Send Me A Lover [Kindle Edition]

Carol Mason (Author)

Book Description

Send Me A Lover is a sweet sad tale about love, loss, and the crazy way the world works to reclaim love again. COSMO AUSTRALIA

This cross between Mamma Mia! and PS I Love You is fast and furious chick lit." RED MAGAZINE, TOP 3 MUST READS

"'Her debut, The Secrets of Married Women, marked Carol Mason's coming out as a writer of compelling insight with a gritty yet humorous edge. This follow-up is equally assured." THE DAILY MIRROR UK. BOOK OF THE WEEK

"Full of realistic emotional twists" The TELEGRAPH, UK

"Nice comforting chick lit to be read while drinking a warm glass of Zinfandel before a cosy fire..." The IRISH EVENING HERALD


"This intriguing second novel from Carol Mason is a beautiful story about coming to terms with loss." The YORKSHIRE EVENING POST


"If I died, I'd want you to marry again. I'd see to it that you did. I'd send somebody for you."
When Angela's husband, Jonathan, said this, she didn't take him seriously. They were just messing around, saying things you say when you are young and in love and you can't ever imagine your life ending. But now, two years have passed since Jonathan's sudden death in a car accident and Angela has failed to fully move on. Then a friend suggests she take a vacation. On impulse, Angela books herself onto a package holiday to the Greek island of Zakynthos - "the green island of poetry, of song and of love." She brings her mother, the vivacious and quirky Vivien along for the ride. But Vivien is determined not to let Angela wallow in self-pity. When Angela meets two men who have an uncanny ability to connect with her, she wonders if Jonathan really could have kept his promise. Has he sent her someone to replace him? And if so, how is she going to know which man it is?
Send Me A Lover is a wonderfully warm and honest novel about loving, losing and sometimes loving again....

Have you read the bestselling THE SECRETS OF MARRIED WOMEN and THE LOVE MARKET, also by Carol Mason?

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Set in Newcastle, there is a fresh and vital edge to this superior debut novel... A bittersweet narrative and ambiguous outcomes make this much grittier and more substantial than standard chick-lit fare.' -- Financial Times on THE SECRETS OF MARRIED WOMEN 'An eye-opener to those of us unmarrieds who see the grass as greener on the other side... At last a modern story of life in the North East, not a clog or flat cap in sight, just three thirty-somethings trying to sort out their lives. Realistic and entertaining.' -- New Books on THE SECRETS OF MARRIED WOMEN 'There's a big buzz around this tale of three Newcastle wives tempted to cheat on their husbands and I can see why!' -- Eve on THE SECRETS OF MARRIED WOMEN

From the Author

People often ask me where I get my ideas from. I seem to get each book's idea from a different place, via a different route. In the case of Send Me A Lover, my second novel, it came from a remark that my husband made, that I thought was very very sweet! We were chatting - one of those mindless conversations you tend to have when you've been married for what feels like a century to someone - and we were wondering which one of us would die first. (yes, I know, really cheerful chatter!). He then said that if he died first he would want me to remarry because he'd want me to find love again. He said, in fact, given that he knew me so well, and he knew the type of man I was attracted to and the type of man who would be right for me, he would find him and he would send him to me. I said "do you really think you can do that sort of thing when you're dead?' And he said, "I don't know. But if I could, I'd do it. I'd make it my mission to."

I sat there and thought, that's a great premise for a novel! 

And so Send Me A Lover came to be. 

(at that time I'd also been thinking of writing a novel about a mother and daughter who go on a holiday to Greece together - the daughter being one of these staid types, and the mother being a bit of an old flirt (but very very young at heart). So my publisher said, 'Why don't you combine those two ideas? Maybe your girl goes to Greece with her mum to help get over the death of her husband?' And so, because of the wacky dynamic between the two women, I was able to handle the topic of grief and loss with a light touch. 

I hope you like Send Me A Lover. I loved writing it. It might have been my favourite book to write.... but, wait a minute... I tend to think that about all my novels. :)x 

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 420 KB
• Print Length: 352 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B007BJQM46
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #377,321 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars A fun read May 17, 2012

By LemurKat

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an appealing book - dealing with Angela's recovery after the unexpected death of her husband and her "mission" to try and find another lover to live up to his ideal (some two years later). Her quest is one thwart with emotional turmoil - loss and longing, laughter and companionship. It begins with her taking her 60 year old mother to a Greek island. And I'll have to say, her mother is what saved this story from being a pretty tedious account. She's awesome - with her mispronounced idioms and her tendency to act like someone if not half, than at least 2/3s her age. Along the way, Angela keeps running into sexy men that seem to be interested in her - but there is always some sort of issue. This is a bit of a fresh and original break away from the traditional chick-lit formula, but after a while it became a bit tedious. You, as the reader, kept wondering "is this going to be the one?" and then realising, "no, not this one." I think the novel could be a bit more tightly plotted, as it does tend to meander a bit, but I suppose it is as much as Angela making a new start on a life without her husband then it is about her finding another true love. It was an okay read but nothing to write home about.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Escapist Read! February 21, 2009

By Vancouver Bookphile

Format:Paperback

Great read! I really enjoyed this one. I was waiting until I hit poolside to read this escapist novel, but ended up in bed with a bad cold last weekend and so started it earlier than planned. I loved the characters (especially the mom - who is just a riot) and now have Greece on my places needing to visit. It was just what I needed to get through the winter blahs. Now I just have to find another good one for my trip.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Carol Mason is a VERY good author July 27, 2012

By Lauren A. VINE™ VOICE

Format:Kindle Edition

I've read a lot of chick lit and the plots are usually predictable, the characters flat (and similar) and the riding so so at best. Carol Mason is different from the rest. She is a good author and her main characters are so well developed and very complex.

Send Me a Lover is about a Angela Chapman, a British ex-pat living in Canada who finds herself widowed at 32. The book opens with a disastrous first date and follows Angela as she emerges from the fog of her depression two years after her husband Jonathan died suddenly and finally begins to rebuild her life. The book portrays a marriage through flashbacks. Angela and Jonathan's marriage is certainly filled with love, but Jonathan's flaws are revealed and we get a sense of who he was through Angela's eyes. Her view is certainly rose-colored, as she is a widow, but snippets of the real Jonathan peak through as she works through her grief and coming to terms with the fact that Jonathan is gone.

The title comes from a conversation that Angela and Jonathan had about how Jonathan said that if he died before Angela, he would send her a new love. Angela half believes it, half believes its just silliness, and wonders if Jonathan will ever send her a lover while also wondering whether it was disloyal of her to think of finding a new love. She also wonders whether she can love another man as much as she loves Jonathan. During a Greek holiday with her beautiful, witty, mother, Angela emerges from her shell as she says goodbye to Jonathan and prepares to open herself up again. Some events are supernatural (or coincidence, we never know) as Angela learns to live as a single woman and not simply as a widow.

The book is so engaging and well-written. It isn't completely predictable.... At times, I thought it would be, but the author just made the characters more complex than the typical chick lit. I am really impressed with this author and I can't wait to read another book (if there is one). I also red Secrets of Married Women and that was equally fantastic. Read more ›

5.0 out of 5 stars SEND ME ANOTHER! - LOVED THIS BOOK March 16, 2013

By Kim H.

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Just finished my second Carol Mason novel Send me a Lover and absolutely loved the experience of reading this story. Why it isn't a bestseller in North America, like U.K. is beyond me. This woman writes like a girlfriend talks over a shared bottle of wine--with quirky humor wrapped around insight and honesty from a real woman's mind. Her protagonists are full of flaws, humor and that needy depth that we all have as women. The relationship between the mother and daughter was absolutely hysterical and touching at the same time. If you like the honesty of Elizabeth Berg, the style of Elin Hilderbrand, the humor of Marian Keyes, you'll be wonderfully surprised by Carol Mason.

4.0 out of 5 stars Quick, cute, funny story November 20, 2012

By Judi Morrison

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I enjoyed this book. Made me laugh and has such a cute twist many many times!!! The ending was sweet, just glad all Mothers aren't like hers. Easy read and will read any other books by this author.

JUDI

1.0 out of 5 stars Long Winded... November 5, 2012

By jackie

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The story follows the main character Angela and her mother through as both learn to allow new relationships in their lives and move on from widowhood. I was incredibly disappointed with Roger he seemed so flat and just too nice and condescendingly patient almost. No one's that NICE in real life. The dates were disastrous but she still thinks of him?? I discounted this character early on due to his age and him brushing his hair at the table. Ew gross! I really enjoyed the Georgios character he seemed incredibly understanding of Angela's situation and really helped her to put her life and love in perspective. I thought there should have been more detail given to Sean's relationship with Angela. They spend a day together and several mornings while on holiday. This angle was a let down in the end. And her mother's relationships with men... I was just expecting MORE.

More About the Author

Carol Mason is the women's fiction author of three novels - The Love Market, Send Me A Lover and The Secrets of Married Women, all bestsellers in Canada, where she lives. She was born in the North East of England and moved to Canada when she was twenty-one and met her now husband. They live in British Columbia. Her novels are translated into more than 10 languages.
The Secrets of Married Women and Send Me A Lover were first published worldwide in print by Hodder & Stoughton to rave reviews in the international media. (if you wish to read more consumer reviews for The Secrets of Married Women go to amazon.co.uk)
Cosmopolitan Magazine Australia called Send Me A Lover "a sweet, sad tale about love, loss and the crazy way the world works to reclaim love again."
The UK's Daily Mirror named Send Me A Lover their Book of the Week and said, "Her debut, The Secrets of Married Women, marked Carol Mason's coming out as a writer of compelling insight, with a gritty yet humorous edge. This follow-up is equally assured."
The London Financial Times said, of Secrets of Married Women "There is a fresh and vital edge to this superior debut novel. Mason has much to say about relationships. Her women have resonant characters and recognisable jobs, which give depth to their messy lives. A bittersweet narrative and ambiguous outcomes make this much grittier and more substantial than standard chick-lit fare.'
The Vancouver Sun said, of Secrets of Married Women, 'Mason's writing is absorbing. While reading a spicy bit about Leigh's affair while taking the bus to work, I rode past my stop.'

Praise for The Love Market:
Danielle of Chick Lit Reviews, said, 'Wow. If only there was a way to give this book more than 5 stars. I can honestly say that without a doubt the Love Market is by far my favorite chick lit novel I've ever read. Ever."

For more information about Carol, her books and upcoming new releases, or her advice on getting published, visit her website www.carolmasonbooks.com. Or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.