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Hard Cash Trilogy #2
Shacked Up
Shacked UpA Lifestyle Thing
The dream might be dead, but at least Rich gets to keep the flat. Okay, he's not going to be a multimillionaire by the time he's twenty, but he's still making money and he's living in his boss's London apartment rent-free. So he's got his own place, he's got the gorgeous, if high-maintenance, Portia (well, almost) -- and he's got total freedom.
You can't put a price on that.
Trouble is, now he's got Bonny, too. She landed on his doorstep one night looking to escape from her controlling mother. She needed a place to stay, and Rich could hardly say no. But with Bonny hanging about indefinitely, will Rich find his independence -- not to mention his relationship with Portia -- compromised?
The second book in the edgy new trilogy from Kate Cann.
The dream might be dead, but at least Rich gets to keep the flat. Okay, he's not going to be a multimillionaire by the time he's twenty, but he's still making money and he's living in his boss's London apartment rent-free. So he's got his own place, he's got the gorgeous, if high-maintenance, Portia (well, almost) -- and he's got total freedom.
You can't put a price on that.
Trouble is, now he's got Bonny, too. She landed on his doorstep one night looking to escape from her controlling mother. She needed a place to stay, and Rich could hardly say no. But with Bonny hanging about indefinitely, will Rich find his independence -- not to mention his relationship with Portia -- compromised?
The second book in the edgy new trilogy from Kate Cann.
345 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 14, 2001
1 person is currently reading
128 people want to read
About the author
Kate Cann
45 books239 followersWhen I was a child, I wanted to be a witch. My first foray into writing was a series of nasty spells full of rats’ tails and bats’ wings. Then, when I turned thirteen, I began keeping a lurid diary, full of adoration or loathing, depending on who I was writing about. I used my later diaries for the Diving In trilogy.
I never thought ‘I want to be a writer’, but I loved books and writing. At school, I was rubbish at just about everything but English, so I went on to Kent University where I did two degrees in English and American Literature. At Kent, I fell dramatically in love with the man I'm still married to. We had loads of fights and adventures, but we kept coming back together. He's still the person I most want to spend time with. Awww!
My first proper job was in a publishing house, Time Life Books, as a copy-editor. I felt very glamorous. I used to go to the huge YMCA on Tottenham Court Road at lunchtime and do aerobics classes (very big in the 1980s and yes - I wore legwarmers). Then I'd fall asleep over my desk in the afternoon.
When my two kids came along, I set up as a freelance copy-editor and worked from home. By chance I got given some teenage books to edit, and I hated the way they treated sexual relationships: they were either full of gloom and doom, or were gushy, unrealistic candyfloss. So I got bitten by the ‘I can do better than this’ bug, and started writing. I remember the first day I started to write - it took me over. I forgot to eat (unthinkable for me) and I nearly forgot to collect the kids from school. About a year after that, Diving In was accepted for publication.
When I ran out of material from my diaries and memories, I realized my daughter and son were teenagers, and started eavesdropping on them. They were extremely tolerant about this although they did sometimes demand money from me.
Big changes have been afoot recently. My kids have left home - really left home, not just gap-year-travelling/university left home, and my old man is doing the sort of work that means he can work from home a lot of the time. So we've sold up and moved into the wilds of Wiltshire and so far I am absolutely loving it. The space, the silence, seeing the stars at night in the pitch black, the owls, the trees, the walks, the great food in the local pubs - everything! I'd started to bring nature into my books - it all started with Crow Girl - and now I'm working on two books about a city girl who gets plunged into the wilds. So the move is very much linked to and helping my writing. I think the sheer beauty and power of nature and how it can get right inside you is something a lot of kids are cut off from today.
I still love London though - the plan is to come up every couple of weeks, catch up with all my old mates, possibly do something seriously cultured like go to the theatre. And I want to travel a bit more, too - offsetting my increased carbon footprint with an enormous compost heap.
I love long conversations, running, reading, gardening, walking and white wine (in moderation of course) and I’m the first to admit I have the life of Reilly (who apparently had a pretty cushy life). I start the day with a run or walk with my dog, when I think about what’s going to happen next in the book I’m writing. Then I have a huge breakfast, and get down to work. I write on (or if it’s cold, in) the spare bed with a laptop, my dog at the bottom of the bed. If it’s sunny, I write in the garden, on a sun-lounger. Tough, ay? I also have this theory that you can’t be truly creative for more than about three or four hours a day, so in the mid afternoon, I knock off, and do my emails and stuff. Told you it was cushy.
I never thought ‘I want to be a writer’, but I loved books and writing. At school, I was rubbish at just about everything but English, so I went on to Kent University where I did two degrees in English and American Literature. At Kent, I fell dramatically in love with the man I'm still married to. We had loads of fights and adventures, but we kept coming back together. He's still the person I most want to spend time with. Awww!
My first proper job was in a publishing house, Time Life Books, as a copy-editor. I felt very glamorous. I used to go to the huge YMCA on Tottenham Court Road at lunchtime and do aerobics classes (very big in the 1980s and yes - I wore legwarmers). Then I'd fall asleep over my desk in the afternoon.
When my two kids came along, I set up as a freelance copy-editor and worked from home. By chance I got given some teenage books to edit, and I hated the way they treated sexual relationships: they were either full of gloom and doom, or were gushy, unrealistic candyfloss. So I got bitten by the ‘I can do better than this’ bug, and started writing. I remember the first day I started to write - it took me over. I forgot to eat (unthinkable for me) and I nearly forgot to collect the kids from school. About a year after that, Diving In was accepted for publication.
When I ran out of material from my diaries and memories, I realized my daughter and son were teenagers, and started eavesdropping on them. They were extremely tolerant about this although they did sometimes demand money from me.
Big changes have been afoot recently. My kids have left home - really left home, not just gap-year-travelling/university left home, and my old man is doing the sort of work that means he can work from home a lot of the time. So we've sold up and moved into the wilds of Wiltshire and so far I am absolutely loving it. The space, the silence, seeing the stars at night in the pitch black, the owls, the trees, the walks, the great food in the local pubs - everything! I'd started to bring nature into my books - it all started with Crow Girl - and now I'm working on two books about a city girl who gets plunged into the wilds. So the move is very much linked to and helping my writing. I think the sheer beauty and power of nature and how it can get right inside you is something a lot of kids are cut off from today.
I still love London though - the plan is to come up every couple of weeks, catch up with all my old mates, possibly do something seriously cultured like go to the theatre. And I want to travel a bit more, too - offsetting my increased carbon footprint with an enormous compost heap.
I love long conversations, running, reading, gardening, walking and white wine (in moderation of course) and I’m the first to admit I have the life of Reilly (who apparently had a pretty cushy life). I start the day with a run or walk with my dog, when I think about what’s going to happen next in the book I’m writing. Then I have a huge breakfast, and get down to work. I write on (or if it’s cold, in) the spare bed with a laptop, my dog at the bottom of the bed. If it’s sunny, I write in the garden, on a sun-lounger. Tough, ay? I also have this theory that you can’t be truly creative for more than about three or four hours a day, so in the mid afternoon, I knock off, and do my emails and stuff. Told you it was cushy.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 20, 2023
Love these books. Remember them from being a teen and they’re still good. Great to have a teen book by a male narrator too.
July 3, 2021
Me hubiese encantado leer este libro en el bachillerato, invita a ser un poco más soñador, atrevido, independiente (con las consecuencias que esto trae, claro). Sin embargo, la perspectiva que se le puede dar en mi presente es invaluable. La forma de ver que nuestras decisiones cuando adolescentes representan mucho de lo que podemos ser de adultos sin que sea una verdad absoluta y con posibilidades de reiniciar en cualquier momento, está bien plasmado en las líneas de las dos primeras novelas.
Crecer implica mucho más que ganar años, implica experiencias, responsabilidades que nos ayudan a ver el mundo no desde otra sino desde "la perspectiva" y Richard en Shacked Up a los golpes, nos lo demuestra. Sigue siendo una historia juvenil eso no va a cambiar ni siquiera en el tercer libro, pero son eventos que alguna vez se nos pasaron a muchos por la cabeza a esa edad, me gusta la participación del amor romántico, el erotismo sutil, la realidad de quien no posee dinero y debe luchárselo y testarudez y valentia del adolescente que lo motiva a cambiar su vida a través de sus esfuerzos. Soy fan de los libros autoconcluyente pero sin duda Kate Cann nos hizo un regalo con esta trilogía.
Crecer implica mucho más que ganar años, implica experiencias, responsabilidades que nos ayudan a ver el mundo no desde otra sino desde "la perspectiva" y Richard en Shacked Up a los golpes, nos lo demuestra. Sigue siendo una historia juvenil eso no va a cambiar ni siquiera en el tercer libro, pero son eventos que alguna vez se nos pasaron a muchos por la cabeza a esa edad, me gusta la participación del amor romántico, el erotismo sutil, la realidad de quien no posee dinero y debe luchárselo y testarudez y valentia del adolescente que lo motiva a cambiar su vida a través de sus esfuerzos. Soy fan de los libros autoconcluyente pero sin duda Kate Cann nos hizo un regalo con esta trilogía.
August 17, 2012
This book takes off right from where book 1 ended.
The deal with the design company has fallen through, but Rich is still living in the flat above Nick's company and getting the odd bit of storyboard work so life isn't all bad, but now he's got the girl of his dreams, he has to try to hold onto her, and she is jealous of his new flat mate.
I thought Rich was starting to grow up in book 1, not a lot but he was making gradual progress, now he's with Portia and acting like a love sick puppy. It's obvious that Bonny likes him but he's too blind to see it, although the chemistry between them is very well written and oozes off the page.
I can't stand Portia, she is a spoilt brat that needs a good talking to. She the typical Queen Bee, self-centered and wants everything she sees. But only for as long as it holds interest to her.
This book focuses more on the relationship than Rich's life in general, although he is having to sort himself out, especially with college, he is close to being kicked out and has to fight to get back in his teachers good books. I read this one just as quickly as the first one and I had really started to get to know the characters and i could see them growing up and becoming more. Rich didn't annoy me as much, but he did tend to get quite whiney over Portia, and there is some more rude bits in this book. He seems obsessed with wanting to sleep with Portia.
I wanted to know more about his art and friends than that all the time, it started to get a bit repetitive.
However I still see this as a bit of light reading, a short girly book that once again is told from the boys point of view. A perfect summer day read, enjoyable but not life changing.
So for what it is, I enjoyed it and it is well written, but it's no Epic read!
The deal with the design company has fallen through, but Rich is still living in the flat above Nick's company and getting the odd bit of storyboard work so life isn't all bad, but now he's got the girl of his dreams, he has to try to hold onto her, and she is jealous of his new flat mate.
I thought Rich was starting to grow up in book 1, not a lot but he was making gradual progress, now he's with Portia and acting like a love sick puppy. It's obvious that Bonny likes him but he's too blind to see it, although the chemistry between them is very well written and oozes off the page.
I can't stand Portia, she is a spoilt brat that needs a good talking to. She the typical Queen Bee, self-centered and wants everything she sees. But only for as long as it holds interest to her.
This book focuses more on the relationship than Rich's life in general, although he is having to sort himself out, especially with college, he is close to being kicked out and has to fight to get back in his teachers good books. I read this one just as quickly as the first one and I had really started to get to know the characters and i could see them growing up and becoming more. Rich didn't annoy me as much, but he did tend to get quite whiney over Portia, and there is some more rude bits in this book. He seems obsessed with wanting to sleep with Portia.
I wanted to know more about his art and friends than that all the time, it started to get a bit repetitive.
However I still see this as a bit of light reading, a short girly book that once again is told from the boys point of view. A perfect summer day read, enjoyable but not life changing.
So for what it is, I enjoyed it and it is well written, but it's no Epic read!
March 11, 2008
2nd in the Hard Cash trilogy. Good, interesting plot line about the affect of another woman on Rick's relationship with his girlfriend Portia. Another great read from this fab author.
February 20, 2012
Don't bother.
October 24, 2012
I am so excited to read the sequel to this book!! It was sooo good and definitely has somewhere to go!
Read
October 30, 2013Wow this is a very old book funny how I remember reading is all those years ago the stories coming back to me
Read
May 14, 2015Yet again, another great read!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews