Laura Rider's Masterpiece Audiobook

" Adult fiction. A woman obsessed is a dangerous thing, apparently. I'm not sure what to think about this book, actually--it's pretty strange. "

" Such a boring book! I had to force myself to finish it, despite it being pleasantly short. I just couldn't relate to the characters or the story; a real disappointment! "

" I'll just say this: not her best, at all. Hard to believe this was written by the author of a Map of the World. "

" Couldn't stick with this one, either. She called too much attention to her writing (which is very good) by being a little too clever. But still, I want the story more than anything, and at times it was too deeply buried. "

" This book is very different from past books by Jane Hamilton; although it did not grab me like "Map of the World" or Book of Ruth", it is witty, and sometimes a little bizarre. Laura Rider decides she wants to write a romance novel, although she is not much of a reader, and has never written anything before. She has a theory of what women want, not just in their romance books, but from men; they want men who are physically very masculine, but have the emotional makeup of women (nurturing, caring, thoughtful, et.). To test her theory, and to give her material for her book, she begins to attempt to manipulate her husband, and a woman she greatly admires, into a romance. Laura seemingly has little insight into what repercussions this could have, is sometimes a little surprised, but mostly oblivious, to how her ploys affect others. This book was entertaining, although Laura is sometimes very annoying. "

" Since I frequently drive across Wisconsin and listen to Wisconsin Public Radio as I do, I particularly enjoyed the Jenna Faroli character. "

" Don't bother. It's wacky but not in a fun way...read it for my book club. Otherwise it'd be in the trash. "

" Listened to this on a road trip. It kept me interested, but I can't say I'd be sure to pass it on. Might be more intriguing for someone further along in their life and marriage than I. "

" I was more excited about this book reading the summary than I was when I had finished the book. "

" An interesting read about a failing marriage and the attempts of saving that marriage. "

" I was enjoying the quirky humor in this book for the first half and then it turned more spoofy. Jane Hamilton can really spin a story though. "

" I've got no problem with Hamilton's writing style and I love that she's a famous Wisconsin author who lives down the road from me. This book is lighter and smaller than her previous ones, but I found it unbelievable and I didn't care much about the wacky characters. 2.75 stars "

" It was just ok. I thought it was slow to start but got better. "

" Why did I read this??? Map of the World and Book of Ruth were such depressing stories and although this was billed as a comedic farce, it was pretty depressing too. Give up sex at 40 something because you are just tired of it??? Please! "

" This book kept my interest and the characters were very multi-faceted, but it's a really wacky story and kind of disturbing in an insightful way -- if that makes sense. "

" odd for Hamilton. I was involved enough to read it straight through,but it left me sad. "

" I can't even comment on this book - until you have read it - but I wills say that the three books I read last week - this, Home Safe and The Wednesday Sisters all had to do with reading and writing - now I think we should all get together to write - oh my goodness "

" Disappointing - loved her earlier books "

" Marketed as a light read but it is a rather dark take on the relationship of writers and readers and the intrigue of "authority." "

" This book held my interest enough to finish it, but it was a letdown in the end. I don't think I really got the point-if it even had one. "

" Very unusual novel about a woman who sets her husband up with another man so she can write a story about it. "

" Slow start, but picked up in the middle "

" Quirky little story. Laugh-out-loud at times. Very different from her other novels. "

" I usually love Jane Hamilton but for some reason I couldn't really get into this book. "

" Jane Hamilton's books have always rung true and been well written. It took me more than half this book to get "into it", but I kept going. The plot is original, with e-mails defining the romance between Jenna and Charlie. Some pretty dysfunctional marriages. "

" Slight but fun romp in the hay. Hamilton has a deft control of her light prose here, though the characters do not get too much in the way of depth or development. "

" Hmmm....this book is OK-minus. Starts out grabbing interest and by the midway mark becomes a chore to read and finish. The end is a total disappointment. I have not read any of Hamilton's other books, and I'm not sure I will. "

" Not as good as Book of Ruth. Language, sexual content, even made to be funny was too much for many of my friends. It felt too much like a TV sitcom with pathos, and i don't go crazy for TV sitcoms. "

" Ummmm. Really not like i thought it would be. I really did not like the concept at all. Gave me a bad feeling. Just a very weird book. Glad it was short. "

" This is not Jane Hamilton's masterpiece, that's for sure. The only word for it is silly. "

" After three or four pages, I was ready to abandon this book. Then the humor and good writing drew me in and it was full steam ahead until what I felt was a weak ending. "

" Odd book. Not sure if I liked it or not. Well-written, but I didn't really like any of the characters, except Laura's poor naive husband. "

" Crazy literary romp. What happens when a "wannabe" writer indulges herself in an e-mail relationship she encourages between her heroine and the author's own husband? "

" An interesting read about a failing marriage and the attempts of saving that marriage. "

" Listened to this on a road trip. It kept me interested, but I can't say I'd be sure to pass it on. Might be more intriguing for someone further along in their life and marriage than I. "

" This book was recommended on one of NPR's summer reading lists which I have had some good luck with in the past. This book; however, was dissapointing. It didn't go anywhere and was not interesting. When I finished it I though "what was the point of that." Not recommended. "

" I grabbed this book at the library because I enjoyed a couple of her other books, but it was awful. Ridiculous and stupid. A waste of time to read. "