WRITER WONDERLAND
  • Blog
  • Romance Rocks
  • Goddess Fish Tour
  • About

A Life Less Ordinary Review Tour

5/22/2013

28 Comments

 
Picture
Victoria will be awarding a $25 (grand prize) gift card with two gift cards for $15 each; the cards would for either Amazon or Smashwords (winner’s choice).
 
BLURB:   

For the last fifteen years, Rose “Manny” Mankowski has been a very good girl.  Now, at the age of 45, she’s questioning her choices and feeling more and more disconnected from her own life.  When she’s passed over for promotion and her much younger new boss implies Manny’s life will never change, something snaps.  In the blink of an eye, she’s quit her job, sold her house, cashed in her pension, and she’s leaving town on a six month road trip.

After placing an ad for a travelling companion, she’s joined in her mid-life crisis by Zeke Powell, the cynical, satirical, most read – and most controversial – blogger for the e-zine, What Women Want.  Zeke’s true goal is to expose Manny’s journey as a pitiful and desperate attempt to reclaim her lost youth – and increase his readership at the same time.

Now, armed with a bagful of destinations, a fistful of maps, and an out-spoken imaginary friend named Harvey, Manny’s on a quest to rediscover herself – and taking Zeke along for the ride.

REVIEW ****

A Life Less Ordinary is Victoria Bernadine’s debut novel about a desk-bound employee who longs for adventure after not receiving a well-deserved promotion. Manny, the heroine, could be any woman of a certain age who suddenly discovers life has reach its summit and is barreling down the other side full speed.  The controlled Manny has her life timed right down to minute for all the good it does her.

After eschewing a husband and family, and devoting herself to her career, her boss promotes a young woman big on cleavage and short on experience. He excuses his behavior by saying his new hire will help the department achieve more ignoring the fact that Manny’s department is the highest achieving unit in the firm. The straw that breaks Manny’s will to serve is when the new hire refers to her as being ancient. The words, “I quit,” pop out before she even considered them.

Manny cashes in her savings, advertised for a male traveling companion and plans to discover herself by traveling. Her friend and sister battle between wanting to discourage her or applaud her.

Her companion is a closed mouthed New Zealand bloke named Zeke. One of the reasons he is so reticent to say much about himself that he is using the trip as fodder for his online blog where he ridicules the foolishness of middle age women trying to find themselves. It is obvious from the get go that despite movie star good looks, Zeke is horrible at relationships.

The third member of this troupe is an imaginary man named Harvey. He’s Manny’s constant companion who often offers witty comments and insights. He changes outfits and attitudes with Manny’s mood. The three of them head out across the United States in a camper on cross-purposes.

A Life Less Ordinary often touches on the lives of Manny’s sister, Daisy, and friend, Rebecca, who at the beginning seem to have more excitement in their lives than she does. It also delves into the infertility issues of his Zeke’s producer, Leah, and her spouse. I was okay with the sister and friend side stories, but the infertility story was too much. It felt like filler too me, which was unneeded. The story would be great with just Manny, Zeke and Harvey.

A Life Less Ordinary is a fun tale that is easy to read. It gives you a different view on what it means to be a middle-aged woman. I was little confused on what genre it was so I am calling it women’s fiction because Amazon did. I think women of a certain age will gobble this book up in one setting. I would not expect anyone under thirty to get it. I’d also keep my eye on Ms. Bernadine because this is only her first book, I can hardly wait to see what she has in store for us.




EXCERPT: 
“All I ever wanted was a life less ordinary.”

Manny lay flat on her back, eyes wide, staring at the ceiling while she waited for her clock to hit 6:00. Another day of work, she thought. Another day older and deeper in debt.

She had the alarm timed to the millisecond. The jarring noise had barely begun when she clicked it off. She sighed then threw back the covers and got out of bed.

She padded into the bathroom, glanced without interest in the full-length mirror that doubled as her shower doors and took her morning inventory.

Plain face? Check.

Looking tired? Check.

Thirty pounds overweight? Check.

Dark circles under deer-caught-in-headlights eyes? Check and check.

She shook her head at her limp, mousy hair and wondered when she’d gotten so old.

She sighed in resignation then conjured up her Perfect Fantasy Man–or Harvey, as she liked to call him–to give her a morning lift. She cocked her head to one side as she stared into the mirror and imagined him standing behind her. She smiled at the handsome man, and he smiled back, putting his hands on her shoulders. Everything about him was warm, in stark contrast to the cold shades of grey in which she lived her life. He had warm brown eyes, warm brown skin, and a warm smooth voice that always reminded her of golden honey. Today his hair was black with greying temples, and yes, even that seemed warm to her.

He was perfect, everything she considered ideal in a man–and extra-perfect, of course, because he was a fantasy. Just the thought of trying to establish a relationship with an actual man felt too much like work.

She sighed and Harvey disappeared.

“Instead I ended up in a rut–everything planned and executed to the minute.”
 

AUTHOR INFORMATION:
Victoria Bernadine (a pseudonym) is, as the saying goes, a “woman of a certain age”. After twenty-something years of writer’s block, she began writing again in 2008. She began with fanfiction about a (now-cancelled) TV show called Jericho and particularly about the characters of Heather Lisinski and Edward Beck. From there, she expanded into writing original fic and she hasn’t stopped since.

Victoria enjoys reading all genres and particularly loves writing romantic comedy and post-apocalyptic science fiction. What those two have in common is anybody’s guess.

She lives in Edmonton with her two cats (The Grunt and The Runt). A Life Less Ordinary is the first novel she felt was good enough to be released into the wild.

Victoria can be contacted through Love of Words Publishing Inc. (loveofwords@shaw.ca) or through her brand new blog at http://victoriabernadine.wordpress.com/.

A Life Less Ordinary is available for sale on Amazon in both Kindle and hard copy formats at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AMJBOSQ.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


28 Comments
Victoria Bernadine link
5/22/2013 11:53:38 pm

Good morning, Morgan. Thanks for hosting me today! I'm glad you enjoyed the book. Hopefully you'll enjoy my next one just as much! ;D

Reply
Morgan K Wyatt
5/23/2013 12:16:52 am

Morning Victoria,
I am all for tales about strong women of a certain age. Bring us more.

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/23/2013 03:28:11 am

Me too. I'll see what I can do! I am working on a sequel to A Life Less Ordinary; whether it'll be good enough to see the light of day is still up in the air. :)

Reply
Goddess Fish Promotions link
5/23/2013 12:40:37 am

Thank you for hosting

Reply
Rabsaris Flores
5/23/2013 01:02:04 am

I never have read one of your books but they sound really good I'm going to go check it out on amazon. I love to found good authors.

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/23/2013 03:29:57 am

Hi Rabsaris - thanks for commenting! Please do check it out on Amazon; there's a longer preview on Amazon.com that will hopefully let you decide if the book is something you'd like to read. :)

Reply
Andra
5/23/2013 02:15:50 am

Sounds like an excellent book! Thanks for the review. You really paint a great picture of it...though I am a little uneasy that no one under thirty will get it...I've got a ways to go until then.

andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/23/2013 03:38:56 am

Good morning, Andra - thanks for dropping by!

I think there would definitely be a different flavor to it depending on your age, but I hope women of any age would enjoy it...even those who have a long way to go until thirty. ;D

Reply
Shannon
5/23/2013 04:05:28 am

I wondered if I would get it since I am in my early 30's. Perhaps it will serve as a more cationary tale to not lose sight of the important things

Reply
victoria bernadine link
5/23/2013 07:23:50 am

Hi Shannon - thanks for dropping by!

If you've ever questioned your life, your choices, and where you're headed, then I think you'll get it. And yeah, it can serve as a cautionary tale...or it can just be a light-hearted read at the beach. :)

Reply
momjane
5/23/2013 05:48:30 am

I am over 30, and I would love to read this book. What a great review.

Reply
victoria bernadine link
5/23/2013 07:25:22 am

Hi MomJane - thanks for stopping by.

And it was a great review, wasn't it? :)

Reply
Marilyn Slagel link
5/23/2013 12:06:10 pm

Great review! This book will be part of my summer reading.

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/23/2013 12:39:07 pm

Hi Marilyn - thanks for stopping by! I hope you'll let me know what you think of the book if you read it. :)

Reply
Mary Preston
5/23/2013 06:49:44 pm

45 is a good age to take stock. Old enough to know, but young enough to take advantage.

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/24/2013 12:57:51 am

Hi Mary - I totally agree! Thanks for dropping by! :)

Reply
Karen H in NC
5/23/2013 11:03:07 pm

Thanks for your honest review.

kareninnc at gmail dot com

Reply
victoria bernadine link
5/24/2013 12:58:35 am

Hi Karen - thanks for commenting! :)

Reply
Catherine
5/23/2013 11:53:53 pm

Oh NO...As I'm reading the blurb and excerpt, I realize that I could be Manny! Maybe I need a road trip...or a Harvey! LOL.
catherinelee100 at gmail dot com

Reply
victoria bernadine link
5/24/2013 12:59:52 am

Hi Catherine - thanks for commenting!

I think there's a little bit of Manny in all of us (and I think we could all use a Harvey!! ;D ).

Reply
Jbst
5/24/2013 04:26:18 am

Congrats on the good review and being your first published novel.

strive4bst(At) yahoo(Dot) com

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/24/2013 11:12:06 am

Hi Jbst - thank you! And thanks for taking the time to catch up on this tour! :D

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/24/2013 11:12:15 am

Hi Jbst - thank you! And thanks for taking the time to catch up on this tour! :D

Reply
Chelsea B.
5/24/2013 11:41:14 am

Wow, yes, I so can't wait to dig into this novel. It sounds lovely and heartwarming. So glad you enjoyed it!

justforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/25/2013 01:56:41 am

Hi Chelsea - thanks for dropping by! I hope you enjoy the book (please let me know what you think)! :)

Reply
Liz Warren
5/25/2013 11:10:10 pm

Morgan - I agree that you probably have to be a certain age to enjoy this book, one where you look at your life and wonder how you got here and how it doesn't match where you expected to be when you were 20 - even if (unlike Manny) you're quite satisfied with where you ended up. I'm two "episodes" in and so much of what's going on is very recognisable, even if not from personal experience.

Victoria - it sounds like everyone responds differently to the side-stories (Episode two made me most interested in what's going on with Zeke's bosses, even if I'm still curious about the other side-stories.) Did you deliberately pick a wide range of (relatively common) issues with the aim of broadening who the booky would appeal to compared to something that was more "single issue"? Or was that a bit of happy accident? And will you try to find that balance more deliberately in future books?

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
5/26/2013 03:11:58 am

Hi, Liz - thanks for stopping by!

Yes, everyone responds differently to the side stories. I've seen one reviewer who didn't like them at all, so the opinions definitely run the gamut! The short answer to your question is: it was a happy accident. Most of my other stories are "single issue" with everything and everyone revolving around the main plot and characters.

This book, however, started as a personal challenge to write a 100-page script in 30 days (good-bye ScriptFrenzy; I'm going to miss you!), and it was happily augmented by an online friend's mini-challenge ("I'll give you a list of seven actors and you give me a TV series built around them"). As I was writing, I wanted each of the characters to have a story in their own right, mainly because I loved all the actors so much, but also because some of the shows I love the most have strong multiple storylines. I picked issues based on the starting points of the characters and let things drift from there (I don't plot and plan in detail).

I never dreamed I would publish the book when I began the scripts and the novelization. It wasn't until I was finishing the first full draft (for yet another writing challenge) that I realized I had something that was (almost) good enough to justify asking people to pay for it...it just needed a few more rounds of edits. :)

As for the future...it will really depend on the story. I have a number of plot bunnies growing, and, except for the sequel to this book, they're all very much "single issue" stories.

Reply
Victoria Bernadine link
6/2/2013 03:01:23 am

Hi Morgan!

I just wanted to let your readers (who may not already) know that I've drawn the names of the winners for the gift cards. They are:

First Prize – $25 Gift Card: CC from a comment on <i>Tiffany Talks Books</i>
Runner Up #1 – $15 Gift Card: Jbst from a comment on <i>Brewing Passion</i>
Runner Up #2 – $15 Gift Card: Shannon from a comment on <i>The Write to Read</i>

All winners have contacted me and they have all received their gift cards.

Thanks again for hosting me on my Review Tour! :)

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Follow tours & improve your chance of winning.
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Try Audible and Get Two Free Audiobooks

    Paperback

    Archives

    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013

    Categories

    All
    4.5 Star Review
    A Handful Of Earth
    Amanda Armstrong
    Amazon
    Atkins
    Away From Whipplethorn
    A. W. Hartoin
    A Witch Without Magic
    Barbara Longley
    Belief
    Black Opal
    CA
    California
    Carlsbad
    Cassiel Winter Series
    Cherise Kelley
    Christina St.Clair
    Christopher A. Gray
    C L Parks
    Cozy Mystery
    Cross The Ocean
    Cruise Ships
    Dallas
    Dark Fantasy
    Dark Romance
    Dead Wrong
    Debut Novel
    Dina Rae
    Dirty Trouble
    Drama
    Dynasty
    Eternal Press
    Fairies
    Fantasy
    Five Star Review
    Giveaway
    Goddess Tours
    Goodreads
    Gregory Delaurentis
    Halo Of The Damned
    Harlequin
    Hawk Mackinney
    Hidden Sugars
    Holly Bush
    Horror
    Imajinn
    Indiana
    J.M. Griffin
    Kate Pierce
    Killer At Large
    Kiss The Enemy
    Larissa Walk
    Lauren Clark
    Linda Merlino
    Lisbeth Foye
    Liz Crowe
    Loni Lynne
    Losing Weight
    Low Carb
    Low Fat
    Maggi Andersen
    Medicine Man 1
    Mertianna Georgia
    Miracle
    Mystical
    Noelle Adams
    Obesity
    Paranormal
    Paranormal Romance
    Paranormal Suspense
    Patricia Grasso
    Perfect
    Randy Anderson
    Rayne Hall
    Redemption
    Romance
    R.T. Wolfe
    San Diego
    Soul Sucker
    Stephanie Alexander
    Stephanie Burkhart
    Storm Dancer Excerpt
    Strong Female
    Supernatural
    Suspense
    Syn In The City
    Tallulah Grace
    Ten Yen True
    The Biggest Loser
    The Difference A Day Makes
    Timeless Trilogy
    Tina Leonard
    Traveling
    T.T. Escurel
    Vegas
    Victoria Bernadine
    Way Of Hearts Saga
    Why Sugar Is More Dangerous Than Fat
    William Auch
    Witch
    With Murderous Intent
    Women's Fiction
    Wounded Hearts
    Young Adult

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.