I listened to Fancy Pants as an unabridged audio. I didn't take notes so what follows next is what remains rattling around in my head.I've always enjoy Susan Elizabeth Phillips work. She usually creates fun characters and has a knack for snappy dialogue that hooks me right away. Fancy Pants is one of her earlier efforts written back in the 80's, and it suffers from many of the excesses of its time. It's more of a saga, which brings me back to the glitzy days when I thought Danielle Steele and Jackie Collins wrote books that were pure awesome. That was back before I realized I preferred a little more substance with my glitz.This one starts out with more glitz than substance but it does eventually get better. Here's a typical early exchange between the glamorous beauty and her playboy paramour with whom she's been playing hard to get: "You're not woman enough to handle a man like me." Her witty, whispered response that gets him all hot and bothered is, "You're not rich enough for me." Oh please. Color me unimpressed with the two of them but I plundered on anyway certain it had to get better and because I was trapped in my car with nothing better to do.I'm glad stuck with it but honestly if it had been a paperback I would've put it down early on. After wading through an infinity of insipid back story the story starts to find its focus. The back story reminded me very much of a Danielle Steel novel but it did serve the purpose of explaining why the heroine of the book was such a self-centered, helpless brat (sorry but its true).When gorgeous socialite Francesca loses everything she's forced into lowering herself by accepting an acting job which she believes will be glamorous and make her into an instant star. Things don't exactly go her way and she finds herself on the street in a stained gown and at her lowest point . This is when golf pro Dally takes pity on her and picks her up. Imagine the luck, right? Dally is the first man prettier than Francesca and she's instantly smitten. They fight like children, Dally totes her around and foots the bill until he tires of her and she's then left to her own devices again. This is the point, probably somewhere halfway through the book, where she finally grows up and becomes a real person instead of the annoying spoiled whiner who only wants a man to save her. I have to credit the author here because she did an amazing job of turning a thoroughly unlikable character into a admirable person.I can't say this was my favorite book by Susan Elizabeth Phillips because it was too damn long and I wasn't thrilled by half of it. Still, I'm glad I stuck it through because I loved watching Francesca's transformation.
Fancy Pants is the first installment in Susan Elizabeth Phillips's adult contemporary romance series titled: Wynette, Texas. After completely devouring her AMAZING Chicago Stars series, I was so excited to see she had another whole series available that I haven't even touched yet. Whoop Whoop!The Wynette, Texas series is some of Ms. Phillips' earlier work and if Fancy Pants is any indication, she has since perfected her signature writing style. I did like it, but it's just not the fun, laugh-out-loud writing I have come to love. The romance was sexy, even though the love/hate banter was pretty extreme (on the hate side), and there is an admirable message portrayed through the female lead: Francesca “Fancy Pants” Day. No matter our looks, family wealth, or social status, there will come a time when those things will no longer serve us and we will have to make our own way. This provided some substance to the overall story and allowed a prideful, entitled, and unlikable ex-socialite to slowly become a relatable and cared for character. Although I didn't love this book, I definitely responded to it and would still recommend it. Check it out!My favorite quote:"When people raved about her sage green eyes, her delicate cheekbones, and gleaming chestnut hair, Francesca found herself withdrawing from them. Painful experience had taught her that being born with a face like hers was more of a liability than an asset. Strength of character came from hard work, not smoky-thick eyelashes. Clothes however were another matter."
What do You think about Fancy Pants (2005)?
This was a hell of a story! Spanning two generations and a handful of decades, it was most definitely not what I expected. I'm not much for chick lit...in fact, I used to really dislike it, finding it more wannabe melodramatic than even a lot of romance out there. But if anyone can make me love something I usually wouldn't, it would be Susan Elizabeth Phillips. YES, the story was LOOOOOOOONGGGGGG. No, there really wasn't a ton of romance. (this was my biggest complaint) And yes, there were a lot of characters to introduce and long stretches of random tangents to endure. However, when all was said and done, SEP had me so invested in all of the characters that I couldn't help but love the book. Can you scream CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT? Because if I've ever been a witness to it, it would be while watching Francie and Dallie grow up during the course of this book. There were times in which I didn't even like any single person involved in the story, but I think that was part of it's charmNow, feminists put on your Femi-Nazi shades because this is a book written in the time of the reluctant chauvinists. Dallie is definitely a man's man, but he doesn't beat or rape or anything medieval like that. He does have a firm hand and a hard time bowing to a woman. Just a heads up there.Great book, great story. Very involved and lengthy but worth the time
—Duchess Nicole
I'm all over the place with this one so I'll make it quick.For the first 30%, I wasn't liking Francesca. I know that I probably wasn't supposed to like her but she was sooo extreme in her behaviour that it put me off the story. Then, I started to enjoy the story and I started to really appreciate her. Unfortunately, I turned against Dallie. I know that this was written in the late 1980s but the things that came out of his mouth made him way less than swoonworthy. Seriously, I never really enjoyed both of them at the same time! There were parts of the story that I loved but other parts that seemed to wrap up rather quickly when I thought there needed to be some further explanation to make it work.
—Hildy (The Book Boss)
4.5/5 stars. There was plenty of things in this novel to enjoy if you're a fan of Susan Elizabeth Phillips. There was humor, emotion, growth of characters, etc. I especially enjoyed the golf theme since I have a fun connection in real life with the PGA TOUR.So, why am I docking the rating 1/2 a point? There was something in the plot of the book that really bugged me -- the 10 year hold-back from the heroine. To me, 10 years is nearly unforgivable. I am not sure why SEP didn't go with 1-2 years at most. 10!?!??!?! Ack. Very uncool.
—FlibBityFLooB
