Review: Ms. Communications (Smart Ms. Novel Book 1) by Myra Kendrix

Ms. Communications (Smart Ms. Novel Book 1) by Myra Kendrix
294 pages, June 2015
Source: I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review
My Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars


Description:

A fast-paced laugh-out-loud romance giving an insider's view of the cut-throat startup world, where yesterday’s impossible becomes today’s reality. 

Gwen Mongan is a thirty-three-year-old Marketing Communications executive in an innovative startup. Besides her exciting career and dream home, former social worker Gwen’s life is full with great friends, community service, and a passion for matchmaking. The only problem is her boss: the impossibly demanding and maddeningly charismatic hi-tech superstar, Jake Folton.

When Jake goes too far, Gwen thinks it’s time to look for a new job. But Gwen soon discovers it’s going to take more spunk and ingenuity than she knew she possessed to get away from a guy who doesn’t take no for an answer. In fact, it’s going to turn her tidy existence upside-down.

Can a racehorse named Purple Lemonade, a deadly Funnel-Web Spider, and a dubious Bachelor-of-the-Year contest finally show Gwen that some people are not what they seem and some risks are worth taking?

Debut novelist Myra Kendrix brings her own experience in hi-tech marketing to this page-turning, romantic comedy, set against the vibrant cityscape of Sydney, Australia. 

My Review:

I don't work in a fast-paced startup environment, but I have no doubt that Ms. Kendrix really knows her stuff. This book had a lot of very informative information about that world and it was interesting to read about.  

I definitely think I would have liked this story more if I hadn't been expecting a romantic comedy. I kept waiting for something to happen, but the romance is a very small part of the story and almost non-existent. I didn't feel any romantic connection between the characters. I wanted flirting, secret glances, stolen kisses, or anything to show interest in each other. I really like the build up of the romance in a story, but felt it was missing.

Gwen is a very hardworking and eager-to-please type of woman and she puts way more into her job than she should. She's not only a hard-nosed marketing guru, but she also dabbles in matchmaking, with some successful outcomes. She's a real people person who can really read and assess a person. I really liked her character and personality. I loved the friendship Gwen shares with Malia and the dedication she has towards fixing up her house. She has a way of stating things how they are in a tactful way and I loved watching her in action. She's a very family oriented woman and I loved reading about her interactions with her family. Gwen has an interest in her boss, Jake, but he's a jerk!

I'm sure that Jake doesn't mean to be a jerk, but he is. He's very intense, very focused on his job, and has absolutely no social skills. He can't clue in to how others feel and he pushes his employees to work as hard as he does. He admits that he doesn't like to be at home--it's at work where he feels comfortable at and can be himself.

I enjoyed the setting--Australia! It was a lot of fun to get to know parts of that country a little better and to catch of glimpse of life there. I felt immersed in the culture with the language that is used in the story and the descriptions of places.

Content: no language, violence, or religious elements; extremely mild romance. Clean!

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About the Author: 

3 Facts About Myra Kendrix:

1. Myra is a professional marketer. That means she gets paid to brainstorm wildly creative ideas, which is lucky because she does that all day anyway, even when she's not being paid.
2. Besides authoring chick-lit novels, Myra is also an adept writer of marketing copy, blog posts, collection letters to clients, front-end code, late notes for her children and third-person blurbs about herself.
3. Though she hasn't lived there for many years, Myra thinks that Sydney, Australia, is probably the world's most beautiful city. If you haven't visited, you must go. If you can't go, read Myra's books. It's the next best thing.
4. If you were to say to Myra: "look at that bird in that tree," she would probably answer with childlike enthusiasm, "you mean that Crimson Rosella in the Moreton Bay Fig?"
5. Despite having been promised three facts only, we are now up to No. 5. This is typical of Myra.

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