Review: Can You Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella

Can I keep a secret? Hopefully better than Emma Corrigan, heroine of Can You Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella. You see, Emma has a little problem with keeping her mouth shut. Throughout the course of the novel, she keeps getting stung by the things she let slide to the man sitting next to her (who turns out to be the head honcho where Emma works) on a particularly turbulent flight from Glasgow to London.

I’m not usually one for Chick Lit, but I’ll pick one up every once in a while just as a fun, light read after I’ve read something with a bit more weight. And what Chick Lit should be is exactly what Can You Keep a Secret? is: fun and light. While fun and light, Can You Keep a Secret? was engaging, too. I was really taken in by the story and I cringed and winced more than once at the situations Emma was thrust into. As a twenty-something looking to move up in the world, I could definitely relate to the heroine, and I’ve found myself in her shoes on quite a few occasions, though none as bad as having all my dirty laundry aired on national television.

After I got over the initial shock of Emma’s loose lips at the beginning of the novel, she was an incredibly likeable character, though a bit dim sometimes. The supporting cast was just as enjoyable, even Emma’s conniving roommate Jemima. The only thing I find fault with in Can You Keep a Secret? is the quick way the novel wraps up. It was a little wham, bam, thank you ma’am for me, too cut and dry. But it was a pleasant ending, nonetheless. The hero and the heroine wind up together, can you ask for anything more from Chick Lit?

When I’m back in the mood for Chick Lit, I’ll definitely be picking up some more by Sophie Kinsella. She’s got a witty, playful style to her writing and I quite enjoyed it. Probably because she’s British. The British always seem to do the whole writing thing a bit better, in my eyes.