Billy & Me

By: Giovanna Fletcher
Published Year: 2013
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Pages: 352

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): In this utterly sweet and moving women's fiction novel, a celebrity comes to town and sweeps a young woman - who is used to being overlooked - off her feet.

Sophie May is content with her life in her small English village, working in the local coffee shop and living with her mom. But when famous actor Billy comes to town to play Mr. Darcy in a new film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, Sophie's quiet life is quickly turned on its head. Billy is adored by women around the world, but he only wants Sophie on his arm. But being with Billy comes at a price, and Sophie is thrown in the spotlight after years of shying away from attention. Can she handle the constant scrutiny that comes with being with Billy?

                                                                         First Impressions

Such a cute chick lit cover! When I first heard that Giovanna Fletcher was coming out with her debut novel, I was really excited to read it. However, it wasn’t available in the US. If it had been, I definitely would’ve read it immediately.
                              
                                                      What I thought

This book was exactly the cute chick lit that I thought it would be and needed.

Sophie May is a small town girl who helps to run a tea shop. She grew up in this same town and never left. She even still lives with her mother. The town gets shaken up when a movie ends up being filmed in their town. An up and coming star shows up for the lead role and falls in love with Sophie. The novel follows them in their new love and all the trials the meeting of their two worlds create.

While initially the story doesn’t seem completely unique, it didn’t play out the way I expected. I expected the story to be about the process of Billy and Sophie falling in love, but instead it’s more of the after. I liked that this was different from a lot of other stories that have had similar plots.

I enjoyed Sophie a lot and liked that she seemed like a normal person with normal problems. She isn’t perfect but it doesn’t seem unbelievable that a movie star would fall in love with her. I will admit that the relationship does come with a bit of insta-love which can be annoying, but their relationship ends up being really sweet. I wish there had been a bit more of playout with the beginning of the relationship as it seems to become very intense very quickly.

I think my favorite character was Sophie’s friend and tea shop owner Molly. She seems so sweet and fun and I wish that she had been in the story a little bit more. I liked that she supported Sophie but that she also told it like it is.

While this story is pretty predictable, the writing definitely puts it a few steps above those similar stories. It is an easy, quick, read and very enjoyable. I know that there is a follow up to this story and I can’t wait to read it to find out what happens with Billy and Sophie. I am so glad that Fletcher’s books are now available in the states and I can’t wait to read the rest of them. I would recommend this to any chick lit lovers or someone looking for a fun, light book.