The Lipstick Chronicles: Book One is a collection of novellas about five women who make up Allheart.com, an online greeting card company. But the stories told in this amusing and enjoyable book are not about business or running a dot com; they are about finding a good man and having great sex once you’ve found him.
These women are all friends, and their friendship is the glue that binds the stories together. We meet Elyssa, the top-dog CEO who falls for a money man with just as much charm as cash. Then there’s Alix, reeling from a bad relationship where her dream man turned gay on her, and there’s Dana, lover of one-night-stands turned Virgin Queen. And let’s not forget Carole, who is down on all men after a twelve-year run with one man, but gets her faith -- and sex life -- renewed when she meets a hot politician. Last but not least, we have fun-loving Robyn, a Pollyanna about to meet her match in the form of a brooding pianist.
The book takes the reader on a ride through the love roller coaster each woman undertakes in her attempt to find true love -- or just plain good sex. The stories are geared towards women between twenty and forty, but even more “mature” readers will get a rise (so to speak) over these great romance tales.
I don’t normally take a shine to love and romance stories, but The Lipstick Chronicles: Book One had just enough bite to make me smile and laugh and shake my head in frustration along with the women I was reading about. The one failing of this book is its reliance on formula, and after awhile, I did get a bit tired reading about the same plot all over again: basically, a great woman finding a hot guy and having neato sex. I hope that in Book Two, the authors provide a little more substance and reality, perhaps having heroines who are not too perfect.
This is a fun read, for a cozy night alone, or on the beach on a warm summer day, when substance does not count, and all that is required is a good time.