Boot Camp

by Kate Harrison

SIX...days of dawn runs, blistered feet and non-stop sit-ups...

FIVE...meals a day - if half an apple or an oatcake counts as a meal...

FOUR... poster beds not included - but sleep won't be a problem after a ten hour workout...

THREE... women with a battalion's worth of baggage between them...

TWO... hardcore ex-forces trainers with testosterone to spare...

ONE GOAL: To feel like a million dollars, for the first time in your life.

Leave your Mars Bars and Marlboros at the door... this is Boot Camp!

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Contemporary

400 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2011

About the author

Kate was born in Wigan, and lived in more than a dozen places when she was growing up, including England, Scotland, and the Netherlands. She trained as a print journalist and then worked for the BBC as a reporter and Education Correspondent, before switching to behind the scenes producing on programmes including Newsround and Panorama. Her final 'proper' job involved coming up with TV programme ideas for the BBC whilst sitting on beanbags. She is a dab hand at writing on white boards.

Reviews

[Archana Radhakrishnan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh I loved this book. It's the ultimate chick-lit when you're looking for a light yet engaging read. The story is about 3 women who reach a fitness bootcamp for 7 days & what all they experience & learn together, apart from getting fit!
The author actually attended a similar fitness bootcamp before she published just this book, so you know it's quite realistic! Am quite impressed :)

Read my full review here My Review

[Cora Tea Party Princess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great, fun read.

As a bootcamping bookworm I was really interested in reading this one, to see how it compared with my own experiences. The bootcamp I attend isn't a week-long retreat like in this book, it's a four-evening a week kind of thing which fits in around my work.

I loved some of the quotes in this book. The evils of burpees were exalted at every turn, and I speak from experience when I say that yes, they're evil.

I only wish the characters had felt more of that unbearable pain that comes the first day after the most extensive workout of your life. It was like they were a little bit sore and that was it. After my first 45-minute session at my bootcamp, I was taking painkillers and bracing myself for cold showers to dampen the pain for the whole of the next day.

I particularly liked the way the results were shown. The characters didn't realise it, but they had changed. Whether they'd taken control of their own lives or lost some weight or toned up or found love, they weren't the same person they were when they started the week.

[Lieze Neven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seven days, Six nights, Three woman with extra heavy baggage and two ex-military men and one big, old, manor house that is everything except for what was advertised. Steph is a curvy, beautiful woman with very low self esteem, vicky is a round mum of three that won
a ticket to the boot camp and Darcy is a news presenter whose career may as well soon be over.

As these women build on their physique – all for their own reasons, they find themselves and ultimately the answers they were looking for.

I cannot really tell you more about this book since I might give away more than I want – And I hate spoilers.

I LOVED reading this book. Yes, I love chicklit. So and? I loved reading this book on the tube and it has to be said that after being a few pages you just get sucked into the story.
These three women are also very different, with very distinct and very well laid out voices. It is often quite hard to write characters this different and let them come together in a way that does not take away the spotlight of their problems and their personality. I think almost every women will find snippets of herself in this story which makes the whole experience so much more personal.

I myself very much saw myself in Steph who was constantly brought down by her ex. I had somewhat the same experience – thinking it was all your fault, acting weird and losing control of your life, losing direction and forgetting what you really like and want. I was rooting for her and I loved reading every twist and turn that made her plot and story thicken.

On the other hand I also loved the story of Darcy, who, might not be as shallow as she seems at first. The war journalist, the woman with the balls of steel.

The one I liked least was the story of Vicky. It might be a story that fits most woman reading these kinds of books – raising kids and being happy just being a good mom, but it does not seem to grab me as much as the other two do.

The style of writing and the hilarious quotes made me laugh out loud on the Jubilee line to Bond street and the story itself was fast paced and not self absorbed ( happens a lot in chicklit ) at all!!

Going to the library next week to look for more books by this author!

4.5/5

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got this book from the library since it seemed interesting and I wanted a good and easy read. And I have to admit, this book was really good. It is full of humor, some pages are more than a great laugh, it's also an easy and enjoyable read with a good insight into people's characters. What got me confused at the beginning was the fact that it is written from different characters' points of view (different characters are the narrators). Stupid of me not to notice that at the very beginning, especially that each chapter is entitled with the name of the character who is the narrator this time, but still, I did not like it at first. But I quickly got used to it and reading the plot through different people's eyes gives you a quite wide perspective on different things. Overall, what I liked the most was the humor. The book was just really funny.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful read. It's about a group of women who meet at a very tough boot camp in Wales. They are all there for different reasons. Two of the women are boot camp groupies- there to meet the fitness instructors! The main three characters have to share a room, as the hotel is not the luxurious building that they were expecting. One is a new presenter who has been told she needs to compete with the younger girls who want her job, one has won a luxury competition and has to blog her experiences and one wants to win back her old boyfriend. They all have a dark part of their past that they've tried to block out. Will they confront those issues whilst they are going through the tough boot camp?

[Lisa Huggard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book, am looking forward to reading more from Kate Harrison. The characters were like friends by the end of the book, funny, romantic and a whole lot of determination.

[Adele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, fun read. Although I wouldn't go to a boot camp myself! Loved all the characters, the story behind each boot camper was sensitively written.

[Liz | lizzuplans · Rating 1 out of 5]

I guess I should have read this book ten years ago. It is very much a story of its time and while entertaining, not one of my favourite reads this year.

[Nicole Hughes-Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first started reading this book it reminded me of Cecelia Ahern and Sophie Kinsella, and I had really high hopes for it. Ahern and Kinsella are fantastic modern women's fiction writers and because Harrison's writing style is so similar I had really high expectations for the book. The first grammatical error I could let slide, but the number of grammatical errors made the book fall below par for me and I was left slightly disappointed.

The story itself was very enjoyable; I have never been to a boot camp and I found it a really good original story. I initially thought the story would remain with Steph and was again disappointed when I hit Vicki's first chapter because I loved Steph straight away and wanted to stay with her, but I ended up liking all three main female characters.

Harrison has full potential to be one of the best writers in her field, she just either needs to check her work far more carefully, or hire a better proof reader. With no grammatical errors this would have been a really easy 5. Sadly the mistakes made it a less fluid read which tainted my enjoyment.

I would read a later book of Harrison's in the hope the errors lessen in her future novels. For now, the book is worth a 4 out of 5.

[Sonia Bellhouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 and a half stars from me.
Fun to read- although it sounds quite unbearable for a non-athlete like me.
What makes the boot camp and the novel work are the friendships and rivalries among the campers.
Two ex squaddies, as trainers are perhaps not what one expects at a supposedly luxurious retreat.
But then luxury also seems to be in short supply.

[Renate Eveline · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this genre, romance and innuendo are usually the main focus. In this case, relatable protagonists take center stage. The setting is scenic and the characters are diverse with depth and development. It's a lighthearted, well-paced, funny, and engaging read. I actually felt good after reading this book.

[Nadya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable read

[Do_81 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok read. Pretty predictable and not very funny. But I wanted to finish it regardless, just to pass the time.

[Gemma Stockham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story but i felt the author was constantly putting down the main character, she had very low self esteem.

[Josie Shinkfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Carole Allen-Morley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny
Chick read

[Cindy Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy and relaxing read, as well as being motivating and entertaining. Felt like getting up and exercising straight away. I highly recommend it.

[Paula Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever since I first picked up that very first title in the Secret Shopper series by Kate Harrison - The Secret Shopper affair , I was hooked and I went back through her list of titles and read all the ones that the library had. When I saw that we were getting The Boot Camp in , I was excited.
The Boot Camp follows a group of women through a week of hardcore training and sparrow meals destined to help them lose weight and for each of them to find themselves as we learn that for three women in particular , attending the Boot Camp will help them re-discover themselves as a person and find deep down the soul they used to be.
On the camp we have mother and daughter Liz and Natalia - each doing the Bootcamp to make themselves look not only great for their husbands but also to outdo each other , when the going gets tough though for Liz , will she be the first to quit "The Boot Camp" ?
Other campers include the two Boot Camp Groupies , who say that "Once you've been through one boot camp, you will be hooked for life" - this quote got me thinking as I think if you enjoy it the first time, then it could be quite addicting in the end if you go with the right attitude and as Kate replied in my FB message - If you love getting bossed around and yelled at by military type men". Then , there is Agatha who is the oldest boot camper around who has been everywhere and lived a very adventurous life. She reminded me of a lady I work with , whose husband's a tour guide and they go all over the place on treks etc including Nepal. Then of course we meet Darcy, a TV presenter who has been sent to the Boot Camp for some tough love by the station's producer Marion , Vicki who was entered into a competition by her sister Christie and Steph who joined The Boot Camp to prove that she wasn't just a fat , lazy so and so . Pair this lot with two bootcamp drill Staff Pepper and Staff Ryan and you are in for a fun but scary and hardworking week - who will make their goals , will anyone take the easy road out and quit and most importantly who will be The Boot Camp's Biggest Loser ?
A fun read , that call me crazy but it does make the thought of joining a Boot Camp seem like a good idea to lose weight or in my case, lose a little bit of weight but mainly tone myself and get fitter in the process.

[Kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun book. It was completely random. I found myself one day with an hour to kill and no book with me. Luckily the library was just up the road and this book happened to be sitting on a display.

The Boot Camp follows 3 women as they go to a week long military style book camp sit in the cliffs of the English countryside. The women all go to Boot Camp for different reasons, and along with the 8 other participants are set for a week of military style exercise and amazing low fat food.

Of course, things don't always go as planned. The "luxury" lodgings turn out to be a decrepit hotel that is in desperate need of much repair. The cook is a former prison guard who had never cooked before and had no idea how to cook for a group - or to cook for that matter. The Boot Camp leaders are former military and treat the women as soldiers.

Steph, Vicki, and Darcy are thrown together to survive this week. By the end of the week, everything they once thought was important has changed. No longer about losing weight, they all have epiphanies, derived from extreme exhaustion and hunger. But epiphanies nonetheless.

This was a fun look at how women from different backgrounds and experiences deal with a week that is not as it should have been. Well written and mostly light-hearted. but with some real emotion thrown in as well.

Definitely a fun read for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

[Annemieke Windt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last couple of days I've suffered from a late Winter flue. Spending most of my days on the couch or in bed, I need something to read that isn't too taxing. Kate Harrison's The Boot Camp definitely fits this brief. Harrison's tells the story of three women, Stephanie, Vicky and Darcy who take a week out of their busy lives to come to a boot camp.

It's the classic stuff of chick lit, without the large amounts of chardonnay and shopping. All three women have an internal struggle they have to deal with. A lover that's left, a war assignment as a journalist that went wrong and the loss of a baby. In an old Victorian hotel on the Devon coast they have a week to get back in shape, drilled by two former army guys. Off course, romance comes to play a part in the story, but all in all the plot is weak. There's no real tension going on and the developments are there to be spotted from the first chapters onwards. Which also brings me to another element that's missing from the novel: I am used to chick lit novels having a sence of humour, there for a chuckle. And that wasn't there.

Now that I feel slightly better, I've moved on to another book altogether. Kate Harrison's The Boot Camp didn't fully deliver for me.

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved loved loved loved loved this book soo much I cannot tell you enough! I'm not one to write spoilers, so I won't but oh golly, Staff Ryan can come in my bed ANY DAY!! The three main characters, Steph, Vicki and Darcy were great, all with their different stories and different reasons why they are at boot camp, but in the end, they beat their demons and with different twists, find something or someone to help them strive for their goals. BUT, YOU CANNOT NOT FALL IN LOVE WITH STAFF RYAN! Congrats to a fab read for Kate Harrison, it was fantastic! but then again, I'm a girl who happens to be a hopeless romantic! haha!!

[Annabel Krantz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Boot Camp, but thought it lacked a little of the extra pizzaz of a 4 or 5 star book. Still, it was a fun read, and I was interested in how the characters developed. The boot camp idea was clever and different, but the incredible false advertising that lured the women to the run down boot camp would have had me demanding a refund, which seemingly never occurred to the women in the book... I felt the ending was a little disconnected, in that some of the character storylines were not fully resolved.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is actually a 3.5. I liked the idea of boot camp so when I received it I dived straight in. My favourite character was Steph because she was there for everyone and was an easy person to like. My least favourite was Nathalia as she was such a drama queen. I really like Staff Ryan but disliked Staff Pepper but I think Kate Harrison has made it this way on purpose. Looking forward to her next book.

[Britt · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's nothing wrong with this book at all, it's just no amazing enough for 4 or 5 stars. Storyline and setting are great, characters - Vicki, Steph and Pepper being my favourites, were really nice. I liked the way the chapters were written in the voice of Steph, Vicki and Darcy. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a light read, or anyone who's trying to convince themselves to go on a boot camp! I want to now!

[Laurissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much! I couldn't stop reading it. The plot is quite simple, not even exciting in anyway but the story reads so easily and is really entertaining so you can't just stop.
The story is about 3 woman who go on a boot camp (=camp with the intention to loose weight). In the beginning I had kind of a hard time keeping apart who was who, but I used the back to read who was who. If you want to read a real chickflick, this is your story!

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book at first i didn't like sergent pepper but he grew on me i liked the story line and was funny in places my favourite character was steph. Would read other books by this author

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

i so enjoyed this one.....all very good on empowering women and stuff like that.The characters were pretty appealing and was one of those books I didn't want to put down once I'd started it.A very enjoyable read

[Josie Houlston was bassett · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I was reading this book I felt I just had to finish it so that I could start a new book. When is finished it I'd probably gave rated it 3* but now, three weeks later, bits keep popping I to my head. It is a very thought provoking book considering it is a chick lit.

[Gem Warwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but the chapters were divided between the three main characters and all I was really gripped by was Steph. So I found my self wanting to rush through the chapters of the other 2 girls to get to good bits.

[Aileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book it was easy to read and really funny from the first page definetely recommend.