January 30, 2018
ebook, 257 pages
genre: Chick Lit, comedy and humor, contemporary, sweet romance
genre: Chick Lit, comedy and humor, contemporary, sweet romance
Who would have thought a group of working girls would help Brooke find not only herself but the love of her life, too? But at Heavenly Pleasures, quite a lot of things are possible…
Meet Brooke, a self-confessed shopaholic turned reluctant brothel receptionist, as she stumbles through life, trying to live up to her parents’ and fiancé’s high expectations—at the cost of her now low self-esteem.
Who would have thought a group of working girls would help her rediscover her inner strength and finally tackle her personal demons? But at Heavenly Pleasures, the rules are made to be broken and new opportunities are just around the corner…
Brooke, a self-confessed shopaholic in financial dire straits, takes a receptionist position at the local brothel. The money is good and the hours are flexible, so no biggie that she’s topping up the lube, stocking the condoms, and perpetually listening to porn. Brooke just needs to keep her employment under the radar until she’s above water. Then, finally, she and her fiancé can live happily ever after.
Heavenly Pleasures is a romantic comedy in the tradition of Bridget Jones’ Diary, and Confessions of a Shopaholic; works Dennes references in the story. I like a relatable female lead whose poor judgement leads to hilarity. But, for me, the poor judgement needs to be slight with a touch innocence to be endearing. Brooke’s judgement, however, is tragically bad. So bad, in fact, I had a difficult time relating to her on any level and I am most definitely a shopaholic. I loved the premise of the book, just not the execution. I found the pacing awkward. The book was much longer than it needed to be. It took far too long for Brooke to settle in at the brothel. I would’ve liked for more of the story to take place in the brothel and for some of the working girls to be better developed. Brooke’s relationship with her parents and fiancé are highly problematic from the start and a little too exaggerated to be believable.
Ultimately I had a few laughs and appreciate the concept. This book is the first in a series, though it has a lot of the characteristics of a stand-alone. I’m curious as to what Dennes has planned for the rest of the series.
Three Sheep
Bianca Greenwood
About the Author:
Married, mother of one son and three daughters, Isla Dennes developed a love of writing while employed in her dream job as the owner of a bookshop in a seaside resort town in NSW, Australia. Not content to simply read every book in the store, she found herself compelled to create novels of her own. Had she concentrated more on sales and less on writing, she might well have retired a wealthy woman, but writing won out in the end, with the result being a lifelong passion for creative writing across a number of genres, including a brief but regrettable sojourn into horribly sentimental New-Age poetry that's best forgotten.
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