Book Review: There Are No Men

     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 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?




   

     Have you ever felt like dating and trying to find a man is complicated? Try being thirty-something, freshly divorced, and infertile. 

     Claire is experiencing just this and is having a hard enough time trying to figure out what she is looking for, let alone remembering how to date all over again. She begins navigating the online dating world and finds herself with not many good options but lots of hilarious stories. To ease the pain of unsuccessful dating, she takes to going out with girlfriends and drinking, a lot, and spending time with her "baby", a Dachshund name Dixie. 

     She finds herself in crazy situations constantly and even accidentally flashes her new neighbor, Brandon, a handsome young guy who just moved in across the street (we'll call that the unfortunate bathrobe incident). Turns out Brandon has written an intriguing book and wants the publishing company Claire works at to take a look at it. Too bad for her she won't be able to move past that embarrassing incident any time soon...

     Just when she feels like she has enough to worry about between hot Brandon and her online dating options, the IT guy, Justin, at her work starts flirting with her and asking for a date. Claire can't even think about being with either one of these men, however, because she knows they will one day want children and that's just something she can't give them after having to have a hysterectomy. Suddenly, another man piques her interest and he seems like the perfect fit- he's a doctor, he's older, and he doesn't want kids. Claire had felt like she didn't have any men, now she has too many! Now if only she could decide who she wants. 

     This book was light, fun, and had just enough suspense to it that it always kept me wondering. I felt like Claire was totally relatable and even though she made some mistakes, I was still rooting for her to find Mr. Right. The only thing that I was a little disappointed about this book was the ending. There was so much man drama in this story and it was a constant battle between who Claire was going to choose. Something would happen with one and I would think she was going to choose him, but then something else would happen and I would pick someone else. Things are finally starting to make sense and then... it just ends. It does make me feel better knowing this was the first book in the series and I can't wait to read about the rest of Claire's journey. 

     Overall, this book was a great addition to Women's Fiction. The main character is witty and for the most part likable, even though she was at times too emotional and chose to do things that made me want to shake her (if the heels are so high you can't walk when you're sober, maybe don't keep wearing them when you're drunk) but in the end I enjoyed her journey and was happy with what she chose. Can't wait for Carol Maloney Scott's next book!



-Busy Brunette