Customer Reviews

Alphabet Weekends: Love on the Road from A to Z

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Elizabeth Noble's "Alphabet Weekends: Love on the Road from A to Z" centered primarily on the relationship of Natalie and Tom, both childhood friends who were also best friends. When Natalie was dumped by her boyfriend, Tom decided that they would do an activity every weekend based on an alphabet - starting with A and ending with Z. Tom thought that they could be more than "just friends" and decided that this "game" would help to distract Natalie from her breakup and at the same time proved to her that he could be a potential boyfriend. At the same time, Tom's sister-in-law, Lucy was attracted to her best friend's husband and might consider having an affair. In addition to all this, Natalie's parents, Anna and Nicholas, were also having problems of their own.

This was an exceptional confusing novel for me because the author jumped back and forth with these six characters - Natalie, Tom, Lucy, Patrick, Anna and Tom. She gave all six of these characters a "first person" pespective and it became even more confusing. If you are able to flip through this novel, you'll see the headings "Natalie and Tom", "Natalie and Anna", and so on. Not to mention, there were also so many secondary characters in this book. When I first read the premise for this book - which gave the impression that it was all about Natalie and Tom's relationship, I thought it sounded promising. If the author had concentrately mostly on them, this would have been a much better book. As a reader, I was never able to really get into their storyline and was never engaged. The author was never able to convince me of their relationship and it was more of just one activity after another. I had high hopes for this book but was unfortunately, greatly disappointed.

I rarely find a book that I can't put down, but I can't seem to force myself to pick this one back up! It is extremely confusing to read and the writing is done in a way that you never know who is "talking". I haven't read this author before and I highly doubt that I will again. The story lines are too fractured and scattered. Leave this one on the shelf.

This was such a disappointing book from Elizabeth Noble. She has been one of my favorite authors for years. I've eagerly awaited each of her new novels. This story-line was weak, stretched beyond belief, & actually very silly. The characters were not as interesting as Noble's previous novels. The characters of e Natalie's father & mother was well-drawn, but the author failed to develop them with any great depth. The parents were much more interesting than Tom & Natalie & their escapades. It seems like a "hasty-write" or a "potboiler" to me--maybe the author was too overwhelmed by her upcoming move to NYC to do justice to this book. Completely forgettable!

I agree that this book is a great weekend read. While the primary characters are Natalie and Tom, they are related to the parties in the other storylines. This book was entertaining and somewhat thought-provoking. I thoroughly enjoyed the main story, as well as the subplots in this novel. While mainly a guilty pleasure, this novel did remind me that life goes on and that we all approach change in our own way.

I can't honestly remember if I've ever read another novel by EN - but if they are all as generic as this I doubt if I'd remember. The 'hook' is that Natalie is dumped by her bf, and her best friend Tom (who really fancies her) arranges for them to go on a series of dates according to each letter of the alphabet. To me this sounds frankly like something that was dreamed up in a writing class and would happen on Planet Earth - er never ... Who on earth are these woman who have single, straight, well off, incredibly nice male friends to fall back on in their mid-thirties? Tom is the sort of man who exists nowhere outside of a female novelist's imagination but I was prepared to suspend disbelief though disappointed that I could see exactly where the novel was heading.

The alphabet theme doesn't really work and soon runs out of steam. I never really accepted that Natalie really had developed romantic feelings for Tom - in reality of course she would have gone back to her sexy nasty ex as soon as he raised a finger - and found their relationship boring and straight out of 'Chicklit 101'. Ironically the other characters - Anna and Lucy - whose lives were controlled by real life twists of fate rather than a silly theme dreamed up by the novelist - were far more interesting characters. Lucy in particular was far more intriguing than Natalie and I wish the novel had her as a central character.

I can't believe so many people felt this book was confusing. There are title pages to explain which characters you are reading about. I thought this book was just pure escape fun. I don't expect deep reads when I pick up a book like this. If you want something heavier read Three Cups of Tea or The Book Thief.

If you want a fast paced,cute love story this is your book.

I just finished Alphabet Weekends and it was one of those books i liked so much that i didnt want to stop reading, but didn't want to finish it either so it wouldnt end. I just really loved Tom and was so happy that Natalie was finally falling for him. I did think the end could have been a bit more romantic, instead of just some conversations about them being in love. Though, I guess the author was trying to show that real love can be rational and not just the kind you see in movies. I did not like the Lucy, Alec, Patrick story line one bit. It kept making me mad and sad and that ending was even more sad. Though, in regards to those characters, Im not sure what would have made me happy,

At the beginning of the book, it is very easy to get confused. But after a while you understand the main characters and get along with the story. Overall alphabet weekends is a fun read and you will be glad that you read it.

I am more than half- way through this totally delightful, funny, yet poignant novel. I am shocked that women are confused by the characters. This is not difficult reading. It is light chic lit. I would think eighth graders could easlily keep track of the well drawn characters (though the content is not appropriate for that age group). If you are of average intelligence you should have NO trouble reading this book. Natalie and Tom are so cute and clever with each other, even though Natalie has not yet realized that they are so well suited. I love receiving history of what happened to each character prior to the current story line, (from the author), discovering what has brought each character to the place where they are now. This is the kind of novel to read when you want to get lost in a book. Nothing else is getting done around my house today. All I want to do is read! Don't let those who are clearly not the sharpest readers, sway you away from buying and reading this lovely, simply fun book.

I am totally loving this book. It's the right combination of fluffy love story and serious plot line. The characters are very likable and relatable. I would definitely recommend this one.