Pip - Hardcover

North, Freya

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0434005193 ISBN 13: 9780434005192

Publisher: William Heinemann, 2003

Synopsis

Pip McCabe, 30, likes to say she doesn't need a man and she doesn't need money. However, her friends and her sisters Cat and Fen (the heroines of North's previous two bestsellers) think she would probably benefit from a little more of each. This might prove difficult. Stripy tights, starched pigtails, a bright red nose and an ability to juggle whilst doing the splits only just about pay the bills and seldom lead to romance or romps. Pip, though, takes her clowning very seriously, whether at spoilt kids' partiesor on the wards of children's hospitals. She simply doesn't have time for a man, she claims. And her bank balance hovers just above the red, so that's OK.

At 34, Zac Holmes has a successful, high-powered career, a fabulous flat and an adored 6-year-old son from a previous relationship. Popular, charming and affluent, Zac feels that no-strings flings suit his lifestyle as much as the pleasing bonuses he earns at work.

When Zac and Pip first meet, it is far from love or lust at first sight. What can a clown and an accountant possibly have in common? Against a lively backdrop of parties and parks, hospitals and hotels, they attempt to find out...

(2003-03-03)

About this title

Review:

Freya North's latest novel, Pip, can only consolidate the reputation she has already established for sharply written, high-energy novels of character, in which her heroines battle against considerable odds to maintain successful careers and relationships. As in such books (similarly bearing their protagonists' names) as Sally,Chloe and Holly, North has created a memorable central character. Thirty-year-old Pip McCabe has been surviving quite nicely (she says) without a man, love or money. But her sisters and her friends disagree: Fen and Cat (the heroines, in fact, of North's last two novels) are trying to inject a little more love and sex into her life. She, however, is something of an obstacle to this plan, with a tendency to wear outrageous clothes and an indifference to her general appearance. Then along comes the 34-year-old Zac Holmes, who is living the life of Riley, enjoying his successful career and looking after his much-loved young son. Freya North's strategy, needless to say, is to keep both these individuals apart--and get them together. She creates canny obstacles in her plotting, and in the process delivers a highly enjoyable read.

Against a series of strongly realised urban backdrops, we watch the hero and heroine dance around each other, and utilise language the way an earlier generation used rapiers. This is not Booker Prize material, and doesn't pretend to be. But readers seeking a highly entertaining, exuberant read (with a capricious heroine who charms the reader as much as she infuriates) need look no further. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

‘A sure-fire winner’ Sunday Mirror

‘In true Freya North style, Pip is a heart-warming, funny character who you actually care about. A charming and fun jape – and a sure-fire hit’ Company

‘In three words: kinky, very kinky’ Evening Standard

‘One of our best writers of feisty female fiction’ Sunday Express

About this edition

• Publisher: William Heinemann
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0434005193
• ISBN 13: 9780434005192
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 384