I Like It Like That

by Claire Calman

Georgia Abrams, the heroine of Claire Calman's third novel I Like it Like That, leads a black-and-white kind of life, her clothes come in shades of monochrome, her flat is tiny, tidy and neat and her boyfriend is 'Stephen with a p-h'. Her family can be rambunctious and unruly, but everything else seems pretty much under control, including her wildly curly hair, which she carefully straightens every morning. From chapter one it's obvious that this "sensible and well-behaved" character is about to experience a bit of dramatic disruption. And, as this is romantic fiction, the agent of chaos is a man. Photographer Leo crashes into her door and her life. He's funny and flirty and has a knack of questioning Georgia's carefully edited world view. The chemistry between them sparks and crackles, verbally and emotionally, but Claire Calman keeps the sexual tension (and there's plenty) unresolved with some well-paced family drama.

Snippets of Georgia's childhood explain why she always feels the need to always behave like "a grown up". Family lunches, brunches and parties illuminate her character, she isn't a boring control freak, she can be "mean-spirited, judgmental, unjust, unkind". But she's also warm, loving 'passionate and deeply silly'. I Like It Like That is a love story, but it's also the tale of how Georgia learns to live an untamed, curly-haired life, complete with a red velvet wedding dress, and groom who's name isn't spelt with 'p-h'.--Eithne Farry

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction, Contemporary, Comedy

440 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Claire Calman was born 1969, the daughter of Pat McNeill, a magazine designer, and Mel Calman, a cartoonist. Before writing fiction, Claire spent several years working in women's magazines, then in book publishing, editing gardening books. She is also a poet and broadcaster and has performed her pithy verse at live readings and on radio many times, including for BBC Radio Four's Woman's Hour, Loose Ends, the comedy series Five Squeezy Pieces and for LBC. Her short stories have appeared in numerous magazines as well as in various anthologies, including Cheatin' Heart, the best-selling Girls' Night In, Summer Magic and A Day in the Life.

Claire lives in London with her husband, baby son, and an unbelievable amount of unfiled paperwork.

Reviews

[Steen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I rather enjoyed this book. It was a quick read and sometimes just plain old chicklit-ish books are good :) I also like the humour that the Brits write with. This book made me burst out laughing in spots and especially near the end when the main character gets totally trashed, which is so unlike her. I also like the sneakily way you switch from liking her bf until you start to get to know him better and realize just what a pompous ass he really is and of course just how Leo is soo much better match for her. Good book :)

[K Stott · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like a good light romance novel occasionally- they’re a good balancer when real life gets too hard or heavy. Given that I read romance for pure pleasure, I want to like the characters and vicariously go through the roller coaster of emotions with them. Neither of those was happening here- I made it through nearly half of this bloated novel (500+ pages) without any emotional attachment, and instead a building annoyance with the main character.

The plot here is not novel: Georgia is a type A therapist who is in a long engagement with a man who is safe but boring. Leo is a laid back neighbour who literally crashes into her life and upends her plans to marry Mr. Boring. I wouldn’t mind the basic plot if things had moved along a little quicker and the main character wasn’t as grating. At 260 pages, all Calman had given her reader was one mediocre make-out session, and no promise of things heating up soon. Instead, she slowed it down again with a return to long passages about how Georgia couldn’t possibly really like Leo, it was just her engagement jitters, or work frustrations or …. zzzzzzzz. Way too slow for my romance reading tastes.

[Amber Rioch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books to read when I'm going through life changes (and honestly, I'm due for another read through)
It's honest about loss and grief, how we change to fit in while being witty and exciting. I love it, can't recommend it enough.

[Karen Thomson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Totally what I expected- a chick lit book with a message. Too long, so it starts to feel a bit get-on-with-it ish, but diverting. I would read a shorter one of hers again if I'm in the mood.

[Lisbeth Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

So.........warm....
Oh my goodness I absolutely love it.
It's a great read for those in need of something cosy.

[Gillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believed in that family and totally related to David, the dad.

[Maya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pro: didn’t see ending secret coming
Relationship with love interest develops very nicely and believably
Mostly heroine felt true to life.
Con: a pet peeve of this reader: protagonists who allow themselves to be exploited by babied
family members, this kind of thing raises my tention so much it cancels out a lot of reading
enjoyment

[Brianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light brit chick-lit. It's a good "weekend by the fire" book. Decently written, characters well developed, and all of the main characters have realistically written relationships. The leads in particular have a chemistry that is difficult to write.

[Maria L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy, fun read with a good message for plotting your path in life. A bit of a struggle as paperback is over 500 pages and it loses momentum at some points in mid 300s but push on for a great ending.

[Sue · Rating 1 out of 5]

Put it down after 75 pages. It wasn't that it was so horrible that I couldn't stand it anymore, more like I was bored of the same old thing. I didn't care about any of the characters, and I didn't feel like going through the motions. It was just anohter girl/beach book.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half really.

[Margherita Dolcevita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Impiega un po' troppo ad ingranare e il numero di pagine è decisamente eccessivo, però il romanzo è carino, romantico, piacevole da leggere.

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

More fun British chick lit.

[Dessie · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very easy to read book.

[Bel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike other fluffy chick-lit books, this one has a bit of depth to it. The characters are likable and realistic, and the story is moving and enjoyable. One of my favorites

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

a lovely family and love story. classic, smart, romcom. it's about being true to yourself and feeling rather than analyzing.

[Michelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldnt get into this at all, i just couldnt get into the story line or relate to the characters.

[Nina Draganova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Хареса ми тази книга.Даже донякъде главната героиня ми напомня за самата мен.Разсмя ме и ме разплака.Само малко й завиждам за Лео. Тя извади късмет :)