Einmal Paradies Und Zurück (2009) - Plot & Excerpts
Zero stars. No one should read this book, it's terrible. She doesn't actually write - he characters are just filled in using references to movies and television shows (how is that even Legal?) and rough descriptions of how they look. Just one horrible cliche on top of another. This book isn't even laughably bad, at least I would be laughing. It's bewilderingly bad. So bad that you think this must be a publisher's white elephant prize at the company Christmas party. Like someone lost a dare kind of bad. I actually really, truly, enjoyed reading this novel. I was worried I'd end up asking for MY money back, but I am glad Claudia Carroll proved me wrong.Yes, it's a light, fluffy, story - even though the protagonist is actually in a coma - and yes, it is quite predictable, but I still enjoyed it immensely. It is the kind of thing I really needed at the time that I read it.This book has been perched on my shelf for quite a long time, and I didn't know when I was going to get to it, but I finally did. And I finished it easily in a day or two. I found Charlotte Grey to be an absolute delight, and was very satisfied that she played all those nasty tricks on James. What a total douchebag. Even though she wasn't supposed to, I was inwardly happy every time she got back at him. Oh, the laughs I got out of it. On the other hand, there were several story lines that weren't as light and fluffy, such as those of her sister's and mother's. I found the story line involving her sister to be very heart breaking and sad. I was very disappointed at how things turned out for her, but not at Carroll's choice of writing it that way. What I did find annoying was Charlotte's meddling in Fiona's life. That needed to stop. I found myself yelling at the book at some point telling Fiona to stop listening to Charlotte!! The book reminded of A Tooth Fairy in the way that the events took place and how this bizarre, insane, surreal organization takes you up and changes your life. I really liked how Charlotte took it all in stride and not too much time was spent feeling sorry for herself, or going through passages of misery. I also liked the humor and sarcasm of her character. But most of all, I really enjoyed watching her grow and develop as a protagonist. Very enjoyable read.
What do You think about Einmal Paradies Und Zurück (2009)?
I had to force myself to finish this book. I found myself skipping paragraphs at a time.
—Doqqi
Something light but nice - sometimes sad, sometimes funny enjoyed it
—kingdomgurl1
Light, fluffy summer read. Enjoyable even if a bit predictable.
—Madonna
