The Other Side of the Story: A Novel [Hardcover]

Marian Keyes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 27, 2004

Life is a circle, and what goes around, comes around. Just ask a trio of unforgettable women in Marian Keyes's enchanting new novel ...

Energetic, ambitious, and sexy, literary agent Jojo Harvey combines Jessica Rabbit's body with a mind like a steel trap. As if watching her back while on the corporate ladder and making million-dollar deals wasn't difficult enough, Jojo's having a relationship with her boss. Her married boss.

Tall, slender, and blond, bestselling author Lily Wright, one of Jojo's clients, worries about bad karma and the second novel she can't seem to write but must deliver -- she's already spent the advance. Anton, the Love of Her Life, persuaded her to buy their dream house.

Events organizer extraordinaire Gemma Hogan was best friends with Lily -- until the willowy blonde stole Anton, a.k.a. the Love of Her Life. Juggling the demands of her newly separated (and desperately needy) mom, Gemma's social life is flatlining -- a mortifying situation that makes for hilarious e-mails to a friend. Tales so funny, they come to the attention of top literary agent Jojo Harvey, who takes Gemma on as a client ...

Written in the charming and chatty voice that has become Marian Keyes's signature style, this hilarious and heartwarming new novel proves there are three sides to every story ... especially in the world of publishing!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ever wondered what the Other Woman was thinking as she stole your man? Couldn't bear to ask an old best friend if she'd ever forgiven you for absconding with her boyfriend? Itched to be a fly on your agent's office wall as she ignored your calls? Here's voyeurism at its playful, charming finest in Keyes's latest (after Sushi for Beginners; Under the Duvet; etc.). Gemma Hogan is living a lovely carefree life in Dublin when her father walks out on her mother, and she is summoned to play mom to her mom. But the magic of e-mail allows her to vent her woes to a friend in Seattle, who finds them hilarious enough to send to a top London agent, JoJo Harvey. JoJo, who is half Jessica Rabbit and half corporate powerhouse, likes Gemma's work but has bigger fish to fry-she is having a tormented affair with her married boss; her slimy co-worker is trying to beat her out for a coveted partner position; and her famed client Lily Wright, who wrote a gorgeous little cheerful fable that sold hundreds of thousands of copies, can't seem to get it together to write another book. Lily, in turn, is struggling with young motherhood, catastrophic finances and the paralyzing guilt of stealing her now-husband Anton from her former best friend, one Gemma Hogan. Keyes skillfully ties her interlocking plots together with grace and humor, and explores three disparate but gloriously real women's lives. It's a credit to Keyes that although she never exactly breaks new ground, she always serves up funny, heartwarming, believable fiction.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

The impressively prolific Irish novelist is back with yet another delightful tale featuring three clever, totally mad women. Gemma Hogan is going through a bit of a rough patch, and it all starts with her haircut. Although she thinks she looks like Liza Minnelli in Cabaret, her friends keep greeting her with the words, "Live long and prosper." In addition, her dad has run away from home. She must tend to her incredibly needy mom while juggling her job and trying to recover from losing the love of her life, Anton, to her friend Lily "Every Man for Myself" Wright. Gemma has serious vengeance issues. Meanwhile, Lily, feeling terribly guilty about Gemma's unrequited love for Anton, has written a runaway best-seller and embarked on a home renovation spree with the profits, all of which is threatened when her second novel tanks. Her literary agent, ambitious Jojo Harvey, has done the previously unthinkable--become involved with her married boss. Packing every page with her trademark one-liners, the insightful Keyes has the ability to examine life, love, and work issues with great wit and aplomb. Sex and the City junkies will find a suitable replacement here--one with considerably more warmth and without the ugly clothes. Joanne Wilkinson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 528 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; Stated First Edition edition (April 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060520515
• ISBN-13: 978-0060520519
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (281 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,193,242 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marian Keyes lived in London for ten years before returning to her native Dublin. After receiving a law degree and studying accounting, she began writing short stories in 1993. She is the author of three previous novels--Watermelon, Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married, and Rachel's Holiday--all major bestsellers around the world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I loved this book!, June 1, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Other Side of the Story: A Novel (Hardcover)

I loved this book. I have read all of Marian's books and this was one of my favorites. I really felt like I knew these people by the end of the book and I couldn't wait to see how their story lines would be resolved. I enjoyed the format of the book - with several chapters at a time devoted to each character.

Marian, if you read the reviews (like Lily did...) way to go. I loved this book and have already recommended it to all of my friends.

28 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What Goes Around Comes Around....Or Does It?, April 15, 2004

By 

Antoinette Klein (Hoover, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Other Side of the Story: A Novel (Hardcover)

Marian Keyes' latest is a true gem which transports the reader to the thirty-something singles life of Dublin and London. With empathy and humor she tells the story of very believable women whose lives intertwine.

Gemma Hogan is a Special Events Planner in Dublin. She has recently lost the love of her life, and to make matters even more unbearable, said love is now happily ensconced with her former best friend Lily and the child they have together. Gemma seems to have enough heartbreak, but now her father has left her mother for his secretary, and Lily has not only captured Gemma's boyfriend but has written a best-selling novel, something Gemma has always wanted to do.

Meanwhile, Lily is not only wracked with guilt over the aforementioned theft of affections, but also having trouble coping with a non-working mate and the lack of money they must exist on. Child-care mishaps and a second novel that is more of an embarrassment than a bestseller add more pressure to Lily's life.

Jojo Harvey, a Jessica-Rabbit clone, enters the picture as the literary agent who represents Lily. But Jojo the dynamic businesswoman is also Jojo the homewrecker as she guiltily pursues a relationship with her very-married boss.

Add one more catalyst in the form of Susan, former best friend of both Gemma and Lily, who has moved to Seattle, Washington. Susan becomes Gemma's sounding board via email and is privvy to the intimate details of Gemma's disheveled life, her desperately needy mom, her non-boyfriend, and a certain chemist who fills prescription after prescription for her. Susan thinks the emails are so interesting to read that she wants to share them. Taking a calculated risk, she sends them to Jojo Harvey who agrees they would make a great book.

It's a merry-go-round of emotions with revenge, rejection, and disappointment having their day along with all the accompanying pandemonium of this inside look into the life of writers, editors, and publishers. It's Marian Keyes doing what she does best---telling a contemporary tale with all the humor and sadness that fills life. This is believable fiction that will appeal to everyone....except perhaps Mr. Burt Reynolds who does not fare too well in this one.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another great one, October 8, 2004

By 

Amazonbombshell (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Other Side of the Story: A Novel (Hardcover)

I don't know how, but Marian Keyes always manages to write something that is at at once funny, wise, insightful, and fun to read. Her books look like that favorite sterotype of reviewers, "Chicklit," but they're about much more (and they're much better!) than the skinny cartoon girls on their covers suggest. Keyes's characters are real, her stories inventive, and even when the ending wraps up in far *too* happy a manner, it doesn't make the book any less of a good experience.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY has all the winning ingredients, and I'm happy to say it mixes them up well and combines them into yet another great read. The inside look at publishing is hilarious, and very enlightening for anyone who has ever wondered what it would take to get their work in the local bookstore! The Lily-Gemma-Anton triangle is well done and the resolution -- though it seems lacking at first -- is very realistic. Jojo is a superbly written character, and her relationship with her married boss (and his relationship to his wife) is explored with great sensitivity to all the complex issues it creates.

Since the first 100+ pages were about Gemma, and the next Jojo, and the next Lily, I didn't understand at first how they would all fit together in one story; the relationships between them didn't seem strong enough for that sort of split style. I should have known, though: Marian Keyes pulls it off every time. Read it and see for yourself.