Customer Reviews

Crazy for Cornelia

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I love the fairy tale feel of this novel. The love story sort of reminds of Cinderella. Yes, the story of a poor man falling for a rich girl is quite banal, but the novel's irresistible charm kept me turning the pages.

The story is about Cornelia Lord, a deeply misunderstood young woman following a dream: to give Nikola Tesla, the inventor of modern electricity, his rightful place in scientific history. Her determination, however, is taken away by Tucker, Chester Lord's (Cornelia's father) right-hand man. In order to earn 30 million dollars on his thirtieth birthday, Tucker has to sweet-talk his way into the altar; he has to marry Cornelia before she turns twenty-one. But a charming new doorman named Kevin Doyle sweeps her off her feet. There are some interesting twists and turns in the novel.

The writing is wonderful; Mr. Gilson is very talented. Also, he must have done his homework -- the information in the novel is precise. My favorite character in the book is Kevin Doyle; his passion and earnestness are funny. The other characters are also great. This is a beautiful love story that will capture your heart. A cliche story? Yes, perhaps. Is it worth reading? Absolutely! I highly recommend this book.

Kevin Sebastian Doyle never wanted to enter the family business. He simply wanted to be an artist, but eating being a minor nuisance, Kevin accepted the position his Uncle Eddie obtained for him as the doorman at a posh apartment building on the corner of 65th and Fifth.

Like father like son, Kevin goes about his job as expected until he meets one of his clients, penthouse resident debutante Cornelia Lord. The media considers Cornelia to be a party going bimbo. Her father, head of an investment bank, thinks she is crazy. Her father's top aid, Yale graduate and former football star, Tucker Fisk thinks she is a nut case, but wants to marry her anyway.

Kevin meets Cornelia by saving her life. They are immediately attracted to one another, but her "cause" has prompted her father to have her committed. Only Kevin remains her sole hope for rescue. If he succeeds can true love blossom out of this fairy tale relationship?

CRAZY FOR CORNELIA is a crazy romantic romp that will leave the audience laughing at the antics of Cornelia and crew, especially her outlook at the world. The story line is entertaining, jocular, and never takes itself to the point of trying to save the universe because Cornelia would never allow that to happen. Instead, Chris Gilson shows a tremendous talent to turn a romantic fairy tale into an intelligent, offbeat, extremely humorous romp that will send readers looking for more tales by the author.

Harriet Klausner

You could look at Crazy For Cornelia as a love story or whacky romance but then you would miss the subtle detail and historical facts that set certain authors in their own realm.

The story itself is compelling but the references to Tesla's theories or even the doorman unions make every page of this book a delight. Unless the author, Chris Gilson, is a former doorman or electrical engineer, he spent a great deal of time on research.

I don't generally read novels that don't include some form of Military takeover or police shootout, but this book could send me in a whole new direction: Solid writing.

I'm looking forward to anything else Mr. Gilson writes and so should you!

It is so joyfully refreshing to be entertained and delighted by, and cheer for (!), a truly original female character. She is so wonderfully realized by the author that I just want to give Chris Gilson a big, big thank you for taking me on a fantastic trip and making all my emotions sit up and take notice. The characters and situations are unique and brilliantly crafted, the dialogue and humor are wonderful, and a good time was had by all. Thank you thank you for writing it, and for the hours of entertainment (I'm a slow reader) and delight.

This fun romantic fable is set in New York City where Cornelia Lord is a debutante with a quirky determination to right an old wrong done by her family. Kevin Doyle is the doorman of her building, but also an aspiring artist. Then there is the bad guy, Tucker Fisk, plotting to cheat the Lord family out of their fortune by marrying Cornelia.

The craftsmanship of the author is apparent. There's not a wasted word as the story flows smoothly along, capturing the reader's complete attention. I, myself, got so involved in reading it that I once went right by my stop on the subway and didn't even notice till I was way uptown. The characterizations are wonderful, even for the secondary ones. I especially loved Kevin's sister, Marne, a tomboy firefighter; Roni,a woman who drives a horse-drawn carriage in Central Park; and Cornelia's father, Chester Lord, the personification of a poor rich man.

The author's crisp clear style of writing sparkles with the electricity which is a running theme throughout the book. Cornelia is obsessed with an obscure inventor who supposedly created electricity; Kevin does neon sculpture; there's a mental hospital surrounded by electric wires where electro-shock treatment is given. And then there is Cornelia's unique ability to see electric aura's around people. Along the way, I also learned something about neon sculpture. There's humor in the book too and I found myself smiling outright at times. It's always quite visual and I kept picturing what fun it would be as a movie, especially the last madcap scene. Recommended.

I bought this book because I was in the mood for something light and witty. The description on the back cover and the catchy descriptive phrases praising it, made me take the plunge.

I was slightly disappointed when I finished it, but as the days went by I grew even more disappointed. I certainly cannot understand why the majority of readers have given it a 5-star ranking.

As I see it, these were some of the major problems:

--Lack of depth in some of the characters: Bad guys were ALL BAD, good guys ALL GOOD.

--Predictable story line.

--Full of cliches.

--I felt no sparks, no chemistry between Kevin and Corny.

However the main problem I had was that all the time I was reading it, I was haunted by the thought that the author had written the book with a "Now a Major Motion Picture" mentality. Another silly romantic comedy never measuring up to the yet unequaled "When Harry met Sally". Another "date movie" which lures so many to the theaters, while secretly knowing it's better to wait until Blockbuster Video gets it.

All that said, I read the book very quickly. Partly because it was light enough to use as an easy escape, partly because I was hoping it would turn into the intelligent, slightly-complex witty-comedy I thought I had bought. It had a great chance of doing that when Kevin joins Cornelia at her "retreat"; but well, after that it's all downhill.

Who knows? Maybe a Penny Marshall or Nora Ephron can take this, work some of their magic, and come up with something for which I won't have to wait until movie-rental night.

As soon as I read that the doorman was an artist who made neon saints, I knew I had to read this book. He's just a wonderful hero. This book is a romance although it is listed in literature and fiction. It's a terrific one and there isn't the slightest touch of the formulaic here that plagues some romance novels. A man wrote it and he did a heck of a job. This is also a very funny book in spots and you will LOL but it is more than balanced by some serious moments as well.

I have seeen this book reviewed several times, and didn't know exactly what to expect. The story is different, not a traditional romance, or a story that seems to easily fit into any one genre.

Many media reviewers called it a Cinderella story in reverse, in which a poor doorman falls for a wealthy debutante, but it is really more of a Rapunzel fairytale set in modern day Manhattan -- and a very rich fairytale with some interesting bends on the usual good and bad elements.

A 20-year-old debutante, beautiful but dysfunctional, a child of wealth and privilege, behaves so erratically that her insecure father and her too-slick-to-be-good fiance keep her like the princess Rapunzel, locked up on the 21st floor of an apartment building for seriously rich residents overlooking Central Park, held captive by a psychiatrist and a bodyguard so she won't run away and hurt herself.

Cornelia is not crazy at all. Of all her moneyed friends, she is the most sane. She is obsessed with an inventor (a real person, I checked) named Nikola Tesla, who discovered modern electricity even though Thomas Edision got the credit and financial gain. Because of a secret I will not reveal, Cornelia believes it is her duty and destiny to make things right with Nikola Tesla, who wanted to broadcast free electricity to the whole world but was shut down by the robber barons at the turn of the 20th century who had all invested in Edison. Now, 100 years later, Cornelia has devoted her life to this cause for both personal and altruistic reasons.

The only person who can see what a wonderful girl Cornelia is beneath the flaky behavior is the new doorman at her building Kevin Doyle, who is somewhat eccentric himself. He is a neon artist who has sculpted a perfect St Sebastian complete with neon arrows, but the art world is hardly ready for this. He is forced to take the doorman job, like his father and uncle before him. He resents the rich and is not impressed with what he hears of Cornelia Lord, who seems to be the girl who will always have everything, just wasting her advantages.

But when he finally meets Cornelia, he is fascinated with her, and sparks fly when he saves her from a very funny collision between a Central Park horse-drawn carraige and her father's limo.

It is difficult to describe the layers of this book, except to say that it is well-written, extremely witty, and had me going from the first chapter when Kevin starts the new job he hates and builds throughout to the most inventive story and dynamite ending I think I've seen in years.

"Don't try to classify it, just enjoy it," I saw in one review and that's the best advice I can give. I stayed up until 2 AM to finish, because you really, truly get to care about this quirky couple, and even the dithering, drinking father and driven fiance who is the boyfriend we love to hate.

The book is not for everybody--if you're looking for a genre, mainstream romance you may be disappointed because this ain't Danielle Steele! But if you're up for a wild ride with something funny or intriguing in every paragraph, it will go on your keeper shelf. I can't imagine what the author will do next, because I can't immediately think of a book to compare it to. It's a little bit Arthur, a little bit The Graduate, and I suppose a "cult" book in the same way that the YaYa Sisterhood was a cult book--but it's not like that either. I give up. Just see for yourself.

I am so grateful to my friend for recommending this book! I stayed up until 2 in the morning reading it- couldn't wait to see what happened next. I loved Cornelia and Kevin- young, smart, compassionate, promising and purposeful - - I look at doormen differently now! And I was fascinated with Cornelia's obsession with Tesla, a real- life unrecognized scientific genius - Chris Gilson writes with sensitivity, fun, magic and "electriciy" in this adventurous romantic romp- And...he put all the pieces together to come up with a perfect ending. I loved it and am telling all my friends- Chris Gilson is a find!

In the grand tradition of screwball comedies of "Bringing Up Baby" of the 1930's with Hepburn and Grant, comes the delightful novel by Chris Gilson, Crazy for Cornelia, with its main characters, Kevin Doyle and Cornelia Lord. The name "Lord" is reminiscent of Hepburn's character in her Philadelphia Story. Cornelia is also a free spirited high society debutante in today's New York's social scene on the Upper East Side. Kevin Doyle, her apartment house's doorman, becomes her "Sir Galahad" against malevolent villians in her family and friends to rescure her to a far better place and life. The reader is captivated by the writer's depiction of the main characters as they romp through hilarious and hairraising excapades. You'll stand up and cheer at the ending...what more could you want from a good read! Hollywood would do well to follow suit with this story...one just made for another silver screen frolic.