Holly's Inbox: Scandal in the City

Publisher's Summary. Dear Holly, isn’t it shocking…?

Things are finally going Holly Denham’s way: she’s in love, she’s getting the recognition she deserves at work, and her friends and family have graciously opted to avoid disaster for the moment.

Just when Holly is starting to settle into her new life, scandal erupts and Holly finds herself—and her in box—at the center of a gossip whirlwind that threatens everything she’s worked so hard for.

Written entirely in emails, this follow-up to the UK smash hit Holly’s Inbox will keep you glued to its pages as the scandal running rampant in the city threatens to ruin Holly’s hard-earned and long-awaited happiness.

Review. “Holly’s the e-Bridget Jones” declares the New Your Post’s blub on the cover of Holly’s Inbox: Scandal in the City. Like Bridget Jones, Holly is a funny, single, British woman in an unglamorous career and a wayward boyfriend who causes her to occasionally drink too much and undertake wacky stunts such as hiding out in cupboards. Although the book runs over 500 pages, it moves quickly because it is told strictly in an e-mail format.

The story opens with our heroine’s, Holly Denham’s upward career trajectory (she’s about to be promoted from the clerical staff to management) and domestic bliss (she’s happily nesting with her longtime love Toby). Blissdom, however, is short-lived for Holly as her arch nemesis Tanya has her conniving clutches out for Holly’s new position and her man. But Holly is no wallflower. In a series of misadventures, Holly and her best gay pal Jason along with fellow worker bees from the receptionist pool scheme and plot to prevent Tanya from emerging victorious. Oftentimes, however, the plans run afoul, but the jokes never fail to miss their intended targets!

Holly’s Inbox fits into the best chick-lit tradition: light chick-lit fare that features an endearing heroine. Reading it did not lead me to ponder the meaning of life or feel terribly sad for the heroine, but rather it left me thoroughly entertained (and wanting more!). The only minor caveat I have is that it is written in British English. This is entirely appropriate, of course, but as an American reader a few of the terms sounded “different” or were unfamiliar to me. Overall, I highly recommend Holly’s Inbox!

Holly’s Inbox: Scandal in the City is the high tea of chick-lit fare: sweet, satisfying, and leaves one craving for seconds!



Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (August 1, 2010), 544 pages.
Review copy provided courtesy of the publisher.