Talk of the Town

Lisa Wingate

"The show American Megastar is the hottest thing on television but its associate producer, Mandalay Florentino, is worried. She's just arrived in the tiny town of Daily, Texas, to arrange a surprise "reunion concert" for hometown finalist Amber Amberson. Only it turns out everyone in town seems to know the secret. And paparazzi are arriving. Word from Hollywood is that Amber has disappeared with a "bad boy" actor. Can anything go right in this tumbleweed town? Imagene Doll loves her town of Daily, Texas, but things are lonely without her beloved husband. Life seems dull. At least until that fancy-dressed woman pulls into town, looking terrified and glamorous all at once. Soon life's not the least bit boring as Imagene and the rest of Daily find themselves at the center of a media maelstrom--with a young girl's future on the line."

 My Take:

Everyone says you can't judge a book by it's cover, but I say, many times, you shouldn't judge a book by it's first few chapters.  This was the case for me with "Talk of the Town".  The beginning was a bit snoozy, but it really picked up and got to be a fun little book to pass the time away.  The book was narrated from two different points of view, with two very distinct voices.  The first narrator is Mandalay Florrentino (quite the mouthful I know), a city smart reality show producer from L.A..  The other is kindly widow Imagene Doll, the 70 somethin' born and bred small town Texan.  The author does an incredible job of keeping the voices distinct, not necessarily in overt ways, but just in little nuances and small saying.  The love interest, because you know there always has to be one, is a great all American guy with a little bit o' southern in him.  Although it feels a bit melodramatic to call her this, but, the villain, of the book is very funny and has her own little nuances as well.  The end comes together nice and neat, just as you'd expect, and just as you'd want.  This isn't the kind of book your read for thrilling twists and turns.  Overall I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, but I forgot about it the second I was done.  "Talk of the Town" is the kind of book you want to take on an airplane on your way to a vacation.  It is something to distract you from your air sickness, but it won't take your mind off of your vacation when you finally arrive either.  I give this book a rating of a 3, Buy at a Used Book Store.

Do you agree with my review?  Do you think I'm totally off-base?  Either way I'd love to hear from you, be sure to leave a comment and tell me how you feel!

If you enjoyed this book, you might also like Daring Chloe, and don't forget to check out the rest of the Romance Section on The Book Buff.

If this book were a movie, it would likely be rated PG.

If you are interested in purchasing this book, please consider supporting The Book Buff by purchasing it from the Amazon link below.