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‘Shopaholic ties the knot’ is the third installment in Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic series, written about Becky Bloomwood and her adventures in how she survives in her financial world. Firstly, at the end of the previous Shopahloic book Becky’s best friend, Suze, has her wedding. Becky is shocked when she catches Suze’s bouquet and finds a marriage proposal from Luke in it, this is where this book starts off.
The book opens with Becky living with her boyfriend Luke in Manhattan where he has finally found her suited career as a personal shopper at Barneys and is happily helping her best friend Suze plan her wedding. A dilemma verging on narrative slapstick arises quickly. Becky’s mum, who has been waiting for this day since the day Becky was born, begins to plan an outdoor ceremony in their back garden in England, while the control freak mother-in-law offers to splash out for a posh, glamorous wedding in New York’s Plaza Hotel.
What’s a girl to do? Well, according to “The Realistic Bride,” a resource Becky consults for help, “No matter how insurmountable the problem seems, there will always be a solution! So don’t worry. ” And that advice would work Just fine if the problem were something small, like a shortage on glitter for the bridal shower favours. Becky is torn between the two weddings but Becky has to attend two weddings, on the same day, in two different countries! Wait until you read the resolution!
There isn’t much new ground covered in Shopaholic Ties the Knot, as Becky fails to grow up, show much intelligence or make any admirable decisions. As with the other two books, the reader can only watch helplessly as Becky tries her best to ruin her own life. And, even more predictably, Becky gets saved in the end without really having to pay for the stupidity she displays throughout the book. This isn’t a deep book but their foibles and faults are incredibly humorous.
The Joy of the book, therefore, does not come from the realistic characters or the in-depth plot. The Joy comes from the pure fluff factor. This book is Just fun to read. Beckys life is one of shopping, fashion, and expensive dinners, and it’s enjoyable to get a glimpse of that lifestyle. The characters are fun and entertaining (if not wholly believable) and the reader enjoys the time she spends with them. Shopaholic Ties the Knot is a great escape for those of us going through the often taxing or depressing issues of life.
Although spending a few hundred pages with Becky Bloomwood won’t give you any insights into life, it will at least bring a smile to your face. All in all, the book is a laugh-out-loud read that will leave you begging for more. Lovingly funny but amazingly disastrous, a book no author could be taken seriously for; even the true author uses a pen name! Nonetheless, you yourself won’t be able to resist the expense of the next installation – ‘Shopaholic and Sister’.