Happy Furrowed Middlebrow Friday, Friends!
Reading Susan Scarlett books is definitely one of the joys of my reading life. The more titles I read, the more I'm addicted. Thank goodness that the awesomely amazing Dean Street Press republished all of Noel Streatfeild's books under this adorable pseudonym! Yay!
This week, I'm sharing another book rating and review—Peter and Paul!
RATING: 4.5🌟
For me, Peter and Paul is the Furrowed Middlebrow version of a Sweet Valley High book!
Peter and Paul reminded me so much of Jessica and Elizabeth from the Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal. I used to love reading this YA series when I was young and this Susan Scarlett book absolutely brought back the same fun "twin vibes" drama that I used to get from this series.
I really enjoyed:
- The alternated settings of the upscale fashion/clothing store (where the twins work) and the country vicarage (their home)
- The fascinating characters in each location: a moral-minded (and very behind-the-times) vicar, a loving (but frazzled) mother, a jealous (and deviously clever) store manager—plus, lots of employee gossip and unfulfilled Hollywood dreams balanced with the helpful, quiet and caring Paul (Pauline) and slightly clueless (but handsome) fashion designer, David Bliss.
If it wasn't for my frustration over the selfish behavior of Peter (Petronella), I would have given this novel another half star. But, this is a theme that frequently upsets me and slightly spoils the enjoyment of the story overall. I know that there must be some sort of conflict in a YA novel like this, but it's one that bothers me more than I like. So, even though it was a great story, it's not quite a 5 star read for me.
But, I'm still very excited to read the rest of the Susan Scarlett books! In general, they are a such a treat to read and I'm always very grateful to Dean Street Press Ltd. for republishing all of these charming books by Susan Scarlett/Noel Streatfeild!
Many thanks to my dear friend, Gina (@gina.stanyer.books on IG and YouTube), for buddy reading this book with me!
Stay tuned for a full SUMMER READING BOOK LIST in my next post! I've been slowly creating a list of all of the books in my collection with "summer" in the title (or a summer theme) and I'm looking forward to sharing these books with you!
Hope you're having a wonderful summer so far and please let me know what you've been reading in July and August 🤩💛 As always, lots of love and many hugs!! I'm so grateful for your support (both here and on Instagram!) 💕🌸🤗🌸💕
Lovely review, Gina! This sounds like such a fun one! Love to think of the Wakefield twins living in a vicarage in England. Haha! I used to love Sweet Valley High too. And while Jessica's blatant selfishness drove me crazy, I think I got more upset with Elizabeth for letting Jessica walk all over her. Jessica sure had the entire Wakefield family in the palm of her hand! Now, I will promptly stop sounding like an SVH superfan. Haha!
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