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The Man in a Haystack
THE MAN IN A HAYSTACK is a true story based on the author’s dating escapades in her forties. Written in blog format it makes for an easy and fast paced read and has been described by 5 STAR reviewers as ‘a chick lit masterpiece’, ‘better than Bridget Jones’, and ‘an addictive read’. It is funny, emotional, heartbreaking, and above all entertaining. If you are in your thirties or forties (or even fifties) and still searching for Mr Right or simply want to be transported back to your dating days, this book is for you. It provides insights in to online dating, office romances, toy boys, players, charmers – pick a type and you’ll probably find him between these pages! Every woman can relate.
SYNOPSIS Mae, a forty-something glamorous Essex girl, has spent most of her adult years waiting for Mr Right to sweep her off her feet. Conscious of time no longer being on her side, her biological clock ticking away and signs of ageing creeping up on her, she decides to take matters in to her own hands and seek out the man of her dreams, blogging about her dating encounters as they unfold. Join Mae on her journey as she searches for love. Feel her frustrations and emotional pain. Laugh, smile and cry with her, and watch as she lays past relationships to rest.
The Man in a Haystack is an entertaining story essentially for women, however men may also reap some benefits. Women might recognise similarities with their own men, identify with elements of Mae’s personality and empathise with her dating experiences. Men, on the other hand, could become educated in female psychology and find out why their girlfriends react to them the way they do.
EDITORIAL REVIEW: "Out of all the romance novels I have read, this one felt the most realistic. We can only reminisce about our favourite Disney tale but this one is so much more realistic. Mr Right isn't always there when you need him to sweep you off your feet. The novel is incredibly well written, and the characterisation is so strong, that you feel Mae's emotion through every page, from her joy to her sadness. So, that is why the story works - Alice Huskisson is writing from the heart and it shows. There is a truth behind her words, and an empathy that is evoked through a refreshingly honest account of love and romance."
- Reproduced with the kind permission of ESSEX STYLE MAGAZINE
SYNOPSIS Mae, a forty-something glamorous Essex girl, has spent most of her adult years waiting for Mr Right to sweep her off her feet. Conscious of time no longer being on her side, her biological clock ticking away and signs of ageing creeping up on her, she decides to take matters in to her own hands and seek out the man of her dreams, blogging about her dating encounters as they unfold. Join Mae on her journey as she searches for love. Feel her frustrations and emotional pain. Laugh, smile and cry with her, and watch as she lays past relationships to rest.
The Man in a Haystack is an entertaining story essentially for women, however men may also reap some benefits. Women might recognise similarities with their own men, identify with elements of Mae’s personality and empathise with her dating experiences. Men, on the other hand, could become educated in female psychology and find out why their girlfriends react to them the way they do.
EDITORIAL REVIEW: "Out of all the romance novels I have read, this one felt the most realistic. We can only reminisce about our favourite Disney tale but this one is so much more realistic. Mr Right isn't always there when you need him to sweep you off your feet. The novel is incredibly well written, and the characterisation is so strong, that you feel Mae's emotion through every page, from her joy to her sadness. So, that is why the story works - Alice Huskisson is writing from the heart and it shows. There is a truth behind her words, and an empathy that is evoked through a refreshingly honest account of love and romance."
- Reproduced with the kind permission of ESSEX STYLE MAGAZINE
284 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
1 person is currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Alice Huskisson
1 book18 followersAlice was born in Essex, England, in the 1960s. She is fun, glamorous and a real 'girly' girl, loves chick flicks, reality television, and spending lots of time with her family and friends. She confesses to being a twelve year-old trapped in a forty-something's body! She is deep thinking, convinced everything happens for a reason, and believes anything is possible in life. Alice enjoys simple living and has never been eager to take risks, rarely stepping out of her comfort zone, although when she does she takes massive strides. Her career has to date been in the field of administration where her greatest strength is written communication. She has always enjoyed writing since she was a little girl in the 1970s when she spent most of her spare time corresponding regularly with seventy pen pals from all over the world. She is fascinated by men and what makes them tick however readily admits she will never fully understand their psyche. Her biggest desire in life has always been to settle down with the man of her dreams however her mission was to find him first, and this was the inspiration for writing her blog and ultimately The Man in a Haystack.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 23, 2013
Alice Huskisson tells the true story of her experience dating men in this raw, blog-style memoir.
The title and blurb was interesting and led me to purchase the book out of sheer curiosity. Reading ‘The Man in a Haystack’ is similar to reading a diary, which made it very intriguing and unique.
The author gives her readers a first hand account of what it’s like to date men today; all types of men and from a few different sources. She adds drama to the plot when she regularly ‘dates’ a married man from work while simultaneously being his ‘friend’ and offering marital advice, etc.
Where the story lost a bit of fizzle was in telling the portion of the author’s dating life surrounding ‘Del the Donk’. The excerpts themselves were important to the story and did pique my interest, however, there were so many entries regarding him that it became redundant. In my opinion, the author could have achieved the same level of understanding with less than half the information provided.
Overall the story was well written and clearly the author expressed herself honestly and respectfully and maintained the privacy and integrity of all the ‘characters’ in the story.
I particularly enjoyed reading about her high school sweet heart who she found after many years; I hoped they would hit it off and I wasn’t disappointed. The author cleverly included past excerpts from her high school diary, making the story more endearing and heart warming.
Here are a few excerpts from the story I particularly enjoyed (she’s a real spit fire!):
“I think it’s healthy to have some diverse interests as it helps you maintain a level of independence and you don’t become totally reliant on someone. You also have so much more to talk about.”
“I always have a few presents to open from friends which I open alone. I have deep appreciation for all the gifts I receive but would enjoy them much more if I had a loving boyfriend to open them with and talk to about them, laugh with and share some excitement. I think until I find a man I love, my Christmas’s will never feel complete.”
I’m so disappointed and insulted. You flattered me and then shot me down with an insult treating me like a whore. Conversation over. Goodbye!”
“I’d rather have some fun and be let down than have no fun at all.”
“No one can choose who they fancy, just as no one can choose a favourite colour. You’re just attracted to something or someone and you can do nothing to control your feelings.”
“We’re as different as chalk and cheese.”
Nicely done Alice Huskisson! I look forward to reading more…particularly how you and your ‘Man in a Haystack’ got on in the end!
The title and blurb was interesting and led me to purchase the book out of sheer curiosity. Reading ‘The Man in a Haystack’ is similar to reading a diary, which made it very intriguing and unique.
The author gives her readers a first hand account of what it’s like to date men today; all types of men and from a few different sources. She adds drama to the plot when she regularly ‘dates’ a married man from work while simultaneously being his ‘friend’ and offering marital advice, etc.
Where the story lost a bit of fizzle was in telling the portion of the author’s dating life surrounding ‘Del the Donk’. The excerpts themselves were important to the story and did pique my interest, however, there were so many entries regarding him that it became redundant. In my opinion, the author could have achieved the same level of understanding with less than half the information provided.
Overall the story was well written and clearly the author expressed herself honestly and respectfully and maintained the privacy and integrity of all the ‘characters’ in the story.
I particularly enjoyed reading about her high school sweet heart who she found after many years; I hoped they would hit it off and I wasn’t disappointed. The author cleverly included past excerpts from her high school diary, making the story more endearing and heart warming.
Here are a few excerpts from the story I particularly enjoyed (she’s a real spit fire!):
“I think it’s healthy to have some diverse interests as it helps you maintain a level of independence and you don’t become totally reliant on someone. You also have so much more to talk about.”
“I always have a few presents to open from friends which I open alone. I have deep appreciation for all the gifts I receive but would enjoy them much more if I had a loving boyfriend to open them with and talk to about them, laugh with and share some excitement. I think until I find a man I love, my Christmas’s will never feel complete.”
I’m so disappointed and insulted. You flattered me and then shot me down with an insult treating me like a whore. Conversation over. Goodbye!”
“I’d rather have some fun and be let down than have no fun at all.”
“No one can choose who they fancy, just as no one can choose a favourite colour. You’re just attracted to something or someone and you can do nothing to control your feelings.”
“We’re as different as chalk and cheese.”
Nicely done Alice Huskisson! I look forward to reading more…particularly how you and your ‘Man in a Haystack’ got on in the end!
April 7, 2013
This book was a free download by British blogger, Alice Huskisson. The cover was a turn off and initially I felt that even if it was free, that I was not going to download it. However, I was corrected by the author. The book cover is an analogy for the meaningless of trying to find a significant relationship, but this image has no real connection to the story, and if it does, I don't feel it. If it was a half naked hunk in a barn in the midst of ten loose bales of hay, then, yeah, Ha, very funny. The chap on the cover looks like a bad night at a country bar.
The book was written at the behest of Huskisson's friends who enjoyed her dating exploits from her blog and encouraged her to write a book. She self published this work and it appears to be just posts from her blog. There is some flow and some connectivity in the main character, Mae's trysts on her quest for love, and you find yourself rooting for Mae. You can almost feel the pain of her realization that the man in her bed is nothing like Mickey Rourke's character in 9/12 Weeks and life is not a movie.
I still am a firm believer that book cover is everything, especially when you are self published. American readers judge a book by it's cover. I strongly suggest the author go back to the drawing board, and hire a graphic artist to remake the cover about an attractive metropolitan girl on a search for Mr. Right, then re-release the book.
Huskisson is no Helen Fielding and in reading Bridget Jones, you felt the cheekiness of the the diary coming to life. There is little life in this story of an aging horny woman trying to capture something she feels she has lost. The book does have promise but a word of caution, get your cousin off the book cover, and I look forward to seeing the author's growth in the sequel.
The book was written at the behest of Huskisson's friends who enjoyed her dating exploits from her blog and encouraged her to write a book. She self published this work and it appears to be just posts from her blog. There is some flow and some connectivity in the main character, Mae's trysts on her quest for love, and you find yourself rooting for Mae. You can almost feel the pain of her realization that the man in her bed is nothing like Mickey Rourke's character in 9/12 Weeks and life is not a movie.
I still am a firm believer that book cover is everything, especially when you are self published. American readers judge a book by it's cover. I strongly suggest the author go back to the drawing board, and hire a graphic artist to remake the cover about an attractive metropolitan girl on a search for Mr. Right, then re-release the book.
Huskisson is no Helen Fielding and in reading Bridget Jones, you felt the cheekiness of the the diary coming to life. There is little life in this story of an aging horny woman trying to capture something she feels she has lost. The book does have promise but a word of caution, get your cousin off the book cover, and I look forward to seeing the author's growth in the sequel.
August 20, 2013
What struck me first about this book was its honest approach and wonderfully bubbly writing ‘voice’. Alice is obviously a naturally gifted writer and editor; since she has self published a book this good, just with the help of a few friends!
Alice wrote an on-line ‘blog’ throughout a period of a few years in her forties, chronicling her dating experiences, emotions and thoughts which she then used to write this memoir, albeit changing names, places and a few tiny bits in order to save the faces of her ‘men’. As the story unfolds we see a more serious Alice (Alice changed her name to Mae in the book) and her roller coaster journey trying to find her ‘Man in a Haystack’!
I’m not one to tell the story in a book review so I shall leave you to read it for yourself, but I can assure you that for me, it got my own emotions stirred up, gave me food for thought, and I fought with my own opinions of her experiences as I read, even cringing at times for various reasons.
Alice has told her story how it is and I admire her honesty.
As with any book, you will have your own ideas about how you feel about her experiences, but you will feel something, whether it’s a ‘light bulb’ moment, anger, happiness, disappointment, laughter or any number of things.
Well worth a read – I have not read anything like it before and to be honest when I finished, I wished I had more of her story to read and I would definitely read more from this author!
Alice wrote an on-line ‘blog’ throughout a period of a few years in her forties, chronicling her dating experiences, emotions and thoughts which she then used to write this memoir, albeit changing names, places and a few tiny bits in order to save the faces of her ‘men’. As the story unfolds we see a more serious Alice (Alice changed her name to Mae in the book) and her roller coaster journey trying to find her ‘Man in a Haystack’!
I’m not one to tell the story in a book review so I shall leave you to read it for yourself, but I can assure you that for me, it got my own emotions stirred up, gave me food for thought, and I fought with my own opinions of her experiences as I read, even cringing at times for various reasons.
Alice has told her story how it is and I admire her honesty.
As with any book, you will have your own ideas about how you feel about her experiences, but you will feel something, whether it’s a ‘light bulb’ moment, anger, happiness, disappointment, laughter or any number of things.
Well worth a read – I have not read anything like it before and to be honest when I finished, I wished I had more of her story to read and I would definitely read more from this author!
May 3, 2013
The Man in a Haystack is essentially a series of blogs written by a character called Mae as she embarks upon a quest to find Mr Right. The way the novel is set out is very addictive and I found myself unable to put it down. It is a deceptively simple novel in that, on the one hand, it is light and funny but the voice of the story is vulnerable and raw. It leaves the reader with the sense that Alice Huskisson is really writing from the heart. I think this novel will resonate with a lot of single women and it may well be a very relevant social commentary. I enjoyed the novel very much and found I was thinking about the issues that it raised long after I'd finished reading it.
May 17, 2013
This book was mentioned to me on amazon as a freebie so I thought I would give it a go, the cover put me off a little bit at first with the man on the front however I decided to give it a chance as I am not the type of person to give up reading a book easily. Throughout this book I was tempted to put it down as I was a little bit bored with how things were progressing, however I continued and managed to get through to the end, although I wouldn't say that this was of my favourite books I have read I still think this a good book for people go read who are interested in romance.
November 5, 2013
Oi... Sometimes I felt bad for Mae... But most of the time I just wanted to shake her!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews