Chrissy’s Review: Shopaholic to the Stars by Sophie Kinsella

Shopaholic to the Stars (Shopaholic #7)
written by Sophie Kinsella
published by The Dial Press

find it here: (affiliate links) Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Book Depository, Goodreads

Did I enjoy this book: I have to say I was disappointed in Ms. Kinsella’s latest Shopaholic book.

I was looking forward to it, and it didn’t deliver. Sure, there were some laughs. There was Becky’s usual shopaholic-ness. There was her naïveté. But it was overblown; almost a caricature of the “normal” Becky Brandon. She was not the same Becky we fell in love with and watched grow over numerous novels. She has a daughter now and barely spent any time with her during the entire book. And there was no mention of a nanny either. So, who was watching Minnie? That really bothered me. Luke was barely there. Suze and Tarquin came to visit and changed completely. I barely recognized them. The Hollywood scenes were realistic, but disappointing. I was chatting about this book with another group, and they seem to agree that a different direction could have been taken and would have made the book so much better.

In all of the Shopaholic books, Becky learns a lesson and then makes good. There was a lesson here. And ***SPOILER*** she makes good. But it was too late in the book to make a difference for me. And I was bummed that ***SPOILER*** it ended in a cliffhanger. Something that I always liked about the Shopaholic books was that they all had a clear ending. This one does not. Will I read the next one? Yes. Will I buy it on the release day? Probably not.

Would I recommend it: If you are a Sophie Kinsella/Shopaholic fan, then yes, read it. But don’t drop everything to do so. If you are new to the Shopaholic series, do not start with this one. You will be disappointed.

About the book – from Goodreads: Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) has stars in her eyes. She and her daughter, Minnie, have joined husband Luke in LA—city of herbal smoothies, multimillion-dollar yoga retreats, and the lure of celebrity. Luke is there to help manage the career of famous actress Sage Seymour—and Becky is convinced she is destined to be Sage’s personal stylist, and go from there to every A-list celebrity in Hollywood! But things become complicated when Becky joins the team of Sage’s archrival. How will charming and supportive Luke deal with this conflict? Is it possible that what Becky wants most will end up hurting those she loves most? Shopaholic fans old and new will devour Sophie Kinsella’s newest adventure!