Olivia's Luck

Fans of Catherine Alliot's other novels will be pleased to find that they can add another page-turner to their growing libraries. Olivia's Luck is a combination of gentle farce, emotional heartache and some uplifting moments. Olivia (Livvy) recounts the sudden breakdown of her 10-year-old marriage and the swings and roundabouts that follow. Alliot has created a seductive cast of characters, from Livvy's 10-year-old daughter and the cockney builders to her mother-in-law and old school friends, all of whom seem realistic, with a dash of the drama queen for the fun of the story. Although--or maybe because--the novel is damning about the fate of marriages and the bad behaviour of men, the story will strike a chord with many thirtysomething women.

As with Alliot's other novels, this is a book that demands to be read in one sitting, devouring the pages alongside the chocolates. The ending is happy in a fittingly idiosyncratic way, and a fine reward for an afternoon away from real life. Ultimately, though Livvy seems to lead a "a very unusual and complicated life ... nutters and weirdos at every corner ... on intimate terms with the police...", she is an ordinary 21st-century woman trying to carve out a comfortable life for her and her daughter.

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Another Brilliant Book From Catherine - Rated
I was recommended one of Catherine's books by someone about a year ago. I was so impressed by that book that now, a year later I have read all the ones on Amazon (I'm not sure if there are more books from her out there..?). Each book has kept me on the edge of my seat and roaring with laughter at some of the humourous bits. This is the last book I'm on and I have just the last chapter left - it is no exception!!! I can't wait to find out how it ends, but I don't want to rush it as I think this is the last book from her left.
I would recommend any of her books to any females, even I would usually go for a gruesom horror but this has still appealed to me! All her books are very funny and a few have even had me shed a little tear at the end

Delightful! - Rated
One of those books that reads so easily that you finish it too fast. I loved every page and I can't wait to read all of Catherine's other books!

Thoughtful, yet so very funny! - Rated
Funny, funny, funny. Alliott's writing can swing all over the place, but when she is on, she is so very, very on. I just loved this book. Livvy's husband leaves her - and boy, does he leave her in dramatic way. Alliott's a genius at taking on some very serious issues that make you think, but using her wit and humor to craft snappy dialog and sympathetic characters. I absolutely love the builders and her mother and of course her daughter. I know this book has been out for a while, but if you haven't read it, grab an issue while you can - it's superb!

I love Alliott's style! - Rated
I have never considered myself a reader but after reading A Married Man, then Olivia's Luck, and most recently Rosie Meadows Regrets, I feel like a book worm! I love Alliot and simply cannot get enough! I wish I could pick up her books in local bookstores!

This was another hilarious novel from this talented author. - Rated
Olivia is married with a ten year old daughter named Claudia. She thinks that she has the ideal life, until her husband Johnny leaves her for a nursery teacher, at her child's school. Olivia is understandably devastated, but then, as events unfold, bringing her arrogant, if gorgeous, husband's secrets to life, Olivia actually starts to wonder if she ever really knew Johnny as well as she used to believe...

I really enjoyed this story, and Catherine Alliott was certainly on form; this is another fun, yet sensitive, novel, although Alliott has yet to produce anything that I find quite as totally brilliant as her first novel, "The Old Girl Network".