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You Had Me at Good-Bye    by Tracey Bateman Amazon.com order for
You Had Me at Good-Bye
by Tracey Bateman
Order:  USA  Can
Faithwords, 2007 (2007)
Softcover
* *   Reviewed by Jessica Weaver

The second in a trilogy about three roommates in New York City (You Had Me at Good-bye) is the follow-up to Catch a Rising Star. Tracey Bateman, a prolific author of Christian chick lit, gives readers a pretentious size-two, poor little rich girl, Dancy Ames, as main character.

At first I was a little put off by Dancy's attitude and shallow relationships; however, the novel really is a transformation for the main character, and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing her develop. Not only does Dancy have several layers (yes, there is the layer that wants herself to have her parents' giant New York penthouse instead of her brother, but also a layer that starts to adore her punky, newly discovered seventeen-year-old half brother) but her friends are also multidimensional and entertaining to follow.

Dancy is quickly let go from her job at Lane Publishing towards the beginning of the book - a job she adored and truthfully, that was her life. Her brother's best friend Jack also happens to have been her higher-up editor, and he is given the job of firing her. Dancy leaves in a huff, disgusted at Jack, and works on rebuilding a new life for herself ... and maybe developing a backbone along the way. Encouraged by her friends, she works on a novel, volunteers at a nearby coffee shop, and establishes a relationship with her half brother.

The novel is slow to begin but is a quirky and fun addition to the body of Christian chick lit that has started to flood the market. I enjoyed the second half of the book immensely, will go back and read Catch a Rising Star to learn about Dancy's roommate Tabby, and plan to grab That's (Not Exactly) Amore when it comes out in August 2008!

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