Helpful Score: 6
No Spoilers!
This is an entertaining romp with the "ghost" of Shock-Jock DJ Julian Shaw (think Howard Stern, only cuter) playing guardian angel to a nice girl with a broken heart named Kate Darby. I must correct one thing from the book description: Jules isn't dead, he's in a coma & his spirit is in the Neither Here Nor There while his body fights to survive.
Katie is a likable heroine who is friendly to her neighbors, beloved of her coworkers, and a lover of dogs & her daddy. Jules (before his untimely coma) was a celebrity DJ, recovering heroin addict, tequila-loving porn-obsessed slut. Hardly a likely pair. It's a credit to Orloff's writing that she is able to make you root for the match-up despite their differences and believe in their HEA.
The Good: I liked the premise of the book, with its hints of A Wonderful Life & Just Like Heaven. If was nice to see Katie-the-Nice-Girl grow a spine, thanks to the angel on her shoulder, in her dealings with those in her life who had hurt her & in helping her restore her feelings of self-worth. I enjoyed Julian's spiritual & emotional growth throughout the story, too. It was fast, but believable. Cute pop cultural references and the name-dropping stayed within acceptable limits & were often humorous. Funny moments while Julian gets his bearings and tries to figure out what/where the heck he is & what he's supposed to do.
The Bad: Orloff comes off a bit too preachy at times about spiritual, environmental, societal & philosophical themes, exhorting her readers a tad too stridently for my taste.
Extremely satisfying ending with a small twist in the last few pages that brought a lump to my throat. Grade B
This is an entertaining romp with the "ghost" of Shock-Jock DJ Julian Shaw (think Howard Stern, only cuter) playing guardian angel to a nice girl with a broken heart named Kate Darby. I must correct one thing from the book description: Jules isn't dead, he's in a coma & his spirit is in the Neither Here Nor There while his body fights to survive.
Katie is a likable heroine who is friendly to her neighbors, beloved of her coworkers, and a lover of dogs & her daddy. Jules (before his untimely coma) was a celebrity DJ, recovering heroin addict, tequila-loving porn-obsessed slut. Hardly a likely pair. It's a credit to Orloff's writing that she is able to make you root for the match-up despite their differences and believe in their HEA.
The Good: I liked the premise of the book, with its hints of A Wonderful Life & Just Like Heaven. If was nice to see Katie-the-Nice-Girl grow a spine, thanks to the angel on her shoulder, in her dealings with those in her life who had hurt her & in helping her restore her feelings of self-worth. I enjoyed Julian's spiritual & emotional growth throughout the story, too. It was fast, but believable. Cute pop cultural references and the name-dropping stayed within acceptable limits & were often humorous. Funny moments while Julian gets his bearings and tries to figure out what/where the heck he is & what he's supposed to do.
The Bad: Orloff comes off a bit too preachy at times about spiritual, environmental, societal & philosophical themes, exhorting her readers a tad too stridently for my taste.
Extremely satisfying ending with a small twist in the last few pages that brought a lump to my throat. Grade B
