WANTED - FIT, FERTILE MAN (Dreaming of a Stranger - Sheila O'Flanagan)

Member Name: Sarccyslayer

Product:	Dreaming of a Stranger - Sheila O'Flanagan
Date:	27/11/04 (138 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great story, Totally gripping, Bargain Price

Disadvantages: None

I have of late, spent a lot of my time travelling from one place to another around London using public transport…ewww I know public transport, how awful! However, this is the only time I get to spend reading and escaping from this busy life that I lead.

However, it has given me the chance to read a few good books starting with Sheila O’Flanaghans’ ‘Dreaming of a stranger’ an author whom I really like and have read

(“,) The Author (”,)

Sheila O’Flanagan published her first novel ‘Dreaming of a Stranger’ in 1997 after a very successful career in banking, foreign exchange dealing and treasury management, becoming Ireland's first woman Chief Dealer before she became a writer.

Based in Dublin, her novels are set in and around Ireland and she is a known within the literary world for her bestseller ‘HE'S GOT TO GO.

Other novels by Sheila O’Flanaghan include ‘MY FAVOURITE GOODBYE’, ‘FAR FROM OVER’, ‘SUDDENLY SINGLE; and ISOBEL’S WEDDING’ all of which are superb.

(“,) Synopsis (“,)

This book is centred on the one character Jane. Jane is someone who is constantly dreaming about meeting Mr Right (sounds familiar) and her dreams take her off to islands of fantasy and euphoria.

Janes dreams are full of white skies, blue seas, foreign destinations and the felling of hope, the hope that she will find this one man who will fulfil her dreams.

(“,) Dreaming of a Stranger (“,)

Jane isn’t like her friends; she is an only child with parents who still, at the age of 21 tell her how to dress and act. Her friends Lucy and the twins are a lot more independent than Jane and they live their lives the way they want to lead them.

Working in a bank for living isn’t exactly Jane’s idea of fun either, it doesn’t quite fit in with her ideology of a perfect life, but it is something she is good at and something she has done since leaving school.

The main problem with Jane is she has never been willing to take any chances in life, with men or with work, which is often why she is left day-dreaming about 'what if' and 'what could be'.

Lucy and Jane have been friends most of their lives and Lucy is a typical best friend, she is the pretty petite blonde who gets all the men, whilst Jane, a pretty redhead longingly looks at Lucy’s life and wishes her was more like that.

Then suddenly out of the blue, the twins suggest the four of them share a flat in the middle of town, nearer to work for them all. The Twins work in a clothes department in the middle of town and dream of opening their own clothes boutique one day for those members of society who are quite affluent.

Jane’s life from this point on takes a whole new turn, she has the independence she has always craved, she can do what she wants when she wants to do it, and now she has met Rory. Is Rory the man of her dreams? Rory works in the same bank as Jane, but he is a shares dealer and works long hours and is never around when Jane and his family need him.

After Rory and Jane get married, she is still slipping into fantasy world of this mysterious Mr Right, does this mean she isn’t happy with her new life, being a wife and a mother isn’t all it is cracked up to be as Jane soon finds out and messages from a fortune teller leave Jane bewildered wondering what if and with who.

(“,) The plot explained (“,)

Jane has to take control of her own destiny. And she does, but she does she let her heart rule her head or does she do the ‘Jane thing’ and go with the sensible option. I wont actually tell you what it is she does eventually do because the whole novel and storyline revolves around Jane and her dreams.

Lucy, Jane’s best friend also releases what her dream is along with the twins in this novel and it all falls into place with the rise of fall of Jane and the world around her.

(“,) The characters (“,)

As well as Jane and Rory as the main characters within this book, we are introduced to Lucy who I have already briefly mentioned. She is the popular blonde person, the girl who gets all the boys, but Lucy is the girl who is always left broken hearted. She has her fair share of men throughout this book and we follow Lucy’s life through Jane’s, with all of her ups and downs followed by tears of sadness and happiness.

The twins also reach their dreams and although they are not prominent figures throughout the book they are mentioned throughout all the vital parts of the book and they play their significant parts when Jane is in need of fashion advice and it is around this time that we find more and more details out about her married life with Rory and how she is really feeling.

Jane is a very likeable character and a lot of the time I did find myself wanting to shout at Jane to tell her what to do because to an outsider it seems obvious, much with life itself, it is always easier to see what is happening on the outside.

(“,) Where to buy and the cost (“,)

I found this book in Tesco as it has been re-released and it was a bargain at £3.84. This book is also available on Amazon and all Internet sites where you would normally buy books and it is also available in nationwide bookstores such as Waterstones and Ottakars.

Prices for this book vary from £3.84, which is what I paid in Tesco, to £6.99 in WHSmiths. The best advice is to go and buy it from Tesco and shop around on the Internet and see if you can pick up a second hand copy.

(“,) My opinion (“,)

Im a huge fan of Sheila O’Flanaghans novels and having read them all I was slightly disappointed with ‘Dreaming of a Stranger’ although the story line is entertaining and gripping at times to the point of you having to know which route and destiny Jane finally chooses or does she let fate takes its natural path.

I did feel at times that this initial detail is set over a long period of time and takes a while to get going because this book is over 600 pages long and is set out in 36 chapterrs, it begins with it is a long hard read. It is set out into different parts of Jane’s life.

The beginning of each chapter is dated and has the relevant number one listed; for example chapter one - April 1981 (US No.7 - Woman - John Lennon) and Chapter 36 - September 1994 (UK No.2 - Always - Bon jovi). Every song listed in each chapter has a relevant meaning, chapter one is about Jane turning 21 and becoming a woman hence the song by John Lennon and in Chapter 36, Jane has got to a point in her life and this song is relevant.

Starting with her life at home with her parents leading upto her 21st birthday, this is where we are first introduced to Jane’s ideology of her perfect life.

The second part of the book is about Jane’s new found freedom with the girls in their own flat and her meeting with Rory and how much her life changes in small period of time.

The third section deals with Jane’s married life and everything life throws at her during the next ten years and the final section is about realising her destiny and what she really wants from life and it is here that we see a new Jane and whether she got what she finally wanted out of life.


After reading the novel it all becomes clear as to why Sheila O’Flanagan went into so much detail about Jane and who she was, although it was a long slog, as a reader it was easier to get to know Jane by knowing as much detail as possible, without this extra detail I think Jane would have been an annoying character because she spent so much time deliberating over her decisions, when to everyone else they seem so simple.

On the whole I did enjoy the book, once I got past the initial stage of reading about Jane’s background and got into the future of what she was now like and her married life the book totally gripped me as have O’Flanaghans previous novels and the ending was not what I expected.

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