Ten Men

by Alexandra Gray

A debut novel chronicles the sexual coming-of-age of a young woman through her relationships with ten men, including a virgin, a billionaire, an actor, an intellectual, and a director, among others. 35,000 first printing. $50,000 ad/promo.

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction

264 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Lyn Richards · Rating 1 out of 5]

The main character of this book takes us on an uneventful and somewhat boring journey from age 19 onwards where she expects the 10 men in her life somehow complete her......and guess what it doesn't happen, she has to find out that only she can accept her life and get on with making a life for herself......well there's a surprise....NOT! She is the most insipid doormat of a character it is infuriating.

This book would have to be one of the most boring books I have ever read......I only kept reading because I thought it simply has to get better......it didn't!

I would not recommend this book at all. There are better timewasters around.

[Misha · Rating 3 out of 5]

BookList: Gray introduces an intelligent if sometimes misguided heroine who learns about life and love with real grit and spirit. Desperate to escape her mother’s stifling Catholic home, our heroine marries a schoolmaster at a men’s boarding school on a French island but quickly discovers that island life and a workaholic husband don’t fulfill her need for pleasure and adventure. She soon leaves him to pursue love as a single girl. True to the book’s title, she describes 10 of her conquests, from the Virgin, a snobbish 40-year-old, through the Lord, a Brit more than twice her age, and on to the Billionaire, a sugar daddy who finances her American acting education. But these relationships really only leave our heroine with the same shallow notion about relationships that plague many men--the notion that love amounts only to the thrill of the chase. Reminiscent of Lucinda Rosenfeld’s What She Saw (2000), Gray’s debut brings warm, bracing insight to the classic chic-lit story of a young woman in transition. -- MishaStone (BookList, 04-15-2005, p1431)

[Annie Schmitz (Regnier) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was "meh" I would say I don't regret reading it, there were a lot of interesting parts that definitely made me think about the story after putting down the book. Although I'm unsure if I would recommend it to anyone in my friend group.

[Katherine Nally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our protagonist ends up dating 10 men with varying degrees of longevity and success, learns to love herself first (kind of), ultimately stops waiting for a fairytale.

[Todd Hamill · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting read. I didn’t love it, but I kept on to see where all this was going. I don’t think this is a spoiler, but I found it interesting that none of the 10 men had names. the were just described by her impression of them, their profession, their title….etc. I think she was hinting at the fact that they were all just people on her journey of self discovery. It’s not for everyone, but for those that are on their own journey and would like a different perspective, this might fit the bill. I ended up with this book because it was in a library audio book sale and was inexpensive. I got about 15 audio books from authors I’d never read and it makes for a bit of an adventure.

[Taynement · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light fun read. I picked it up at our work library to pass the time at lunch. Young girl starts her dating life at 19 by marrying the first man she thought she loved and guides us through 10 different men in her life. None of them ever have first names but are identified like The Virgin, The Lord, The One etc.
On one hand she seems to be dependent on men and always has to have one in her life but on the flip she is living a fabulous life on their dime especially when she hooks up with The Billionaire.

I liked this book even though it was old. I knew it was old when it made mention of Tony Blair as prime minister and there was an instance that wasn't quite politically correct

[Ayden Hadley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book can come off as problematic and or boring but that’s life. Our main character grew up catholic and without a father figure. Of course her reality would be distorted, more specifically the manner in which she views men. Our heroine seems to have stayed in that “angsty teen” stage well beyond 19 but, in a way it is charming. I myself got ti sympathize with her at times. The book can travel to dark places and still come up for air. This book felt like a light read. If you enjoy reading books that are heavy on detail rather than plot, this book suits you. Although i feel the ending was somewhat dissatisfying, I still enjoyed this read.

[Lachiara · Rating 2 out of 5]

E’ raro che io dia meno di tre stelline, di solito se un libro riesco a finirlo vuol dire che qualcosa sono riuscita ad apprezzarlo.
Non in questo caso. Ho finito sì il libro, ma che cavolata!
Alla ricerca del Mr.Right .... ma qui il problema è essere la Mrs Right :)

[Yelena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Easy one day summer read.

[Ine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Verrassend leuk boek. Origineel opgebouwd.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fluffy and light, it's like watching an episode of Sex and the City as we journey through the protagonist's love life and her encounters with ten different men. Good for an easy beach vacation read.

[Favour · Rating 3 out of 5]

i guess i shouldn't be surprised that the main character's life was completely centred around men given the title of the book

[Miss Bananahammock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice easy listen (audiobooked), wasn’t too romantic for me and enjoyed listening to all the different types of men ahe had met and loved.

[Bronwyn Rykiert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This girl is having a great life but doesn’t realise it, some people would love to have had the opportunities that she had.

At 19 she marries The Schoolmaster and goes to live on a small island between England and France. She finds a position as a typist for a brokerage firm and before you know it she is working as an interpreter for their French clients. She has an affair with her boss The Lawyer and when his wife finds out she loses her job and is given a company car as part of her severance pay. At the same time she decides to leave her husband and move to London. She then meets The Lover and The Lord and finds a position as secretary to The Billionaire – he is very generous with his money but not his heart. Even after she finishes in his employ he pays for her apartment in an up town area in New York and pays for her to do a University degree and gives her money as well. As luck would have it she wants to be an actress so she meets The Director and The Actor and life moves on. When she finishes her degree she decides to move back to England (as she has decided not to take up The Billionaires offer of doing another degree). Next on her list is The Virgin who we first meet at the beginning of the story and lastly she moves on to The Father & Photographer – and maybe then she will be happy.

I really enjoyed this story and would recommend it as a light read.

[Carola · Rating 3 out of 5]

De naamloze ik-figuur uit dit boek is ervan overtuigd dat ze voorbestemd is om tegen de Ideale Man aan te lopen. Ze ontmoet negen totaal verschillende mannen in de veronderstelling dat haar ware Jacob ertussen zal zitten. Zo is er de Lord (hij zoekt een klasse Lady), de Regisseur (die van haar een Ster wil maken), de Miljardair (hij maakt haar financieel afhankelijk), de Maagd (die van haar de liefde wil leren), de Schoolmeester (gedurende korte tijd haar echtgenoot) en de Directeur (die zijn vrouw niet durft te verlaten). In de loop van de tijd verliest de hoofdpersoon haar grootse dromen en, moe van haar zoektocht, loopt ze tegen de Ware, de tiende man, aan.

[Jackie · Rating 1 out of 5]

The title is intriguing, but it turned out to be the only intriguing thing about this book. I thought it was just me, but the members of my book club felt the same.

One would think if there are 10 men to discuss, at least 1 of them would be interesting. NOT! Even the main character --and her search for a good, decent, whatever kind of many she sought-- didn't make you want to continue to read about her.

All in all, this was just not a good read.

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book although it's somewhat painful to read, because there's no peace and happiness there. The main character loves men and is easily fascinated with them, especially if they are rich or beautiful (or both). She discovers that their money and beauty won't bring her happiness. All the men she dates or marries or has a relationship with seem to be shallow and cold unless they are very poor (and think she's rich).

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brillant story of a womans quest to discover what will make her happy whilst dating a line of Ten men.
She dates the virgin, the schoolmaster, a lawyer, a lord whilst having a lover on the sidelines, a billionaire, and the read is gripping as she toils between the men she wants and who will bring her happiness.

[Tennessee O'Donnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book because I had read Alexandra Gray's other book and wanted to see what this book would be like. Both so very different but I still really enjoyed this book...easy to read and the male dynamics and relationships were identifiable! and how easy it can be to flit from one relationship to another..the main character got stronger within herself as her story progressed.

[Sb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was engaging and well written. Although this was not a character I sat wishing to be, it was still fascinating to read her elaborate story and think.... it could happen. I loved reading the book and felt it ended perfectly. I didn't end necessarily wanting more, but felt satisfied, like from a good meal.

[Leen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eigenlijk vertelt Gray niets minder dan het (liefdes)levensverhaal van een jonge vrouw die in Londen, New York en Parijs heeft gewoond. Op het einde loopt ze zogezegd ‘de Ware’ tegen het lijf, maar voor de lezer blijft het een raadsel of er überhaupt een relatie uit die toevallige ontmoeting zal voortkomen.

Aangename chicklit, soms grappig, zeker onderhoudend genoeg voor een avondje nietsdoen.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I ever bought at the Dollar Tree and I have to say I really enjoyed it. It was light and funny and it was well worth the start of my addiction to buying books at the Dollar Tree. Enjoy!

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book, haven't read anything with quite the same style.

[Deanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good to read after a break-up/divorce in combination with 'He's just not that into You"

[Sanjana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thought it would be another one of those trashy chick lit books, but I actually enjoyed this. Interesting narrative.

[comfort · Rating 3 out of 5]

A witty look at a single woman's trip through life and the men she dates/sleeps with.

[Sheila · Rating 2 out of 5]

A women seek for hapiness but goes though many barriers to find it!!Great book....easy to read!

[Kara Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, entertaining read.

[Amanda Mankelow]

No disrespect but this was awful, so shallow and materialistic. Chick-flick-film style but without the didactic undertones many of them at least possess.