So Not Happening by Jenny B. Jones

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Genre: Contemporary/Christian/Chick-Lit

Release Date: 5/5/2009

Add to Goodreads

About the Book: Poor Bella Kirkwood. She's been made to move from New York City, where she was popular, had a best friend, a loving boyfriend and Daddy's credit card, to boring Oklahoma all thanks to her mother getting remarried. Bella is not happy with the move and doesn't know how she's going to survive small town life. Now she has to deal with no stores close enough to shop at, a stepfather that has a secret, two stepbrothers, and a journalism editor that assigns Bella stories on school trash. This is so not happening.

GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: I've been a big fan of Jenny B. Jones for a long time now (I love her blog-if you're not reading it, you need to do so!), so when I found out about this series I knew it would be a great read. But you know, I typically hate Christian fiction and what it was overly sappy? I didn't think Jenny would do that to me, but I'll admit, I was nervous. So I put off reading So Not Happening for awhile because I didn't want to hate something that was from someone I consider a friend. And I really didn't want to hate a book written by my friend!

I should have known better. I know Jenny better than to think she would write a sappy message into her story. Instead, this is fun laugh out loud chick-lit This book was actually my comfort book when I ended up having to go to the hospital twice this summer for various things (and I'm fine, no worries!) But having a book that made me laugh and took my mind off where I was was just what I needed and So Not Happening delivered just that.

Bella is hilarious! She rants about Oklahoma and farm life and she gets into the craziest situations. She's dramatic and has an overactive imagination, which leads to some very funny moments. When she suspects there's something more going on with the football team and their secret parties, Bella turns detective and while she's not the perfect sleuth, her adventures are a blast to read about.

There's romance and mystery and chick-lit readers who love their romance with a side of humor will love this one. I did get annoyed at Bella for taking a long time to realize things that I saw coming (she can be a little dense!) but I still had a blast reading about her. The mystery kept me guessing and I didn't see the ending coming. Yes, it is Christian fiction and there's going to be talk of faith, but it's not hitting you over the head with it. I think even readers who don't normally like Christian lit would enjoy the Charmed Life series.

Book Pairings: Pair it with Lisa Samson's Hollywood Nobody series.

Full Disclosure: Reviewed from personal library copy, which was sent by the author who is a friend of mine (book was sent as a gift, not for review, but I'm reviewing it anyway).