4.5 stars for Trixie and the dogs. 3 stars for the Jane story which was most of the book, and it was enjoyable.STORY BRIEF:Jane is a successful psychiatrist with a radio talk show. She is trim and attractive now, but in her youth she was overweight and undesirable to the guys. When in college, she and Connie were attacked one night while walking home. Three men raped Connie while two men held Jane down. Afterwards Connie made Jane promise to keep this a secret because Connie was getting married soon and feared her husband wouldn’t want her if he knew. Jane kept the secret, and then Connie committed suicide. Jane kept Connie’s clothes from that night for DNA evidence but did nothing about it for the next 12 years. Now Jane has decided to do something and wants to learn the identities of the men. She meets Michael, also a psychiatrist, and a romance quickly develops. While growing up, Jane’s mother was mean and cruel to Jane and called her ugly. When Jane’s parents died early, Jane was cared for by her godparents Trixie and Fred. Trixie and Fred are successful coauthors of suspense novels. A police dog Flash was being retired, and Trixie took him home. There are a couple of ghosts who talk to Jane with interesting results.REVIEWER’S OPINION:I loved Trixie and Fred and their actions. They were eccentric and wonderful. They were secondary characters but the best part of the book. I loved how Trixie purchased a used police car with a siren, got a gun and hid drugs and money on her farm, so Flash could search and find them like he used to do at work. Flash appeared seriously depressed and missed his job, so Trixie recreated it. She would drive around her large farmland with the siren on, shooting her gun, and had Flash wearing his bullet proof vest. He was a changed dog. The Jane story was enjoyable. The book was more about interesting characters than romance.The weak parts of the book: (1) Jane’s style of thinking and talking reminded me of a woman from the 1950’s. I’m not sure why that image comes to mind. She was smart, competent and always right – almost too perfect for me. (2) I would have preferred more relationship development. I didn’t see how Jane and Michael were growing to like each other. Michael almost seemed like an extra part – something added on. (3) How the rapists were discovered and what happened with them didn’t seem realistic, it was too easy and without much anger on their part. I would have liked more details about their prosecution and disruption to their lives. I wanted to observe more suffering and some remorse.I’m sounding picky with these weaknesses. Not every book needs to cover every base. It’s just that they came to mind, that’s all. On balance I enjoyed the book.DATA:Story length: 339 pages. Swearing language: strong. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: about two. Setting: 1988 and 2000 Louisiana. Copyright: 2001. Genre: relationships fiction with mystery and a small amount of romance.
Contemporary first romance when Psychotherapist Dr. Jane Lewis 'Plain Jane', talk radio DJ in her home town in Louisiana who had been a witness to a horrible gang rape on her last day of college before she left for medical school that was never solved when the girl suicide instead of going to the authorities. Jane has never had a serious relationship because she was overweight when she was younger although she does have a successful (professional) life. She does have Olive, a sweet dog companion in her big plantation house. I liked Mike. He knew what he wanted and then took it (read: Jane!) So they fall of each other quick, but the timing is right because there are lots of hints that the past is coming to bite Jane in the butt. Connie Bryan's brutal murder has haunted Jane for the past 18 years and with the help of her godmother, she may actually do something about sweet Connie. I'm not sure why she waited soooooo long to bring justice to the poor girl, but I'm not from a small town and don't understand the power of silence and judgement that goes along with such a small circle.There are some fantasy ghost aspects but they are very light and the treatment of them is a delicate touch. There is a mystery that brings closure and redemption to some although we never know if Todd gets hit with the Karma police, but we're pretty sure that his professional/personal life is going to have a big cloud with so many people testifying how awful he is.No graphic sexy scenes, but they are clearly going at it from the beginning so they are modern in that aspect. There are some religious moments, but it is only the best of religious as a relief and healer which was really nice.245 pages and en excerpt from Kentucky Heat (35ish pages) bought at Jelly 2 for $4.002 and half stars
This was an awesome book. Even though the main character believes she is plain, she's a special lady. She has a heart of gold, and those that know her well, know she's a wonderful person. In reading this, it makes you wonder why we as a society feel it is so important to be beautiful, have a hourglass figure, and money. Yes, money makes living life easier. Beng beautiful and having ahourglass figure makes others the envy of you, but is that more important than the beauty inside each and every one of us? Jane discovers that there is moe to life than those three things.
—Tracy L.
If you call the heroine of a novel "Plain Jane," one might expect her to have some other dynamic personality traits. Perhaps she's quirky or funny or brainy, but this Jane didn't seem to have any of those things going for her! She's an ugly duckling, turned...well, I'm not sure exactly. She is sometimes described as frumpy, yet other moments she sounds like a knockout. She tries to present herself as sassy, but it translates as snarky. She makes certain bold moves that seem unwise, yet falls apart in other situations. Jane is not clearly defined, physically or emotionally, making it difficult to imagine her in the scenarios that unfold. Take this book for what it is: mediocre, easy reading.
—Shannon
Dr. Jane Lewis is a psychotherapist who is still running from when she refused to take Connie Bryan to the hospital to be checked out after her rape in college. Jane was "too fat," and a "tub of lard, a beached whale" herself. So she lost weight and got her degree, but was traumatized by Connie's suicide. However, she ends her radio show with "The three R's, respect for self, respect for others, responsibility for your actions."Billy Jenson, and Jeeter, both ghosts, tell her just enough to be tantalizing. Her godparents Trixie and Fred are T.F. Dingle, the unknown mystery writer. Trixie befriends a vicious dog with few social skills, named Flash. Olive is Jane's dog. The love interest is Mike Sorenson, who is also a psychotherapist, and correctly diagnoses Jane's problem as her mother, who was a beauty queen, more interested in looks than internal processes, hence Plain Jane. Trixie & Fred buy a cop car & enough equipment to keep Flash busy; Mike keeps analyzing Jane; Billy provides minimal input; Jane contacts her mother, who has seen the error of her ways; and Jane finds out the guys that gang -- raped Connie and why. Oh, and Mike? Predictable.
—Sherrill Watson
