I almost never miss a Tracie Banister book, and was absolutely delighted to read and review her latest, Izzy As Is. I actually went into the story without realizing that we would be meeting characters from past novels that Tracie Banister has written, and was quite excited when I made that realization. In Izzy As Is we follow our main character Izzy Alvarez, swimsuit model. She’s always been successful in her career because of her good looks and gorgeous body, but with the big 3-0 looming on the horizon, Izzy is shocked to hear her agent say the offers are starting to dry up. When friends encourage her to find her passion so she can have a career post-modeling, Izzy knows just what that passion is – money and a man. She goes on a series of dates looking for a man she can settle down with and that will take care of her – love not required. Izzy has never been into the romantics of relationships, or developing real feelings for the opposite sex. When she meets Eduardo, all the chips fall into place. Good-looking, uber-successful, totally rich. But will Izzy realize there might actually be more to life than a pretty wardrobe and big house, and that it takes more than money to make her truly happy?
Izzy was an over the top character to follow and gave me plenty of laughs. She might not have been the most relatable, but she was still likeable for the most part in her own unique way. The supporting cast was fun to read about, especially Izzy’s family (and mother!) and catching up with Pilar and her family. The failed dates were quite funny, and the other romance angles had me curious to see how Izzy’s story would play out. While I enjoyed the ending and was happy to see some growth for our heroine, it did get a little cliché for me, but still fun to get the conclusion. Overall it was a fun, light-hearted chick lit read that came at a great time for me to escape into her story. Another solid novel from Tracie Banister that I would recommend amongst her past titles!
4 stars
Reviewed for Readers Favorite
