by Karen Clarke
This novel has a great, unusual premise which is also executed really well.
Brooke Simmons is in a coma, but somehow due to her sheer strength of will she manages to inhabit Abby Archer's body. It turns out that Brooke has lots of unfinished business and she doesn't want the mere fact that she's in a coma to stop her from resolving it.
At Brooke's insistence, Abby keeps an eye on Nick - the man Brooke is hoping to marry. What secrets was he keeping from Brooke just before the accident that caused her coma? Was he being unfaithful to her, or was there a deeper and darker secret to hide?
Along the way, the irrepressible Brooke encourages Abby to face up to her own problems. Abby has a dysfunctional family who all rely on her far too much and her love life is going nowhere. Brooke's interventions in Abby's love life give the book some of its greatest comic moments.
This is a romantic comedy that positively zings along, but it's also a bit more than that. The device of having Brooke inhabit Abby's body gives a unique twist to the story, but the other thing that lifted it out of the ordinary is the relationship between Brooke and Abby. Both women have a romantic interest to pursue in the course of the story, but it is the development of their relationship with each other which is, in the end, the most touching.
I loved this book and would recommend it to all lovers of romantic comedy.
