Goodbye, Jimmy Choo    by Annie Sanders Order:  USA  Can 5 Spot, 2006 (2006) Softcover Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Melissa Parcel Izzy Stock and Maddy Hoare are two women who have been transplanted from fast-paced London lives to the more laid-back country lifestyle. Izzy is a coffee-loving eclectic who shuns pretense. Her husband has been laid off from his job and is now trying to 'find himself.' Maddy is the opposite. She loves designer clothing, has spent more money than she can count renovating her new home, and her children attend a posh private school. What do these two women have in common? Well, neither one is fond of the nose-in-the-air women who inhabit their new village. They become friends from the first moment they meet. That friendship is what survives when Maddy is suddenly widowed. Izzy is there to help and can truly commiserate when Maddy's financial situation goes from bad to worse. But a recipe discovered in an old cookbook of Maddy's just might be a ticket out of poverty - and most of all, it has the potential to prove to both women just how worthwhile they truly are. Goodbye, Jimmy Choo is not the light, fluffy novel the title suggests. These women overcome great odds. They have completely changed their lifestyle - both financially and with the physical move. By the end, it's encouraging to see what both Maddy and Izzy learn about themselves and how strong they can be. A great deal of humor is sprinkled throughout the novel, but it's also heartwarming and makes the reader think. The authors (two women who joined efforts to write the book) get to the heart of what it means to be a woman in today's world - with all the demands put on us by our families and even ourselves. The core value of friendship shines throughout. There were times where Goodbye, Jimmy Choo started to drag. Trimming some of the extraneous meandering through the production processes of their product would have gone a long way to improve the book. But overall, the humor and the interesting storyline work well together to create a memorable tale about friendship and life. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Contemporary books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews