And now for something completely different – well, not completely, exactly, but there’s certainly some extraordinary qualities to Spandex And The City.
When I opened the email asking if I’d like to read this book I was hesitant because it’s not totally my sort of thing. I then saw it was written by Jenny Colgan, under the pen name Jenny T Colgan – an author I have enjoyed on more than one occasion – so I thought “why not?”.
I’m so pleased I did (and also thinking I should break out of my comfort zone more often).
Have a read of the blurb and you’ll see what I mean:
Mild-mannered publicist Holly Phillips is unlucky in love. She’s embarrassed beyond belief when the handsome stranger she meets in a bar turns out to be ‘Ultimate Man’ – a superpowered hero whose rescue attempt finds her hoisted over his shoulder and flashing her knickers in the newspaper the next day.
But when Holly’s fifteen minutes of fame make her a target for something villainous, she only has one place to turn – and finds the man behind the mask holds a lot more charm than his crime-fighting alter-ego.
Can Holly find love, or is super dating just as complicated as the regular kind?
So, it turns out that a relationship with a superhero – especially one dressed in purple and, let’s be honest, who doesn’t have the greatest “good guy” name, is actually even more complicated than the “regular kind” – who knew?
Not that Ultimate Man is really into dating, despite (or perhaps because of) the truly explosive chemistry between him and Holly. It seems the life of a superhero is a lonely one, something else he has in common with Holly, on occasions, even in a city crammed full of people.
But these two can’t seem to keep apart, especially when Holly catches the attention of the “bad guy” (if you thought Ultimate Man was an unlikely name, wait until you meet him).
It certainly makes for an entertaining, funny and, at times, emotional read. It is also rather thought provoking but in a gentle way (no lectures here).
Jenny, who under her pen name has written the Doctor Who tie-in novel Dark Horizons and several Doctor Who short stories, takes us on a crazy ride where the lines between good and bad, fact and fiction, are certainly blurred.
It has all the elements I love in the books I generally read – romance, comedy, drama and a happy ending – but it turns out adding a touch of science fiction is a turn-on not a turn-off.
I’m definitely going to add her first book with this added extra, Resistance Is Futile, to my TBR pile.
Format: Kindle (out on May 18th).
Price: £4.99.
My rating: Five stars.
With thanks to the Little, Brown Book Group (via Netgalley) for the ARC in return for my honest opinion.
After The Rain 