I’ve got your Number by Sophia Kinsella
Contemporary Romance
February 14, 2012
Hardcover
Reviewed by May
What happens when you lose your priceless heirloom emerald engagement ring, have your phone stolen, and see a phone in a garbage can? Poppy decides its fair game, and takes possession of the phone and works on keeping her life in order. She quickly discovers that the phone was tossed as an assistant quit her job and walked out of a conference.
I’ve got more important stuff to worry about than arrogant strangers and their stupid business deals.
“Wait!” the man’s voice follows me through the receiver. “That phone. It’s my PA’s”
“Well, she shouldn’t have thrown it away, then.” I retort pushing the glass doors open. “Finders keepers.”
Poppy hides her missing ring from her future in-laws and fiancé and convinces Sam that she will forward him messages and emails and act as a sort of stand-in assistant until she can find her ring and get a new phone. Having full access to someone’s phone and in-box can be a pretty personal thing, and Poppy quickly gets to know and grows to like Sam, despite his short messages and lack of smiley face usage. I love that she immediately reads all his emails (I would so do that) and forms opinions about him, and the people sending messages to him through his assistant.
If you’ve ever read a Sophie Kinsella novel then you know how the story goes – there’s a lot of self discovery by a heroine who is thoroughly flawed but loveable, and in the end she’s going to find her true love. It’s going to be funny at times, unbelievable at moments, and it will all work out somehow. Indeed, it’s going to be a cotton candy cloud of fluffiness.
I’m not against fluff, and I don’t mean that as a put-down. The book is really well done. Kinsella writes stories that keep moving, keep you guessing, and have surprises galore. It’s just the best way I can describe the kind of book that this is. Very light, makes you smile, is the perfect once in a rare while treat, and it’s oh so sweet.
The book is told entirely from our heroine’s point of view, and I absolutely loved her use of footnotes throughout the story. Some had me giggling and overall they helped to get to know Poppy better and added a nice touch to the novel.
11 Ok, not just like Beyoncé. Like me imitating Beyoncé.
44 The first time Marcus told me his specialty was symbols, I thought he meant cymbals. The ones you clash. Not that I’ve ever admitted that to him.
Though her fiancé Marcus is clearly not the man from her right from the start, I could see how a woman would get into a relationship with such a great guy and both not see the signs and not get that he wasn’t her ticket to happily ever after. Especially since they have only been dating a very short time (engaged after one month), and so their relationship is still so very shiny and new. I think Poppy should have seen it a lot sooner in the novel, and as a character this fiancé adds very little to the story. We hardly know him and I’d have liked it if he went away long before he did.
It did not bother me while reading, but looking back the unhealthy relationships (including a “friend” who’s always telling her that she should have had her fiancé) really bothers me about this character. Also I did not love some of the actions of the heroine, there was some nonsense going on at the end that made the plot work out, but compromised the progress the character had made. It made me feel like this girl is really not ready for a real relationship of any kind, and that she has some serious need for therapy, life lessons, and general growing up.
This is a common Kinsella heroine move though – dig yourself a hole, then keep digging instead of just standing up and getting out on your own, asap.
Ah but if I stop analyzing and thinking about the probability of characters behaving as they do, if I just sit back and enjoy the reading experience (which I very much did!) then this book is a lot of fun. It was silly, it was fun, and I smiled a lot while reading it. My issues with the book only surfaced after I’d finished, and sat down to write this review. For me, that counts less against a book when grading it – as I clearly enjoyed it while reading!
I would say this is a book I’d recommend to others looking for a light read, I would gift this to a friend, and I will probably read it again. While not nearly as strong as some of Kinsella’s other offerings, if the premise looks good to you I encourage you to check it out.
Grade: B+
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Great review May. I haven’t read Sophie Kinsdale in a while. I go get this one. :)
This gives me hope because when the heroine is engaged/married/commited to a jerk I always wonder how that reflects upon her own personality. I mean, no one can be willing to spend their lives with an ahole without realizing how bad they are, right? There must be another reason why she stays with him without noticing his evil ways. So at least now we have a boyfriend who is wrong for the heroine but not necessarily wrong as a person.
I loved Can You Keep a Secret? But I thought the hero was slightly weird. I haven’t read her Shopaholic books because there are too many and it seems like she was milking it just to cash in on the fame and not because the story needed more books. But I will read this one, I got it today actually, so I’m glad to see all the positive reviews.
Have you read Jill Mansell’s books? I have read a couple of them and her style is similar to Sophie Kinsella’s, although perhaps without that much fluff.
yes it was nice that both sides in this relationship (the bad one) had failing bits.
I LOVE Can You Keep A Secret? and Twenties Girl by this author. LOVE. So when she has new books sometimes I am harder on them than I wuold be another author due to the mad love for previous books, if that makes sense.
As for Shopaholic series I must disagree. Every book has a clear arc, each one progresses the overall time line and story. It does not in any way have a “milked” feeling for me like some authors do (C.Harris, J.Evanovich…) where the characters are doing nothing new, nothing changes – however I feel like I’ve had enough of Luke & Becky. I’m good to leave them as they are breeding and having mild drama in London and prefer to read her stand alones now.
I think I’ll have to read this, as you and Jayne both really enjoyed it. I’ve only read Kinsella’s Confessions of a Shopaholic, but she just writes the best chick-lit out there in my opinion. It’s hard to take such a realistic but unlikable heroine and make her endearing, and Kinsella is kind of a master at doing just that.
I think I may break out my copy of Twenties Girl and give it a read soon. You have me in the mood, and it will be a while before I can get a copy of this. :)
I’ve read a few of the Shopaholic books and I liked them. Not sure why I haven’t continued to keep up with this author.
Great review, but too much slapstick for me. I would be irritated with such a heroine.
I just completed this book. And i must say i am not too impressed with it. Just like Mary I also Loved Can you keep a secret and twenties girl. I felt that this book was quite dry in humour for a sophie kinsella book. The storyline itself was interesting and i loved the twist. However i felt that it did not have the laugh out loud humour i have come to love about SK’s books. I kept waiting for the laughs to kick in, but nothing page after page after page. It still worth a ready though, but i must say it not her best work to date.
Okay I just have to say this. Sophie Kinsella has yet again not disappointed. MY favorite out of all the books was can you keep a secret. But this new one is just as amazing. I’ve read it about 5 times now. I just cant get enough of it. I HOPE SHE MAKES A SEQUEL. Its just amazing. Anyone who didnt like it, well you have no taste. This has got to be one of the best if not the best reads ever. I just love the scenes where shes in contact with sam. even the texts and face to face. its my favorite scenes in the book.
just read this book. And i do angry with Victoria, good storyline, which had the potential to be as funny as can you keep a secret, but yes i also feel that it was not as brilliantly funny as some of her previous books. Nevertheless still enjoyable. I however dont think i could read it more than once though. Compared to can you keep a secret and twenties girl as well as remember me, which a read more than twice.
hi. first time reader of your review. and i loved it. by the way, poppy’s fiance is magnus not marcus. :)
Yes, Poppy has some serious self-esteem issues, and at the end I found myself wondering if she was any better than Magnus!
(Funny note about Sam’s rude emails, though–I’ve had the exact same conversation with my husband!)