Ain't She Sweet by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

I've had mixed results with Susan Elizabeth Phillips. On one hand, I think she has a unique voice, and unlike many romance writers, she isn't afraid to write about heroines who are less than perfect. On the other hand, I've found her books uneven, and sometimes I find her books lacking when it comes to the romance. Still, I appreciate a romance writer who isn't writing cookie cutter books.

Ain't She Sweet by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
(2004, Contemporary) 6/28/08
Grade: 4

Back in high school, Sugar Beth was the queen of Parrish, Mississippi. She and her friends ruled the school. Now, Sugar Beth is back, but her life hasn’t turned out the way she wanted. Her only hope is to find a valuable painting left to her by her aunt... but she didn’t count on Colin Byrne living next door, the teacher whose life she’d ruined all those years ago.

As usual, SEP’s writing is smooth and easy to read - I finished this one in just a few hours. And it was refreshing to read about a heroine who was far from perfect. (Of course, she had a saintly reason for needing money, but I guess that’s inevitable in a romance.) However, I didn’t find the romance as compelling as Sugar Beth’s story. Although Colin was an interesting character, as the out-of-place British author who revels in his designer clothes, I got a little bored with their relationship, especially in the last third of the book. The story definitely fizzled out in the last section. I was more interested in the other characters in the town, particularly the troubled marriage between Winnie, Sugar Beth’s half sister, and Ryan, her ex-boyfriend. But overall, I found Sugar Beth a memorable and unique character, and so I had to give it a slightly higher grade based on that alone.

I don't seem to be a typical SEP fan when it comes to the books I like and don't like. I find her Chicago Stars books mostly forgettable - probably because I loathe football and would rather stick pins in my eyes than read about it. However, I enjoy her unconventional heroines, which seem to offend some of her more diehard fans!