Falling for You

by Jill Mansell

Jill Mansell's delicious bestseller FALLING FOR YOU is not to be missed by readers of Katie Fforde and Veronica Henry. Reviewers love Jill's 'Glorious, romantic, heartwarming' Woman & Home Maddy Harvey was a bit of an ugly duckling as a teenager, what with her NHS specs, unfortunate hair and wonky teeth. Thankfully she's blossomed since then. But when she meets Kerr McKinnon one starry summer's night and discovers, days later, who he actually is... well, that's when the problems really start. Because everyone in Ashcombe knows what happened eleven years ago, and as far as her mother's concerned, Marcella would rather tear that family to pieces with her bare hands than see Maddy associate with a McKinnon. It's Romeo and Juliet all over again. Quick, hide those sharp knives and that little bottle of poison... What readers are saying about Falling For You : 'Completely unputdownable . Falling for You explores some extremely serious storylines but in a moving and sometimes humorous manner ' Amazon reviewer, 5 stars 'Full of warmth and fun and wonderfully familiar , yet with a hint of surprise and suspense as well. Like her other books, this is charming and witty . Another winner from Jill Mansell' Amazon reviewer, 5 stars 'This book surprised me so much. Perfection. Beautifully written . Oh and the ending? Mind-blowing! ' Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Adult, British Literature

448 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2003

About the author

Jill Mansell lives with her partner and children in Bristol, and writes full time. Actually that’s not true; she watches TV, eats fruit gums, admires the rugby players training in the sports field behind her house, and spends hours on the internet marvelling at how many other writers have blogs. Only when she’s completely run out of displacement activities does she write.

Jill Mansell's books have sold over ten million copies and her titles include: Making your Mind up, Fast Friends, Good at Games, Sheer Mischief and Solo, among many others.

Reviews

[Obsidian · Rating 1 out of 5]

This will be short. This book is terrible.

The characters are not redeeming except for two of them (Maddy and Kerr) and if the book had stayed on just Maddy and Kerry I would have liked it more. Instead we have male characters calling female characters fat, ugly, and all kinds of crap. We get some ridiculousness when one character treats a woman separate from his girlfriend with respect (that is how you know he cares about her) and the constant bed hopping though people claimed to be in love with someone was it.

Usually Mansell can juggle multiple story-lines, she can't in this one. And I am realizing that most of her books follow the same formula and it's getting old. We usually get a woman who is in her 40s and widowed (Maddy's mother) a woman who can't seem to find a boyfriend or has a terrible one (Maddy's best friend) and then just random characters that flit in and out of the story.

I didn't take any pleasure in the writing or flow since I just felt annoyed and wanted the book to get over with already. The ending was a big old shrug from me.

[Aleida Oskam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dit boek las ik voor de buddyread van Books Ever After en achteraf bleek dat ik het boek toch al een keer had gelezen. Gelukkig was dit al een goede tien jaar geleden dus wist ik er niet zo veel meer van. Dus uiteindelijk gewoon weer een goed verhaal van Jill zoals ik van haar gewend ben. Alleen had het einde van mij wel iets uitgebreider gemogen.

[Austra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kad neviena grāmata nespēj noturēt manu uzmanību vairāk kā uz pāris lappusēm, tad vienmēr varu atgriezties pie kaut kā viegla un cukuraina. Džila ir pārbaudīta vērtība, mums saskan, it īpaši - humors. Manai gaumei drusku par daudz varoņu vienā grāmatā, bet tāda nu viņa ir. Protams, ir kaut kādi loģikas iztrūkumi un šī nepārvaramā vajadzība, lai “visi dabonās”, kas neatbilst dzīves realitātei. Bet nu lubene - nav ko piekasīties. Dabūju, ko gribēju, labi nosmējos un atguvu pārliecību tam, ka varu palasīt. Pat 200 lpp. vienā vakarā, īzī pīzī.

“Mazpilsētas baumu pirmais likums: ja trūkst kāda iemesla, to vajag izdomāt.”

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would. It was supposed to be about a couple that fall in love despite their family's hatred of eachother. But it didn't focus enough on them, it had a lot about everyone else in the town which reminded me of a soap opera. I need a book that really pulls me in and makes me want to keep reading, this book didn't do that. Over all I really wouldn't recommend it, was just an okay book.

[Veronique · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wat een heerlijk boek

[Clarissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

If this was the first Jill Mansell novel I'd ever read, it would also be the last. It will be the last one for I while I can tell you that right now. What I love about a Jill Mansell novel is her ability to make me laugh and fall in love with the main squeeze along with the main character. However, I found most of the characters in this novel very vanilla flavoured, been done before and 2D. I wasn't entranced, I finished it because I couldn't stand not to, but that was the only reason. I didn't fall in love with any of the characters. I couldn't understand the great love that Maddy had for Kerr because all they did was have sex. Mansell didn't sell him at all, apart from his looks, I couldn't tell you what made him so desirable. True to form, there was also an ugly character that ends up with a very attractive woman, and I couldn't tell you why either. He was repulsive. None of the matchings made any sense. It was basically a waste of my time. Yay, 2012. I'm sad I let this be the book that rang in the new year for me.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

British chic lit has a hold on me. Keeps me up into the wee hours of the night to finish it.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lekker romcom boekie. Wel paar toxic characters en het einde was een beeeetje matig, maar over het algemeen gewoon leuk

[Suad Shamma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not like this book at all. Not for a Mansell anyway. If it were written by anyone else, I might have given it more stars, but for Jill Mansell, it was just severely disappointing.

This is my third book for Mansell, and I was over the moon about the first two books I read for her, and thought I would be about this one too - as the reviews were outstanding - but I wasn't.

I didn't like the characters, I felt they were all shallow, and irritating. A lot of it was unrealistic, and everyone seemed to be falling in love in a matter of days! The twists and turns made no sense, and everything seemed a little TOO coincidental. And this book has pretty much VERY LITTLE to do with Maddy and Kerr - the supposed main characters of the book. It had a lot more to do with the secondary characters - mainly Kate and her family.

Yes, I found a lot of the text funny, but I never said Mansell wasn't funny. She's a good writer, she's capable of writing incredible books. So the writing was good, it's the plot I hated. I do have one remark though, at some point Will says, "let me just grab a shower" and that really bothered me because it makes no sense. You can't GRAB a shower, you take one, you have one, but you don't GRAB one. Sheesh! I really needed to get that one out.

Back to the story now, I think Den deserved a much larger part in the story than he was given, since the whole "concept" revolved around him and the accident he was involved in. Especially after everything you find out in the end, I think Mansell robbed him off his story, which I think would've been a very good one. This book should have been about Den, rather than Kerr, and should have revolved more around their family rather than Kate's extremely shallow and broken family.

And I really, really hate stories about cheating spouses. Honestly, I despise that. It is never right to cheat on your spouse, it is never okay. Cheating is hurtful and wrong. And I hate when people take that and make it into a story with a happy ending. A husband cheats on his wife, a wife cheats on her husband, but somehow everything works out great for them, and they live happily ever after. And verbal abuse is not okay either, it is often times worse than physical abuse, so again, I hated that Mansell used those aspects for her characters and made them seem like good people at the end.

So all of that being said and done, I did not completely hate the book. I know, go on, roll your eyes, "really?! you could've fooled me!", but I didn't! I enjoyed many parts of it. I just did not like the overall plot and a lot of the characters roles. I've read a couple of Mansell's books and I know the difference. And this is why I'm being hard on her and on this book, because I know she's capable of a lot more. This just isn't up to par with her other books.

I'm still a Mansell fan, and I most definitely will be reading each and every one of her other books, but I don't expect every book to earn 5 stars out of me either.

This one certainly didn't.

[Agi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A typicall Jill Mansell's book and this is why I loved it. A lot of characters, many plots, a lot of action, unexpected twists and turns... Just a hillarious read and every time I feel I am getting a little down with the life I just read Jill. It usually helps :) Although I must say that I didn't warm too much to Marcella after this what she's done to Maddy, although I try very hard to understand her. Maybe she was right and maybe I couldn't fotgive as well, but on the other hand - Maddy was her daughter that lived. And Kate - oh, I really didn't like her at all, almost to the end, she has rehabilitated herself in my eyes with Norris :) Norris was a hit, I love reading about dogs in the books :)
Anyway, up to the next book of Jill, while waiting for January for the new release.

[Winnie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story sounded perfect too bad it was so misleading. There was so little love between maddy and Kerr and frankly I'm a bit upset about it. There were a few cute bits between them but the book was more about the other characters. There seemed to be too many characters,just like Jill mansells other books. It made me lose interest in many character storylines therefore made me resulting to skipping lots of pages

[Demi Stroet · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is a pleasure to read from start to finish.
Easy to read with 335 pages of humor and romance. For all the romantics out there ;)
Once I started the book, I read it in one single breath.
Many main characters and the end of the story is a bit sudden, as if it was written quickly. Predictable, but a good book to get lost in.

[Daniela Maciel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Opinião completa: http://quandoseabreumlivro.blogspot.c...

[zeyni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Klappentext:
Nachts und ohne Kontaktlinsen begegnet Maddy Harvey dem Mann ihrer Träume. Doch bei Tageslicht erkennt sie erschrocken, wer er wirklich ist: Kerr McKinnon. Das darf ihre Mutter nie erfahren! Denn die Harveys und die McKinnons sind offiziell verfeindet. Doch Maddy und Kerr können die Finger nicht voneinander lassen. So ein Geheimnis bleibt nicht lang verborgen. Und dann taucht auch noch Maddys Erzfeindin aus Kindertagen auf...

Review:
Wenn man den Klappentext liest, dann erwartet man ein schönes Liebesdrama zweier Menschen, die durch eine Verfeindung der Familien nicht zueinander finden können.

Tja, Fakt ist, dass das Buch von sehr vielen Menschen handelt, nicht nur von Maddy und Kerr. Bis zu einem gewissen Grad finde ich das nicht schlimm oder negativ an einem Buch, aber bei diesem Buch fällt es schon sehr auf.
Es fokussiert sich nämlich nicht nur auf ein Liebespaar, sondern auf ganz viele Frauen und Männer (Freunde, Familie und Bekannte von Kerr und Maddy), die in demselben Örtchen oder Umgebung wohnen und zueinander finden.

Es ist schön geschrieben - keine Frage - aber mir hat es nicht gefallen, dass der Fokus mehr auf anderen Paaren lag, als auf Maddy und Kerr. Denn eigentlich hatte ich es mir gekauft, da ich wissen wollte, wie sich das entwickelt und nicht, wie Oliver, Jake, Juliet, Nuala, Dexter, Kate, Will, Estelle und den ihren passenden Partner finden.

Mir kommt es so vor, als handele es mehr von diesen Leuten als von den beiden „Hauptcharakteren“ Kerr und Maddy, deshalb gebe ich auch diesem Buch nur 3 Sterne.


Und wer keine kitschigen Happy Ends – wo jeder glücklich wird - mag, der sollte das Buch erst gar nicht in die Hand nehmen.

Ich bin der Meinung der Verlag, oder wer auch dafür zuständig ist, sollte mal den Klappentext ändern, damit man keine falschen Erwartungen hat.

Fazit:
Wer es lesen will, kann es liebend gern machen, aber ich war echt enttäuscht von dem Buch.

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

Given the fact that the summary of this book focuses only on Maddy and Kerr I naively assumed it would be about, well, Maddy and Kerr. However, Maddy and Kerr are barely secondary characters.

Falling For You is more of a character study into small town life, less the Romeo and Juliet romance I was hoping to get into. There’s romance but it was incredibly flat. I don’t actually know who the main characters were, definitely not Maddy and Kerr. Maybe Kate?

The women also have no backbone. Always giving into the men. Maybe it’s a hallmark of when this book was first written but still.

The only reason I kept reading was because I was hoping for the romance I was first promised with the summary that never materialized.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very disappointing. I've like other books by this author and will continue reading her despite this unfortunate lapse in her ability to write likable characters and really tell a story.

Really disliked the step-mother - this would not be a problem if she were meant to be a villain, but it's obvious that the author meant for her to be likable.

[Alice Law · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. I prefer reading stories that only concentrate on 1 or 2 particular couple, not a few in 1 book.

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. I liked it but not as well as other Jill Mansell books. The ending was too abrupt too. I needed one more chapter. Still worth reading.

[Kelly Kosinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Jill Mansell books. This book was fun to read.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

A promising start, but there seemed to be too many characters introduced too fast and I lost interest a free chapters in.

[Justine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stationsromannetjes = guilty pleasure

[Juul Sloot · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Margarida Cruz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jill Mansell nunca é demais. O seu humor, as histórias e todas aquelas suas peripécias já tão típicas das suas obras nunca fartam. A invulgar forma como são abordadas as temáticas que fazem parte do nosso dia a dia fazem com que o leitor, mesmo involuntariamente, olhe para o mundo e para aquilo que o rodeia com outros olhos!

Ainda assim, tenho de dizer que, para mim, não foi dos melhores trabalhos da autora. Lembro-me que em "Uma Oferta Irrecusável" dei muitas mais gargalhadas com as personagens e o enredo. Diverti-me muito mais com a forma como a protagonista e companhia se desenvencilhavam dos seus problemas e lidavam com as situações mais ou menos embaraçosas.

Em "Resistir ao Amor", tudo se revelou demasiado previsível e as gargalhadas foram quase inexistentes. Talvez porque a autora não lidou de uma forma tão divertida com as situações como nos seus trabalhos anteriores. Penso que foi um livro um tanto mais duro. Se for, então, a comparar a maneira como cada uma das protagonistas de "Uma Oferta Irrecusável" e "Resistir ao Amor" lidou com os desgostos amorosos, parece pôr o preto no branco. A verdade é que Lola, de "Uma Oferta Irrecusável" sempre me divertiu com a descontracção e sentido de humor com que o encarava - nunca se ia abaixo, dizia coisas impensáveis e extremamente cómicas. Já Maddy, de "Resistir ao Amor" revelou-se alguém que se foi inteiramente abaixo e de encontro ao cliché - o desgosto é tal que emagrece, mal come, entra em depressão e afins.

Sem dúvida que já me diverti mais com esta autora, mas, ainda assim, não me canso de ler as suas histórias. São sempre um autêntico refresco, uma lufada de sorrisos e um cabaz de divertidas emoções. Confesso que, às vezes, acho que a autora abusa nas referências a personalidades britânicas - para quem não está a par dos programas que por lá passam, torna-se complicado perceber o porquê de tais alusões!

Aparte estas pequenas indicações, Jill Mansell é, sem dúvida, uma das minhas autoras preferidas, cujo trabalho vou continuar a acompanhar assiduamente. São livros que nos sabem bem em qualquer altura do ano: quando está frio aquecem-nos o coração; quando está calor refrescam-nos com a carga de bom-humor presente nas histórias.

[Maddy Lanslots · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I was choosing which Jill Mansell book to buy next, I found the one whose protagonist shares my first name and chose that one (much like the way my friend picked out my first ever Jill Mansell novel because its protagonist had the same name as my sister; that was A Walk In The Park). And it was a really fun book! The Romeon-and-Juliet-like situation that Maddy and Kerr find themselves in is awkward, but also sweet, and you can't help but wonder how it's going to resolve itself.

The same goes for the rest of the villagers, who each have their own story and a distinctive personality: Juliet, the kind but mysterious woman who owns the deli and has a young son; Jake, Maddy's younger brother, who is a single father and a ladykiller rolled into one; Nuala, in an abusive relationship with the owner of the pub; and Kate, the former pretty, popular, rich girl who has been disfigured by an accident and now returns from New York to live with her parents in the village again, which she hates. That's only to name a few, because each character also has family members who get their parts in the spotlight.

There's that signature Jill Mansell feel-good feeling to it, with the unavoidable happy ending, but I must say there were some twists along the way that I really didn't see coming. I won't spoiler; let's just say that early on in the book, I thought some things might go either way and then later, I was leaning towards one way, but it turned out the exact other way - or even in a way that I hadn't seen coming at all. (I know that's really vague. Let's just say some revelations were unexpected and leave it at that.) A classic Jill, and yet another very lovely one.

[RLV · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh my god, that first kiss with the whole love declaration is painful to read. It comes from freaking nowhere, it is unrealistic, it feels forced and wrong and it's highly eye-rolling. I almost deleted the book right there!!! Was this for real???

I could have done without all that lying as well. Hide if you want to be discreet but don't keep lying.

This book has been written in an odd way. When you pass the first 25% the tone changes completely and it suddenly becomes dry and sarcastic - it's not consistent with the first part of the book.

Their whole back and forth dialogue about trying to put the other off, which I'm guessing is supposed to be funny, falls way short. I found it immature and far from entertaining. The characters act like teenagers. Even Marcella, who's 43, is so friggin immature emotionally that I wanted to slap her - get over the fact that one of the McKinnons accidentally killed April and stop putting them all in the same basket. Dear god, it's infuriating.

Last thing. No one in this book has any moral values. They're cheating, lying, doing things behind the others' backs. They're a bunch of people with hang-ups and most are in dysfunctional relationships. It's not funny. It's not entertaining. It's painfully annoying.

I'm giving it 1.5 stars because I sucked it up and finished it. But my advice? Don't bother. Not worth your time.

[Tamara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ik lees doorgaans enkel Engelstalige boeken maar dit e-boek kreeg ik als presentje. Ik vind het verhaal vermakelijk, grote diversiteit aan personages en verhalen. Hoewel de personages weinig tot geen diepgang hebben vind ik dat voor een "verstand op nul en lekker mijn gedachten verzetten" boek geen probleem. Wat ik wel een groot probleem vind zijn enorme hoeveelheden aan taalfouten in de vertaling. De tekst komt zeer onprofessioneel en ronduit onverzorgd op mij over. Hier enkele voorbeelden ten behoeve van de beeldvorming.
- soepeitjes ipv soepeltjes
- "Zij is zeifee n ongelukje"
- zebelt ipv ze belt
- namen verkeerd. Pallen Angel ipv Fallen Angel
En zo kan ik nog wel even doorgaan. Dit maakte het verhaal an sich niet slechter maar het tastte mijn leesplezier toch danig aan. Ik grijp voortaan toch weer naar de Engelstalige boeken. Zonde!

[Happy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Falling for you
Grr .. women in this book are very selfish and irritating they only worry about them selves. Maddy (Inferiority complex, easily manipulated ), Kate(Richly supported, shallow, stuck up, Mean Girl), Marcella ( Hateful and unforgiving), and Nuala (Abused enabler) , Estelle (hypocritical wife), Pauline, (Self-serving Mother) It’s so hard to find a redeeming quality to make them likable. Juliet (genuinely loving caring person in this town ) seems to be the only woman you want to cheer for. I am half way through the book, but pushing to to finish to end. It is dreadful to continue, the people just keep showing up to be the worse people. Grinding my teeth to get my way through this story. Jolly, I am 88 percent through this book and I am still cringing at the charters absurdity— put me out of my misery, please conclude this book soon. Finished— Finally.

[Lucy figueroa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ehhhh.... struggle to get through it. Has some good characters and I like how the author goes all the relationships together. I didn’t like the lack of romance in the book. It was almost as if the author was shy about writing about sex in the bedroom. She would hint that they had sex as children referring to sexy as “mating�� or that they woke up in bed together. Just kind of dry for me.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually love Jill, but this has to be my least favorite of her books. I liked the main plot, but after a while it took a back seat. I didn’t want Kate with Dexter because he was abusive and never even apologized to Nuala. I dint think the message that Nuala was abused because she couldn’t handle him was a good one. I don’t think she intended that, but it is how it came across.

[Mafi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gostei muito deste livro! Um dos melhores da autora :)
Goste das personagens, nã eram tão apalhaçadas como as personagens de livros anteriores. Adorei o drama e as histórias. Sem dúvida um bom livro.