Tales of a Drama Queen

Drama Queen #1

by Lee Nichols

APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT
Name: Elle Medina

Marital Status: I'm separated from my fiancé.

Occupation: He was a highly paid attorney.

Employment History: You mean mine? Technically I haven't exactly worked before. But I'm motivated and I work well with others. Most others. Usually.

Career Goals: I thought I was happy with Louis, but now I'm not sure. Ever since he dumped me for some floozy, I've been thinking I should find out what I'm good at and pursue it in a formal job-type way.

Salary Requirements: I need my own apartment (currently staying on friend's sofa) and a car. And I've always wanted a dog. Oh, and I definitely need a shopping trip.

Elle Medina must be qualified for something other than shopping and causing trouble, but when she moves to Santa Barbara after the end of her engagement, what she's suited for isn't clear. Bartender? Private eye? Phone psychic? It seems like everything she tries ends in humiliation or legal action or both. Her best friend is getting sick of her, her new boyfriend's a con artist and her creditors are on her trail. So why is this the happiest Elle's been in years?

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

304 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Lee Nichols is the author of five novels for adults, including the bestselling TALES OF A DRAMA QUEEN. She'll be making her YA debut in 2010 with DECEPTION: A Haunting Emma Novel. Follow her on Twitter at LeeXNichols or Friend her on Facebook at Lee Nichols. http://www.leenicholsbooks.com/

Reviews

[Kelley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t like Drama Queens in person, so I shouldn’t be surprised I wasn’t fond of this main character. The book was well written enough to keep me reading, but I won’t be recommending it and I’m not tempted to read others by this author.

[Colleen Scidmore · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd say this was really like a 3.5-3.75 stars.

I have never read anything by Lee Nichols, but always thought the book sounded like a cute Chick Lit read I might enjoy. I was especially into Chick Lit when I added this to my TBR List, so it's been there for quite awhile. And one of my New Years reading resolutions is to read more from my older TBR pile. I always tend to go for more current books added and at the rate I was going all the older books will never get read.
So I picked this out of my stack not sure if I would really enjoy it as much as I once thought because my reading tastes change from time to time. I am really glad that I gave it a shot.

At first this book was actually kind of annoying. I felt for Elle. She was going through a pretty rough patch. Her fiancé of 6 years returned from a business trip married to another woman he had just met, she moves back home to Santa Barbara to sleep on her best friend Maya and her boyfriend Perfect Brad's couch, she has no job (or experience), only a little cash to last her, and a mountain of credit card debt. But then the decisions she kept making made it hard to keep feeling sorry for her. She came across as self centered bubble head.
But then she grew on me. Her antics were so hysterical, all you can think is only Elle would go through that. And yes she is a little self absorbed but she starts to realize that and change that aspect slightly. And I saw underneath all the antics and ditzy behavior there is a truly good person and no matter what is thrown at her (or whatever she catastrophe she causes) she picks herself and moves on. Now that I can respect.
And it didn't hurt that through out this book Elle reinvents herself I don't know how many times in such a style that caused me to have side pain from too many outbursts of laughter, especially her interactions with Merrick. Don't know why he didn't 86 her sooner, he must have a soft spot for emotional wrecks and be a huge glutton for punishment.

Once I got over my intense dislike of Elle I really enjoyed this book. It is a nice coming of age tale about a Mid Twenties modern girl, that should have grown up along time ago, that does it on her terms and with a lot of help from friends along the way.

I am definitely looking forward to book number 2 to see what future adventures Elle has up her sleeve and if there is more self improvement to be had. And I'm sure lots more laughter.

[Lynn (Smile24k) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rather enjoyed this book. At first glance it seems like your typical chick lit, and it is, but it's actually really funny. I decided to read this book because I had just finished a drama and the only other book on my Kindle was a thriller. I wanted something lighthearted and fun to read in between two more serious books. This book really served its purpose! This book isn't going to win any awards and the characters are all very surface, but the book was really entertaining.

The book is about the misfortunes of a 20-something woman who was just dumped by her fiancé and she's trying to rebuild her life. There are moments in the book that are truly laugh out loud funny. If you accept this book for what it is, I think you can really enjoy it - I did.

[Shelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was very close to giving up on "Tales of a Drama Queen". I even had the disappointed review written in my head, but sometime after page 50 or so, it gradually got better until Elle was no longer the shallow, vain example of why chick-lit gets a bad wrap. Instead, she became someone you want to root for as she learns to believe in herself and becomes less "surface-y". Still, I was a little disappointed that Merrick turned out to be physically perfect and Elle didn't just fall in love with him despite his "freak-orange" hair.

[Drucilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.5 stars. I admit it's a little difficult to like Elle in the first third of the book. She just makes so many bad decisions that it's hard to root for her. By the end, though, she does become a better person (if just as catastrophe ridden), which makes for great reading.

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elle is a lot like Becky in the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella (shops too much, can't manage money, screws everything up) but not quite as lovable. Elle does grow on you. I'm not sure she actually learned her lesson about over-shopping, but everything works out perfectly in the end. I have to say the freak-hair thing bothered me. Really, how shallow is that?! I did like that she rented a trolley to live in. How unique!

I do think I would ave enjoyed this more had I not already read the Shopaholic books.

[Gabriella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Libro iniziato e finito in 24 ore! Di lettura veloce e leggera, racconta le disavventure di Elle, una ragazza che è praticamente un disastro, incapace, ingenua, superflua e non ne fa mai una giusta. Non è una lettura impegnativa, anzi è la classica storia della ragazza che alla fine riesce a farcela nonostante tutto sia contro di lei, perché riesce a capire che impegnandosi e ponendosi degli obiettivi anche lei può riuscire a sentirsi soddisfatta di se stessa.
Nonostante le basse aspettative mi è piaciuto.

[Monani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This movie is really fantastic.

[Sherri Bryant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny and entertaining. I really liked Elle though she seemed to be a total flake at times.

[Jeanne Beaumont · Rating 4 out of 5]

J’ai beaucoup aimé ce livre malgré certains passages que je trouve long

[Kimberlee McDonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious page turner! couldn't put it down. Recommend!

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book and Elle! I am having a hard time finding the 2nd, but will keep searching for it.

[Julie Coover · Rating 3 out of 5]

good beach read

[Angrybird3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

but what a beautiful book.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went to visit A Friend in a different city and didn’t feel like reading the book I took with me, so we found a used bookstore and decided to check it out. I mean, there are Borders and other regular bookstores but I generally find cooler things in used stores. This time, not so much.

However, I did get 3 books: 2 Piers Anthony and “Tales of a Drama Queen” by Lee Nichols. This was, I discovered to my horror only after I bought it, a Red Dress Ink book. Which means it’s published by Harlequin. Well, it wasn’t so bad. Not your standard formulaic Harlequin romance, which is good.

Elle Medina is a late 20s woman who has never held a job. She met her now-ex-fiance shortly after graduating from college and became a kept woman. That is, until he went on a business trip to Iowa and came home, after a week, married to another woman. Elle moves to Santa Barbara and lives with her high school best friend and decides to get a job, get an apartment and get a man.

For 279 pages, we read about how she screws up at every opportunity and learns how to be a grown up. It was interesting to me because she never actually did learn how to be a grown up when she was supposed to, so her experiences are similar to what a teenager might go through. Since I didn’t learn how to be an adult until late in life myself, I could relate. Oh, my issues weren’t that I didn’t get a job but there were other things. Elle is a likeable character and the story, while not deep, is entertaining. If you are looking for something fun and easy, this is a good choice.

[Yvonne O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elle is about toi marry her fiancee of 6 years, Louis, who is a wealthy lawyer. He comes home from a trip - married! Elle is forced to move to CA, with massive debt and no job skills. She gets into trouble at every turn - going through bad job after bad job and falling for every trick in the book when it comes to men. Just when she thinks she has hit rock bottom, with only dollars in her pocket, she hits it big, with a job, a big reward, her enemy in jail, and the man of her dreams (who was right in front of her all along). She makes it, and all on her own terms.

For a story that is unbelievable to the extreme, you can't help believing all of this is really happening to Elle. She lives in a trolley, is taken in (and to bed) by a con-man, works as a phone psychic, sells clothes to make rent, adopts a boxer with a disease that makes it lose its hair, is sued by a strip club owner for throwing a drink at him, orders two meals on a date and takes it all home, uses her ex-fiancee's stamp collection to decorate her dog's bowls, fills condoms with water and throws them at her landlord by mistake, and after all of that, manages to solve a crime and collect a big reward!

No one has ever made losing it all and starting-over so much fun!

[Jennifer Guerra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was HILARIOUS!!! Elle is so funny! The predicaments that she gets herself into will make you cry laughing! Does that happen to real people?! When Elle's fiancé comes back from a business trip with news that he got married her whole world implodes. She's been living the life of luxury on Louis's dime. What does she do now? Her parents refuse to help her financially and she's never had a job in her life. She moves back to her home town to try and start over but she literally had no marketable skills and the jobs she does land (Temporary bar tender, PI, phone psychic) all end disastrously. Her living situation isn't much better. She went from couch surfing to living in a literal trolley car! She even messes that up! She's a walking catastrophe. Her antics will keep you turning these pages. Along this comical journey Elle finds herself. She rescues a mangy dog and falls in love. You should read this book if you're looking to laugh your butt off! Great read!!!

[Hermioneginny · Rating 2 out of 5]

La vita di Elle è un disastro: il suo fidanzato va in altro stato per lavoro e torna sposato con un'altra, così lei si trasferisce a Santa Barbara da una vecchia amica. Se prima si limitava a fare shopping con i soldi del futuro marito, ora deve trovarsi un lavoro e imparare a gestire il suo budget. Ma cosa può fare? La barista, la medium?

Cielo, che libro stupido! Elle è odiosa per i nove decimi del libro, sarà che avendo pochi soldi sono abituata a pensarci dieci volte prima di spenderli, ma proprio non riesco a immedesimarmi nelle protagoniste tutte uguali di certi libri (come I Love Shopping) che non altro altro scopo nella vita che spendere, spendere, spendere. Bocciato.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll read "Chick Lit" if its lying around, it only takes an hour or two. And this happened to be lying around this weekend. I was pleasantly surprised, despite the cover, the title, the publisher....I found it really smart and LOL'd at several moments. Really fell in love with the protagonist and shared her credit card agony and other foibles. That's a funny word, foibles. Elle Medina is spiritually the American younger cousin of Bridget Jones and that can't be a bad thing. Check out the review by Barbara below this one for more in-depth, her experience was pretty similar to mine.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book - Nichols is one of my new favorite chick lit authors! The story is amusing and entertaining, and though it's fluffy there is a real core to the book that helps you forget the fluff. There are definitely moments when you are yelling at Elle to stop, to think for a second, isn't it OBVIOUS what's going on??!!, but really, her naivete is part of what makes her such a charming character. You want to take her home and feed her soup and take care of her. The ending is a bit deus ex machina, but in Elle's charming world it definitely works.

[Loraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give it one more star, but for the swear words. I'm so SICK of them. They really aren't necessary as a daily part of MY life, so I don't understand why an author would deem it necessary for a character in her book.

Other than that, the book was good. For a while, I got sick of her being a whiney, self-absorbed woman, who expected everyone to take care of her. But, I guess that's the whole point of the story, how she overcomes that.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I didn't care for the protagonist at first, slowly the author put her through the wringer of dead-end jobs and it began to feel like sweet, sweet revenge. I was so hoping she wouldn't be "saved" by some romance, and she wasn't. So I've changed my rating on this book and I would recommend it to fans of chick lit, with the following warning: it ain't pretty, and I like it like that.

[Danielle Foley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little unbelievable, occasionally frustrated with main character yet found myself strangely attached to the story. It was humorous and frustrating at the same time. Overall an okay read, a little too much going on and a little too frustrating dealing with someone so spoiled, however, that is what makes her a drama queen.

[Krista · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoops! I loved this book when I first read it many years ago, and had been looking for the second book, which has a very similar title. I got excited when I found it on amazon. Downloaded it, and started to read, I still felt like I had read it, because I had. I didn't remember anything that happened, so it was like reading it again for the first time. I still really like it!

[Rana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish I shared the same enthusiasm for this book that other reviewers have shown, but the main character got on my nerves. I wanted her to make a good decision for herself; I wanted her to be responsible; I wanted her to quit being so gullible. And her obsession over Merrick's hair was a little overdone. I understand why in the end, but it was a little much for me.

[Kirsty (alkalinekiwi) · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of those books that I decided to read on a day off, curled up in bed.

I do enjoy chick-lit on occasion and am pleased to say I enjoyed this one. I could relate partially to the character - I'm also in my late twenties and don't feel much like a grown up (though my experiences are vastly different to hers).

[Minie Houselook · Rating 4 out of 5]

C’est l’un des premiers Red Dress Ink que j’ai lu.

On suit Eleanor dans sa quête d’une vie trépidante. On découvre la vie d’une diseuse de bonne aventure non souhaitée. Eleanor fait ce pourquoi elle est douée et qu’elle aide les gens autour d’elle.
Lee Nichols nous permet de découvrir la vie de son personnage et nous faire apprécié les diva.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reads like a less-well-written version of the Shopaholic books. Elle has many of the same financial problems as Becky, but Elle also gets herself into some unique and funny circumstances as well. Funny, with some laugh out loud moments.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me about 100-150 pages to really get into the story because the lead character seemed too annoying for me at first. Soon I found myself absorbed in the novel and even laughed out loud. It had a wonderful ending and is definitely a book I will keep on the shelf to read again.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. The ending was a lot better than most of the rest of it! The main character to me wasn't so much a drama queen as a dingbat! She sounded like the dumbest 26 year old I've ever heard of and was a little annoying.