Minus the excess hair, Rylie reminds me of myself. I read this line and was instantly sold:
"I needed wine. Lots of wine. Then I might move on to something stronger. Whiskey might do the trick. Perhaps a little intravenous therapy of hard liquor was needed."
I like wine, I like whiskey, and I understand that sometimes hard liquor can be necessary, but fantastic, therapy. And I like my men with blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes, too. Go figure.
In the space of a few days, Rylie’s life goes from routine to spiraling out of her control, beginning with an irate and slightly crazy client of the werewolf persuasion. There’s something about crazy characters in books that provide not just comic relief, but a device to move the plot forward. Lily fits the bill perfectly. When we meet Lily’s failed match, Martin, I have to agree with Rylie that they are a perfect match. Not romantically, maybe, but definitely in the crazy department. When the “gifts” with notes start arriving, and strange men and werewolves start following her around, we realize that someone is working real hard at being crazy and succeeding quite fabulously. I figured out who was behind everything before it was revealed, but I never felt that the identity of the person behind it was a driving force of the story – the characters and their antics are what make this book enjoyable.
Rylie also believes she is cursed to never fall in love. This, of course, complicates matters with the new man in her life, Jack, especially since he doesn’t know about Rylie’s werewolf heritage. The ending of the book, though given somewhat of a happy ending, I think there is enough left up in the air that the second book could prove to be tumultuous on the love life front (that, or I am inherently suspicious, which is also a credible possibility). I am very interested to see what the second book has in store, and I hope we get to see more of Jack, Rylie, and Jennifer, as well as finally meeting Rylie’s parents and the other paranormal creatures she sets up.
See my review in its entirety here: http://onabookbender.com/2011/06/02/review-how-to-date-a-werewolf-by-rose-pressey/