Customer Reviews

Seducing Harry: An Epicurean Affair A Novel

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Coco Plotnick Hollander Harding is over 50, on her second marriage and needs some spice in her life. It seems the 'burbs' (she's a New York girl at heart), her wealthy and nice husband Parker (who is lacking in sexual prowess), aren't cutting it.

Coco writes a humor column for Connecticut's Seaport Gazette, and she's been assigned to write a humor piece about, of all things, vegetables. She meets Harry (a high-priced plastic surgeon) at a Chaine des Rotisseurs event, and the two quickly embark on a hot and heavy banquet of infidelity.

Love and lust is delicious for the unfaithful Coco and Harry, until the lustful couple and their spouses receive a series of anonymous letters and phone calls. It's just a matter of time before disaster strikes--and the outcome is not what anyone expects.

Judith Marks-White's Seducing Harry: An Epicurean Affair is a quirky novel with interesting, if not shallow, characters. Her ability to write about the mundane and make it funny and sassy is wonderful. The humor columns made me laugh out loud and the discussions about food kept me looking in the refrigerator, wishing I could feast on some of the delectable dishes discussed.

My criticism is that the subject matter of infidelity is treated as such a normal and acceptable occurrence. I found that sad. I'm not a prude, but the use of the 'f' word turned me off. And the sex scenes are vivid and lustful, not loving. But I think, that's what Coco wanted. She didn't want love, she wanted orgasms. If she couldn't get 'hot sex' from her husband, she'd get it where she could.

Judith Marks-White's writing is so much fun, I'll look for her next novel, even though I had problems with how infidelity was handled in the first novel.

A fun, fast-paced book with wonderful, quirky writing. But, if you're not into casual infidelity and vivid sex scenes, Seducing Harry: An Epicurean Affair might not be for you.

Armchair Interviews says: Funny and sassy--and sexy!

I'm waiting to find much of any humor in this badly written story and unfortunately I'm at the end of it. There simply isn't much in that department. Instead, you'll find a cast of unlikable characters who are one-dimensional. It's not worth a read in an airport or at the beach and one of the worst books I've spent any time with in the last 10 to 20 years. The author keeps referring to a classic Agatha Christie murder story and my guess is that she imagines that this book is a modern-day murder tale with a cast of characters that might all be guilty. She's wrong and does Ms. Christie a great disservice to even mention her within this tale. The only redeeming thing in it are quotes from other writers and thinkers that are used to separate the chapters. I've deleted it from my Kindle and wish I could get my money back.

This is a DELICIOUS read! I had a very hard time to put this book down and read it under 3 days. Judith Marks-White is a well regarded writer and author and has just proved herself again. This book not only serves up humor but combined with steam!!! A must read!

Seducing Harry by Judith Marks-White was a great summer treat. Ms. White's humor, good nature and fun loving style gave me pleasure and enjoyment
as well as wonderful read . Her ability to blend humor, subtle insight and sophistication made a highly readable an entertaining book.
I'm looking forward to her next venure.I hope it will be as delecious as her Epicurean Affair.

Seducing Harry: An Epicurean Affair is a hilarious spoof on modern mores. Judith Marks-White, a humor columnist for the Westport News, provides the readers of her first novel with a familiar laugh on every page and a satisfying belly laugh/chapter. The characters are rich in every sense of the word, and the dialogue is as real as last evening's conversation. Trendy and familiar vacation spots with foodie addictions embellish our delicious literary itinerary.
Join Coco and Harry in this picaresque, seductive tale. The story, like Judith's "bad girl," is the type you meet once and never forget. (p. 83)"

Seducing Harry is a humorous page turner providing a place to feel safe among familiar and unknown parts of your real and fantasied self.
Kudos to Judith Marks-White for her courage in giving voice to post menopausal women talk about sex,work, affairs, marriage, vanity, aging, and more. A humorous, quick read that challenges on many levels. A good book group choice, providing many possible topics for discussion.

Rarely have I had so much fun reading a book. SEDUCING HARRY has a little bit of everything: bawdy humor, suburban intrigue, mystery, and -- most of all -- masterful story-telling.

Seducing Harry is a deliciously wicked romp featuring a middle-aged housewife with a healthy--some might say ravenous--libido. Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I've given this book to several friends and relatives, including my husband and my 84-year old mother. Everyone I know who has read it, loves it.

Judith Marks-White, who writes a humor column for the Westport News in Connecticut, brings her wit to bear (and, considering the many seductions in the book, to bare) on her maiden novel, a hilariously sexy spoof of modern mores. For Marks-White, the mores, the merrier.

The titular character, a plastic surgeon who makes his patients even more titular, is Dr. Harry Troutman, who is seduced by Coco Plotnick Hollander Harding, a suburban newspaper columnist who knows that the way to a man's heart (and other vital organs) is through his stomach.

Unfortunately for Coco, the way to her husband's heart is through his golf game, and he doesn't have the drive, so to speak, to satisfy Coco. So she seduces Harry.

Food plays a rich, satisfying part of the story. So does sex, which burns off all those calories.

The plot twists are vertiginous, the sex is hot, the dining scenes are scrumptious and the humor is delightful. The only problem with "Seducing Harry" is that it should come with a surgeon general's warning: After reading certain passages, you'll feel like going outside for a cigarette.

Stay inside and be seduced by Judith Marks-White. You may die of laughter, but what a way to go.

The dialogue is unsurpassed, giving the reader the feeling they are actually involved in the story, sort of a written parandella.

Humor abounds and the characters come alive in a sophisticated NY Connecticut setting. With a mystery thrown in with the delictable sex and epicurean dining, Seducing Harry seems to have it all... What a great read