Customer Reviews

Let's Meet On Platform 8 (Red Dress Ink Novels)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

First of all, let me just say that this book has so much potential. Topics of true love and infidelity are sources for wonderful drama and plot twists, but Matthews' venture into the above themes falls a bit short.

Teri Carter trips and falls on the train platform, and yes, her dream man saves her. Of course, her dream man (Jamie) is also someone else's dream man, and Teri is crushed. This doesn't stop her from pursuing the affair and kicking her best friend (who left her cheating husband) out of her house. I found it difficult to really empathize with either character, as much of the dialogue is trite and seems forced at times. The story's ending is equally simplistic and leaves the reader hanging as to the future of the star-crossed lovers' relationship.

This makes for a fast Sunday afternoon read, but there are other Red Dress Ink titles that are far more interesting and captivating. Leave this one on the platform after reading.

Teri, our heroine, gets knocked over by Jamie (the love interest) in a mad dash for their train. Because Jamie's such a good guy the guilt gets to him and he aids her with his handkerchief to clean up the blood and pair of new stockings...and then this total package of gentlemen (complete with Scottish burr) takes it a step further by escorting Teri not only just on the train ride home, but to her door, into her house and eventually into his heart. Oh, it would be perfect, but Jamie is very married with 2 kids and mortgaged to the hilt over in suburbia. Teri finds out and is only flustered by it for a short while; they're in love, why shouldn't they be together. It's a good premise and there is some good writing, but some parts are really slow and some characters even though they have what could be exciting sub-plots going for them, remain, sadly, in 2-D. The ending is fraught with possibilities and sadness, but there were no tears to be jerked - which is a shame because there was potential there. I suppose the reason I couldn't make it over the hill from like to really-like or even love is because most of the characters had no backbone whatsoever. There was so much cheating being done and so much taking back in main and sub plots alike that I was really annoyed by it. Unlike most other stories of the chick-lit genre it wasn't easy to believe any of these characters were particular pillars of independence or strength. Sure, at the end it looks like Teri might get there eventually, the reader could probably have used that earlier on if Teri's likeability factor ever had a chance. Still, I think it's worth a lazy Sunday afternoon read because entertainment need not always be perfect.

I received this book as a trade on bookcrossing.com and all I knew about it, was that it was "chick lit," one of my favorite genres. I could see how this book would offend some people. Two people meet, one of them is married, yet they continue to see each other. I was one of those people, but I chose to read it anyway. I feel that it's important, as a reader, to separate my personal feelings from the subject, and find a good story and writing within. I am happy to say that I did.

Teri met Jamie on Platform 8 (in London) after falling down and having the insides of her briefcase scattered everywhere. As a true gentleman, he helped her up and even bought her some new stockings. Out of guilt and attraction, they shared a cab to their respective houses. He had yet to tell her that he was married, even though he knew that was something that should have been done.

They continued to see each other every morning, she getting up earlier than usual to catch the train to work. After they had the "drink after work," she discovered his marital status, and of course was crushed. They had both developed feelings for each other, and they still kept meeting every morning.

Pamela, Jamie's wife and a stay at home mom starts to notice that there is something funny going on, late nights, less attention paid to her, and decides to "fake an affair" to get Jamie back. Will her made up extra curricular love activites drive Jamie into Teri's arms, or will she get him back? Will she find something that she has been looking for in her staged affair? The ending may surprise you.

I liked that even though the book disagreed with my morals, it kept me locked into the story, and I really wanted to know what happened. Of course I was rooting for the family to stay together because the characters of Jamie and Teri could be irritating and unlikeable. But, then again, it could be my emotions talking because I didn't like how they built their relationship on a lie.

It was a little bit longer than it should have been, but it was well written, and went beyond the usual boy-meets-girl, boy-wants to-be-with-girl-even-though-boy-is-married story.

Recommended!

With this book, Carole Matthews is now on my insta-buy list! I don't know how she does it, but she makes these characters so real and poignant that you don't want the book to end. And you don't want any of them to suffer, but they do in a realistic and sympathetic way. She easily could've created the lecherous husband or the pathetic "other woman." But those characters could easily be you or me.

Will Ms. Matthews' write a follow up to this novel, especially with Teri's uh, unexpected ending?

If she does, I'll be at my local store with my copy and my wallet in hand!

Teri literally runs into Jamie on a London platform while both are rushing for a homeward bound train. Rather than leave her in a crumpled heap, Jamie helps her clean her knee, replaces her pantyhose, and sees her home. Soon, the two are looking forward to meeting on the train in and out of work, and even stop off for a cocktail. Within weeks, they are smitten. The only problem is that Jamie has a wife and two kids waiting for him at home, and his wife is suspicious about his sudden late nights and early meetings.

While things are not rosy, he does want to do anything to jeopardize his marriage, so he and Teri refrain from a physical relationship. When his wife Pamela gets some bad advice and appears to also be involved in an affair, it leads to disastrous consequences, and Jamie finds himself hopelessly in love with two women at the same time.

Without a doubt, this is a story about infidelity, but author Carole Matthews manages to make you sympathize with the unfaithful couple, and never gives a hint how this bound-to-be-hurtful-to-someone affair will turn out.

While I enjoyed this book, I LOVED several others by her--A Minor Indiscretion, The Sweetest Taboo, For Better For Worse and Bare Necessity!

This isn't a don't-read, but just take it with a grain of salt--this one isn't nearly as much of a page-turner as the others.

This could have been a riveting tale...the problem is the story has no depth whatsoever. I would even say it is badly written. We dont get any insight as to what Jamie found lacking in his marraige. We read about Jamie's dreams' being shattered ....but what wexactly were those dreams? to be a race car driver? And how did having a family stifle him? these issues are never explored.

And when he decides to go back to his family, what made him do that. A pep talk from his friend? Guilt? I wish the story had delved more into what happens to the husband and wife when they get back together and how they decide to rebuild their shattered lives. The story was very sketchy and it simply didnt delve into different emotions. There was more time spent on commuting details than the actual affair. And after all that, it seemed like Jamie went back to his wife more out a sense of duty than because he loved her.

The final straw is that the lead characters are totally unlikeable. Jamie acts like a total jerk and seemed to be more considerate towards his mistresses' feelings than his wife's. And Teri seems to relish the affair with no thought to the consequences of what they were doing including throwing her best friend out.

I hope Matthews doesnt write a sequel to this story...the heroine is totally unsympathetic and I doubt if many readers will identify with her.

While rushing to catch the 6:07 from London on Platform 8, Jamie Duncan cannonballs through Teri Carter. Instead of continuing his mad dash, Jamie stops to help Teri by bandaging her scraped knee, giving her new stockings to replace the ones he ruined, allows her to place her feet on his lap, and finally takes her home. Teri thinks she has finally found a sensitive charming soulmate.

However, Teri learns there is one obstacle to her having a permanent relationship with her dream. He is married to a nice woman. Though Jamie wonders if that is all there is, Teri has doubts about braking up a marriage although she believes he is Mr. Right.

This is an interesting chick lit tale that stars several perceptive nice people stuck in a commuter triangle. The story line is terrific when it emphasizes relationships (the good, the bad, and the boring) to include that of Teri's best friend. The story slows down when the tale delves into the specifics of the commute as it seems to target Londoners. When the plot digs deep into the feelings of real people, LET'S MEET ON PLATFORM 8 is fabulous as the lead couple, his wife, and her pal make for a strong character study that provides multiple perspectives.

Harriet Klausner

I have read several of Carole Matthews' books, and haven't been able to put them down because I couldn't wait to find out what happened to the characters. At the end of two (With or Without You and Welcome to the Real World), I loved the characters so much that I hoped there was a sequel out there somewhere. When this one arrived, I was ready for my Matthews fix. While Matthews writing and style didn't disappoint, I found myself extremely disappointed in the characters. They crossed a couple of lines, and I had hoped to feel somewhat sympathetic towards their situation, but found myself racing through the book just to be done with them. My husband even commented on my grumpy mood, and I then had to explain that a book that I'd thought was going to be easy, fun chick lit was actually a depressing story of infidelity. This was like renting Le Divorce, expecting a comedy. If you don't mind a sad tale of people's unhappiness in their current situation and the lines they cross in trying to find that happiness, go ahead and read it. I wouldn't take it on a carefree vacation, though. Take With or Without You instead.

I was hoping this would be a great, fun read. Well, it's neither great nor fun. At first you're rooting for Teri Carter, the supposed "heroine" of the story. But she's self-absorbed and full of selfish motives. Jamie is no better. He's a liar and a cheat, twisting reality in his favor. His wife has been nothing but good to him, trying everything she can to save her family and love life. The book is told from all three perspectives, and the only person you actually can root for gets the bad end of it. It's a depressing and grim tale of how relationships can go wrong, and how a wonderful life is seen as something you "make do" with while your dreams get crushed under the train rails. It saddens me. I want to burn the book, I wish I'd never read it.