In Fashion by Jody KlaireIn Fashion by Jody Klaire is a fabulous opposites attract, celebrity romance between a girl next door and one of the best ice queens I’ve seen in all of 2018.

Darcy McGregor might not be a supermodel anymore, but she uses everything she learned from her experience to transform people on her makeover reality show, The Style Surgeon. While Darcy can see room for improvement no matter where she looks, she’s proud of everything about herself—her success, that she’s a single mother, and that she’s a gigantic bitch (seriously, she calls herself a bitch pretty regularly).

Kate Bonvilston’s life could be better. She works as a security guard at a pencil factory in Cardiff and is lonely since her her best friend and girlfriend ran off together. Her mum’s favourite show is The Style Surgeon, and even though Kate can’t stand it, she shrugs her shoulders and rolls with the punches when her mum signs her up to be on the show. An all-expenses-paid trip to London isn’t bad and it gets her away from the lovebirds and their upcoming wedding.

Darcy is used to everyone bending to her icy will, so Kate’s willingness to stand up to her is entirely new. So is her attraction to the surprisingly beautiful, warm and funny woman. Kate might be the one getting the makeover, but Darcy soon finds herself changing too and in ways that aren’t just on the outside.

The Characters

I hated Darcy at first and I almost put the book down because I couldn’t stand her so much. I’m so glad I stuck with it, though, because once she starts interacting with Kate, this book is magic. Darcy is a total ice queen, keeping everyone at bay including the people who are or should be closest to her. She has the biggest arc in the story and Klaire does a fabulous job with it, getting us to care about Darcy despite how unlikeable she is, so that we’re invested in her transformation.

Kate is SO easy to like. Despite having had a pretty rough go at love and a strained relationship with her mum, she’s still totally lovely and someone I’d want to spend time with. It’s no wonder that Darcy can’t help falling for her, and I loved seeing how Kate stood her ground with Darcy every time it mattered.

There are a bunch of side characters that we see a lot of, including Darcy’s daughter, Darcy’s ex and her ex’s new wife, and the producer for The Style Surgeon, as well as Kate’s family. They all add something important to the story and help us gain a deeper understanding of Kate and Darcy.

The Writing Style

So, like I said, it was a bit hard for me to get into and then I had the hardest time putting this one down! I definitely lost sleep because I kept saying “one more chapter” when it was way past my bedtime.

Klaire is a master at developing chemistry out of antagonism and it worked so well and was a huge part of what hooked me. She also wrote one of the more poignant scenes I’ve read in a very long time between Darcy and her ex, Zoe, which has stuck with me since I finished reading In Fashion.

The Pros

Everything! Great characters plus wonderful writing? You can’t go wrong with this one.

The Cons

None for me.

taras favourite lesbian booksThe Conclusion

In Fashion is such an excellent book. It’s the first I’ve read by Jody Klaire and I’ll definitely keep an eye out for more romance from her in the future. If you love thawing ice queens, opposites attract pairings, or rich girl/poor girl romances, you’ll want to get this one right away!

Excerpt from In Fashion by Jody Klaire

Darcy cleared her throat and turned to the main camera, the red light flicked on, and Marge gave her a thumbs up. “This is where we find your lines. Every body has its form, its uniqueness, its beauty.” She flashed a smile, hoping her lip wasn’t wobbling as much as it felt. “Stripping Kate to the bare skin shows where our surgery is needed.”

Susannah held up her phone—Marge always did it to signal a viewer question or comment.

“Read it out,” Darcy said, sounding like a doting mother. Odd.

Susannah blushed then swallowed. “Elaine from Barnstable would like to know how Kate has the guts to strip on TV.” She shrugged. “Sounded like a good question.”

“It is.” Darcy beamed at her. Nice to see more confidence. “It is exposing. How do you feel about it, Kate?”

Kate’s eyes twinkled with another surge of cockiness. “Fine.”

She did look fine. Infuriating. In fact, she looked like she was quite used to being asked to undress. “We shall see.” She narrowed her eyes. “Strip.”

Kate’s eyebrow twitched.

Do not react. “Keep your underwear on. We’re a family show.”

Kate flashed the kind of smile that rolled up and down Darcy’s spine with a strong, slow, thump, thump, thump. “Yes, Doctor.”

Intolerable. That’s what she was. She folded her arms. “Get on with it.”

Which just made Kate cock her head and stick her shoulders back. “Are you always so demanding?”

“Are you always so slow to respond?” Didn’t sound like a good retort. Sounded…flirty. Shit.

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Bits and Bobs

  • ISBN number: 9783963240904
  • Publisher: Ylva Publishing

Jody Klaire Online

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