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Here Comes Trouble
'You wouldn't get this sort of behaviour in better countries, Ellis felt. In his mind he saw the exquisite civilisation of an English city centre on a Saturday night. The calm Tudor pubs, with their motherly barmaids and folded newspapers on the counter, library-quiet save for the occasional clink as halves of ale met. Did such countries ever think about here? What did they see? What did their satellites among the stars report when looking down at this powerless little mess? Was it all just darkness to them?'
Ellis Dau dreams of the West - of London, New York and Ashford, Kent. But he is growing up in Kyrzbekistan, a secretive nation where revolution barely makes the news.
Following his expulsion from school, Ellis is sent to work with his father. His father is editor of The Chronicle, the last bastion of free speech in their strange, strange land. And it is under threat: from heavy-handed policemen, mysterious revolutionaries, and the resident Russian billionaire.
As Ellis navigates his collapsing, blacked-out city - and his feelings for the oligarch's beautiful daughter - he realises that some things are worth fighting for. But can he save his family and the newspaper fuelled only by youth, grain spirit and unrequited love?
Ellis Dau dreams of the West - of London, New York and Ashford, Kent. But he is growing up in Kyrzbekistan, a secretive nation where revolution barely makes the news.
Following his expulsion from school, Ellis is sent to work with his father. His father is editor of The Chronicle, the last bastion of free speech in their strange, strange land. And it is under threat: from heavy-handed policemen, mysterious revolutionaries, and the resident Russian billionaire.
As Ellis navigates his collapsing, blacked-out city - and his feelings for the oligarch's beautiful daughter - he realises that some things are worth fighting for. But can he save his family and the newspaper fuelled only by youth, grain spirit and unrequited love?
320 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews
October 13, 2022
Que este libro tenga casi 4 estrellas por aquí es algo que no logro entender. Menudo truño. Está escrito en 1991 pero la Biblia a su lado es el colmo de la modernidad. Sus protagonistas se comportan como si vivieran en el siglo XIX, todos son supermachistas y asquerosamente clasistas, y el argumento es tan tonto que mi lista de la compra es una tragedia griega en comparación.
Este #RitaMacomber ha sido no solo el peor libro que he leído dentro del #RetoRita2 sino también el peor que he leído en lo que va de año.
Este #RitaMacomber ha sido no solo el peor libro que he leído dentro del #RetoRita2 sino también el peor que he leído en lo que va de año.
June 16, 2020
The premise:
H/h, from rival Seattle newspapers, face off in their respective columns. They are opposites. He’s conservative and from a poor background. She’s liberal from a wealthy background. He accuses her of coasting on her publisher father’s name.
What I expected:
*Witty dialogue about the issues of the day
*Witty insults that turn to mutual respect
*The heroine to prove herself as a writer
What I got instead:
*A chip-on-his-shoulder hero who drives the heroine to quit her job. She doesn’t try to prove she is a good writer, she tries to prove she can live on minimum wage.
*Heroine works as an office cleaner (she has a college degree) and then as a waitress in a diner.
*Hero obtains a cheap apartment (next to his) for her and tells her over and over again that he doesn’t love her.
*He goes so far as to pretend to ask her out, but has another man ready to meet her when she goes to the theater.
*He also claims he does not love her in front of her friends and her parents.
Conclusions about the hero
I hated him.
*His name is Kramer.
*He wears a wrinkled raincoat.
*He is not quirky. He is not world-weary. He is not an intellectual. He does not have an original thought in his head.
The story wraps up when he gets a syndicated column and sells his first novel (thanks to heroine’s dad?). Heroine’s dad says no – he didn’t buy a man for his daughter, but it sure looked like it to me.
Conclusions about the heroine
*Heroine does nothing with her talents.
*She chases the hero and I suffered second-hand embarrassment the entire time.
*I pity her HEA
This is what happens when an author other than Jayne Ann Krentz attempts these tropes.
H/h, from rival Seattle newspapers, face off in their respective columns. They are opposites. He’s conservative and from a poor background. She’s liberal from a wealthy background. He accuses her of coasting on her publisher father’s name.
What I expected:
*Witty dialogue about the issues of the day
*Witty insults that turn to mutual respect
*The heroine to prove herself as a writer
What I got instead:
*A chip-on-his-shoulder hero who drives the heroine to quit her job. She doesn’t try to prove she is a good writer, she tries to prove she can live on minimum wage.
*Heroine works as an office cleaner (she has a college degree) and then as a waitress in a diner.
*Hero obtains a cheap apartment (next to his) for her and tells her over and over again that he doesn’t love her.
*He goes so far as to pretend to ask her out, but has another man ready to meet her when she goes to the theater.
*He also claims he does not love her in front of her friends and her parents.
Conclusions about the hero
I hated him.
*His name is Kramer.
*He wears a wrinkled raincoat.
*He is not quirky. He is not world-weary. He is not an intellectual. He does not have an original thought in his head.
The story wraps up when he gets a syndicated column and sells his first novel (thanks to heroine’s dad?). Heroine’s dad says no – he didn’t buy a man for his daughter, but it sure looked like it to me.
Conclusions about the heroine
*Heroine does nothing with her talents.
*She chases the hero and I suffered second-hand embarrassment the entire time.
*I pity her HEA
This is what happens when an author other than Jayne Ann Krentz attempts these tropes.
November 30, 2019
Here Comes Trouble is as corny and saccharine as you would expect a Debbie Macomber novel to be.
Here Comes Trouble is a Christmas book in the same way that Its A Wonderful Life is a Christmas movie. In that it kinda takes place at Christmas but its not really about Christmas. Both this book and that movie are about the spirit of Christmas.Family, togetherness, love and community.
Here Comes Trouble is about Maryanne and Nolan who on Christmas Eve tell their young kids the story of how they met and fell in love. This book contains one of my favorite tropes Enemies 2 Lovers. Maryanne and Nolan met when they were reporters at rival newspapers. They "hated" each other but inevitably they fall in love.
Here Comes Trouble was a cute little read. Its the literary equivalent of cotton candy and who doesn't love cotton candy occasionally.
Here Comes Trouble is a Christmas book in the same way that Its A Wonderful Life is a Christmas movie. In that it kinda takes place at Christmas but its not really about Christmas. Both this book and that movie are about the spirit of Christmas.Family, togetherness, love and community.
Here Comes Trouble is about Maryanne and Nolan who on Christmas Eve tell their young kids the story of how they met and fell in love. This book contains one of my favorite tropes Enemies 2 Lovers. Maryanne and Nolan met when they were reporters at rival newspapers. They "hated" each other but inevitably they fall in love.
Here Comes Trouble was a cute little read. Its the literary equivalent of cotton candy and who doesn't love cotton candy occasionally.
January 27, 2012
I really enjoyed this book, it was so fun and sweet really. The heroine comes from a wealthy family and her dad got her a job in a newspaper and she's really trying hard to prove herself and she's also been bantering with another rival columnist Nolan, someone she admires a lot but he seems to dislike her and considers her naive.
They meet face to face and somehow end up having dinner together and a long conversation, the next day the heroine is mad because he published a column about her, but as the hero explains it is a positive one about how he admires her but the heroine wants to prove that she can do something on her own, so she gives her notice at her job and decides to live with what she earns and not her trust fund and the poor hero Nolan feels responsible and tries to talk her out of it.
They end up being neighbours though the hero tries really hard to stay away from her since whenever they are together he ends up kissing her or wanting to strangle her. They are complete opposites and I loved that.
The heroine works as a maid first and then as a waitress confounding the hero totally. She sees a side of him beyond the gruffness and falls for him and knows it is the same for him even if he denies it and tries to send her away.
The thing I enjoyed the most was the prologue when we see them with their kids and how they tell the story of how they met and fell in love.
They meet face to face and somehow end up having dinner together and a long conversation, the next day the heroine is mad because he published a column about her, but as the hero explains it is a positive one about how he admires her but the heroine wants to prove that she can do something on her own, so she gives her notice at her job and decides to live with what she earns and not her trust fund and the poor hero Nolan feels responsible and tries to talk her out of it.
They end up being neighbours though the hero tries really hard to stay away from her since whenever they are together he ends up kissing her or wanting to strangle her. They are complete opposites and I loved that.
The heroine works as a maid first and then as a waitress confounding the hero totally. She sees a side of him beyond the gruffness and falls for him and knows it is the same for him even if he denies it and tries to send her away.
The thing I enjoyed the most was the prologue when we see them with their kids and how they tell the story of how they met and fell in love.
May 1, 2013
This had all the elements of a traditional Debbie Macomber contemporary romance, but somehow it just didn't work for me. I didn't enjoy reading about a woman that is head over heels in love with someone that continues to treat her like dirt. The heroine's willingness to overlook the hero's faults and her ability to accept anything he dished out was a bit over the top. I think the author's attempt at some light hearted fun, just bombed. Instead of laughing with the heroine, I found myself pitying her.. She should have shown him the door after he asked her out on a date, only to use it as a ruse for fixing her up with his best friend. What woman wants to meet a man on a date, only to find that he has ditched her and sent his friend in his place.
I do enjoy Debbie Macomber. I especially love her Cedar Cove series. She has come a long way as a writer.
I do enjoy Debbie Macomber. I especially love her Cedar Cove series. She has come a long way as a writer.
September 12, 2017
Debbie Macombers books are always fun and light reading. A perfect beach read.
July 5, 2017
Ellis Dau is in a predicament. He caused some trouble at school and now he is grounded; stranded with his parents, with no electronics and without permission to leave the house. When he is instructed to tag along to work with his dad (the editor of the Chronical newspaper), Ellis realises that problems are everywhere, and that the world as he knows it can be darker than he ever realised. In an impoverished country with high rates of corruption, things are far from idyllic. However, when a group of radical protesters in white hats start tormenting the paper and the population, Ellis is ripped from his self-centred focus, and is inspired to act and bring about meaningful change. All the while, there’s more to contend with; think love interest a la Romeo and Juliet, as well as teenage angst and sarcasm. It’s a winning combination.
Simon Wroe is an incredibly gifted writer; it has been an age since I felt so truly moved by a book. His use of language to sculpt masterpieces of imagery and nuanced humour testify to the man’s brilliance. Wordsmith is perhaps an inept description, for Wroe seems to reinvent the narrative, making it an adventure in linguistics as well as a scarily addictive journey into Ellis’ world.
Don’t be fooled by the cover – this is not a fictionised account of some soviet political rerun, this is an entirely new and brilliant look at what can go wrong when democracy and sanity crumble. Wroe challenges conceptions of oppression and ignorance; in his world, things are turned upside down, and the detritus that falls from pockets is sheer brilliance, scattered across the page.
I demand more from the writer, and encourage everyone to add Here Comes Trouble to the top of their to-read piles.
Here Comes Trouble by Simon Wroe is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.
Simon Wroe is an incredibly gifted writer; it has been an age since I felt so truly moved by a book. His use of language to sculpt masterpieces of imagery and nuanced humour testify to the man’s brilliance. Wordsmith is perhaps an inept description, for Wroe seems to reinvent the narrative, making it an adventure in linguistics as well as a scarily addictive journey into Ellis’ world.
Don’t be fooled by the cover – this is not a fictionised account of some soviet political rerun, this is an entirely new and brilliant look at what can go wrong when democracy and sanity crumble. Wroe challenges conceptions of oppression and ignorance; in his world, things are turned upside down, and the detritus that falls from pockets is sheer brilliance, scattered across the page.
I demand more from the writer, and encourage everyone to add Here Comes Trouble to the top of their to-read piles.
Here Comes Trouble by Simon Wroe is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.
February 20, 2013
Maryann has lived a privileged life. Having graduated from college, daddy sets Maryann up with a job as a journalist on one of the papers that he owns. After meeting her, a writer at a rival paper writes a column about Maryann and how she couldn't survive on her own without daddy's help. He has thrown down the gauntlet and Maryann quits the job that daddy got for her and vows that she will live on what she earns and won't touch her trust fund. These two rivals end up living in the same building and are drawn to each other. They both keep denying the attraction that they feel to the point where I wanted to smack them!
I have read Macomber's entire Cedar Cove series and all of the Blossom St. Books. I loved them! They had great story lines and likable characters. Romances where the main characters keep fighting and denying that they love one another leave a lot to be desired.
I have read Macomber's entire Cedar Cove series and all of the Blossom St. Books. I loved them! They had great story lines and likable characters. Romances where the main characters keep fighting and denying that they love one another leave a lot to be desired.
November 19, 2017
Maryanne loves Nolan.
Nolan is constantly in a bad mood, constantly making trouble, constantly getting involved in matters that are none of his business.
Conversation with Maryanne with her mother: (she is describing her new love):
Daughter: Nolan is a good friend, but we argue more than anything.
Mothers response: Good. It means you are comfortable with each other to be yourselves, and that’s a positive sign.
What the heck?! This is a BAD sign.
Bad, bad, Mom.
Debbie Macomber knows how to keep a reader involved, writes flawlessly, but REALLY?!
Girl wants a severely bad tempered, egotistical, self-centered, grouch?!
Why?!
Not this girl.....
Nolan is constantly in a bad mood, constantly making trouble, constantly getting involved in matters that are none of his business.
Conversation with Maryanne with her mother: (she is describing her new love):
Daughter: Nolan is a good friend, but we argue more than anything.
Mothers response: Good. It means you are comfortable with each other to be yourselves, and that’s a positive sign.
What the heck?! This is a BAD sign.
Bad, bad, Mom.
Debbie Macomber knows how to keep a reader involved, writes flawlessly, but REALLY?!
Girl wants a severely bad tempered, egotistical, self-centered, grouch?!
Why?!
Not this girl.....
June 23, 2017
Hum. Ho hum. Yes, there were good bits, there was chocolate in the yoghurt. But when I find myself drifting off on a train of thought unrelated to the book it's not a good sign. 3.1
November 12, 2025
A wonderful book. Equal parts funny, entertaining and troubling, Wroe takes us inside the life of 17-year old Ellis Dau in the corrupt, backwards (and fictitious) Kyrzbekistan.
It starts off in a fairly light manner - Ellis shadowing his newspaper editor father at work after being expelled, as well as his misguided adventures with his idiot friend Vincent - but mentioned in passing are the absurd yet sinister ‘Horsemen’ who will become more frequent and significant players as the book unfolds.
Humour is present throughout but it takes more of a back seat as Wroe goes into detail about Kyrzbekistan’s descent into madness, culminating in an utterly gripping (and confronting) conclusion. Issues such as censorship, free will, courage, cowardice and personal morality are all explored against the backdrop of this very unique - and brilliant - story.
It starts off in a fairly light manner - Ellis shadowing his newspaper editor father at work after being expelled, as well as his misguided adventures with his idiot friend Vincent - but mentioned in passing are the absurd yet sinister ‘Horsemen’ who will become more frequent and significant players as the book unfolds.
Humour is present throughout but it takes more of a back seat as Wroe goes into detail about Kyrzbekistan’s descent into madness, culminating in an utterly gripping (and confronting) conclusion. Issues such as censorship, free will, courage, cowardice and personal morality are all explored against the backdrop of this very unique - and brilliant - story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2020
How can I not give this story 4 stars when I disliked a character so much.?! Must be a great story and writing for me to hate a character that much lol Nolan got on my last nerves with his stubbornness and rudeness. Maryanne got annoying too for begging him and being so vulnerable. Ugh! At first I thought this wasn’t a Christmas story but the ending and beginning of the book do take place during Christmas so I guess that’s why it was in “Glad Tidings”.
Overall Debbie Macomber does it for me. She kept me entertained. Only wish that there was a more Christmasy feel to the story if it was in a Christmas book like “Glad Tidings”.
Overall Debbie Macomber does it for me. She kept me entertained. Only wish that there was a more Christmasy feel to the story if it was in a Christmas book like “Glad Tidings”.
January 11, 2023
Nolan Adams is convinced he knows who Maryanne Simpson is, and writes his thoughts in his newspaper column. Embarrassed, Maryanne concludes she needs to change her life, but in doing so, she ends up changing Nolan in ways he never expected.
With both the beginning and the end of this story taking places several years from the bulk of the story, we all know what Maryanne did and how Nolan was changed to the man he is now.
With both the beginning and the end of this story taking places several years from the bulk of the story, we all know what Maryanne did and how Nolan was changed to the man he is now.
November 6, 2025
Loved the Seattle setting.
Other than that, I really didn't like Nolan and the wishy washy stuff he did. Not to mention he is a jerk about people coming to Seattle. And I couldn't grow to like him because we didn't get a whole lot of backstory about him. Yeah he looked out for Maryanne but that's it.
I liked Maryanne until the third act conflict. She acted immature.
I was also disappointed with the lack of Christmas vibes. I read this story in a book that had three Christmas stories in one, including this one, called Snowflakes and Starlights. So I was expecting Christmas and didn't really get it except in the beginning and end.
Other than that, I really didn't like Nolan and the wishy washy stuff he did. Not to mention he is a jerk about people coming to Seattle. And I couldn't grow to like him because we didn't get a whole lot of backstory about him. Yeah he looked out for Maryanne but that's it.
I liked Maryanne until the third act conflict. She acted immature.
I was also disappointed with the lack of Christmas vibes. I read this story in a book that had three Christmas stories in one, including this one, called Snowflakes and Starlights. So I was expecting Christmas and didn't really get it except in the beginning and end.
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July 18, 2017Review for the Sunday Times: http://bit.ly/2tbQXzB
– This was the summer people began to speak of *purity* and *tradition* and *taking things back*...–
– The billionaire up close: midget ears, delicate eyes and nose, hair thin and neatly combed, a pursed mouth and the faintest sketch of a moustache, all encased in a great slab of face, a slab that correctly employed could have made at least three such faces. Whatever creator one believed in, it was indulgent work. The effect was not so much good or bad as expensive. –
– Happiness writes white, as they say. –
– The stunned journalists watched as real, uncut news swallowed them. –
– Sometimes, he thought, you lived with a person for years and years, questioning nothing, and one day you realised you'd been living with a different person all along. They hadn't changed, you were just wrong the first time...He didn't know what the hell she was going to do next. It wasn't necessarily bad – he sort of liked this new dynamic mother he'd got. In a funny way not completely trusting her made him trust her more. –
- It was often said that print is dead. Those who said it no doubt knew better than them, but they hoped these naysayers were wrong. For by this act of printing they had handcuffed themselves to the same fate. If no one read them, no one would save them. If print was dead then so were they. –
– This was the summer people began to speak of *purity* and *tradition* and *taking things back*...–
– The billionaire up close: midget ears, delicate eyes and nose, hair thin and neatly combed, a pursed mouth and the faintest sketch of a moustache, all encased in a great slab of face, a slab that correctly employed could have made at least three such faces. Whatever creator one believed in, it was indulgent work. The effect was not so much good or bad as expensive. –
– Happiness writes white, as they say. –
– The stunned journalists watched as real, uncut news swallowed them. –
– Sometimes, he thought, you lived with a person for years and years, questioning nothing, and one day you realised you'd been living with a different person all along. They hadn't changed, you were just wrong the first time...He didn't know what the hell she was going to do next. It wasn't necessarily bad – he sort of liked this new dynamic mother he'd got. In a funny way not completely trusting her made him trust her more. –
- It was often said that print is dead. Those who said it no doubt knew better than them, but they hoped these naysayers were wrong. For by this act of printing they had handcuffed themselves to the same fate. If no one read them, no one would save them. If print was dead then so were they. –
July 3, 2011
Here Comes Trouble is Debbie Macomber’s 52nd novel. Streetwise Seattle newspaper columnist Kramer Adams writes an unflattering article “My evening with the debutante….” about Maryanne Simpson of the New York Simpsons, currently working at a rival Seattle paper owned by her father. While she is angry about his interfering opinions, she decides he is right about one thing: her life has been too easy. She wants to earn Kramer’s respect, so she quits her cushy job, her luxury apartment and her trust fund, determined to earn her own living. Kramer tries to talk her out of it, feeling she’s a babe in the woods, and he’s responsible for her safety. Sparks fly between them, but something else happens between them as well: he can’t resist kissing her. But no way is he the right man for her: he’s not an appropriate match for the daughter of magnate Samuel Simpson. Maryanne has other ideas. An enjoyable romantic tale with two feisty characters, lots of snappy dialogue and the power to bring a tear to the eye.
December 22, 2013
This is a sweet and caring story that will make you laugh and cry. I was thoroughly immersed in the tale and Other than being told to their kids on Christmas Eve this isn’t an overly Christmasey tale (and maybe not a story you’d want to tell your kids). It’s a brilliant tale for all times of year.
The contrast between the two main characters is quite striking. They are completely opposite of each other, yet fit together perfectly. They balance each other out quite well. I appreciate how they were developed as well. They aren’t perfect. Macomber is sure to show both sides of their characters, the good and the bad. She also takes the time to develop her supporting cast without having them overshadow the main characters at any point in time.
The contrast between the two main characters is quite striking. They are completely opposite of each other, yet fit together perfectly. They balance each other out quite well. I appreciate how they were developed as well. They aren’t perfect. Macomber is sure to show both sides of their characters, the good and the bad. She also takes the time to develop her supporting cast without having them overshadow the main characters at any point in time.
April 3, 2011
THIS is what a contemporary book should read like. Funny poignant and life-like. There's genuine affection between the H/h - there's love between the two and they are friends.
It's SO gonna last!
It's SO gonna last!
April 22, 2013
I found the story cute and then a little frustrating. I was ready for Nolan to get over his issues. They seemed to drag on a little too much.
June 1, 2018
Clever and funny, with some great observations of modern media and culture wars. Not a word was wasted, very enjoyable.
December 5, 2017
This book was alright. Honestly, not one of my favorites from Debbie.
The prologue starts with a mom, dad and their 2 daughters around Christmas time. The girls want a puppy for Christmas, but Mom and Dad need to tell the kids that they are having another baby! The kids want to hear the story of how their parents fell in love, so the rest of the book goes from there.
The parents are both writers who met when they were younger. They worked for competing papers in Seattle. She was a rich girl from a very reputable family with lots of money and clout. He was just your average Joe. He wrote an article exposing her and how she got the job just because of who her dad was. So, she takes it to heart and decides to quit her job and give up all her creature comforts and just survive on whatever she can do without her dad's influence. She gives up her posh apartment and the guy finds her one right by him in a semi-run down building. She starts working as a maid, then a waitress to try to make ends meet. This is a big hate to love story. However, he ignores her a lot and is very resistant to her. When her parents find out what she did and come to her house, she confesses her love and he says nope! And yet she still persists.
I feel like the love story was kind of unbelievable and just a little too convenient. I understand the stereotypical character Debbie was trying to create in the man, but I just think if anyone treated me that badly there is no way I would fall in love with him. He does do nice things for her, but its always with a bad attitude.
The epilogue comes back around to them in present day with their daughters. The girls are happy that they're getting a new sibling, but then the grandparents come over and give them a puppy too.
Not the best Debbie Macomber, probably won't read it again and I would say you're not missing anything if you skip this one. That said, it was entertaining and I'm not mad that I read it. However, the only part that has to do with Christmas is the epilogue and prologue.
The prologue starts with a mom, dad and their 2 daughters around Christmas time. The girls want a puppy for Christmas, but Mom and Dad need to tell the kids that they are having another baby! The kids want to hear the story of how their parents fell in love, so the rest of the book goes from there.
The parents are both writers who met when they were younger. They worked for competing papers in Seattle. She was a rich girl from a very reputable family with lots of money and clout. He was just your average Joe. He wrote an article exposing her and how she got the job just because of who her dad was. So, she takes it to heart and decides to quit her job and give up all her creature comforts and just survive on whatever she can do without her dad's influence. She gives up her posh apartment and the guy finds her one right by him in a semi-run down building. She starts working as a maid, then a waitress to try to make ends meet. This is a big hate to love story. However, he ignores her a lot and is very resistant to her. When her parents find out what she did and come to her house, she confesses her love and he says nope! And yet she still persists.
I feel like the love story was kind of unbelievable and just a little too convenient. I understand the stereotypical character Debbie was trying to create in the man, but I just think if anyone treated me that badly there is no way I would fall in love with him. He does do nice things for her, but its always with a bad attitude.
The epilogue comes back around to them in present day with their daughters. The girls are happy that they're getting a new sibling, but then the grandparents come over and give them a puppy too.
Not the best Debbie Macomber, probably won't read it again and I would say you're not missing anything if you skip this one. That said, it was entertaining and I'm not mad that I read it. However, the only part that has to do with Christmas is the epilogue and prologue.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 8, 2024
My goal for 2024 is to read at least one book per month. This is the first for February [actually I'm in the middle of reading at least 5 books which I hope to finish soon].
Debbie Macomber is one of my fave authors. I've actually even had the good fortune to meet her a few years ago at a book signing in Mill Creek WA. She is a very nice and wonderful woman. Her books are really great, too. I like the fact that many of them are Washington state centered.
This book - actually a novella - is quite delightful. This story is in a larger book - the novella with two other very shot novellas - Snowflakes and Starlight. Though I just read here on Goodreads that Here Comes Trouble has also been publshed as a stand alone.
I guess I should stay something about the book. I really liked the storyline. I liked the description of the coffee shop that the heroine goes to work in. I liked the description of the newspaper that she had also worked at. Today's newspapers typically are not like that anymore. Most of the staff no longer works at a newspaper office - but instead the industry has downsized most of its work force.
Oddly enough I loved the description of the old building that our heroine moves to - with its thin walls and radiator that works when it wants to. One of the things I like about Debbie's book is her dedication to details.
Girl meets boy. Girl and boy are attracted to each other but also they clash. Girl and boy have good moments and they have bad moments. Eventually there is a happy ending.
See - I won't spoil the book for anyone. Happy reading.
Debbie Macomber is one of my fave authors. I've actually even had the good fortune to meet her a few years ago at a book signing in Mill Creek WA. She is a very nice and wonderful woman. Her books are really great, too. I like the fact that many of them are Washington state centered.
This book - actually a novella - is quite delightful. This story is in a larger book - the novella with two other very shot novellas - Snowflakes and Starlight. Though I just read here on Goodreads that Here Comes Trouble has also been publshed as a stand alone.
I guess I should stay something about the book. I really liked the storyline. I liked the description of the coffee shop that the heroine goes to work in. I liked the description of the newspaper that she had also worked at. Today's newspapers typically are not like that anymore. Most of the staff no longer works at a newspaper office - but instead the industry has downsized most of its work force.
Oddly enough I loved the description of the old building that our heroine moves to - with its thin walls and radiator that works when it wants to. One of the things I like about Debbie's book is her dedication to details.
Girl meets boy. Girl and boy are attracted to each other but also they clash. Girl and boy have good moments and they have bad moments. Eventually there is a happy ending.
See - I won't spoil the book for anyone. Happy reading.
February 17, 2025
I have generally loved everything that Macomber has written so far, but this was pretty dreadful.
I don’t think the time period is specified, but if feels like it was written in the 50s when career-minded women were frowned upon. I actually liked Maryanne because she was willing to give up her “posh” life as a debutante. Born with a silver spoon in her mouth and given a job in the publishing world because of who her daddy is, she strikes out on her own to earn an honest living cleaning homes and waitressing to pay the bills while trying to sell her articles. She decided this after a reporter (Nolan) wrote a piece on her about her “blessed” life, and she wanted to prove to him (and herself) that she could cut it on her own without her daddy’s money and name. Nolan, idiot that he is, pushes her away because he feels like he is not worthy of her (he’s not) and that she could do so much better (she could). He sends mixed signals and kisses her, then pushes her away.
Ugh, this book doesn’t read like a typical Macomber one. There were no “feel good” moments, and I was bored to tears. I assume that this must be something written very early in her writing career and re-released. It wasn’t very good, and it took me more than a month to slog through it. I would not recommend it. She has written much better ones.
I don’t think the time period is specified, but if feels like it was written in the 50s when career-minded women were frowned upon. I actually liked Maryanne because she was willing to give up her “posh” life as a debutante. Born with a silver spoon in her mouth and given a job in the publishing world because of who her daddy is, she strikes out on her own to earn an honest living cleaning homes and waitressing to pay the bills while trying to sell her articles. She decided this after a reporter (Nolan) wrote a piece on her about her “blessed” life, and she wanted to prove to him (and herself) that she could cut it on her own without her daddy’s money and name. Nolan, idiot that he is, pushes her away because he feels like he is not worthy of her (he’s not) and that she could do so much better (she could). He sends mixed signals and kisses her, then pushes her away.
Ugh, this book doesn’t read like a typical Macomber one. There were no “feel good” moments, and I was bored to tears. I assume that this must be something written very early in her writing career and re-released. It wasn’t very good, and it took me more than a month to slog through it. I would not recommend it. She has written much better ones.
June 16, 2017
Maryanne Simpson is a young journalist who gets a spot as a columnist on a newspaper her father owns. A rival journalist at another newspaper starts writing articles about her, including "A Night With a Debutante" after she makes him dinner. Realizing that he's right in that everything has been handed to her, Maryanne decides to quit her job, find her own and live on that salary rather than her trust fund. She wants to prove she can do it on her own. Nolan Adams regrets the day he wrote the fated article - now Maryanne is in his life and he's not sure what to do about it. This was a silly story!
June 27, 2017
Old but good story line
I know. The plot should be predictable. But it is the journey from point A to point B that is all the fun. I love reading romance during the summer. Lazy days and crickets in the evening. It just goes with romance. At times I felt like I was reading about my relationship and finally marriage. Except I was the one from a blue collar family and worked for my education. Having Maryanne choose to become self sufficient and prove both herself and to herself is self satisfying. And Nolan with his drive to succeed and make his dream as a writer come to fruition was nice. Again, TrueType enjoy reading Debbie Macomber.
I know. The plot should be predictable. But it is the journey from point A to point B that is all the fun. I love reading romance during the summer. Lazy days and crickets in the evening. It just goes with romance. At times I felt like I was reading about my relationship and finally marriage. Except I was the one from a blue collar family and worked for my education. Having Maryanne choose to become self sufficient and prove both herself and to herself is self satisfying. And Nolan with his drive to succeed and make his dream as a writer come to fruition was nice. Again, TrueType enjoy reading Debbie Macomber.
May 4, 2017
How important are different backgrounds?
This is a pleasant story of 2 reporters from opposing newspapers and opposite types of backgrounds. They play out their differences in opposing columns, but in the process they find things to admire in each other.
I never found myself invested in these characters, nor did I find myself caring about the conflicts between them. This was a fast read with an ordinary romance that was rather bland, for me. I prefer Debbie Macomber's books about small towns and the people who live in them.
This is a pleasant story of 2 reporters from opposing newspapers and opposite types of backgrounds. They play out their differences in opposing columns, but in the process they find things to admire in each other.
I never found myself invested in these characters, nor did I find myself caring about the conflicts between them. This was a fast read with an ordinary romance that was rather bland, for me. I prefer Debbie Macomber's books about small towns and the people who live in them.
December 20, 2022
Cute short story. Two news columnists get into a cross town debate with one another. They meet at a radio station for an on air discussion. Maryanne, if on her own, was given a job by her father who owns several newspapers. Nolan has struggled his whole life si his ditties are very jaded. He is harsh and cynical. They fall in love but Nolan refuses to admit it and fights every step of the way. He only admitted it after her parents have come to find her and bring her home. MA took one of Nolans articles to heart and leaves the newspaper to live on her own without daddys help.
March 2, 2025
Half coming of age, half imagining a reactionary uprising, and set in a fictional-yet-too-real eastern European country, the book is witty, funny, and well constructed.
Scenes are depicted through the viewpoint of a teenager with more than a splash of Catcher in the Rye poseur carelessness.
The author wants you to never forget how witty he is, but the writing is smooth and the story almost believable.
The stakes rise in the finale but the tone stays stuck in the grotesque comedic, so it ends on a downward trajectory, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Scenes are depicted through the viewpoint of a teenager with more than a splash of Catcher in the Rye poseur carelessness.
The author wants you to never forget how witty he is, but the writing is smooth and the story almost believable.
The stakes rise in the finale but the tone stays stuck in the grotesque comedic, so it ends on a downward trajectory, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
September 9, 2022
I enjoy reading Debbie Macomber’s books. This is a sweet story of two people falling in love. Not very complicated but an entertaining plot. Light reading with a happy ending.
There definitely is tension between the two main characters! This tension is the driving factor throughout the book giving the love story a little twist! I like how the author started out in the future when they are already married and have a couple girls who want to hear the story of how they fell in love.
There definitely is tension between the two main characters! This tension is the driving factor throughout the book giving the love story a little twist! I like how the author started out in the future when they are already married and have a couple girls who want to hear the story of how they fell in love.
December 20, 2019
Ugh, this was one of the longest less-than-200-page-books ever! It had good bones but the main male character did not grab my attention whatsoever and the whole book was hokey. Worse thing was - it was part of a Christmas book and I was in the mood for a Christmas story and it was NOT a Christmas story. False advertisement!
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