Confessions of a Shopaholic (Shopaholic, #1)

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Confessions of a Shopaholic (Shopaholic #1)

3.52 of 5 stars 3.52 · rating details · 313,941 ratings · 8,260 reviews

BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Sophie Kinsella's I've Got Your Number.

Rebecca Bloomwood just hit rock bottom. But she's never looked better....

Becky Bloomwood has a fabulous flat in London's trendiest neighborhood, a troupe of glamorous socialite friends, and a closet brimming with the season's must-haves. The only trouble is that she can't actually afford i...more

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Published March 4th 2003 by The Dial Press (first published March 3rd 1999)

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May 09, 2007 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: no one! it's terrible!

So I used to work with this girl called Sarah, who was a real no bullshit kind of person. I really liked her because she was intelligent and articulate, someone I could actually hold a conversation with. She was well read, she kept up on current events and she could talk politics while maintaining integrity and respectability. When I saw this book on the break table in the back, I never would have thought that it was hers. When I found out I made fun of her. I couldn't believe a girl like her wa...more

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Nov 12, 2007 Christy Sherrill rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: NO ONE

I was in the library when I walked by this book, while I was looking for another book. I pulled it off the shelf and because I've found and read some pretty amazing book with this randomness, I thought ok. Another reason I have become a little obsessed with shopping on ebay. I thought this girl book would be fun, it would be like a new girl friend, getting to now good and bad about her, how she thinks about life........... So, I checked it out and I read it in about 6 hours. Reason it sucked:

1....more I was in the library when I walked by this book, while I was looking for another book. I pulled it off the shelf and because I've found and read some pretty amazing book with this randomness, I thought ok. Another reason I have become a little obsessed with shopping on ebay. I thought this girl book would be fun, it would be like a new girl friend, getting to now good and bad about her, how she thinks about life........... So, I checked it out and I read it in about 6 hours. Reason it sucked:

1. The main charter was English. The stores that she was bragging about shopping at didn't have the same "sex in the city" lustful materialistic effect on me because I didn't relate. So,her prideful continuous description of these clothes she "owned" and was in debt for became ridiculous. And her constant shopping while in debt, actually started to physically stress me out.

2. Half way into the book I felt really sad because I know that there is so many people who this is their reality. This shallow mindset or consumption of caffeine, sugar, shopping, "fashion"..... the constant carve of distraction and never learning to deal. It just seemed to glorify being shallow and reinforce that if and when you are you should keep on being so because:

3. The modern day fairy tale ending for could happen. Debt paid off, get the job you want, they guy, the clothes, the romance, the money, the fame..... It grasps on the the romantic notion of what life should be, and could be. It seem to encourage that there is nothing wrong with lying to yourself and others.

4. It reminds of humans I know, who choose to lead the most dramatic, self indulged, objectified, diva lifestyle. Where they are the most important and beautiful person on the planet, and you'll regret being not trying to be their best friend (a.k.a. letting them use you) when they are Famous and rich one day. I think this book glamorize this attitude, and not matter how you dress that up, there is nothing glamorous about that.

All and All I HAETED this book and wished I hadn't read the it. And if I could give a negative star I would. But I know this is not a hateful website.(less)

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Mar 19, 2012 Kay rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: golden shopping bags

Shelves: cerebral-candy, here-and-now

If you know anyone that is impulsive, spendy, and irresponsible, do not let him/her read this book .

Seriously.

Because for any normal woman (or man--I must avoid gender stereotyping) with above average impulsive shopping tendencies, this book will make him/her feel better about his/herself.

Take me, for example. When I am confronted by a cute pair of shoes or some colorful household item, I get kind of...well...impulsive, spendy, and irresponsible. Sometimes, my willpower can overrule that tempt...more

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Feb 07, 2008 Lilly rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: people who don't take their books too seriously

Shelves: fluff

After college, I wanted nothing to do with serious books. And so began my quest for all books fluffy and light. The cover of this screamed fluff at me. This book is NOT TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY. Take it for what it is - hilarious chick lit. Otherwise, you'll find yourself realizing that if you actually knew a character as shallow as Becky Bloomwood, you'd probably give her a look of disgust and hiss at her as she walked by or something. Also, don't think too much about her relationship with Luke. B...more

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Aug 25, 2008 Idle Hippo rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: cewe yang doyan belanja ama... umm.. cowo (nekat) bermental "baja" :D

Recommended to Idle Hippo by: Syltje and Weni; dua pakar chiklit :-p

Shelves: fiksi, book-that-make-me-laugh, book-to-movies, punya-adek-ato-pinjeman-sueeer

Elayne Boosler said:
When women are depressed, they eat or go shopping. Men invade another country. It's a whole different way of thinking.

setuju deh, soalnya gw samasekali gak ngerti ama "hobi" kaum cewe tentang shopping ini. semua cewe pasti doyan shopping meski tidak semua memiliki kadar yang separah becky. ceritanya tentang seorang becky yang tak bisa mengontrol hobi belanjanya sehingga dikejar-kejar surat tagihan dari bank padahal dia kerjanya jadi jurnalis keuangan, hahaha. cuman gw sering...more Elayne Boosler said:
When women are depressed, they eat or go shopping. Men invade another country. It's a whole different way of thinking.

setuju deh, soalnya gw samasekali gak ngerti ama "hobi" kaum cewe tentang shopping ini. semua cewe pasti doyan shopping meski tidak semua memiliki kadar yang separah becky. ceritanya tentang seorang becky yang tak bisa mengontrol hobi belanjanya sehingga dikejar-kejar surat tagihan dari bank padahal dia kerjanya jadi jurnalis keuangan, hahaha. cuman gw sering bengong sendiri baca buku ini, gak tau kenapa.. perasaan koq sulit sekali untuk "masuk" kedalam kepala seorang becky. apalagi ketika dia udah ngomongin barang branded seperti sepatu, syal, gaun keluaran chanel, armani, prada, louis vuitton, dorce gamalama.. eh, dolce & gabana etc. sumprit! dari dulu gw kagak ngerti soal ginian mah. jadi sering bengong sambil nyabutin jenggot karena gak ngerti bacanya. yah, kayak nabrak tembok lah. dasar geblek! dah tau di covernya ada tulisan kayak gini Chicklit (Chick Literature), yang berarti "bacaan cewe", ditujukan untuk Anda, para wanita muda yang cerdas, mandiri, berani, dan jujur pada diri sendiri... dst lah wah.. setelah ngaca bentar and gw baru sadar kalo ternyata... gw punya jenggooooot! dasar nekat bin geblek :D

analisis super sotoy cowo nekat bin geblek: gini deh, buat cewe punya hobi shopping (gak perlu separah becky lah), mereka pasti suka buku ini. At some point they can related the protagonis to themselves, tapi buat beberapa cewe (mungkin) they will find the protagonist irritated them, bisa jadi mereka gak terlalu suka ama buku ini. bener-bener sotoy pan? heuheu. gw sih ngasi bintang tiga karena secara umum ceritanya lucu karena becky selalu menjustifikasi hobi blanjanya dengan alasan2 yang bikin nyengir dan ada bagian2 tertentu yang bikin gw ngakakak. misalnya ketika becky bekerja part time di sebuah dept. store dan ngumpetin celana jins yang diincernya biar gak dibeli pelanggan=)) ato ketika disebuah pertemuan pers secara tak disangka-sangka bertemu dengan derek smeath, menejer bank yang "ngejar" becky dengan surat tagihan. simpati gw buat derek untuk "kesabaran dan ketabahannya" menghadapi becky :D

dah ah, mo shopping dulu nih. biasa, mo beli pisang keluaran perkebunan dolce gabana :D

*dan sarimun sotoy pun pergi kepasar*(less)

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Aug 15, 2010 Leftbanker rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: People waiting to get their press-ons or post-lobotomy patients

Shelves: complete-pieces-of-shit

Vile cultural poison masquerading as a poorly-written novel. I think that a heroin addiction is less damaging to young women, and it's certainly more interesting to read about.

If there is a male equivalent to women’s mindless pursuit of name-brand (read: expensive) fashion, it would be a dude with a mullet peeling out in a TransAm blaring a Bon Jovi anthem. This book made me physically ill. I felt like I was in more peril reading this book than anyone on a toxic waste clean-up crew. I’d wager t...more

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Jul 18, 2008 Alicia rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: absolutely NO ONE.

I really hate slamming books, really I do. This book is the typical chick-lit that I've grown to love, and to be fair, it's a quick read.

But, my praise stops there.

The main character of this book, Rebecca Bloomwood, is the most annoying, daft, and ridiculous character I have ever had the misfortune to read about. I understand that she's a "shopaholic", but I've had quite a few friends who fell into that catagory that were never in danger of being as simple-minded and arrogant as Rebecca.

Every ti...more

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Sep 25, 2008 Katie rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: No one, sadly.

This book was a waste of my time. And I spent far too much time on this book that I really didn't like.

The first 200 pages or so are spent with the main character, Rebecca, avoiding all her collection calls and all the letters in the mail from her creditors. She stuffs things into trucks, she keeps the letters in a drawer she never opens, anything to avoid the fact that she's got bills to pay. And then she has an embarrassing run-in with a sales clerk who tells her all her cards are declined. S...more

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Oct 01, 2008 Julie rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Nobody, unless your a cyborg, and enjoy pointless crap

Recommended to Julie by: Professor, for my Chic-Lit Literature coruse at school

Shelves: own

I disliked this book with a fiery passion. For one, I did not pick this book up to read out of my own pleasure. I've read a book by Kinsella before, Undomestic Goddess, which was funny, but not a GREAT read, but after seeing this in the stores and reading the back of it (and the rest of the series) combined with online reviews, I knew it wasn't the book for me. Then, I took a literature course, Chick-Lit Modern Representations of Males and Females in Books and Media...or something like that. So...more I disliked this book with a fiery passion. For one, I did not pick this book up to read out of my own pleasure. I've read a book by Kinsella before, Undomestic Goddess, which was funny, but not a GREAT read, but after seeing this in the stores and reading the back of it (and the rest of the series) combined with online reviews, I knew it wasn't the book for me. Then, I took a literature course, Chick-Lit Modern Representations of Males and Females in Books and Media...or something like that. So I HAD to read this book. Boy it was painful! This is the kind of chick lit, that gives the genre as a whole, the bad representation it seems to have.
For starters, the main character, Becky, is probably one of the most shallow, egotistic, dim-witted idiots, I have encountered in a book. This goes far beyond stupid character or annoying characters, the kind to that are still likable or the kind you “love to hate them”, because they're amusing in some way. This character has none of that. She has no charm, she has no likable qualities. She is honestly like one of those blond bimbos in high school you meet with daddies credit card, who barley know how to spell their own name, and no one really actually likes them. Except this character is in severe debt, and yet she still spends all of her money. She walks around acting like everyone should care about her, how they dare not notice the expensive clothes and ....oh dear god it gives me a headache to think about it.
The book was predicable from about chapter two. All but one prediction came true, and that prediction comes true later on in the next book in the series (YUP there is a whole FECKING series on this SHIT. By the looks of things, it's the same thing, over and over and over again. Like an energizer bunny whose mind has been controlled by cyborgs, who are attempting to force society to read the same horrible story over and over again, with a different title. Actually, the only people who actually would read and enjoy this book are probably people who are cyborgs, because only a complete idiot would play into the fake premise that it is actually a good story, and the series has different plot lines. When in reality, it’s the same book, being sold to millions under a different title.)
Overall this book was torture to read. Which is a shame, because Undomestic Goddess was fairly good, it had a lot of fluff, like this book, but it still had some humour and amusing characters to make up for it. This book didn't. I don't understand how this is so popular. It has no redeeming qualities, a character who you hope will be hit by a bus, and plays into the worse stereotypes, that I as a women, rather not be labelled as. Do your self a favour, don’t read this book. There is plenty of chick lit out there, that isn’t pure crap.
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Mar 01, 2008 Shae rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book! I saw so much of myself in the main characters spending personality that it just made me laugh all the way thru reading it. The book has that Bridget Jones feel but wer as Bridget is clueless in relationships Rebecca is clueless with credit and spending. Her crazy schemes to make extra money, like homemade potholders to sell but never following thru on is a page out of my life. I gave up credit cards as my solutions and it appears that she finds her own way to keep he...more

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May 17, 2008 Ozma rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Shopaholics, Anyone who has ever been lured by a bargain, Chick Lit Fans

Recommended to Ozma by: Susan Parrish

Shelves: one-of-my-favorites, feels-like-i-read-it-yesterday

As a Shopaholic myself, I found this book really enjoyable. If you like shopping at all, this book will make you laugh. The main character gets into funny situations constantly. It's not an advanced physics treatise, but it's not mindless either. The effort the main character goes to to justify her shopping is hilarious and some genius plotting on Kinsella's part. If you don't like shopping at all, look elsewhere. If you like funny, memorable characters and plots, then give this a try.

A friend...more

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Oct 17, 2007 Denise rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: chicklit

Funny. Light. Completely brainless. Perfect beach book. The main character is a completely out of control shopaholic, and will go to any lengths to conceal her addiction while still feeding it on the sly. It's a thoroughly enjoyable book, but it has a fatal flaw, the flaw that made me give it a "liked it" rating instead of a "really liked it" rating. This chick drives me NUTS! It is almost physically painful to see her destroying her life for a new scarf or perfect shoes. Priorities, woman! Pay...more

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Apr 08, 2013 Buggy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: lmao, chick-lit, contemp-rom, shelf-11

Opening line: "Ok. Don't panic. It's only a Visa bill. It's a piece of paper, a few numbers. I mean, just how scary can a few numbers be?"

It's been ages since I’ve read any chick-lit but when I found this book amidst a bunch of “free stuff” left at the mail boxes (ironic hey, its about overspending and I find it for free) Anyways I grabbed it (along with some other useless crap) and immediately started chuckling.

Reminding me very much of Bridget Jones's Diary, this was an equally fun read, that...more Opening line: "Ok. Don't panic. It's only a Visa bill. It's a piece of paper, a few numbers. I mean, just how scary can a few numbers be?"

It's been ages since I’ve read any chick-lit but when I found this book amidst a bunch of “free stuff” left at the mail boxes (ironic hey, its about overspending and I find it for free) Anyways I grabbed it (along with some other useless crap) and immediately started chuckling.

Reminding me very much of Bridget Jones's Diary, this was an equally fun read, that had me LOL more than once at the antics, irrational decisions and downward spiral of a shopaholic who, oh yeah also just happens to be a financial journalist. Here Becky Bloomwood counts $$ like Bridget counts calories; binging with shopping sprees, going on cost cutting diets, avoiding the shops, scheming about how to make more money (because she can‘t possibly spend less and just HAS to have that new white coat)

Becky is an irresistible heroine but she generally makes a mess of things and it was super fun watching her make bad decisions as she fumbles through her job at Successful Savings, shopping away her lunch hours while trying to avoid her bank managers calls.

Speaking of which her over stimulated Visa card almost becomes a character of its own here, and her bank manager eventually does with the inclusion of hilarious letters from Endwich Bank and the ever inventive ways Becky finds to not pay her Visa bill or in most cases ever even receive it.

Ah yes, there’s also romance, intrigue, adventures in Indian cooking, unsuccessful part time jobs, a stalker(?) best friends, copious amounts of champagne drinking and a fantastic ending that will leave you smiling. This is an all around feel good book that reminded me why every once in a while some chick lit is a fabulous thing and best of all this was free…

And let’s face it we’ve all been there with the credit card bills which we tend to ignore as soon as that excited feeling hits us upon first entering a store.
268jb5(less)

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Aug 10, 2007 Tara Murphy rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well I enjoy my light reads, particularly Marian Keyes, so I thought I'd get a kick out of the Shopaholic series-not so.
The protagonist is irritating and irrational to the point of annoyance.
I surmise though that this series and it's popularity has to do with how people view money. I like shopping, but have never spent outside my means to the point of debt. I personally think that's stupid.
I don't fully get the "have-to-have-it" mentality ESPECIALLY with pricey goods.
So I didn't relate to the c...more

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Sep 22, 2011 Book Chick City rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: book-list-2008, contemporary-womens-fiction

This is a wonderful, light, fluffy read. It was the first real 'chick lit' book I ever read and it got me hooked. The character is vivid and fun, and I can identify well (a bit too well!) with Becky Bloomwood and her retail therapy issues. I love the use of the present tense and first person narrative, I think it works brilliantly. I have now read all, except one, of Sophie Kinsella's books, which are all in the same vain, and they are fantastic reads within the 'chick lit' genre.

8 likes · like · see review

Oct 02, 2008 Terry rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, romance, chick-lit

I laughed. I cried. I finished reading this month’s chick lit novel—Confessions of Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. I have to admit that when I started it, I didn’t like it very much--I could not readily identify with the main character, Becky Bloomwood. She is a British, single, twenty-something woman who works as a financial journalist. However, she does not really seem to know much about her personal finances except how to spend, spend, and spend money. I cannot understand the obsessive nature...more

I laughed. I cried. I finished reading this month’s chick lit novel—Confessions of Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. I have to admit that when I started it, I didn’t like it very much--I could not readily identify with the main character, Becky Bloomwood. She is a British, single, twenty-something woman who works as a financial journalist. However, she does not really seem to know much about her personal finances except how to spend, spend, and spend money. I cannot understand the obsessive nature of a shopaholic who craves to shop for dresses, scarves, kitchen gadgets and even books, etc. She continues this behavior even though she is constantly bombarded by banks and credit card companies who want her to pay her debts.

However, when she attempts to deal with her problems the book turns hilarious. She avoids the credit card companies by creating all sorts of excuses about why she cannot possibly pay, such as she broke her leg or her dog died. Then she decides that she has only two options that she can chose from to solve her problems: C.B. (Cut Back) or M.M.M. (Make More Money). When she elects to bring her lunch to work rather than eating out and to cook at home rather than eat in restaurants to save money, she buys all sorts of kitchen paraphernalia spends hundreds of dollars. Her solutions are rather silly and humorous.

After she inadvertently gives some bad financial advice to the couple who lives next to her parents, they end up losing some of their retirement assets. Becky feels guilty and writes a journalistic expose that reveals the evil ways of the big corporation that cost her parents’ neighbors their money. Luke, the financial advisor/lawyer of that same corporation, who Becky knew previously, and she debate the issue on national television and she makes a strong argument. Luke becomes her love interest (he conveniently has lots of money) and she ends up with a new job that pays well. Ah, think of all the opportunities for shopping!

Confessions of a Shopaholic is absolutely everything that chick lit is supposed to be—funny, light, and completely brainless. Becky doesn’t need to learn to be more responsible—everything works out for her. Kinsella has developed a main character who is memorable and quirky and placed her in a Cinderella storyline. There is lots of humor. It is pure entertainment. I would definitely recommend this title and the remainder of the series to fans of Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary.

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Jan 28, 2008 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: shopaholics everywhere; people with patience

This book starts off ok, very scary amounts of money pop up, and the girl can't control herself -- hence Shopaholic!
It takes wrong turns along the way, I had no will to read it sometimes, it is, sorry to say, full of debts and lies, and cheating as well (not romantically), and it shocks a bit. But I have to say I kept hoping for the best, so I held on to it. From the middle to the end, I read nonstop. Not that it was an amazing book, but it was good. I liked it very much, inspite of the flaws th...more

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Nov 03, 2007 Kathaileen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-novels

Becky Bloomwood is the main character of this book. She has a boring job and no special man in her life. She has to get her excitement somewhere and so it comes from being a shopaholic. She lives beyond her means in a trendy neighborhood in London, with a closet full of clothes she can’t afford (or possibly wear).
The setting is the area we are moving to. When she described getting off the “tube” at the High Street Kensington station and the stores around it, I knew exactly what she was talking...more

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Feb 21, 2011 Cassi rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked up this book because I felt like I needed to know if I like "chick lit" in the slightest. I thought "Good in Bed" was pretty stupid, but I liked the whole "Something borrowed, Something blue" series... so I was on the fence.

So I asked my friends for their favorite Kinsella book. This is my note to them:
WHO ARE YOU AND WHY DO YOU HATE ME??
and in slightly less anger:
Really girls? Did you just like this book at a time when you too were coming out of college and could slightly relate? B...more

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Feb 11, 2008 Cj rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: angela

Recommended to Cj by: Found in magazine I read

Oh how I laughed when I read this series. As each book came to an end it was like saying goodbye to a friend. If Sophie Kinsella can bring Rebecca back with more books I only hope it wont be far away.

Her other titles are also great reads and I cant wait until Remember Me is released.

I am sure there is a little bit of Rebecca in every girl who will completely understand the logic of why she has to buy something and the reason behind it. In fact when I am out clothes shopping I can almost hear her...more

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Sep 27, 2007 AmmY rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: All shopaholics like me~

Shelves: chic-lit

Dear girls,

Shopping is some kinda healing, right?
No girls would offense me, I guess.

I think everybody will love Rebecca Bloomwood, our heroine.
She's funny and out-of-control addicted to shopping brand-names (with good excuses). When I first read it, I think, ooh...there must be the one who's more crazy than me? owing many debts. I love shopping but can control my finance well. I think Sophie has developed good plots and
personality of the protagonist (being shopaholics and financial consultant o...more

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Feb 16, 2012 Anyta Sunday rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Huh.

I love chic lit. Love an easy, humorous story, and this story hints at great author potential to write chic lit. This story, however, just didn't do it for me.

The problem lies with my sympathy for Rebecca--I don't have any. She can be funny sometimes, I do remember laughing out loud at the table-hopping scene, but I don't like her character, lying all the time and not just lying about people she doesn't care or know about, but then to lie about her own family (saying her dad was a bit loopy...more

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May 14, 2008 Aod rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: wanted-to-throw-book-across-room

OK, this book did not sound like it would be any good, but I was surprised by how much I liked "Undomestic Goddess" by the same author. This book must be popular because I have been tripping over it in the book store for the past couple of years so I gave in. I just did not like the main character and wanted to throw the book across the room but I kept reading to see if it improved. It didn't.

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Jun 16, 2010 BJ Rose rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemp-romance, chick-lit, series, library-books, summer-challenge

A very weak 3* for this, and that's only because the last 70 pages somewhat redeemed the title character. This is total fluff, and that's not a bad thing, but when I read fluff, I want to at least like the main character. Becky is self-centered, self-indulgent, childish and immature, and she goes on that way for almost 3/4 of the book. She even cons her own parents!

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Mar 15, 2009 Katrina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This is the first book in the Shopaholic series written by Sophia Kinsella. I decided to buy the book, as well as the whole series, because I found the trailer of "Confessions of a Shopaholic" absolutely hilarious and every review I read about Kinsella's books raved Rebecca Bloomwood as a funny and adorable protagonist who suffers from a genetic problem that afflicts mostly the female kind, myself included - i.e. shopping. So amusement as well as empathy played a big role on the decision.

I must...more This is the first book in the Shopaholic series written by Sophia Kinsella. I decided to buy the book, as well as the whole series, because I found the trailer of "Confessions of a Shopaholic" absolutely hilarious and every review I read about Kinsella's books raved Rebecca Bloomwood as a funny and adorable protagonist who suffers from a genetic problem that afflicts mostly the female kind, myself included - i.e. shopping. So amusement as well as empathy played a big role on the decision.

I must say I was NOT disappointed with the book. I found the story good fun as well as Becky herself. She is a kind and good person with decent moral principles, who just happens not to know when to stop gratifying herself with gifts. She suffers from a bulimic-like compulsion to shop and although she does feel terrible about it now and then because she can't really afford her shopping sprees, she still can't find it in herself to put an end to the situation. In the process her money conundrums bring her all sorts of troubles and lies, which ultimately end up in her scoring a super-duper TV job (her dream job) that solves her financial nightmares, as well as the mysterious and highly scrumptious Mr Luke Brandon.

So I guess, deceit and deception in the end pay off, as long as you decide to redeem yourself from such bad behaviour by avenging other people's financial losses on a national paper and not dumping your own overdrafts on your parents and housemate's laps. Although that's something you wouldn't want to teach a child - deceit and lies will end you in the naughty step not in heaven, you hear me? - it's something that for some reason you find yourself thinking highly appropriate for Becky as her big finale because, just like her, you also start convincing yourself that if she were only given a break, she would start being a lot more reasonable with the use of her credit cards. How many times have we told ourselves that same white lie?

In any case, the book is written in an endearing way with Becky engaging the reader by asking him questions and sharing with him her own thoughts and points of view. However, I did find a couple of inconsistencies in the plot that nagged me a bit and prevented me from thoroughly enjoying the book:

1. When Becky forgot her Visa card at work, why did Becky ask Elly for cash to buy a gorgeous Denny and George scarf she had seen on sale, when she was carrying cheques with her, as was shown by the scene when she returns home at the end of the day and pulls out her cheque book to pay her housemate her share of council tax? Didn't the shop accept cheques? This was not made clear and was highly irritating because it rendered the scene when Luke loans her the money somewhat farcical and forced.

2. No physical description of Becky is provided except for a brief mention in one of the last chapters that she has long hair. This is a bit unnerving because it forces the reader to create his own visual image of Becky from the start - slim, average height, short hair, etc. - only to have it dashed at the end of the book when Kinsella finally mentions that Becky actually has long hair.

3. At the nadir of her financial problems, Becky runs away to her parents' house and calls in sick at work. However, the following day she has an article published on a national spread and 24 hours later she is on national TV all happy and dandy dispensing financial advice to the Morning Coffee viewers. We never hear from her boss again. Why didn't he confront her about this? Doesn't he and his company workers read the papers and watch telly? I think that a brief scene where Becky would get a text or an email saying 'You're in a spot of trouble, Missy!', would have made the last four chapters a lot more realistic. Instead, one is left wondering what happened to her other job.

4. Finally, after she comes back from her night out with Tarquin, Becky falls off with her housemate, Suze. The latter learns of Becky's rejection from Tarquin when he calls their place. Suze is not best pleased with that because she's also a friend of Tarquin. However, Becky doesn't really reject Tarquin during the date and apparently Tarquin didn't see her (or pretended not to see her) rummaging through his cheque book (the reason why Becky thinks Tarquin ended the evening so abruptly) because he invites her to the opera one week later. So why did Tarquin tell Suze that Becky had rejected him? Was it because Becky had dismissed his money when he offered to make a contribution to some charity Becky had invented on the spot? This is not made clear and once again the reader is left wondering what, oh what did Tarquin tell Suze, while searching to no avail for an answer in the next chapters.

All I'm saying, is that the plot could have been a bit tighter so as not to distract the reader from the joys of such a great story.(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 11, 2012 Aude rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: humor-and-comedy

Encore un livre que j'ai lu parce que j'ai vu l'adaptation au cinéma. Et autant dire que les deux sont très différents, certes on retrouve les mêmes personnages mais la trame de l'histoire générale n'est pas la même. Ici, Rebecca travaille déjà pour "Réussir votre épargne" où elle écrit des articles sans vraiment suivre les conseils qu'elle donne à ses lecteurs. C'est une acheteuse compulsive, et ça se voit, quand elle entre dans certains magasins pour finalement acheter des choses dont elle n'a...more

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Apr 13, 2011 Becky rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, abandoned, 2011, disappointing, reviewed, romance, challenge-1010

I picked this book up on a whim at the thrift store. I had heard it was fun and hilarious and that I'd love it.

It wasn't, and I didn't.

In fact, I only made it 25% into the book before I decided that reading more just wasn't for me. For starters, the main character gives me a bad name. What a vapid, delusional, hypocritical mess. She's bad at her job, she's completely self-centered and selfish and annoying, completely focused on outward appearances and and seems to think that the universe owes...more

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Apr 15, 2009 Dee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: humour, my-reviews, chicklit

Don't judge a book by its movie.

I'm not a big fan of chick-lit generally but the shopaholic series is pretty special, mainly because of Sophie Kinsella's comic timing.
If you are in need of cheering up (but don't have the money to indulge in a little retail therapy yourself) this is the book to do it. It will seriously make you laugh out loud.

When I first read this book (when it was known as The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic) I found I related to Becky somewhat in that I was in exactly the s...more

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Aug 21, 2009 Helynne rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Even though one might call this book a flapdoodle or a mind twinkie (it's easy to finish in two or three days), it's a fun, light read with the same kind of delightful, screwball British humor that is reminiscent of the Bridget Jones books. Heroine Becky Bloomwood is a somewhat endearing character to all of us who have limited funds, but still love stores, malls, new clothes, chic accessories, fancy makeup, and unlimited Starbucks snacks; in short, champagane taste on a beer budget. With a degre...more Even though one might call this book a flapdoodle or a mind twinkie (it's easy to finish in two or three days), it's a fun, light read with the same kind of delightful, screwball British humor that is reminiscent of the Bridget Jones books. Heroine Becky Bloomwood is a somewhat endearing character to all of us who have limited funds, but still love stores, malls, new clothes, chic accessories, fancy makeup, and unlimited Starbucks snacks; in short, champagane taste on a beer budget. With a degree in journalism, Becky has landed at the world's most boring finance magazine writing stultifying articles about pensions and savings plans. The only saving grace in her career is the occasional press conference where she can get free coffee and biscuits and maybe even a glass of champagne. But you can't blame Becky for not putting her heart into her job, when it is so obvious that she really ought to be the fashion and makeup editor for some magazine like Elle. Isn't there a small fashion magazine out there somewhere in London where she could land?!?! Despite my sympathy for Becky, I do find her beginning to grate on the nerves quite early on. I mean, how smart is it to ignore the threatening letters one keeps getting from one's bank and credit card companies, lapse into complete denial, and just keep on spending and making the situation worse? To Becky's credit (if you'll pardon the expression), she does try to get out of her situation by trying the first obvious solution--spend less. Ironically, her efforts to spend less only end up costing her more. The second solution--to make more money--is almost painful to read--especially her foray into a Saturday job as a clerk at a boutique, where she is fired on her first day for trying to hide from a customer a pair of zebra-striped jeans that she herself simply must have. Of course, the redeeming feature of the story is that Becky does eventually hit bottom when her credit cards and bank account are (finally!) frozen and she has to think about actually dealing with her shopping and spending addictions. I won't give too much away here except to say that the happy ending makes the reader have to suspend a lot of disbelief at how neatly everything finally falls into place for Becky. But if we can believe that she has learned to manage her finances more intelligently, I suppose we all will have learned a valuable lesson. There are several more Becky Bloomwood books in the series that lead her to America, to marriage, to motherhood, etc., but that's a big enough dose of Becky for me--at least for now. The film version was fun, but just a little disappointing because the story was moved to New York City and Becky was changed to an American, although her love interest is still an Englishman. I really missed that British humor and vernacular!(less)

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Dec 12, 2008 Shannon (Giraffe Days) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: chick-lit, 2008

Rebecca Bloomwood is a compulsive shopper. She can't go past a sale sign without taking advantage of it. She has run up all her credit cards and gone over her overdraft, but she really must have that coat from Whistles. She works as a finance journalist but knows next to nothing about mutual funds, investments or even how to manage your own money. She just types up articles from press releases - yet she understands more than she realises.

Hounded by letters from her bank and the credit card compa...more Rebecca Bloomwood is a compulsive shopper. She can't go past a sale sign without taking advantage of it. She has run up all her credit cards and gone over her overdraft, but she really must have that coat from Whistles. She works as a finance journalist but knows next to nothing about mutual funds, investments or even how to manage your own money. She just types up articles from press releases - yet she understands more than she realises.

Hounded by letters from her bank and the credit card company, she tries to Cut Back but ends up spending more than usual. Her plans to Make More Money have even less success - a new Saturday job at a clothing boutique lasts just a few hours, after she's fired for fighting over a pair of zebra-print jeans with a customer. She spends most of her time dodging Mr Derek Smeath from the bank and going to conferences where she drinks all the champagne.

Her personal life isn't any less messy: her flatmate's cousin from Scotland has a crush on her but she thinks he looks like a stoat - even when she discovers he's Britain's 15th millionaire bachelor, she can barely make herself fake an interest in Wagner. She has a great time picking out an expensive suitcase with the genius millionaire head of Brandon Communications, Luke Brandon - until she finds out it's for his girlfriend.

She's brought even lower when her quasi expert opinion sees her parents' neighbours lose a lot of money in their investments, but an investigative journalism piece to uncover the firm's sneaky move lands her a spot on morning television - debating the issue against a furious Luke.

I was extremely surprised to genuinely enjoy this book. I don't read chick-lit much - I find a lot of it to be too simplistic, stereotypical and frivolous - and I couldn't even finish Kinsella's The Undomestic Goddess because it was so in-your-face obvious, obnoxious and the laughs were pitifully weak. But Confessions dealt with some real concerns, and through Rebecca's naive yet hopeful outlook, the ills of our society are undressed and up for scrutiny.

My biggest worry, when I picked up this book, was sympathising with the narrator. I'm not a shopaholic. I hate buying shoes. I've been to a hairdresser once in the last 15 years. I turn down the carry bag and shove my purchases into my backpack, or another shop's bag, rather than carry more than one and do some free advertising for them. But then, I do have that hopeless addiction to buying books - like people who buy new clothes all the time, you buy them even when you don't you don't have time/a chance to read them/wear them. So I had that, at least. And Rebecca spends so much time justifying all her purchases, that you get a strong sense of her emotional and mental state - and even though you don't agree with her excuses and you cringe every time she buys something, you can still understand the compulsion.

Becca is a mix of infuriating stupidity and endearing perseverance. She has delusions of grandeur that I think we can all empathise with, and her insights and reactions to tricky situations often had me laughing. When she learned she was going up against Luke on live TV, I felt as nervous as she was - especially since I'd already seen her reactions to other difficult situations, which left me little hope she'd handle this one well. And she does screw up, quite a bit. She's not very grounded - but she does mature.

The prose was smooth and carried Becca's distinctive voice very well. After the sheer awfulness of The Undomestic Goddess , which is more recent, I had very low expectations for this, her debut - maybe that helped, but it had great flow, lots of suspense and tension at the right times, some satisfying confrontations, and because it was first-person narrated in the present tense, you never know what's going to happen next. It's actually a really good example of present tense used wonderfully well. Also, this is probably more in Kinsella's comfort zone than the other book I mentioned, which is about a high-powered lawyer; Kinsella used to be a financial journalist, and you certainly get the feeling that she's writing from experience.

All in all, it was fast, enjoyable read and I find myself wanting to read the next book in the series. It could go downhill from here, but I hope not. I'll just add that, if you've seen the ad for the movie (starring Isla Fisher), and you haven't read this, you'll be greatly surprised at how non-fluffy the book is. I was. I was expecting something very fluffy. The ad is all bright colours and shopping bags and Isla looking a bit like Reese Witherspoon in Legally Blonde, and tells you nothing about the actual story. Might make a good rental movie, the book is great to curl up with on the couch.(less)

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About Sophie Kinsella

Madeleine Wickham (born 12 December 1969) is a bestselling British author under her pseudonym, Sophie Kinsella. Educated at New College, Oxford, she worked as a financial journalist before turning to fiction. She is best known for writing a popular series of chick-lit novels. The Shopaholic novels series focuses on the misadventures of Becky Bloomwood, a financial journalist who cannot manage her...more

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Shopaholic Takes Manhattan (Shopaholic, #2)

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