Made in Manhattan: The dazzling new opposites-attract rom-com from author of The Prenup! by Lauren LayneMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Not going to lie, I bloody loved this, even though several people who's opinions I value have rated it meh.
Violet Townsend is a wealthy twenty-seven year old orphan living in Upper East Side Manhattan, acting as an unpaid gopher/companion to Edith, CEO of Rhodes International, who is also the closest thing to family Violet has left in this world. Violet is the epitome of the wealthy woman who doesn't need to work (think Gossip Girl or Charlotte from Sex and The City).
Edith has just discovered that her son, who recently died from an overdose, had an illegitimate son called Cain, who is living in Louisiana. As her only living relative, Edith wants to pass on the CEO role of Rhodes International to her grandson Cain, but his manners and appearance are more suited to a bar-room brawl than the rarefied atmosphere of a Manhattan board room.
Very much against his will, Violet agrees to perform a make-over on Cain, changing his wardrobe and his personality to fit the role of CEO. Of course the process changes Violet just as much as it changes Cain, she realises that she has been sub-consciously (or even consciously) people-pleasing ever since her parents died when she was a child. Her 'romance' with another Upper East Side inhabitant, Keith, who happens to also be on the board of Rhodes International, is pleasant and dependable, they know the same people and visit the same galleries, but Violet comes to realise that Keith has no idea about her favourite food or music. Whereas, Cain may have hill-billy clothes and a potty-mouth, but he instantly warms to her toy dog, loves the same kind of music and creates a spark of electricity strong enough to light up the Empire State Building.
Everyone bills this as a remake of My Fair Lady (or Pygmalionif you are being traditional), I can't say I liked that film/book very much. I'd say it's more like a mash-up with She's All That.
Anyway, it has all the components of a classic Lauren Layne romance and I loved it.
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