THE SLEEPING BEAUTY PROPOSAL – Sarah Strohmeyer
NAL Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-451-22396-8
June 2008
Contemporary Fiction with Romantic Elements

Boston, Massachusetts – Present Day

Genie Michaels, an admissions counselor for Thoreau College, has her face figuratively slapped when her boyfriend, Hugh, proposes on national TV during a Barbara Walters interview. The fact that he didn’t propose to her is only evident later when, on the phone with him, she asks -- well, for lack of better phrasing -- "What in the hell..."? The summer is not shaping up to be a good one, to say the least. On the advice of her best friend, lawyer Patty Pugliese, Genie takes the situation by the horns and acts as if it had been she all along whom Hugh had asked to marry. A fake engagement for a fake marriage, it’ll serve him right for cheating on her in the first place!

It’s not long before things start snowballing and Genie and her mother and sister are picking out bridal and bridesmaids gowns and registering for gifts. Genie feels an enormous amount of guilt despite Patty’s encouragement that she’s owed this at least for Hugh’s wandering ways. In fact, it’s Patty who points out that if she doesn’t carry on as a bride-to-be, then she’ll only have herself to thank for leading a Sleeping Beauty lifestyle, where life stops for those who don’t take advantage of life’s pit stops and foibles.

Genie continues wedding preparations but realizes a few things along the way. Men do not make the world go around. In fact, Hugh’s startling proposal is the impetus Genie needs to kick-start her life. In her dysfunctional family where she is always compared to her perfectly married sister, Lucy, and construction entrepreneur brother, Todd, Genie has yet to find her niche. But this fake engagement may not turn out so bad after all -- she’s getting a kitchen bridal shower out of the whole deal, for Pete’s sake! But what happens when a Greek Adonis shows up and throws a wrench into the works and gets Genie’s heart pounding for something other than Kitchen Aide and Teflon?

THE SLEEPING BEAUTY PROPOSAL is an interesting twist on being jilted at the altar. Poor Genie never even made it that far, not to mention resizing, or even getting, her engagement ring! It’s easy to dislike Hugh who, we find out, has been commitment phobic throughout the majority of their relationship, yet claims he had never told Genie that he was having doubts about their relationship the entire time!

C-o-m-m-u-n-i-c-a-t-i-o-n, people! Apparently Hugh needs a huge lesson in that “C” department. Oh, trust me, kids, he’ll get his comeuppance, and it’s all there for you in Sarah Strohmeyer’s latest, THE SLEEPING BEAUTY PROPOSAL. Secondary characters include: the instigator, Patty Pugliese, best friend and practicing attorney; Lucy and Todd, Genie’s siblings; Mr. & Mrs. Michaels, Genie’s martini-loving parents; Steve, Genie’s other best friend who did her a great favor in college and took her virginity; and Nick, the sexy-hot aforementioned Greek Adonis who shows up with a wrench and uses it to twist Genie’s heart in a different direction.

With top-notch storytelling and a firsthand look at just what Genie will do to keep her chin up, THE SLEEPING BEAUTY PROPOSAL is Sarah Strohmeyer at her best. Amidst all of the dysfunctional family dynamics and Genie’s doubt about her decision to follow Patty’s advice is a warm-hearted tale that will bring tremendous amounts of laughter, but also a catch in your throat when you realize just how lonely Genie is. It’s simply good reading.

Make sure THE SLEEPING BEAUTY PROPOSAL is on your summer reading list!

Amy Cunningham