And the innuendo continues... (Come Again - Josie Lloyd, Emlyn Rees)

Member Name: The Duke

Product:	Come Again - Josie Lloyd, Emlyn Rees
Date:	04/09/05 (242 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Decent plot, likeable characters.

Disadvantages: The ending is unsatisfactory.

Following on from their best-selling "Come Together", Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees bring you another "he says, she says" tale featuring Jack and Amy or, to be more accurate, their friends. There is an element of continuity as Jack and Amy do appear from time to time, and two of the main characters featured in the original.

Jack and Amy have just moved in together and are not too far away from their wedding day. During the run in to their big day, we get a peek into the lives of four of their closest friends. On Jack's side, we get to know Matt (he also appeared in the first book) and Greg Stringer. Matt is Jack's best man and it's up to him to arrange the stag weekend. On Amy's side, we're re-introduced to H (Helen, who also appeared in the first book) and Susie.

In a style similar to the first book, each of the four main characters gets a chapter at a time to tell their little piece of the story and these end up creating the complete picture, albeit told from their individual viewpoints.

Matt's going through a phase where he's single and is unhappy, but he's confused as this has never been an issue before. Stringer's leading his usual double life of living up to his reputation with the boys as being a ladies man and party animal (not helped by the fact that he seems to be the most handsome man on the planet and an ex-cocaine addict) while actually being a lot quieter and more shy than people realise.

Helen's recently broken up with the long-term boyfriend, Gav. This, coupled with her stressful work life, isn't making her happy or a nice person to be around. Susie, on the hand, is a more happy-go-lucky person, but even she is not on top form as we're introduced to her after yet another one night stand. She's getting fed up of the casual sex and on top of that, her best friends are leaving to go and work in America.

From the entrances of all four characters, we follow their intertwined lives through their eyes as they deal with life, the stag weekend and the hen party to Jack and Amy's wedding.

Comparisons to the original are inevitable, and if you liked the original then you'll like this as it's essentially more of the same. The characters are all likeable enough and the book zips along at a decent, but not frantic, pace. The differing viewpoints told through each chapter don't confuse the issue as it's clear who's narrating at each point. The good thing about "Come Again" is that you don't need to have read "Come Together" to understand or enjoy it. It's all self-contained.

For the most part, I enjoyed it. The basic story was good and the characters were likeable enough to keep you reading as there were times where I could relate to what was going on. I could see various elements of myself in my friends in the main characters – both male and female. Having male and female co-authors probably helped a great deal here. Where I thought the book had a weak point was the ending (and in my eyes it's weak enough to warrant a drop in star rating to three stars from four). The ending simply didn't sit well for me, but to explain why would probably give too much away. Having read three books now by the joint-authors (Come Together, Come Again and The Boy Next Door), I've now decided that they're fans of this kind of ending, which has put me off reading any more of their stuff This is a shame because up until the point where they tie up all the loose ends, their stuff is very enjoyable.

Authors: Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees
Publisher: Arrow
ISBN: 0099279282
Price: £5.59

Summary: Sequel to "Come Together" focusing on Jack and Amy's friends.