THERE ARE NO MEN is the debut novel of Carol Maloney Scott, a promising new addition to the romantic comedy/chick lit genre. Look for even more laugh out loud humor in 2015!
Divorced thirty-something Claire doesn’t know who’s in her dating pool — but she’s doing her best to avoid shark infested waters. Leaving her clueless and insensitive husband behind was a smart move after losing her … losing her fertility, but now she’s riding the wave of flying toupees, strange men in leather thongs and drunken nights in painfully impractical shoes. Claire desperately wanted to be a mother, but now she’ll settle for one middle aged man worthy of a second date.
After a long drought, men are flooding her shores and she’s drowning in choices. There’s Justin, the 25-year-old IT boy-genius with the GQ looks and cougar fetish, who won’t take “no” for an answer. A woman would have to be a blind, lesbian nun not to fall for him, but he reminds Claire of her wasted youth. And then the charming but mysterious Dr. Nathan appears, but he’s cheating on her with his medical mistress — a demanding cardiology practice.
To further rock her boat, Claire’s “stable” career in publishing has been tossed about by her floundering company’s launch of a new line of trendy, salacious books. Cookbooks aren’t selling these days, but erotica is flying off the shelves — and challenging Claire’s attitude about sex, work… and her tempestuous new life.
When her best friend convinces her to buddy up to the aspiring writer who just moved in across the street, Claire rejects the idea — he has already caught her in more than one embarrassing and scantily clad situation. Giving in to her friend’s nudging, she tries to ignore the details she discovers about him, including his hard rock night gig and his mesmerizing blue eyes, in the hopes his literary talents can pull her publishing house up from the bottom of the ocean.
Claire’s dilemma begs the question: Are there NO men or TOO MANY?
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OPINION OF BOOK: There were many well rounded out characters, that were individual and either endearing or despicable. I couldn’t believe some of the situations that Claire was able to get herself into. There was more than once that I actually laughed out loud reading this book. It was like hearing about the escapades of that one crazy friend that everybody knows. The story was wonderful and flowed along fabulously. It would make a great movie if you are into RomCom movies.
DO I RECOMMEND THIS BOOK: Yes, I recommend this cute Romantic Comedy book.
SPOILER SECTION (WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT): Claire is divorced from her High School sweetheart after a series of miscarriages and a subsequent hysterectomy. She is now on a mission, looking for the perfect older man who doesn’t want kids and doesn’t have any kids left at home. She wades into online dating, a singles group and even gets a hookup from her gynecologist’s nurse. Unable to be a mommy to any children of her own, Claire lives in the falling down remains of the perfect suburban home she and her ex-husband shared. She fills the hole in her heart with Dixie, a whack-job of a wiener dog and her job at a publishing company. Claire is trying her best to cope with the loss of something she believes she will never be able to attain. She is imposing impossible restrictions on her life thinking this will lead her to happiness, but it only leads her to excessive drinking in overly high-heeled shoes.
got totally engaged with the characters
Whats not to love when a dachshund is a budding main character and the means to an end.
I had not read the prior book in the series and it took a moment to connect to the main character. However, the book does stand alone. A fun read, especially as a counterbalance to studying for my Licensure exam in Mental Health! Great to see the character face her distorted beliefs on wives, mothers and how families are created.
The whole story was awesome up until the ending. I didn’t like how the book ended, just felt like something was missing.
I enjoyed this well written story. The characters were real and well developed without hitting you over the head with descriptions or back stories. (I enjoyed Claire, Justin, Brandon, and Claire’s sister.) The plot was not cookie cutter and I rooted for the main character, Claire. I liked several of her prospects while decidedly questioning some of her decision making. It kept me turning the pages and I enjoyed the ending, though I wish it wasn’t quite so abrupt. I wanted a little more.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading There Are No Men as the humor in the book had me in stitches.
Claire was a neurotic women determined to get remarried but with a very narrow criteria for any man to fit into. I almost gave up on her until she opened up to the men who were interested in dating her and shared her sterile state.
I have had first and only dates with some of these men! Most of the book is belly-laugh funny. It could benefit, however, with some tightening up.
Good summer read
I loved this funny, hopeful story about a young, divorced publisher’s HR rep and her zany efforts to find the man of her dreams. From scraping the bottom of the online dating pool to a wealth of possibilities including an office IT guy, a hot biker band lead singer and a handsome cardiologist, Claire stumbles (usually drunkenly) from disaster to disaster in her search for Mister Right, but through it all, she never loses her hope that she will find her own Happily Ever After.
This book is full of interesting characters and laughable adventures and offers a delightful weekend of entertainment for rom-com fans.
This book was mainly about what the main character wore and her getting drunk. There were some good parts but not enough to spend the time to read it.
cute fun – would be a great beach read
lol
This book was horrible. There was no character development and I found the protagonist whiny and vapid. Don’t waste your time with this!
It had a lot of bad language, not to my liking.