Herself

by Leslie Carroll

Forty is fabulous for Tessa Craig. Heck, she has it all--a glamorous job as a political speechwriter, a Manhattan duplex, and a handsome boyfriend, Congressman David Weyburn, whose integrity, charisma, and good looks have made him his party's rising star. But her fabulosity fizzles when scandal strikes, and Tessa watches helplessly as her seemingly happy love life and successful career collapse like a house of cards. Tessa realizes it's time to embark...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060859954
• ISBN13: 9780060859954
• Release Date: February 2007
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 296 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.6" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

A Quick Read

The amount of detail, particularly with respect to the political campaigns, really made this feel like a true story in places. When the story begins, Tessa is a speech-writer for a successful and charismatic Congressman, David, that she has been in a secret relationship with for three years. She seemingly has it all, until things start unraveling. When David breaks up with her, Tess crys on the shoulders of her cousin, Imogen, and her best friend, Venus. They convince her to schedule a trip to Ireland to "find herself." When she gets to Ireland she quickly finds Jamie, a fisherman from a large family. She doesn't want to give up her alone time or use Jamie as her rebound guy and then David shows up in Dublin. Through the twists and turns in the book, Tessa does manage to find herself and fall in love. The journey, though, is the joy in the story. A few other characters evolve along the way as well. This was beautifully written, funny, and a very quick read. Great for a trip to the beach or a quiet evening. A must read!

fine contemporary romance

Speechwriter Tessa Craig is probably the most dedicated member of the reelect New York Congressman David Weyburn team because she enjoys being his discrete lover. However, during an aerobic exercise session at the Metropolitan Health Club, forty-three years old David collapses with Kelly Adonis the male instructor giving him CPR and saving his life. Rumors erupt that David is gay with Kelly as his male hunk lover. David's political manager decides he must stay sexually clean until the preference storm blows away so heeding that advice he severs his personal relationship with Tessa though he still wants her as his writer. Hurt by his choosing political expedience over her, Tessa decides to leave town with a trip to Dublin. There she meets kindhearted Star Trek aficionado fisherman Jamie Doyle. He soon falls in love with the American and shows her in many little ways how he feels; so opposite of her David who never showed inner affection towards her. When her vacation ends, Tessa returns to the Big Apple but Jamie follows and crashes on her couch as he seeks employment and ultimately open a pub. However, as David keeps reappearing and vanishing David's mother arrives from Ireland to begin a campaign to rid her son of the Jew that holds his heart. The moving of romance into the political world works quite nicely as heated issues like sexual preference and health make for a fine subplot. When the story line twists into Tessa running for her former boss' seat that stretches the believability of the audience as money, support, and preparations do not occur overnight for most people. Still the romance is top rate as Jamie constantly shows Tessa that he loves her even when his mom accompanied by his sister arrive to bring him home. Readers will enjoy this fine contemporary romance with its interesting political spin. Harriet Klausner

Life Makes a Turnaround at 40

HERSELF, Leslie Carroll's latest work of contemporary fiction could be an old-fashioned fairy tale. The heroine, Tessa Goldsmith Craig, was working as a speech writer for a young, handsome, well liked Congressman. Then life deals her some sharp blows and she has to make some serious changes. Her lady friends decide she has to go far away; so she journeys off to Ireland, where magic happens and she literally "finds" herself. Before she has a chance to recover from jet lag she's thrown into a whole new culture and environment. She goes pub-crawling, solo, and meets the handsome Jamie Doyle. It doesn't take long for Tessa to figure out that while their backgrounds are totally different, Jamie does something to her. She begins to feel good about herself. She had thought she needed to be alone to figure out the rest of her life. She wasn't yet ready to start all over again...but being with Jamie had an amazing effect on her. Blackpool's is a typical Irish pub -and Jamie's traditional Irish family owns it. In birth order, each of his siblings has a job. The bartender is the rather quiet, shy older son, Niall. Gregarious, people loving Jamie spends a lot of time alone as the fisherman (where else to get the goods for those fish and chips?); a third son is a hansom cab driver showing tourists around Dublin. And, to complete the family piucture, a younger sister is in training to become a nun. Their Mum is American born and is the homemaker. She tends her garden and makes strangely lifelike baby dolls that she sells. Da is not a typical Irish father; though he rules the brood with a strict hand, contrary to the image one conjurs of an Irish patriarch, he doesn't drink and he loves to run marathons. Jamie's first step toward making Tessa part of his life comes when he introduces her to his family. Then they all band together to show her their Ireland -the one beyond Dublin's tourist sights. When her week of vacation concludes, Tessa is surprised to find Jamie on the plane back to NY with her. Now her life is really destined to change in unimaginable ways. She had told her friends she wanted a man who would say he "couldn't live without her"...and he there he is! Be careful what you wish for! As their lives meld Tessa realizes she has found "herself" and Jamie gets what he's been looking for...but not without a few obstacles along the way. They begin to travel the road together toward a truly happy ending. As in all of her previous books,Ms. Carroll vividly describes wherever she happens to be. Her characters speak in the dialects of the areas in which they were raised, which creates very interesting dialogue and gives readers an insight into their personalities and lifestyles. Herself is great travel reading; the perfect book for a lazy weekend in the country. Many readers might not believe things can truly happen as quickly as they do; but its fun to read this charming urban fairy tale and root for its leading players.