This Is How It Happened (Not a Love Story)-Jo Barrett

This Is How It Happened (Not a Love Story)
Jo Barrett
Avon, Jan 2008, $13.95
ISBN: 9780061241109

Carlton Connors and Madeline Piatro met in a marketing class at the U of Texas. They became lovers as Piatro fell in love at first sight and soon move in together. He gives her an engagement ring, but insists she not wear in front of his father at this time.

Meanwhile Madeline creates a business plan to market Organic for Kids food. She and Carlton brief the idea to his wealthy businessman father; he and his peers love the concept and agree to bankroll it with a stunned Madeline receiving only a promise of future stock options if the company succeeds. When the firm proves successful, Carlton receives all the credit and Madeline receives zilch. He even has the audacity to demand his ring back as he dumps her because she is of no further use for him since he has a new night time partner and is a daytime Einstein. She tells her best friend Heather she wants to kill him and begins crafting various means.

Mindful of the movie I Love You to Death, this is a lighthearted zany romantic suspense comedy that rotates perspective between Madeline’s plot to kill Carlton and the four years that they were a couple. The story line is fast-paced in a breezy way as the cast are an amusing blundering crowd staring with Florence the hitman, Nick the undercover cop with no last name except for the state he provides Maddy, her turn the other cheek brother, her lawyer Michael and of course Carlton and Heather. Readers will enjoy this humorous farce while pondering whether Maddy’s recipe for brownies will rival that of Alice B. Toklas.

Harriet Klausner