I NEVER FANCIED HIM ANYWAY

Author: Claudia Carroll ISBN: 9780061734779 9/2009 FICTION Publisher: AVON

Cassandra can see the future with 100% accuracy . . . for everybody except herself. Ever since Cassandra was a little girl, she's had a remarkable psychic gift. Now a successful columnist for a weekly magazine, she predicts the future with uncanny precision. And thanks to her stunning co-worker Charlene—and the latest love of Charlene's life, hot television producer Jack—Cassandra's moving up . . . to daytime TV! The trouble is, whenever Jack's around, the hapless seer's second sight goes dim—something that always seems to happen when a desirable single male is around. But despite a truly abysmal dating record, she believes Jack is the one for her . . . though Charlene might strongly disagree. Is true love or outrageous catastrophe right around the corner? Cassandra doesn't have a clue. But it seems even being able to foretell the future can't protect her from what destiny has in store . . . and sometimes fate won't allow you to look before you love.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

I NEVER FANCIED HIM ANYWAY by Claudia Carroll is the kind of book that, once read, is impossible to forget. I couldn’t put it down, and I believe others will enjoy it just as much. The words flow effortlessly, the characters so realistic I could hear them, and the situations this quirky heroine finds herself in are often laugh-out-loud funny.

Cassie has the “gift” of being able to see glimpses into other people’s lives and futures. She sees all sorts of things, some good and others bad, and even hears the details of her insights, like wire hangers rattling on a closet rod or some lovelorn sniffling in a public toilet. The view of the outside world comes right from inside Cassie’s head, so the ready is privy to the ridiculous as well as the sad. I thoroughly enjoyed this first-person style of writing, probably because Cassie is so fascinating. She turns the mundane extraordinary, and I loved hearing her somewhat irreverent thoughts, especially those involving wine, dementia, and a certain co-worker!

Twined in between Cassie’s “flashes” is a sweet love story. She and Jack take the long way to finding happiness, but their romance takes a back seat to network television, being edited to look like a half-wit and the assortment of poor dating choices those closest to Cassie make!

This story is a hoot, and I enjoyed it so much I can’t wait to see what Ms. Carroll writes next!

Kay James