3.5 starsI liked this book but for some reason, the writing in first person bothered me. The story was good and the hero/heroine seemed to fit well. The secondary characters were good and the secondary storylines were interesting. Even the comedic parts were funny. I normally enjoy books written in first person. I can't really put my finger on what the problem was, either. I think it was that Jolie was supposed to be a 'backwoods girl' but she used a language at times that made me think that she really wasn't. (And I'm not talking about foul language either.) I do recommend this book to others, but for me it fell a bit short. Predictable, formulaic romance novel. Upper class guy falls in love with Beverly Hillbillies type girl.STORY BRIEF:Jolie and her dad are farmers. A wealthy developer buys their farm for $3.5 million. The developer turns the farm into a gated community for the wealthy with one of the homes built for Jolie and her dad. Jolie and her dad are described similar to Jed Clampett and Ellie Mae of “The Beverly Hillbillies.” Jolie is also similar to Daisy Duke due to her walking around in cutoffs and bikini tops. The neighbors look down their noses at Jolie and her dad and complain to the homeowners association about their behavior. The wealthy developer has two sons, Cody and Brett. Jolie has had a crush on Cody since high school but believes he would never want her because of her lower class status. Cody has an IVY League education and has taken over the running of his father’s business. Brett is a high school teacher and coach. Brett is a friend to Jolie and suggests she and her dad take etiquette lessons as a way for her to win Cody’s heart. They agree and Miss Abigail comes to their home to start the etiquette lessons.REVIEWER’S OPINION:I was hoping for an interesting story along the lines of “My Fair Lady,” with Jolie transforming into a butterfly. Or I was hoping for something along the lines of her attempts at improving herself causing funny situations. But there was no detail at all about her lessons or any change on her part. I was disappointed due to my own faulty expectations. What I got was a predictable, run-of-the-mill romance. See the first Spoiler. The setup had potential, but the story didn’t do anything for me. The dialogue style may appeal to some readers. Jolie has a redneck/hillbilly style of talking with phrases like “you betcha” and “we’ve been jabbering” which contrasts with the neighbors’ more polished manner of speaking.DATA:Story length: 286 pages. Swearing language: moderate. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 3. Total number of sex scene pages: 12. Setting: current day Cottonwood, Kentucky. Copyright: 2009. Genre: contemporary romance.CAUTION SPOILERS:As I mentioned above, I was hoping for a transformation or humor. What I got was the following formulaic plot. Rich boy sees lower class girl. He finds her refreshing and beautiful. He is kind to her and asks her out. Mean girls hurt nice girl’s feelings. Nice girl breaks up with guy because she thinks she is not good enough for him. When he tells her yes she is good enough, they are together again. Some readers might be fine with this. I’m not. I want something creative, different or thought provoking. I’m not happy with merely the formula.I was also disappointed toward the end. The author skipped the break up part. They’re having their fourth or so date (depending on your definition of date). The next thing you know, it’s a week later, and Jolie has not returned any of Cody’s phone calls. She thinks he wants a society wife and she would never be happy being that, so she’s not going to see him anymore. Once he sees her again, he reassures her that she will fit into his life. The breakup was due to inaccurate assumptions on Jolie’s part, which bothered me. It’s the easy way for an author to create conflict, and it’s too overused in romance novelsAlthough not a major problem, I was wondering why Cody never interacted with Jolie before. They were in high school together and lived in the same town. Jolie has always been drawn to Cody. Why now, at age 24 is he suddenly taking an interest in her?I would never have thought of the Cinderella theme if it weren’t in the title. A few parts of the story might fit, but most did not. Jolie was dirt poor, then became rich. She was happy and well loved when she was poor, not like Cinderella who was mistreated and unloved. The prince came along after Jolie was rich, not before. Jolie’s friend did her hair and makeup and helped her choose clothes to wear on her dates with Cody. I suppose that was similar to the fairy godmother, but there were multiple dates, not just one magnificent date. I don’t mind whether or not there is a Cinderella theme, I’m just reporting that it’s not as close as I expected, given the title.
What do You think about Redneck Cinderella (2009)?
Cute story, somewhat predictable plot, but fun characters and some humerous situations.
—gigi
i think it is veryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy gud book
—muaw
