The Dirty Book Club by Lisi Harrison Review

 Title: The Dirty Book Club 

Author: Lisi Harrison 

Age Group: Adult 

Genre: Contemporary Fiction 

Series: Standalone 

Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars 

I borrowed this book from my local library and reviewed it. 

This book was chosen as a book club book in January, and I didn’t have time to read it until last week. Lisi Harrison is the bestselling author of The Clique series, and I was kinda iffy about that, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. This book was a quick read, full of humor, heart, and real hope. I enjoyed it a lot, but because of the time jumps, at times it was difficult to follow. Nonetheless, The Dirty Book Club was funny, surprising, and witty; I loved the found family element of the story. I also enjoyed the way the book moved from one book to another to help define the time periods in the women’s lives. Was this book ground-breaking? Amazing? No, but it was still a great book, and I really liked it, especially the ending! 

May June Stark, or MJ, has left her successful job as an editor for a New York magazine for Pearl Beach, California, to be with her boyfriend, Dan. Still smarting after the job she wants ends up with strings attached, she decides to stay in Pearl Beach for a while to lick her wounds. Once she gets settled in Dan’s beachside cottage, she meets an older woman named Gloria and receives a mysterious invitation to a secret book club in town. The challenge? Read dirty, smutty books and make friends with the other members. There’s Britt, the realtor in an unsatisfying marriage, Jules, a love guru with a young daughter she’s constantly butting heads with, Addie, brash and flirtatious and a little mean. As they read their books, they find letters from the previous book club members that provide insight to what they were thinking when they read the books. Will MJ learn to accept her fate and make a life out in California, or will she return to the scraps of her life in New York? 

I really enjoyed this book; honestly it was a great literary palate cleanser. I expected this book to be light and fun, with no real substance at all, but I was very pleasantly surprised. All of the characters were well drawn, and the pacing was breakneck; I finished this book in like maybe a day and a half. I was laughing, crying, and cheering by the end of it; I loved all of the characters, and the experiences that lined up with the books they were reading, but MJ was my favorite, since she was the writer of the bunch. I loved the ending; honestly, it was so true to life. This book was a great offering in comparison to her young adult books, and I really liked it! Next on deck: Beasts of Prey by Anaya Grey!