New Book from Sophie Kinsella

I am excited to share that Sophie Kinsella is working on a new ‘Shopaholic’ novel! Kinsella posted the news on her website, not offering any details yet but saying she is excited to get into Becky’s world again. I will be sure to post any updates as soon as they come!

The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella

Samantha Sweeting is about to make partner at the prestigious law firm Carter Spink- something she has worked her whole life on becoming. Samantha really doesn’t have a life anymore because of it, she has put her all into her career;  almost no friends, no love interest, living off of take out orders, barely even knowing her neighbors in her apartment complex. But this ambitious 29-year old doesn’t care. Partner is what she wants, and partner is what she will get.

Until she finds an untouched, overlooked memo on her desk, signaling her mistake and costing her company 50 million pounds. She stumbles out of the office, her second home, and slips onto the first train she sees. She gets off somewhere in the country and knocks on the door of the first house she finds, intending to ask directions to the nearest hotel.

Instead, she is met by Trish Geiger, a spacey but kind housewife who thinks Samantha is her new housekeeper. Samantha is still confused about all the sudden changes taking place in her life, and decides to play along as housekeeper until she can sort things out. Only problem is- she has no domestic bones in her body. She gives it her all though, trying to master laundry, cooking, and cleaning, while trying not to let the Geiger’s stumble upon her true identity.

The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella has funny elements and charming characters, but the plot is a little out there. Kinsella finds a way to pull it off though, easily drawing me into the story and Samantha’s love interest with the gardener who knows she is not truly a housekeeper, and the element of mystery surrounding that unseen memo costing Samantha her career and promotion. Another witty novel from Sophie Kinsella.

Can You Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella

Emma Corrigan couldn’t be more humiliated. In hopes of being promoted to marketing executive at Panther Cola, Emma completely ruins a high priced deal, and more in likely dashes her dreams of that promotion, even possibly putting her job on the line. On her way back home to London, Emma’s flight experiences dangerous turbulence, causing her to think she is living her last moments. The handsome American stranger sitting next to her gets an earful of all of Emma’s most intimate secrets, including how much she hates her job, she’s not sure she loves her boyfriend who, on paper, seems perfect, how she ruined a business deal, she hates her flatmate, the snobby Jemima, and so on and so on.

Well, the plane doesn’t crash. Everyone is alive and well, and Emma bids a shaky and somewhat awkward goodbye to the American passenger, embarrassed of her rambling tirade. She gets real embarrassed the next day when she is introduced to Jack Harper, CEO of Panther Cola- aka the American passenger from that awful flight. The head of the company knows that she hates her job, the deal she blew, how she lies about her real weight, and just about every other secret Emma had been keeping.

Can You Keep a Secret? from Sophie Kinsella, author of the Shopaholic trilogy, serves up another humorous novel that will make you laugh and want to cry all within a few pages. The stories of deceit, love, and scandal will hold your attention, rooting for the heroine who is incredibly believable and easy to sympathize with when her secrets are spilled to the public. I didn’t think the love story was quite as believable, mainly because Jack’s character was a little too in shadows. That aside, the novel was still entertaining and irresistible to put down.

Sophie Kinsella

Sophie Kinsella, author of the popular Confessions of a Shopaholic books, parallels the front character, Becky Bloomwood, or at least in the career path. Like Becky, Kinsella was working as a financial journalist in London before finding her true calling. Kinsella (actual name Madeleine Wickham) published her first novel in 1995 under her married name, and began publishing under the name Sophie Kinsella in 2000 with the start of the Shopaholic series.

Kinsella grew up in Wimbledon, and was a talented pianist, even entering Oxford to study music. After time and learning that was not for her, she changed her focus to politics, philosophy, and economics. Kinsella admits that she never expected to become a novelist. She wrote fiction on the side, whenever she had any down time, and was shocked when she was offered a contract and large advance for three more books after her first, The Tennis Party.

Kinsella published her first six books under the name of Madeleine Wickham, and those titles are: The Tennis Party, A Desirable Residence, Swimming Pool Sunday, The Gatecrasher, The Wedding Girl, and Cocktails for Three. Under Sophie Kinsella, there are ten titles published; titles are: Confessions of a Shopaholic, Sleeping Arrangements, Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, Shopaholic Ties the Knot, Can You Keep a Secret?, Shopaholic and Sister, The Undomestic Goddess, Shopaholic & Baby, Remember Me, and Twenties Girl.

Confessions of a Shopaholic was released in February of 2009 in the movie form, with popular actress Isla Fisher taking on the lead role of Becky Bloomwood. There have been whispers of two other novels, Remember Me and Can You Keep a Secret? will also get film deals in the future.

In her personal life, Sophie Kinsella married Henry Wickham, whom she met at Oxford, in 1992. The couple has three sons, Freddy, Hugo, and Oxford. The family currently resides in Hertfordshire, England.

Official Website: http://www.randomhouse.com/bantamdell/kinsella/