Rebuilding Alexandra Small by Mo Fanning
4 of 5 stars
Book Blurb:
REVENGE IS A DISH, BEST SERVED ICY COLD
Six years sober, Alexandra Small has it all… and then one day, she very publicly doesn’t.
When her perfect world crumbles, a face appears from Allie’s drunken past, hell bent on revenge. Can she rebuild her life before a stranger destroys it forever? And should she spend three weeks in an overheated shed having colonic irrigation with daytime TV’s Megan Macmillan?
In this laugh out loud treat of a novel, Mo Fanning tackles the difficulties and misadventures of work, love, and being seen for who you really are.
From the bestselling author of hit romantic comedy The Armchair Bride, comes ‘Rebuilding Alexandra Small’. A hilarious story about the aftermath of a life falling apart.
Book Review:
I will start with a confession – I went in not knowing exactly what to expect from this story. I usually have a clear idea what genre I’m going to be reading – chick lit, psychological thriller, science fiction, fantasy, you know how it goes. Here, though, I had no clue. Even from the blurb. I know what you’re thinking, I thought it too. But having no clue turned out to be a good thing.
The story starts off introducing us to the titular Alexandra Small. She’s a WAG, with a sweet husband, and they’re undergoing fertility treatment. All fine and dandy. Till it’s not. She hits rock bottom in every way you can imagine, while also trying to hold on to her seven years of sobriety. The rest of the book is about how Alexandra Small rebuilds her life, and in the process, rebuilds herself.
The secondary and tertiary characters are all fantastic, with a great story line. I usually read review books closer to their release date, even though I may have received the ARC earlier. Here though, I found myself wanting to have experienced this story sooner. I loved Allie and her family and friends. I loved the resolution with no loose ends.
The story got much faster paced around the 45-50% mark, at least it felt like that to me because I was so keen on knowing what was next. It’s so heartbreakingly real, and also so comfortably fictional. What I’m saying is, the fact that I went it not knowing what what coming, and with no expectations whatsoever, turned out to be a really good thing. It made the whole experience even better for me.
This is chick lit with drama, a dark side, and some pitfalls of fame thrown in. If that sounds appealing, you will love this book!
Thank you to BooksGoSocial and Netgalley for the e-arc.
*A review copy was provided to Oh Just Books by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*