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Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (Isobel Dalhousie Novels) (Hardcover)

by Alexander McCall Smith (Author)
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
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Frequently Bought Together

Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (Isobel Dalhousie Novels) + The Right Attitude to Rain (Sunday Philosophy Club) + The Sunday Philosophy Club (Isobel Dalhousie Novels)
Price For All Three: £25.69

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Little, Brown; First Edition / edition (5 Sep 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0316727806
  • ISBN-13: 978-0316727808
  • Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.8 x 3.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 302,180 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk

If you've got the key to literary success, it is a risky business indeed to make an abrupt change of subject that may lose you some readers. Has Alexander McCall Smith done this with Friends, Lovers, Chocolate? After all, his much-loved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Series has won him a legion of admirers, with its vividly evoked African settings, quirky plotting and (most of all) his likeable, 'generously proportioned' sleuth Precious Ramotswe. These gentle, indulgently enjoyable books were quite unlike anything else being published today, and found a ready audience. But McCall Smith, not content to rest on his laurels, produced The Sunday Philosophy Club, with a new female detective, the philosopher Isabel Dalhousie. This was a very different kettle of fish, with an Edinburgh setting replacing sultry Botswana, and more philosophical concerns replacing the homely adages. The book was a success, without seducing readers in quite the numbers that the previous series had done. And now we have the second outing for Isabel Dalhousie -- and Friends, Lovers, Chocolate bids fair to cement McCall Smith's new heroine in readers’ affections – though she’ll never replace Precious. Isabel is trying to deal with her uncertain feelings for an attractive young man, Jamie, who is planning to marry her niece, Cat. Things become even more complicated when Cat takes an Italian vacation and asks Isabel to look after her delicatessen. Isabel finds out that one of the customers has had a heart transplant, and seems to be accessing memories that he is convinced belong to another person. As Isabel digs deeper, things suddenly become dangerous. The appeal of the new book is (like its predecessor) more to the mind than the emotions, but it's none the worse for that. McCall Smith's brittle dialogue and situations are as entertainingly off-kilter as ever, and even fans of the ample Precious should put this on their lists. --Barry Forshaw


Review

'It is hard to think of a contemporary writer more genuinely engaging...(his) novels are also extremely funny: I find it impossible to think about them without smiling' Craig Brown, Mail on Sunday 'A treasure of a writer whose books deserve immediate devouring' Marcel Berlins, Guardian
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (Isobel Dalhousie Novels)
75% buy the item featured on this page:
Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (Isobel Dalhousie Novels) 3.6 out of 5 stars (12)
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The Comfort of Saturdays (Isabel Dalhousie 5)
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The Right Attitude to Rain (Sunday Philosophy Club)
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The Right Attitude to Rain (Sunday Philosophy Club) 4.2 out of 5 stars (17)
£5.56
The Careful Use of Compliments: Careful Use of Compliments v. 4 (Sunday Philosophy Club)
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The Careful Use of Compliments: Careful Use of Compliments v. 4 (Sunday Philosophy Club) 4.1 out of 5 stars (17)
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Customer Reviews

12 Reviews
5 star:
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 (4)
3 star:
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2 star:
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Average Customer Review
3.6 out of 5 stars (12 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful!, 28 Jul 2006
By P. Rio Branco (Brazil/Belgium) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Friends, Lovers, Chocolate: The Sunday Philosophy Club (Isobel Dalhousie Novels) (Paperback)
A delightful sequel to "The Sunday Philosophy Club". It has an engaging plot and thought-provoking philosophical discussions - a real page-turner! The character of Isabel Dhalousie is further developed - she becomes more real, more human somehow as we read about her weaknesses and inner desires. Having lived in Southern Africa for many years, I became a big fan of the "No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" series because I thought I could recognise many familiar elements in the descriptions of the characters, landscapes and so on. I have never been to Edingurgh or Scotland, and yet I didn't feel left out while reading McCall Smith's (or Isabel's) impressions of the city and the local culture. In fact, it makes me want to go there and experience it first hand. I can't wait for the third book of the series to come out!
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30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Very readable ;plot slightly dominated by philosophy asides, 12 Sep 2005
By Brolyn (CREWE, Cheshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
With The Sunday Philosophy Club some would say McCall Smith has created in Isabel Dalhousie a sort of Scottish Ma Ramotswe. Physically, culturally and geographically they are worlds apart- but at their core is a deep and sensitive morality and an innate curiousity about their fellow humans.

Friends Lovers Chocolate has the slow but satisfying quality of its predecessor and promises an interesting scientific plot thread with a transplant patient haunted by what he thinks may be a consequence of cellular memory. Layered with this strand is the continuing story of Jamie, Isabel's young musician friend who longs for a relationship with her niece, Cat. Infused with this is the hint of an affair for Isabel herself with an Italian visitor called Tomasso. Unfortunately this latter sub-plot seems to be brought to a rather abrupt and slightly unsatisfactory ending.

All in all McCall Smith is still on form but as a chocophile I could have done with a little more reference to chocolate and slightly less of the philosophical musings!

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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Believable characters and a great story, 2 Aug 2006
This is a great read!

My reaction to the first book in this series was luke warm, partly because I did not feel that the lead characters had been particularly well developed and partly because the mystery was not sufficiently mysterious! However, this second instalment is a huge improvement and I enjoyed it very much. Isabel was presented as very likeable, honest and intelligent. The way she handles her feelings for Jamie make her seem very real.

There remains a philosophical thread to the story but it was subtle and interesting, as opposed to the rather name-dropping and slightly pretentious style of the first book. The storyline in "Friends, Lovers and Chocolate" is original and reflects recent scientific study into the unexpected effects of transplantation on the recipient. You get a real sense of excitement as the mystery unfolds.

The story moves along quickly enough to satisfy your need to know what happens next yet does not rush along like a cheap crime thriller. It shows intelligence but not affectation. If you are a fan of Mr McCall Smith I recommend that you read this book, regardless of whether you enjoyed "The Sunday Philosophy Club".
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Problematic
I suppose this is going to be what you might call a mixed review: This book is a light read but addresses philosophical issues; it appeals because of the characters, but then... Read more
Published 15 days ago by Simon Anstey

5.0 out of 5 stars oh Isobel
I don't even know what hasn't been said over and over before and in very eloquent words; for me it's just that:
A new book of this series comes out, I buy it ASAP and I... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Kiki

4.0 out of 5 stars Great!
A.M.S. has come up with another fascinating slice of Edinburgh life. His characters are rounded and interesting, even if some of the situations they find themselves in are a... Read more
Published 4 months ago by J. Baxter

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, charming, interesting
I had missed out on this delightful Isabel Dalhousie series until recently as I hadn't liked my sampling of the No 1 Ladies Detective agency books. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Bluebell

1.0 out of 5 stars Won't bother again
Very disappointing as nothing actually happens and felt extremely letdown by the ending. Not sure why this was put in the library under crime??? Read more
Published on 17 Sep 2006 by Crime reader

1.0 out of 5 stars disappointing
I love the Ladies Detective Agency books so I bought this. It was a huge disappointment. The story is risible and the characters one-dimensional and unbelievable. Read more
Published on 4 Sep 2006 by deemac

2.0 out of 5 stars disappointing
I loved the lady detective books so thought I'd try this. I was deeply disappointed. The lead character is unbelievable and comes across like an elderly spinster rather than the... Read more
Published on 22 Aug 2006 by deemac

4.0 out of 5 stars Troubled Feelings Lead to Investigations

Please be aware that this book is about Alexander McCall Smith's other female detective, Isabel Dalhousie, rather than Precious Ramotswe. Read more
Published on 16 May 2006 by Professor Donald Mitchell

5.0 out of 5 stars Friends, Lovers, Chocolate
I am not reviewing the book but would like to point out that Barry Forshaw speaks of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency being set in Zimbabwe. Read more
Published on 4 April 2006 by Anthony Stocking

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