Miranda's Big Mistake by Jill Mansell

Amused, Daniel Delancey said, ‘According to Tony, everyone’s going to fall in love with you.’

‘Oh yes, and by this time next year I’ll be a supermodel, all five foot two of me.’ It wasn’t funny. Miranda quailed, imagining the hideous footage they must have of her on their beastly hidden camera. ‘Couldn’t you just do some of the filming again?’ she pleaded desperately. ‘Give me a chance to comb my hair and put on a bit of make-up?’

Not to mention a Wonderbra.

‘You shared your lunch with me. How you look isn’t important.’

Ha, thought Miranda, only a total man could think that. (from Miranda’s Big Mistake, page 51)

If you’re looking for a light, fun read for the summer, I suggest you grab a copy of Miranda’s Big Mistake. There’s no doubt that Jill Mansell’s books can be categorized as chick lit, but in my opinion, they’re among the best written books in the genre. I read Mansell’s An Offer You Can’t Refuse (read my review here) not too long ago, and I enjoyed it. But I absolutely loved Miranda’s Big Mistake.

Miranda is a junior hair stylist at the salon owned by celebrity hairdresser, Fenn Lomax, which means she runs errands for the rich and famous. On these errands, she befriends a homeless man, who’s actually a journalist in disguise. Although Danny Delancey seems interested in Miranda, she’s too busy with Greg, who just happens to have a pregnant wife. And then there is Miles, a well-known race-car driver also interested in Miranda, who’s love life is one big roller coaster throughout the book.

I found Miranda endearing from the start. She’s unlucky in love, and when she tries so hard to play it cool, it blows up in her face, hilariously of course. And I loved the secondary characters, too -- Miranda’s feisty landlady, Florence; her pregnant flatmate, Chloe; Bev, her best friend and co-worker who talks marriage and kids right away with every man she meets and wonders why she can’t get a date; Fenn, who falls in love for the first time after dating so many dull supermodels; and Danny, who gives Miranda a run for her money in the attitude department.

At nearly 500 pages, Miranda's Big Mistake was a bit long, but Mansell kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Overall, it was predictable, but there were some hilarious moments and some sad moments that I didn’t expect. A lot of the book was about romance and the dating scene, and for someone who’s been married almost 10 years, amazingly I didn’t feel out of the loop. I could relate to the characters, and the romantic scenes were cute. And I just have to love a book that makes me laugh out loud on the bus so people think I’m crazy. I definitely see myself reading more of Mansell’s work in the future.

Miranda’s Big Mistake also was reviewed by:

Savvy Verse & Wit
A Bookworm’s World
S. Krishna’s Books
Bookopolis
Wendy’s Minding Spot
Cheryl’s Book Nook
Booking Mama
Bermudaonion's Weblog
Books by TJBaff

If I missed yours, please let me know in the comments!

Disclosure:  I received a free copy of Miranda's Big Mistake from Sourcebooks for review purposes.