Review: Charlotte Street by: Danny Wallace

Charlotte Street by: Danny Wallace (2012)

Publisher: William Morrow

416 pages

Genre: Fiction/Romantic Comedy

Source: ARCycling (from @_extraordiMARY)

Purchase: Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository

Goodreads Summary: Jason Priestley (no, not that Jason Priestley) is in a rut. He gave up his teaching job to write snarky reviews of cheap restaurants for the free newspaper you take but don't read. He lives above a video-game store, between a Polish newsstand and that place that everyone thinks is a brothel but isn't. His most recent Facebook status is "Jason Priestley is... eating soup." Jason's beginning to think he needs a change.

So he uncharacteristically moves to help a girl on the street who's struggling with an armload of packages, and she smiles an incredible smile at him before her cab pulls away. What for a fleeting moment felt like a beginning is cruelly cut short—until Jason realizes that he's been left holding a disposable camera. And suddenly, with prodding and an almost certainly disastrous offer of assistance from his socially inept best friend Dev, a coincidence-based, half-joking idea—What if he could track this girl down based on the photos in her camera?—morphs into a full-fledged quest to find the woman of Jason's dreams.

My Review

I enjoyed Charlotte Street more than I thought I would. It was a really nice darkish romantic comedy that reminded me a little bit of Bridget Jones’ Diary but from a male perspective. This is a good book, but it didn't leave a lasting impression.

The main character, Jason, tells us his story about love lost, finding a job that works for him, friendship, new love, and life. The writing voice was fun and engaging. I was pulled into this character’s life from page one. He is a reviewer (of music, movies, restaurants  you name it, he reviews it) for a newspaper and his job is probably one of the most interesting parts of this book. Charlotte Street really got me laughing out loud many different times throughout. Sometimes the jokes were duds, but not every joke works on everyone. Although I found Jason very interesting, I can’t say that he is my favorite fictional character or anything like that. Sometimes I loved him and other times I just rolled my eyes at his patheticness. He could get frustrating, but not overly so.

The plot line in Charlotte Street wasn't anything overly new but it held strong. I could guess what was going to happen most of the time, but there were still a few surprises. I felt like the book did ramble on a little too long. Sometimes it felt like a chore to read, which rarely happens to me when I’m reading a romance novel. That it isn't to say I didn't enjoy it. I was able to finish it just fine. The ending was cute and perfect.

This would make a good rainy day read. If you are in the mood to read a quirky British romantic comedy that has a touch of darkness but a lot of laughs, then you should read Charlotte Street.

RATING 3.5/5