Shopaholic to the Stars- Sophie Kinsella

Well what can be said of the latest instalment of Becky Bloomwood’s life? I’ve been following Becky’s story for many years now and I always enjoy following her crazy adventurous spirit.

Shopaholic to the Stars is well written, well-paced and is consistent, as I’ve said before these are three things all good books should be. Kinsella’s depiction of Becky Bloomwood truly makes her character and spirit come alive off the page. It’s the kind of world you wouldn’t mind being a fly on the wall of.

By chapter 3 I was totally imbedded into Becky’s story. I had become emotionally invested in Becky’s family, friends and life in general, any reader paying attention will find the same- I wanted Becky to prosper and have every positive outcome possible. Kinsella, in my opinion, just has that knack of revealing just enough detail; at just the right time. The surprises are constantly flowing but you never get distracted from the main plot. The minor characters Kinsella interjects throughout add detail and flavour to the story. Shopaholic to the Stars is anything other than predictable.

The strongest emotion I felt whilst reading Shopaholic to the Stars was frustration. This was a consistent feeling I had- not towards the author, but rather Becky herself. This novel and the subsequent instalment to follow, I expect will prove to be the steepest learning curve for Becky Bloomwood since the very first novel in the series, Confessions of a Shopaholic. There were times I simply wanted to jump into the pages and scream at Becky, maybe shake her round the shoulders a bit! But it certainly says something of the skill of the author when then written word can fuel such a charged emotion for an extended period of time.

The last two chapters are the most dynamic and explosive regarding the plot, but as usual Kinsella delivers a stylish adventure with pizazz and panache. This novel is full of lively characters old and new and compelling plot twists. Stylistically I find most of Kinsella’s novels follow a pattern common to many other novels categorised as ‘chick-lit’; but that doesn’t mean that their not worth reading- far from it! Kinsella’s style is easy to read, almost conversational, if you haven’t got a lot of time to read, or like to read in short bursts Kinsella is a writer you should definitely try.

I wouldn’t say this is the ideal novel to read as a stand-alone. It would definitely provide a better experience for the reader if you were to start from the beginning of the series; which is something I sincerely recommend you do (don’t just watch the terrible movie and then think you can pick up the story from Shopaholic to the Stars)!

Overall Shopaholic to the Stars is an enjoyable read, but admittedly I’m not a fan of the cliff-hanger ending Kinsella leaves you with. Now don’t panic Kinsella is already promoting the next instalment so I’ll be reviewing that as soon as possible, but for now we’ll all just have to wait!

© Gemma Feltham 17 July 2015