Eat Your Heart Out
Starting Over Book 2
by Shirley Goldberg
Genre: Romantic Women’s Fiction, Chick-Lit, RomCom
When a tyrant in stilettos replaces her beloved boss, and her ex snags her coveted job, teacher Dana Narvana discovers there are worse things than getting dumped on Facebook. Time for the BFF advice squad, starting with Dana’s staunchest ally, Alex—hunky colleague, quipster, and cooking pal extraordinaire. But when the after hours smooching goes nowhere, she wonders why this grown man won’t make up his mind.
Alex Bethany’s new lifestyle gives him the confidence to try online dating. What he craves is a family of his own until a life-altering surprise rocks his world. He knows he’s sending Dana mixed messages. Alex panics when he thinks he’s blown his chance with his special person. From appetizers to the main course will these two cooking buddies make it to dessert?
Funny and bittersweet, Dana and Alex’s story will have you rooting for them.
***** Review for Eat Your Heart Out
Andi’s Books
Shirley Goldberg does it again in the second installment of her Starting Over series, about what it’s like to date after the age of 40. This time, she is tackling divorce, and more importantly, what it’s like trying to date after major physical and health changes. A lot of people around this age go through the process of dropping a lot of weight and starting over again. It’s not easy to do, because you still have your mental and emotional demons to drop.
Our society has a fixation on food that permeates almost all areas of our lives. And it complicates how we view ourselves and our relationships. This story delves into that from different perspectives. And those perspectives are extremely honest and something you’ll see every single day, from the stories we tell ourselves to what people around us are saying. No matter your size, I’m sure you’ll recognize something.
And then of course, the dating part. How do you tackle dating later in life? Then there is the whole friends issue with the potential to date. And if you do decide to date, how will that go? Add in the complications of also being coworkers and the identity of the new vice-principal. Don’t even get me started on their new principal at school. I had some flashbacks to my teaching years that I’d rather forget.
There’s a lot of REAL in this story, with plenty of moments to make you smile, as well as to make you think. It’s not a lighthearted rom-com, but it is still quite enjoyable. I’m glad I picked up this one as well.
I received a requested review copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Middle Ageish
Starting Over Book 1
Sunny Chanel’s marriage is circling the drain when her husband marks his colonoscopy on the calendar and ignores their anniversary. With divorce papers instead of roses on the horizon, she says “au revoir” Paris and croissants, and “hello” cheap New Haven apartment and ramen noodles.
Encouraged by her friends, Sunny jumps into online dating, twenty-three years and twenty pounds after her last date. To her surprise she discovers dating might require a helmet, and occasionally armor to protect her heart, but after years of being ignored, her adventurous side craves fun and conversation. She’s middle-aged not dead. Then suddenly, on the way to reinventing herself, life takes a left turn when the one man she can’t forget calls with an unexpected request.
**Only .99 cents!!**
Shirley Goldberg is a writer, novelist, and former ESL and French teacher who’s lived in Paris, Crete, and Casablanca. She writes about men and women of a certain age starting over. Her website https://shirleygoldberg.com offers a humorous look into dating in mid life, and her friends like to guess which stories are true. Middleageish is her first book in the series Starting Over. Her character believes you should never leave home without your sense of humor and Shirley agrees.
