. Unlike the hot pink dress I bought on impulse on the same day, this book is a keeper. The book features a wildly diverse cast of characters whose stories bump into each other to giggle-worthy effect. The rollercoaster of a plot is predictable at times, but it's still a great ride. The author gets bonus points from me for coming up with such imaginative names for her supporting characters.The author has a light touch that I find extremely readable. I'm anxious to read more of her work.

Those who relish a smile a paragraph and a laugh a page will devour Wendy Holden's latest fun-filled foray into the lives of the British upper class. FARM FATALE, a delicious take-off on the trendy, is punctuated with puns and served with satire. Rosie, a children's book illustrator pines for the country life, a cozy cottage, if you will, in the rolling hills of England. On the other hand, Mark, her live-in boyfriend who is a tabloid writer, loves London. He's sure his big break is imminent and the city is the place where he'll find it. Mark's wrong. His editor asks him to pen a column on the trials and triumphs of country living, so the couple buy a home in the village of Eight Mile Bottom. Rosie is enchanted with the rustic life and her new neighbors. Marks detests the prying postman, the couple next door, and he soon suffers from writer's block. Enter social climbers Guy Grabster and his former actress wife, Samantha, who purchase a grand mansion nearby. They host a sumptuous show-off party attended by an eager Mark, hoping to land a job as screenwriter for Samantha's project - a star turn as Charlotte Bronte. Now, if you think Samantha's scheme is a bit off the wall, wait until you meet some of the other characters Holden has dreamed up - an ex Bond lassie, hippies, and a handsome pop star whose fame and fortune have not brought him happiness. Mix in a good looking young farmer who apparently embodies all the values for which Rosie yearns. What's a girl to do? - Gail Cooke