About the book: What if your ex was famous and adored by millions? What would you do if you had one chance to make him regret his entire existence? How much would you risk?

Kate Hollis’s ex-boyfriend’s face plasters newsstands and TV, the Internet, and the multiplex. Jake Sharpe is one of the biggest recording stars on the planet, and every song he’s famous for is about Kate. For over a decade his soundtrack has chased her — from the gym to the supermarket, from the dentist’s office to the bars. Now thirty-year-old Kate gets the call that Jake has finally landed back in their Vermont hometown for an MTV special. The moment she has been waiting for has arrived.

On the eve of their prom, Jake Sharpe vanished, resurfacing when his song Losing — about his and Kate’s first sexual experience — shot to the top of the Billboard charts. And the hits kept coming, each more personal than the one before.

Now Kate gets her chance to confront Jake and reclaim her past. But after eleven years of enduring protracted and far-from-private heartbreak, everyone in Kate’s life has a stake in how this plays out. Kate must risk betraying the friends Jake abandoned, the bandmates whose songs he plundered, and her own parents, who fear this will dredge up a shared past more painful than any of them want to acknowledge. But after getting the call in the dead of night and jumping on a plane, can she turn back now?

My Review: I loved The Nanny Diaries immensely but also really enjoyed Citizen Girl so I was looking forward to reading this latest from the Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus. I wasn’t disappointed.

If you have ever experienced deep hurt at the hands of someone you loved, especially a first love, I think you will find something you relate to in this book. Hopefully, you’ve moved on enough that you wouldn’t do what Katie does in this story…hop on the first plane to go see him, but the fantasy of doing such a thing…showing up looking fabulous is always there, even a little, isn’t it?

In any case, the story weaves together the timeline of the past with the present situation. This creates some mystery (what exactly did Jake do???) but also pushes the story forward. There’s a little bit of romance and a lot of angst!

I can’t say that I found the entire book to be terribly realistic, but it’s a good read and an interesting chance to ask yourself…what if?

What I love about McLaughlin and Kraus’ writing is how well they create the feel of a scene. They add in a lot of little details that make you feel like you’re there. This is one of their greatest strengths, I think. Just be warned there is a bit of foul language.

Dedication was just released in trade paperback format by the Atria Division of Simon and Schuster books.

You can visit Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus here.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 at 12:00 am

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