Review: Farm Fatale by Wendy Holden

From the publisher: The must-have novel from smash UK bestseller Wendy Holden! Cash-strapped Rosie and her boyfriend Mark are city folk longing for a country cottage. Rampantly nouveaux-riches Samantha and Guy are also searching for rustic bliss—a mansion complete with all the fancy trappings. The village of Eight Mile Bottom seems quiet enough, despite a nosy postman, a reclusive rock star, a glamorous Bond Girl, and a ghost with a knife in its back. But there are unexpected thrills in the hills, and the two couples are soon swept up in various romantic entanglements, mix-ups, slip-ups, and unlikely seductions in their search for ever-greener pastures.

My Thoughts : What seemed like a good idea at the time to Rosie, illustrator, and Samantha, actress wannabe, didn't sit too well with their respective mates. In fact Rosie's boyfriend, Mark, only agreed to go after he got a newpaper column based on moving to the country. Samantha's husband Guy, didn't have much say. He was in the throes of a heart attack when Samantha decided the move from crowded city to bucolic countryside would help move her into the limelight.

The grass is always greener on the other side might sound good as a platitude but in real life, that's not usually the case as these characters find out the hard way. Thinking that writing a column about moving to the country would be as easy as falling off a log, Mark finds nothing suits him as subjects for a column even though Rosie comes up with numerous clever ideas. How can a man write when there are so many distractions - such as the screaming horde of children living next door with their marijuana hazed parents or the perpetual screech of tires and banging of front doors from the nosy postman who has to visit each house and pass on everyone else's business.

Rosie has her own set of problems to deal with. Not being too fond of the adverse changes in Mark's personality, Rosie begins to question whether the relationship is what she really wants. When things get out of hand at a neighboring party, Rosie is faced with a few new professional challenges and personal choices that might just be right for her. Is the cute but falling down cottage in the countryside still the place to be? Is Mark still her dream man?

Holden's sense of humor, keen observational skills and sharp, satiric wit really appeal to me; she can come up with characters who are just so full of themselves and find humorous ways to give them their comeuppance. If you think you've got the end to this one figured out- think again! Holden manages to throw in a real twist at the end.

Farm Fatale had me snickering on page two and the trend continued to the finale. Is this great Literature? No! A fun, sheer escapism read? You betcha! As with Holden's Beautiful People, I enjoyed this one immensely. 4****

Paperback: 432 pages
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (July 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1402237162
ISBN-13: 978-1402237164

For more info on Wendy Holden, please visit her website.

Disclosure: A review copy of the book was provided by Sourcebooks, Inc. Thank you, Danielle!