My Life in Black and White

by Kim Izzo

Femme fatale meets film noir in My Life in Black and White. When Clara Bishop, a struggling screenwriter-turned-tabloid journalist in Hollywood, is jilted by her philandering husband, she follows him to London, determined to win him back. Armed with only a glamorous wardrobe of vintage clothing inherited from her grandmother, a former film noir actress, Clara discovers that the clothes really do make the woman. Dressed to kill, she adopts a new femme fatale confident, sexy and set on revenge. But on the road to retaliation, Clara discovers an unfinished film script that sheds light on her grandmother’s mysterious death years before. Then it somehow, magically, her whole life is transported back in time, into a living, breathing film noir that reveals to Clara the potential to write her own ending.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Time Travel, Chick Lit, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Novels

352 pages, Paperback

First published May 8, 2013

About the author

Kim Izzo is an author, screenwriter and journalist. She is the 2016 winner of the prestigious HUMANITAS Prize: New Voices and the 2016 Telefilm Canada New Voices Award. Izzo is the author of two romantic comedy novels, the best-selling The Jane Austen Marriage Manual, which has been optioned for film, and My Life in Black and White. She is also the co-author of two etiquette books, the international bestseller The Fabulous Girl’s Guide to Decorum and The Fabulous Girl’s Guide to Grace Under Pressure. As an etiquette expert, Izzo has made numerous television appearances, including Oprah! and The Today Show. She has been a magazine editor and journalist for more than fifteen years. Seven Days in May is her third novel.

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Life In Black And White is a fantastically written book. From the very first pages I was hooked to the story, I read it in a few sittings and was even sat up in bed late at night finishing the last chapters.

I loved the character of Clara, the novel is told from her eyes and she is a truly wonderful narrator. I warmed to her straight away and I was interested in her character, in her actions and I constantly wanted to know what she was going to do next. I really felt as though I connected with her and would love to know her in real life!

There are so many interesting elements to this book, from the fim noir parts to the truly glamorous clothes, and especially the story about Clara’s grandmother. I very much enjoyed every single moment, it is one of those novels where the entire book has equally fantastic chapters!

I don’t want to give anything away because I genuinely believe that this story needs to be read without knowing too much, then you can take it all in and delight in reading everything that happens, and truly enjoy the story. What I will say is that it is fabulous, fun, and it is a compelling book! Kim Izzo effortlessly manages to draw the reader in and I’m sure like me you will lose yourself in this beautifully crafted tale. It is so very entertaining and a book that I would thoroughly recommend.

[Sylvia Duckworth · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a disappointing read for me. It started off well but got quite silly and juvenile. For LIGHT summer reading only i.e. mindless.

[Maureen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was OK. I had been so excited to read this book, but felt a bit disappointed. I expected more from a story line and setting that I expected to be so fabulous.

Slow start. The book doesn't get going until Clara opens that suitcase. For a while, I thought I was reading the wrong book. Yes, there are tropes, but it was cool once the trigger for the action was introduced. Granted, some of the events made no sense at all and there was no attempt to invent logic to explain them. Whatever. It's fiction.

Don't want to give anything away, so I won't be specific here: but I did expect one critical element to turn out differently than it did.

I'd recommend this book with some hesitation.

[HarperCollins Canada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author Kim Izzo described My Life in Black and White as “film noir meets screwball comedy.” As a former film student with an affinity for chick flicks, I had to pick it up and read right away!

My Life in Black and White follows Clara Bishop, a celebrity gossip reporter who has recently been wronged by her husband. At the beginning of the novel, he abruptly divorces her and leaves for London with his 21-year-old mistress. Clara, who had previously purchased a plane ticket to surprise her husband overseas, follows shortly afterwards, armed with a suitcase filled with vintage clothing inherited from her grandmother (a former film noir actress). Though the trip begins as an attempt to win Dean back, it quickly becomes driven by by vengeance. Inspired by a discovery of an old film script, Clara channels her inner femme fatale....

...read the rest of Kaitlyn's thoughts on The Savvy Reader

[Andrea Heans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I had never really thought about the film noir genre until I read this book. Kim Izzo seems to make writing look so effortless, as her books just flow even when the point of view changes.

[Nancydrew · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't finish - not for me

[Jim S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clara Bishop is haunted by the ghost of her grandmother, Alic1a Steele, an aspiring film noir actress who died young under mysterious circumstances. Traveling to London, armed with a suitcase of Alicia's vintage clothes, the world is magically transformed around Clara into a 1950's black-and-white film noir with her as the femme fatale. Can she solve Alicia's death, or even prevent it?

A fascinating premise but can the author pull it off?

Well, there are problems in the execution.

First of all it takes place in England. I can see why the plot demanded this but the bulk of film noir are placed in the United States. In film noir atmosphere is every thing so you dig yourself a pretty deep hole being on the wrong continent. However I award part marks for using the Great Smog of 1952 to provide a smoky back drop.

As well most of the surrounding characters are British and don't fit your classic noir character types, save Frederick, the incredible sleazy movie producer. And I have problems picturing Clara. She goes from being a plain, easy-to-ignore woman to a femme fatale in a blink of an eye and I found it difficult to link the two together as a single person. Having said that I did like her and this affection kept me turning the pages.

ALso the thing I love about film noir, and the reason I picked up the book, is the snappy dialog. Lines like
"I can afford a blemish on my character, but not on my clothes."
There is the occasional good line in the book, like:
"I invested my whole life with him. He's filthy rich and I deserve a piece of it"
But I found them pretty few and far-between. This was a disappointment.

And the ending! In film noir the main characters, by the end of the film, has usually suffered some damage, psychic or physical; the price of the journey they have taken. Granted Clara says several times she did not want the typical noir ending - with the femme fatale dead - but the end of this book is about as far from film noir as it could get. I apologize for the harshness but it's more like a TV Movie Of The Week where they all live happily ever after.

Conclusion : great premise, likable main character, flawed execution.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm calling this story an homage to the femme fatales of the film noire genre ...

"Femme fatales are only for the movies, not the real world."
"I'm not so sure," I answered. "I've never met one I didn't like. Besides, in the right hands, a hell cat can be domesticated."

"Los Angeles may be a city built on creating scenes of great romantic tragedy, but it was all make-believe. Dreams came here to die, discarded like used wrapping from a fast-food joint. Surrounded by by so many broken dreams, sympathy could be as tough to find as a snowdrift. My only hope was that the desert heat would bake my heart until it was so hard it could never break again."

[Marisa Policelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has a good flow to the story, keeps you involved. You read from the point of view of the main character and then get a glimpse of another important person's point of view as the book is split up into 3 parts.
Starts with husband leaves wife, wife needs to find herself....in the process, she is learning so much about her back life that helps her through the break up and more.
Book is very detailed and paints the picture for the reader to see exactly what she is writing about.

[Sharmeen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It started typical, picked up in the mids and then BAM
Crash landed in the 4th last chapter I think.
Made for fine reading so can't complain.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and fluffy with time travel and a bit of "The Purple Rose of Cairo".

[Cait · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

[Hunter McEwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a very easy read it was good but I was a little disappointed in the end. I thought there would be much more to the end of the story but it ended very simple and left no cliff hangers!

[Amelia Dahms · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was different from what I normally would read but it was really good. It would be good for older teens, adults and elderly.

[CiderandRedRot · Rating 2 out of 5]

Promising chicklit with a film noir/golden age of Hollywood twist that completely jumps the shark when the heroine, Clara, somehow goes back in time to 1950s London thanks to a magical suitcase of her grandmother's gowns. No, I'm not making that shit up; I was going to hide it behind a spoiler, but then I realised the plot summary basically gives it away: 'Then it happens: somehow, magically, her whole life is transported back in time, into a living, breathing film noir that reveals to Clara the potential to write her own ending.'

I guess, since we were talking about noir, that most hard-edged and cynical of genres, I'd assumed the magical woo-woo would be less...obvious. My bad. Anyhow, there's plenty of screwball stuff, lots of foggy alleyways and dames in killer frocks and men in trench coats with shady intentions, none of which quite falls together. The framing device with the cop fits with the genre, but ultimately disrupts plot flow. (And - excuse me, my west country pedant is showing, why fucking Cirencester? The previous scene took place on an English clifftop along the coast, but suddenly we're 70-some miles inland?)

Ultimately, although Clara's motives were supposed to be driven by a combination of vengeance and lust (a la noir) and a desire to save her granny (less commonsensical, but roll with it), her hellbent revenge fantasy ended up making her seem less of the femme fatale, more the annoying shrew.

[Ruth Ropper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up because it sounded interesting and had links to old dresses which I like. I didn't know much about 'film noire' but again thought it sounded like an interesting read. I found it slow to start and the beginning didn't seem to reflect the description on the back. However when I got into the book it was fascinating. It moves between different time periods and styles of writing and twists and turns so that even by the end you are still asking questions. I suppose without giving too much away it is about self discovery and finding out what is important in life. There is also history related to the character's grandmother, who the dresses belong to, so there is something for everyone. Would definitely recommend it.

[Helena · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I thought this was just going to be a ridiculous book and didn't think I would like it. I am happy to say that I was wrong. It did take me a few pages (close to 60 perhaps) to get into the story, but when I did I was hooked. I really liked the snappy film noir talk and plot turns. This story isn't trying to be serious. The author Kim Izzo seems to be having fun with a genre and I enjoyed that. Just as you would be with a movie of this genre, I was quite intrigued to see how it all played out.

Good book. Really enjoyed it.

[Ira Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

i loved the beginning of this book as I could relate to Clara's character and wanted to see how she developed. I enjoyed the references to film noir, not an area I was very knowledgable on before, so I have come away having learnt something which is always a positive experience.

However, I struggled with how suddenly the book morphed into fantasy and found some of these aspects hard to assimilate. I did, at one point in the middle, nearly stop reading. That said, I'm glad I continued as overall I enjoyed this book and Kim's writing style, and read the book rapidly, which can't be said of many of the other books on my book shelf!

I would read more of her work.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a fan of The Jane Austen Marriage Manual, I had high expectations for Kim Izzo's foray into the realm of film noir. And she did not disappoint!

Kim Izzo's My Life in Black and White was a thoroughly enjoyable read. It was different, intelligent, and fun. I'm a huge fan of old movies and love a good gumshoe mystery. This book had all the right elements and kept me turning the pages into the early morning hours.

This book has everything, death, divorce, adultery, betrayal, mystery, and a good dose of comedy and imagination. I absolutely loved it!

5 Black and White Stars!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Clara Bishop's husband tells her he is leaving her for another woman she is devastated. She decides to follow him to London to try to win him back, taking a suitcase of her late grandmother's clothes to avoid going back to her apartment. Several days after her arrival she wakes up to a black and white world in 1952. This book is a lot of fun as Clare becomes the femme fatale in a film noir. Clever and cute

[Tiina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very very engaging! I have to admit though that when I first started this book, the writing seemed sooooo detailed and soooo slowly moving that I was not sure I would be able to finish it. But this was only the first chapter, and it later was evident why this chapter had been written like that.

Wonderful idea, likeable main character. Enough description so I could get a picture of what was happening. I like it when a book makes me see it in pictures.

[Silvia Gross · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was painfully boring for the first 100 plus pages and then only slightly better once magic unexplained time travel happened. The only thing I enjoyed was the discription of the clothes and even that was just okay. Maybe I not enough of a film noir fan and references are lost on me. The heroine went from being a boring cliche to a slightly more interesting cliche and the central plot went nowhere. Next time I want a dose of film noire I will rent a movie.

[Mariam.394 · Rating 2 out of 5]

it's a movie like novel; and not my type of movies..
I gave it two stars because the events were fast paced; you read it fast to see how the hell is it going to end !
the idea of going back in time was kid of funny
I didn't like the obsession about the grandmother ! it was too much; even for a fiction novel if that what it was
the scenarios were cheap; as if they were really taken from a 1950's movies
anyway; if you're out of novels, you can read it..

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chick lit meets Film Noire - and throw in some great vintage clothes. The story also includes time travel to the fifties in foggy England. (It has to be foggy because of the movie reference!) The dialogue is fun. Clara, the screenwriter, describes a Hollywood agent thus - "he made Ari Gold on Entourage seem like a puppy lying on its back for a belly rub". A fun, summer read.

[Lea S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kalaulah aku boleh berubah penampilan macam Clara kan bagus. I've always wanted to have red hair.

I thought it was a novel with normal story line. But I was happy it had some fantasy in it. The interrogation part with Sergeant Hoofer wasn't really necessary. I guess it's her way of adding pages to the book. It was boring. Although if this were to be a movie, I'd gladly watch it.

[Monica · Rating 2 out of 5]

THIS BOOK HAD SO MUCH POTENTIAL BUT IT JUST DIDN'T DO IT FOR ME. IT'S FULL OF ONE LINER'S, THINGS HAPPEN TO FAST AND IT'S WHAT A BIG WHAT THE HECK. I REALLY WISH CLARA ENDED UP WITH DEAN STILL. THE BEGINNING WAS INVITING BUT I JUST THINK IT THE WHOLE IDEA/PLOT COULD HAVE BEEN EXECUTED A LOT DIFFERENTLY.

[Little BigGirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know when sometimes you just want to read something, but don't want to think about it? Like taking a break from reading, but still having a book on the go. Well this is it. It's not that it's badly written, but you don't have to concentrate on the plot. Or care if the Heroine gets slapped or not.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book so much! It was something different - not your average chick lit or girly read.

I read through a couple of reviews and a lot of people are miffed by the lack of explanation as to how Clara found herself in a real life black and white film noir, but I don't think you need an explanation on HOW it happened when you get the WHY it happened.

[Mike'ala Gannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although a little slow in the beginning, once the plot hits you full force you won't be able to put it down! I never saw it coming and when it did, it engulfed me in a time and film genre I never knew I loved. The beginning of this book left me feeling downtrodden, but by the ending I have a new found confidence. Really liked this book.

[Shawntracey Hollingworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's easy to read, fast paced, grammatically well written with some funny/silly bits. I really enjoyed the characters, the plot and the whole film noir vibe. A divergence from my normal tastes but a thoroughly enjoyable one. Read it in just three sittings.