SHOPAHOLIC TO THE RESCUE - Sophie Kinsella
Shopaholic Series, Book 8
Dial Press Hardcover
ISBN-13: 978-0-8129-9824-5
November 2015
Chick Lit Fiction

Los Angeles, California to Las Vegas, Nevada - Present Day

We last left Becky Brandon, (nee Bloomwood) in Hollywood where her husband Luke's PR firm represents a famous actress.  Not to be outdone by Luke, Becky ends up as a hair dresser for the rich and famous, in SHOPAHOLIC TO THE STARS (April 2014).  Now, Becky has left the red carpet behind to search for her father, Graham Bloomwood, who has disappeared on a quest to rectify an old wrong.  Graham is on his way to Las Vegas, Nevada, and he's taken Lord Tarquin along with him, and they're both accompanied by Bryce, a man Becky and Suze cannot trust.  Suze is Becky's best friend; Tarquin is Suze's husband, and as far as they're both concerned, Bryce is a shyster!  Worse, Graham didn't share anything with his wife, Jane (Becky's mother).  He just left abruptly, leaving everyone to worry and Becky to take it upon herself to rescue her dad.

Luke jumps in to help and rents an RV, and now, this diverse set of characters includes Luke, Becky and their three year old daughter, Minnie; Jane, and her best friend, Janice; Suze; and Alicia Merrell, an old nemesis of Becky's and Suze's. (Who, in Becky's opinion, is now trying to worm her way into the position as Suze's new best friend!)  They're attempting to follow Graham's trail with the help of an old map Becky found from the 1972 trek her dad took down the back roads to Las Vegas with his three friends.

Hi-jinx and laughs abound in this hilarious story!  Along the route to Las Vegas, Becky and friends run into many, many stumbling blocks, and pick up a few more friends:  Becky's designer friend, Danny, and Luke's mother, Elinor.  Determined to find her father and learn the reasons for his deception, Becky is beside herself with worry about her dad as well her situation with Suze.  She is sure that Alicia is up to no good, but while Alicia cozies up to Suze, her friend remains distant and won't speak to Becky long enough for her to find out what the problem is, which leaves Becky more than depressed.  There seems to be an invisible wall between Suze and Becky, all thanks to Alicia.  Becky confides via email with old friend, Derek Smeath in the UK, and, for the first time in her life, she is not in the mood to shop!

Can Becky save her parent's marriage?  Jane is worried to the max thinking that Graham is off to see another woman, while Becky is sure he's only trying to help a friend.  SHOPAHOLIC TO THE RESCUE is a fun ride with bumps, roadblocks and surprises along the way as Becky and company search for Graham.

The eighth book in the Shopaholic Series , SHOPAHOLIC TO THE RESCUE stands alone, but I advise reading at least the previous book, (see above) to catch up.  I have missed a couple of these novels, so I was a bit confused here and there with the long list of characters and the who's and why's of the story.  See the author's website at
www.sophiekinsella.co.uk for a list of all the books.

A great new edition to the series, SHOPAHOLIC TO THE RESCUE is lots of fun and a wonderful story!

Diana Risso