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Don't Let It Be True: A Hilarious Romantic Comedy of Love, Deception, and Texas Oil Society
A few Texas society gals are hiding sordid pasts as strippers, pole dancers, call girls, Democrats . . . But socialite Kathleen Connor King's secret is far, far worse. The flamboyant oil heiress, philanthropist, shopaholic, and hostess of the city's most prestigious annual gala, Kathleen King has a skeleton in her closet that, if revealed, will obliterate her good name and cherished social standing: She's broke ! Her longtime beau, Dylan Grant, is similarly busted, ever since his now-deceased father lost the last of the family's oil properties to A-List wannabe Bo Harlan in a poker game. So Kat and Dylan have a plan, and with the help of a small cadre of loyal friends and allies, they're ready to resort to outrageous tactics—not all of them legal—to keep up appearances, win back the lost Grant oil money, elude a psycho Vegas mobster...and solidify their lofty positions among the crème de la crème. From the acclaimed author of This Is How It Happened ( Not a Love Story ) and The Men's Guide to the Women's Bathroom comes a hilarious tale of love and deception in the world of the Texas oil uppercrust.
320 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2009
4 people are currently reading
151 people want to read
About the author
Jo Barrett
53 books75 followersJo currently resides in North Carolina with her patient and supportive family while she juggles her writing career and her position as a programmer analyst.
She has won numerous awards and continues to write whenever she can.
Someday, she hopes to take off her programming hat and write full time.
So many of her dreams have already come true. What's one more?
For a list of Jo's books, visit The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Email: jobarrett@jobarrett.net
She has won numerous awards and continues to write whenever she can.
Someday, she hopes to take off her programming hat and write full time.
So many of her dreams have already come true. What's one more?
For a list of Jo's books, visit The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Email: jobarrett@jobarrett.net
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
February 28, 2023
DNF at 15%. Stupid, racist, ignorant. Not my vibes.
May 31, 2009
Reviewed by: Kate Garrabrant
Publisher: Avon
4.75 Stars
Every woman in Texas has a dirty little secret that could destroy her reputation and ruin her name forever. Kathleen Connor King’s major secret is that she is dirt poor even though she was born a King, as in “the Kings” from Houston. Her family owned most of the oil in the surrounding counties. Kathleen is also considered eccentric, but in a good way from the clothes she wears to the charity events she is in charge of. She is known as a trendsetter even though she can barely rub two pennies together.
Kathleen lives with her long term boyfriend Dylan Grant who is the love of her life. Dylan is the only one who knows her dirty little secret and still loves her desperately. Kathleen is his sunshine and joy all rolled into one. He couldn’t imagine lying in bed with anyone else or sharing his life with anyone else. Dylan’s father, Butch Grant suddenly dies and with him leaves behind a whole world of woe. Dylan hated his boozing, gambling, womanizing abusive father with every sense of his being and even in death Butch is giving his son the middle finger. It seems that Butch lost a mineral lease that has been in the Grant family ever since they settled in Texas in 1874. The interest from the lease that keeps Dylan and his younger brother Wyatt in style was gambled away in a poker game fifteen years ago to Bo Harlan. Butch and Bo made a deal that Butch would keep the rights to all the minerals flowing from the well until he died, then all the remaining mineral interested would pass to Bo Harlan. Dylan is enraged but can’t do anything about it. He is now dead broke just like Kathleen.
Wyatt has a plan to steal back the lease from Bo even if it means breaking the law. Wyatt has a lot riding on this because he owes five-hundred in gambling debts to a slick Vegas bookie. Dylan has no choice but to join in on his brother’s crazy scheme. And then there is Kathleen who has her own plan up her sleeve to save her man. And, if she can get an engagement ring from Dylan out of the deal, all the better.
Don’t Let It Be True is a rip roaring laugh out loud tale that will have you hooked from page one. Jo Barrett sure knows how to bring out the laughs and with characters you can’t help but love to pieces. Dylan and Kathleen have to be my favorite couple of the year because of their love and devotion to one another. And they also don’t mind each other’s wackiness. These two are everything you would hope a loving couple would have with one another. Even though times are tough, they still have time to turn to one another and have some hot sex.
This is one screwball comedy that would be great on the big screen. Not only will Dylan and his brother’s antics have you in stitches, but their other partners in crime, who are out for the next big thing also bring out the laughs. Every single one of Jo’s characters are endearing and basically good people. By the end you can’t help but want the story to continue because they have all touched your heart in a wonderful ways.
Don’t Let It Be True is an outstanding read that I will not soon forget.
Publisher: Avon
4.75 Stars
Every woman in Texas has a dirty little secret that could destroy her reputation and ruin her name forever. Kathleen Connor King’s major secret is that she is dirt poor even though she was born a King, as in “the Kings” from Houston. Her family owned most of the oil in the surrounding counties. Kathleen is also considered eccentric, but in a good way from the clothes she wears to the charity events she is in charge of. She is known as a trendsetter even though she can barely rub two pennies together.
Kathleen lives with her long term boyfriend Dylan Grant who is the love of her life. Dylan is the only one who knows her dirty little secret and still loves her desperately. Kathleen is his sunshine and joy all rolled into one. He couldn’t imagine lying in bed with anyone else or sharing his life with anyone else. Dylan’s father, Butch Grant suddenly dies and with him leaves behind a whole world of woe. Dylan hated his boozing, gambling, womanizing abusive father with every sense of his being and even in death Butch is giving his son the middle finger. It seems that Butch lost a mineral lease that has been in the Grant family ever since they settled in Texas in 1874. The interest from the lease that keeps Dylan and his younger brother Wyatt in style was gambled away in a poker game fifteen years ago to Bo Harlan. Butch and Bo made a deal that Butch would keep the rights to all the minerals flowing from the well until he died, then all the remaining mineral interested would pass to Bo Harlan. Dylan is enraged but can’t do anything about it. He is now dead broke just like Kathleen.
Wyatt has a plan to steal back the lease from Bo even if it means breaking the law. Wyatt has a lot riding on this because he owes five-hundred in gambling debts to a slick Vegas bookie. Dylan has no choice but to join in on his brother’s crazy scheme. And then there is Kathleen who has her own plan up her sleeve to save her man. And, if she can get an engagement ring from Dylan out of the deal, all the better.
Don’t Let It Be True is a rip roaring laugh out loud tale that will have you hooked from page one. Jo Barrett sure knows how to bring out the laughs and with characters you can’t help but love to pieces. Dylan and Kathleen have to be my favorite couple of the year because of their love and devotion to one another. And they also don’t mind each other’s wackiness. These two are everything you would hope a loving couple would have with one another. Even though times are tough, they still have time to turn to one another and have some hot sex.
This is one screwball comedy that would be great on the big screen. Not only will Dylan and his brother’s antics have you in stitches, but their other partners in crime, who are out for the next big thing also bring out the laughs. Every single one of Jo’s characters are endearing and basically good people. By the end you can’t help but want the story to continue because they have all touched your heart in a wonderful ways.
Don’t Let It Be True is an outstanding read that I will not soon forget.
July 5, 2009
Easy read, enjoyable but predictable story. Some language some sex.
September 2, 2009
i liked this one, I'll have to read more by this author
February 8, 2011
Will the high society crowd find out that Kathleen is actually broke? Will Dylan and his brother become oil tycoons? A great romance novel!
FTC disclosure: I bought my copy of this book.
FTC disclosure: I bought my copy of this book.
September 29, 2019
There was a lot of opportunity for depth, conflict, and tension but it just never went there. The story is shallow and the pace is odd. That said, I did finish the entire thing. It was a pleasant read on my lunch breaks.
October 27, 2017
It was ok..... a jolly romp through Texan old money and a dollop of neavoux riche.....
easy to read and enjoyable.
easy to read and enjoyable.
May 28, 2019
This was a great fun and charming read. I read this after finishing a serious legal thriller. This was like a hilarious palate cleanse. Really enjoyable!
June 12, 2019
Cutesy, quick read. Good for some entertainment on our beach weekend but not very memorable or particularly well written.
January 27, 2013
There are some books that are dishy "beach reads." These books are in no way cerebral, but they are engaging enough to entertain the reader with an enjoyable story.
There are other books in which the characters are so boring and flat and the plot so unexciting and predictable that by the end you find yourself wishing that the entire cast of characters will die in a tragic massive oil drilling accident.
I'm sure you can guess to which of these categories I would assign Don't Let It Be True.
The description of the book had so much promise--family secrets, covert business deals, Vegas mobsters--but it just never took off. There was no tension; no suspense. The "big heist" never conveyed the sense of danger actually associated with committing a felony; the heartbreak supposedly felt by the protagonist at learning of her infertility was completely unmoving. And while I love a good happy ending as much as the next person, this book wrapped up too neatly. The family land lost in a poker game is won back in another poker game, the financially risky oil drill pays off big time, the bookies become investors and forgive the gambling debt, the little boy with a brain tumor makes a miraculous recovery against all odds, the infertile woman has an unprecedented "special feeling" after making love to her husband in the last chapter ... Houston sounds more magical than the Wonderful World of Oz!
The writing in Don't Let It Be True was hackneyed throughout. Jo Barrett would state exactly what her characters are thinking, and then directly follow it with the character vocalizing those thoughts. There was very little indirect characterization; everything is directly spoonfed by Barrett. The book also suffers from some poor editing. There are a few grammatical errors, and there was one point where it appears Barrett might have been considering two different ways of phrasing a sentence, and accidentally left parts of both phrasings.
I do love the occasional guilty pleasure read, but this book was not a pleasure and just made me feel guilty for wasting my time.
There are other books in which the characters are so boring and flat and the plot so unexciting and predictable that by the end you find yourself wishing that the entire cast of characters will die in a tragic massive oil drilling accident.
I'm sure you can guess to which of these categories I would assign Don't Let It Be True.
The description of the book had so much promise--family secrets, covert business deals, Vegas mobsters--but it just never took off. There was no tension; no suspense. The "big heist" never conveyed the sense of danger actually associated with committing a felony; the heartbreak supposedly felt by the protagonist at learning of her infertility was completely unmoving. And while I love a good happy ending as much as the next person, this book wrapped up too neatly. The family land lost in a poker game is won back in another poker game, the financially risky oil drill pays off big time, the bookies become investors and forgive the gambling debt, the little boy with a brain tumor makes a miraculous recovery against all odds, the infertile woman has an unprecedented "special feeling" after making love to her husband in the last chapter ... Houston sounds more magical than the Wonderful World of Oz!
The writing in Don't Let It Be True was hackneyed throughout. Jo Barrett would state exactly what her characters are thinking, and then directly follow it with the character vocalizing those thoughts. There was very little indirect characterization; everything is directly spoonfed by Barrett. The book also suffers from some poor editing. There are a few grammatical errors, and there was one point where it appears Barrett might have been considering two different ways of phrasing a sentence, and accidentally left parts of both phrasings.
I do love the occasional guilty pleasure read, but this book was not a pleasure and just made me feel guilty for wasting my time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 22, 2015
When I bought this book at a second hand book store, the cover caught my eye. The title of the novel should had clued me in that maybe I should pass on it. As you get into the story, you find out what "Don't Let It Be True" means, and it makes it even worst for the title being so lame.
As for the the actual story, a fluffy lit beach read. Blah. I didn't like any of the characters, including the main one, Kathleen Connor King, "the flamboyant oil heiress, philanthropist, shopaholic, and hostess of the city's most prestigious annual gala". I was never convinced she was any of the above, including being the perfect girl who could do anything and everything.
Not sure what the point of adding in the girl's weekend trip to NYC, but their lunch at Katz's deli and eating pastrami sandwiches stood out for me, because I've eaten there twice and had that both times.
Of course, it all wraps up all so nicely with a happily ever after, which makes it even a bigger Blah! My recommendation is, pass on this book.
As for the the actual story, a fluffy lit beach read. Blah. I didn't like any of the characters, including the main one, Kathleen Connor King, "the flamboyant oil heiress, philanthropist, shopaholic, and hostess of the city's most prestigious annual gala". I was never convinced she was any of the above, including being the perfect girl who could do anything and everything.
Not sure what the point of adding in the girl's weekend trip to NYC, but their lunch at Katz's deli and eating pastrami sandwiches stood out for me, because I've eaten there twice and had that both times.
Of course, it all wraps up all so nicely with a happily ever after, which makes it even a bigger Blah! My recommendation is, pass on this book.
August 16, 2010
Eh... That's how I felt at the end of it. Kind of a shrug. The best part of if was its colorful depiction of Texas and the oil industry, but most of it was pretty silly. I have trouble quitting a book if I've already invested time in it, but otherwise, I would have put it down unfinished. This is a fluffy beach read, but I've discovered that I feel life is too short for fluffy beach reads. I'd rather take something life-changing to the beach. Why not?
May 1, 2009
This book gets a boo... and frankly I read more of it than i should have! The previous book was funny and the plot advanced quickly ... in this one I got 100 pages into it and could give a crap and care less about the self obsessed texas people in it.. taking it back without completing it... I recommend anything else
July 11, 2011
Definitely chick-lit so I didn't expect much from the plot. It was kind of a fun read although it was more sexually explicit than I like. I would have given it a "3" except for one thing.....Stealing money from your charity to invest in your boyfriend's risky venture? Really? What makes that ok?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 16, 2009
Not her best effort. Am finding it a bit raunchy for her, with a story line and characters I find both unbelievable and unlikable. Because I like her so much, I am sad to say that I won't finish this unless there's nothing else to read.
October 19, 2009
Same author as The Men's Guide to the Women's Bathroom, so I had high hopes. Set in Houston, not Austin, though, so unfortunately tacos played a lesser role. A bit wacky and tidy and not wholly satisfying, but still a fun read. I guess I like my protagonists to be a bit messier?
September 9, 2010
Adult fiction; chick lit. I don't remember there being this much language/sex in Barrett's first book. I don't mind personally, but this makes it harder for me to recommend to other people. Still, this was funny and quick, an easy beach read.
May 3, 2011
So far, this is not a book I would recommend...more fluff than substance, but fairly entertaining.
Now that I am done reading, I have to admit to scanning the last third of the book. I wanted to like the characters, but the depth was simply missing.
Now that I am done reading, I have to admit to scanning the last third of the book. I wanted to like the characters, but the depth was simply missing.
April 12, 2010
Took awhile to get into this book. It was ok, though not as good as 'This is how it happened.' But I'll get her other book and see if that's any better.
June 10, 2009
This was a quick read and I liked all the Houston references but just fluff and if I lived somewhere other than Houston, I'm not sure I'd have liked it very much.
July 13, 2010
Drivel.
May 6, 2009
A really easy read. Its a fun book if you just want an inbetween book. It took me a day to read.
May 27, 2009
Easy read...fun, but a little predictable.
June 6, 2009
Not as good as her previous book but still a cute and fluffy read. I hope all Texans are not like this.
June 7, 2009
fun quick read. Good for the beach!
September 16, 2009
Just finished. Good chick lit read.
December 28, 2009
Beach read, completely frothy. Not bad for its aim, but just not good either.
September 22, 2011
I did not find this book to be as good as This Is How It Happened, but the story was fast and I felt myself pulling for the main characters.
July 31, 2016
Meh. Got better near the end - with the exception of the end itself, but mostly cheesy and "roll my eyes" amateurish fluff. "This is How it Happened" was way better.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews