The Happy Endings Book Club by Jane Tara

The Basics:
The Happy Endings Book Club by Jane Tara
Momentum Books
Romance
Published December 1, 2013
Amazon.ca Kobo.com

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Blurb:

This Christmas, the women of the Happy Endings Book Club are about to uncover a world of love and magic as they discover how to have their own happy ending … or beginning, as they're often the same thing.

Once a month, seven very different women come together to discuss books. They all love a happy ending, but have lost sight of how to get their own. Paige misses glimpsing the magic in the world. Sadie doesn't see the beauty inside people. Amanda wonders what she ever saw in her ex husband. Tilda literally can't see herself. Michi can't bear looking at her family, while Clementine is blind to what's right in front of her. And Eva looks for romance in all the wrong places.

But things are about to change ...

Meet the women of the Happy Endings Book Club as they celebrate Christmas, and themselves, in London, Paris, Vienna, New York, Sydney … and in love.

Why I picked up this book:

A book about a book club called the Happy Endings Book Club?  That's my club!  Or it should be. I need a happy ending!!

My thoughts:

This was a sweet, startling efficient book. It's basically a collection of stories featuring different women achieving their own happy ending. There's women in all different stages of life here, with very different romantic and family backgrounds.

What I found most incredible about this book was how quickly each story was communicated, but always in such a way that it tugged on my heart strings. I never felt the tale of romance was rushed, I was always satisfied by it.  I did shed a few tears during Eva's story, it was a direct emotional bullseye, which was pretty incredible given that it only occupied thirteen pages of the book. Excellent writing, smart story-telling. I was really entertained and impressed by how much was packed into each chapter.

There's a thread of the paranormal or magical weaving throughout the story. I did find it a little strange in that some of the stories feature a fantastical element and others don't. It was a bit jarring for me to move from a less fantastical tale to a more fantastical one. I think if there'd been a more even distribution across the book, it would have been less strange.

The other thing that kind of irked me was that though the book club connects everyone together, it was really only a reference point. I kind of wanted books with happy endings to feature more prominently. Still, this was definitely a book store that I could appreciate, and a book club I would *love* to participate in.

The Bottom Line:

Pick this one up. It's a sweet collection of generally happy, Christmas-time stories. It makes some interesting points about women, love, families and I think it's well worth a read.

4 stars
For fans of contemporary romance, the paranormal/fantastical, happy endings