Running Away From Richard

by Chris Manby

Just graduated from drama school, Lizzie Jordan is looking forward to a glittering career at the RSC. She's also looking forward to becoming Mrs Richard Adams (Lizzie just knows that her live-in artist boyfriend is about to propose any day now). So how come, just one month later, Lizzie finds herself sharing a cockroach-infested house in Venice Beach, California, working as a waitress in a notorious transvestite bar, and pretending to be the fiancee of one of the hottest directors in Hollywood; a man who just happens to be gay? Why does life never seem to work out the way Lizzie Jordan planned?

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Adult, Fiction

432 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

This author has also released books under the name Chrissie Manby.

Encouraged my by English teacher, Mrs. Pocock, I published my first short story in Just Seventeen when I was fourteen years old. The story was called ‘Whatever happened to the wonderful boy I fell in love with’ and I published it under the pseudonym ‘Carolyn Lane’ because it largely consisted of a transcript of an argument I’d had with my boyfriend. I bought a black denim jacket from C & A with the proceeds.

I continued to contribute short stories to Just Seventeen to help pay my way through university. I studied Experimental Psychology at St Edmund Hall in Oxford. Alas, I devoted rather too much time to my social life and staggered away with an unimpressive 2:2. In retrospect, that 2:2 saved my life. It meant that none of the graduate training schemes I had hoped to join would have me. I wouldn’t become an accountant after all. I moved to London and took a series of temp jobs to support myself. It was while I was working at Prelude Audio Books, a company which took erotic ‘classics’ and put them on tape, that I met my first real novelist: David Garnett.

David is a very well respected science fiction writer, who once dabbled with writing erotica under the name Angelique. Prelude was recording the Angelique novels. One afternoon, David spent a couple of hours sitting on my desk, waiting for my boss to come back from a very long publishing lunch to discuss some unpaid royalties. I told David I’d always wanted to be a writer. He dared me to write a novella like Angelique’s. A few weeks later, I handed him my first full-length manuscript. David cast his experienced eye over my scribblings, helped me tweak it and then passed it on to his editor at Little Brown. Incredibly, she made an offer on it. My dream of becoming a proper writer was reborn.

That first book was called ‘Inspiration’. It centred on the sexual shenanigans of a group of artists in St Ives. Wary of embarrassing my parents, I published ‘Inspiration’ as Stephanie Ash. Four more Stephanie Ash novellas followed, helping me to pay my rent and attract the attention of a literary agent. In 1997, I published my first Chris Manby novel, ‘Flatmates’…

Thirteen novels on the single life as Chris Manby later, I’ve just published ‘Getting Over Mr. Right’ as ‘Chrissie Manby’ (apparently too many people are under the impression that I am a bloke!).

I live in London and when I’m not writing (in fact, even when I’m supposed to be writing) I spend an awful lot of time on Twitter. Follow me on @chrissiemanby.

Reviews

[Sally Sutton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light hearted and very silly book which was easy to read during the early morning hours.

[ChingyPingy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was predictable even for chicklit. None of the characters were particularly interesting either. A waste of time.

[Barbara · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m not too keen on chick lit and really not too keen on this one. I found it boring and skipped a lot.

[Naomi Mouland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Running Away from Richard has been sat on my bookshelf for years, that is until I recently decided I was going to give it another go and persevere past the first chapter (which is the most I had managed to do on the several times I had previously opened it up).

I'm glad I did, its a good read. Chick lit through and through, but it has twists and turns, funny moments, interesting characters and a predictable but heart warming ending too.

I should not have doubted Chris Manby - I am a fan and I now recall why!

[Queen Bzyb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is classic chick-lit and is very enjoyable for that purpose. The main character Lizzie can be slightly annoying at times (but possibly intention), fairly predictable storyline and the attempt at addressing a serious topic isn't quite pulled off. However, an easy read and a nice break after a few heavy books.

[Pinar G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yaz kitabı. Von resortta bıraktım. Tam da paylaşılacak türde bir kitap.

[Carmen · Rating 2 out of 5]

My favourite quote:
Want to go down two dress sizes in a week? It's not impossible. Just get dumped by the love of your life.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

The cover says "The hilarious new novel from the bestselling author of Lizzie Jordan's Secret Life" - NOT!!!! Not a hilarious novel at all. Had a couple of things that had me chuckling, but over all? it is a serious novel about getting over someone, finally getting on with your life, faking cancer, getting cancer, and transvestites.

Yeah...it had all that. And as for our heroine? Lizzie? wow, at least I know I never had it that bad. Yes my relationships broke up, but I managed to realize that is part of life...for an almost 30 something, Lizzie had a lot of growing up to do.

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was incredibly slow to get to the point. Lizzie was bloody frustrating in terms of her broken heart. A lot of unexpected twists but also plenty of predictable ones. I found myself thinking on many occasions 'I bet this this is going to happen....' and then a few pages later, it happened! So it took me alot longer to read than normal as I just couldn't get into it. That was until today when I hit around the page 295 mark and things kind of picked up. And I thought the end was well worth it. If only I could rate this book on the ending it would most definately be at least 4 stars. But because of the drawn out first 2/3 of the book I can only credit it 2.

[Shannon Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked this book and found myself laughing out loud at it. It was really fun and light.
It took me quite a while to get into but once I did, I did enjoy it. The blurb kind of confused me at first aswell.
It's about Lizzie Jordan, a woman who gets dumped by her boyfriend a few days before her best friends wedding (and she's a bridesmaid). After far too many pages of Lizzie crying and feeling rubbish she decides to move to America to become an actress.
From there the book does pick up a bit and becomes funny. The ending was really good, but at times the book was just too predictable.
A good chick-lit though :)

[Nicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow start, picked up in the middle, lost it by the end. Just too much. The Brandi cancer bit was excessive and dragged the book out even longer than it needed to be.
Chris writes a nice light chick lit, but I wouldn't advise reading three in a row as I did, as you do really notice the similarities. Hopeless main character whose life is a big disaster. Dumped by a vile boyfriend. There's always a wedding. Usually a "wacky" housemate. Etc etc.
I have a 4th, but I think I'll read something else for now.

[Kathy Chung · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reviewed at : Mama Kucing Meow: Running Away From Richard by Chris Manby

For me it was an average read. Pretty much predictable

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decent enough and with Manby's trademark humor, but not as grounded in reality as some of her better efforts.

[Bylgja Valtýsdóttir · Rating 1 out of 5]

Held að þetta sé ágætis húsmæðraklám sem passar vel við sundlaugarbakkann.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Distinctly average. Some good ideas which made for pleasant holiday-reading, but a very predictable storyline. Recommended if you haven't anything else to read.

[Bec · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh, not terrible but no Marian Keyes.

[Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read. Not quite predictable.
I love how the protagonist isn't very likeable. One moment I cheered for her & next, I thought she has got to have cotton for brain.

Good for light reading.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was brilliant had me excited at times

[Nikki · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ve enjoyed a lot of this author’s books and ordered some of her earlier works, but unfortunately I don’t think they have aged well.

[Damla · Rating 3 out of 5]

(biri benim 3 nikah kelebek yayınevi)

[Mari-Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down!