Losing It

by Jane Asher

The eagerly awaited third novel from Jane Asher. A man who has everything falls for a girl who has nothing going for her, and gradually finds the tables completely turned on him.CharlieThornton is, as far has he knows, happily married to Judy, with three grown-up children and a successful career as a barrister. So how on earth does he become drawn into a relationship with Stacey, a very fat and unhappy young girl who works on the checkout of his local supermarketHis wife is at first amused by his interest in helping this girl, then increasingly alarmed as the girl blossoms under the attention, losing weight and gaining in confidence, finally embarking on a passionate affair with the by-now obsessed Charlie. As Staceys world improves, Judy Thornton is outraged to be displaced, and Charlie finds his own confidence and fortunes on the slide. Can a balance ever be regained

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Karina · Rating 2 out of 5]

My hubby's family is from London, so I'm always willing to give an author from London a chance, especially as some have a witty fabulous sense of humor that has me often chuckling aloud as I read.
Not so with this book. I haven't previously read any of Asher's work--but the writing style was v dry & a bit of a drag to read. The plot was well-thought out & had it been better written would have made for a gripping story as the obese girl slowly takes advantage of the situation. As it was, I only finished this one out of sheer curiosity as to the ending.

[Nicki · Rating 1 out of 5]

What absolute utter rubbish! Completely unbelievable, drawn out and tedious plot, really badly written, unconvincing, unlikeable characters, ridiculous outcome. The only thing that kept me going to half way was wanting to know what Judys secret was. But I then had to flick through until I found it. Big yawn. How can someone write this and think it’s good?

[Renita D'Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful and harrowing

[Brynhild Svanhvit · Rating 1 out of 5]

Una novela bastante convencional sobre cómo la armonía de una familia consolidada y feliz vuela en pedazos cuando papá deja el hogar para liarse con una cajera de supermercado notablemente obesa y se arruina para pagarle una operación de balón gástrico. Simple y sin pretensiones, para pasar el rato o practicar vocabulario de conversaciones cotidianas, que fue el propósito con el que yo lo leí.

[Cara · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolutely awful!

[Barbara Elsborg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh dear. The writing was lovely but I couldn't swallow the plot. I don't think it was necessarily implausible but I did find it so unlikely, I just couldn't run with it. Everyone was so messed up in their head (that last reveal about Judy - well I hadn't seen that coming) that it felt a really hard book to read. No light hearted moments, no joy at all. If it hadn't ended how it did (and even that seemed unlikely) - I'd have had to go and weep in a corner. Not what I was in the mood for.

[Jen Manning · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vulgar, about a middle aged man who becomes obsessed with the local obese checkout clerk and leaves his family. Set in England.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't like this one at all and couldn't be bothered to finish it.

[Monica · Rating 1 out of 5]

The worst book I've ever read. Funny and pathetic

[Niki · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stupid.

[Jean · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this book by mistake, had ordered Valerie Bertonelli's bio from library. Oh well.

[Norah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, unconvincing, unbelievable story-line, though the fascinating insights into the mind of a morbidly obese person are thought-provoking.

[Jacquie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible! Thank goodness I didn't waste my time reading this, I listened to it on audio CD.
Ridiculous plot about a married man who becomes infatuated with the obese checkout girl at the local supermarket.
Thats pretty much all that needs to be said really. The whole plot was awful & I carried on to see if the ending woukd be any better......it wasn't.
Just terrible.