All About Eva [Paperback]

Deidre Berry (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2010

When You've Had Everything, What's Next?

A wealthy boyfriend, designer clothes, exotic vacations, and a Central Park penthouse-these are a few of Eva Cantrell's favorite things. But when her sugar daddy turns out to be an investor swindler and goes on the run, he leaves an unsuspecting Eva without a couture bag to her name.

With the gravy train permanently derailed, suddenly nobody is who Eva thought they were. Her socialite best friend has become her worst enemy, and her new attorney is an all-out hunk who makes it difficult to keep their relationship strictly professional. And with her return to her old south side Chicago neighborhood, Eva's also got her hands full dealing with her always out-there family of dreamers, divas, and straight-up scammers. Now Eva has one last chance to face the past, get a life that's truly hers, and find out if the best things in life really are free.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Living a VIP lifestyle on someone else's dime leads to eye-popping changes for a former New York beauty editor in Berry's hilarious riches-to-rags-and-redemption saga (after The Next Best Thing). Fashionista Eva Cantrell loves being spoiled rotten by investment banker Donovan J. Dorsey, but a fateful opportunity to revise her thinking occurs when Donovan vanishes after being accused of running a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme. Eva returns to Manhattan from a would-be glamorous Swiss vacation to discover Donovan's mother has sold her possessions, the airline has lost eight of her Vuitton bags, and she's been mass defriended on Facebook. Donovan's shady lawyer offers refuge while her friends Kyle and Tameka try to get her back on her feet, but ultimately Eva realizes she must rescue herself. Eva's juicy journey to self-enlightenment amounts to another fine outing for Berry. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Eva Cantrell thinks she is right where she wants to be, living a luxurious life in New York, when suddenly her world comes crashing down. The poor girl from the projects of Chicago makes it as a magazine editor, then gets swept off her feet by Wall Street wonderkind Donovan Dorsey. She moves in with him, and devotes herself to African American high society, enjoying the jet-setting vacations and all the partying until Donovan deserts her in Switzerland with no money. When she gets back to New York, Eva finds out that he is a wanted man. It seems that instead of making money the old-fashioned way, he is following in the footsteps of Bernie Madoff. Eva quickly learns who her true friends are and tries to put her life back together, hoping to eventually find genuine love and happiness. A must-read from Berry that will keep readers entertained to the last page. --Patty Engelmann

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 294 pages
• Publisher: Dafina; 1st edition (March 30, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758238347
• ISBN-13: 978-0758238344
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #737,645 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What About Eve? 3.5, April 6, 2010

By 

Angelia Menchan "acvermen.blogspot.com" (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: All About Eva (Paperback)

Eva Cantrell meets Donovan J. Dorsey by chance. She is out with her friend and is introduced to him and immediately she is taken in by him. He is handsome, educated and, most importantly, paid. Within a short period of time, Eva discovers that Donovan has no problem sharing his wealth, especially sharing it with her. Eva becomes used to the good life and for a couple of years she lives in the lap of pampered luxury. However, when it is discovered that Donovan may be on the left side of the law, the party ends and Eva ends back up on the south side of Chicago. All About Eva by Deidre Berry tells the story of Eva's rise and fall and her eventual growth.

All About Eva is a page-turner that is filled with details about the high life and the low life. It also shows how easily life can change and that while it is good to be taken care of, one must know how to take care of one's self. I recommend this novel to all who love drama-filled, contemporary storytelling.

The book was provided by the publisher for review purposes.

Angelia Menchan
APOOO BookClub

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What Goes Up Must Come Down, August 20, 2010

By 

Ms Toni "Readinista Extraordinaire" (Midwest - USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: All About Eva (Paperback)

Eva Cantrell goes from zero to sixty in a few seconds flat when the Midwest chick turned New Yorker meets eligible and rich bachelor Donovan Dorsey. And so begins their world wind relationship. Eva is whined, dined and quickly becomes accustomed to the finer things in life, a big contrast from her humble upbringing in Chicago . But Eva goes from sixty to zero in the matter of seconds when her world comes crashing down around her after it's discovered that Donovan, unknown to her, has been stealing from his clients. Rich and famous one day, broke and shameless the next, does Eva have what it takes to survive?

Cute, witty and entertaining, I truly enjoyed "All About Eva." Deidre Berry's sense of humor and writing style were both refreshing and welcomed. "All About Eva" is a quick and easy read that I can and will easily recommend to others. Now, I gotta backtrack and get her debut novel, "The Next Best Thing." Four stars...[...]!

OOSA BOTM

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From Rags to Riches, August 1, 2010

By 

OOSA Online Book Club "O.O.S.A. Gets It Read!" (World Wide Web, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: All About Eva (Paperback)

A renowned party girl, for Eva, the price was always right. No more checking sales tags, as she popped the most expensive bottles, coutoured it up, and could get into any club she wanted. She was an official `it' girl and didn't mind living her new fairy-tale lifestyle out in the newspapers.

Well, that was until Donovan Dorsey, the love of her life, decided to dine and dash with half of New York's elite and not so elite nest eggs. Broke, busted and holding the proverbial bag, Eva learns that she is homeless, penniless and quite possibly a co-conspirator. When she turns to her so-called friends for moral support, she learns the hard way that the word was used too freely and is forced to start over again from the bottom.

Reduced to the off the rack crowd, Eva packs it up and heads home to the Windy City. Unfortunately, Alzheimer's has rendered her a perfect stranger to Mama Nita, her grandmother. Though she's in need of her love and strength, she's able to connect with her comical family and discovers that family, despite their flaws, is always good for the soul. When Donovan is found, Eva's life is flipped upside down again. It's a choice between quality over quantity. Which will she choose?

`All About Eva' is a crafty, funny and inspiring read. I really loved the story from start to finish. Deidre Berry has created unique characters that you get to watch blossom through the pages. A few editing issues (Hey, I live in Chicago!), but not enough to detract from the story. I would recommend this book to all!

Reviewed by: Crystal
4.5