girlfriend to girlfriend,
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girlfriend to girlfriend, I had a great time with this book.
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What Happened To The Bad Girls?
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Fans of "Bad Girl Creek", be forewarned - you won't spend much quality time with the Girls (Phoebe, Ness, Beryl and Nance) here. Mapson's quirky, multi-dimensional characters from her previous novel are little more than minor supporting players in "Along Came Mary". Touted as a sequel, it's mainly the back story of Rotten Rick, who was briefly mentioned in BGC as Nance's loathsome ex, and Mary Madigan, a talented but underacheiving drifter mourning the loss of her twin sister in the Oklahoma City bombing several years earlier. The two meet after Rick loses his dead end job at a music magazine and Mary Madigan (Maddy) ditches her loser boyfriend. They team up as road trip partners, as Rick pursues a career as a journalist, and Maddy tries to make a living singing on the open mike bar circuit, and form an odd relationship as lovers, but not quite friends. Exploring the dynamics of this unlikely pairing might have made for a good story if either Rick or Maddy were interesting or likeable characters. However, Rick was dull and Maddy was irritating (I was ready to throw the book across the room the next time she said the word "feck") and I never grew to like either one of them enough to care about what became of their relationship. In sharp contrast to the Rick/Maddy storyline were the chapters (sadly, very few) written from original Bad Girl Phoebe's point of view. My heart broke for Phoebe's loss of her first and only love, Juan. Her grief and her anger towards their unborn child were painfully realistic, but tempered by the love of the other Bad Girls as they rallied around to support her. It is in these few chapters, and a few journal entries written by Beryl, that we glimpse the spirit of the original book. However, the lack of any real focus on the other Girls (a subplot about about Nance's eating disorder is reduced to a few pages here and there, and there is virtually nothing of Ness) keeps this from being a true follow up to their story. Maddy and Rick are briefly brought together with the Girls through a chance meeting with Beryl. The unlikely friendship that sparks between them leads to Beryl urging Maddy to head out to Bad Girl Creek. Aha, one thinks, so Maddy will become the new Bad Girl. Nope! The new roommate hinted at in BGC doesn't appear until the very end. She, like the original four, promises to be a fascinating, multi-layered character - unfortunately, we don't see much of her before the focus jumps back to the tired Rick and Maddy saga. The chapters focusing on Phoebe give us a tantalizing hint of what a real sequel to BGC could have been, and earns the book the two stars of my rating. Stars are lost by the sheer disappointment caused by the near abandonment of my beloved Girls in favor of the boring Rick and Maddy. Here's hoping the third installment, "Goodbye Earl", will return to true Bad Girl form.
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Interesting Book
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Bad Girl Creek, is a novel that consists on women managing a flower farm in California. The novel mostly focuses on Mary Madigan and the boy she meets in Oklahoma. This is a great novel to show the power of women and how they stay strong. This book is mostly a "chick" novel and many people will be able to relate to this novel. The feeling of this novel is very touching it is a book that makes you want to keep reading until the end and when its over you want more and more of it. During the climax you want to jump up and continue reading it because it is very interesting and suspenseful. This novel is a sequel and many say that sequels are never better then the original but this is a great sequel. I recommend this book to people that enjoy "chick" movies or novels. People that enjoy romance, adventure, and drama should defiantly read this novel. Although I do not know too much about the author, Jo-Ann Mapson seems to be a person with interesting thoughts. She really gives a good description of the girls and it makes you feel as if you know the girls and you are part of their life. If you are the type of people who are into mysterious, Scary, and non-dramatic novels you will most likely not like the novel. Overall I enjoyed this novel because I have never been into farming or knowing about girls farming and the trouble they go through, but I found this book interesting and I realized novels like these leave you wanting for more.
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I love these girls
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I think Jo-ann Mapson is one of the most under-rated writers around today. Her books are wonderful, and this story of a group of woman working and living at a flower farm in California is everything a book should be, it will make you cry, and laugh, and to feel that you actually know these women. I can't wait for the next one. I lay awake at nights wondering about them. Will Phoebs find another love, someone to share her life with, and will Ness continue to be well? Is Beryl going to stay in Alaska? Ms Mapson writes so well that I even devoured the acknowledgements at the back of the book, and I was not surprised to see mentioned Judi Hendricks and Jodi Picoult, two more fine writers. Keep up the good work, Jo-ann, I truely believe some writers are born, not made, and you are indeed a born writer.
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I love these girls
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I think Jo-ann Mapson is one of the most under-rated writers around today. Her books are wonderful, and this story of a group of woman working and living at a flower farm in California is everything a book should be, it will make you cry, and laugh, and to feel that you actually know these women. I can't wait for the next one. I lay awake at nights wondering about them. Will Phoebs find another love, someone to share her life with, and will Ness continue to be well? Is Beryl going to stay in Alaska? Ms Mapson writes so well that I even devoured the acknowledgements at the back of the book, and I was not surprised to see mentioned Judi Hendricks and Jodi Picoult, two more fine writers. Keep up the good work, Jo-ann, I truely believe some writers are born, not made, and you are indeed a born writer.
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