I’m so pleased to share the cover of Kobby Tetteh Gyampoh’s (“Kobby”) debut novella, I Don’t Know How She Will Do It. Keep reading for my review!
Book Blurb
Lily has had it with Aunt Lizzie. She wants her inheritance. She wants to be free. Aunt Lizzie wants Lily to find a husband, though she thinks it’s impossible. To her Lily could kiss freedom goodbye since it might be about the only person who’d allow that. Aunt Lizzie’s thinking marriage; Lily’s thinking marriage-if-anyone-would-ever-want-me. Aunt Lizzie’s thinking cooking, cleaning and looking after a family; Lily wants a career that isn’t home-running. Aunt Lizzie’s not bent on making Lily have her way. So what would Lily do? She’d plot to gain her inheritance. She’d plot to gain her freedom. Her dad’s will says nothing about Mr. Right, neither does it mention an aspiring actress eager to break into Hollywood.
Join Lily in her quest for freedom as she poses as a couple with Clare behind a camouflage of flashy cars and cupcakes in order to get that inheritance. Follow this hilarious recipe of a low self-esteem girl, a sassy self-employed actress, an Aunt whose quotes would get you raising brows and two grannies who are willing to help low self-esteem girl. But watch out, one has a pistol which she stashes in her underwear
Message from Kobby:
I’ve had lots of inspiration for writing. But the one that moved me into publishing my very first novel, I Don’t Know How She Will Do It, has to go to Allison Pearson. Words can’t describe how much loved I Don’t Know How She Does It─both the book and the movie. Something about Kate’s struggle and how lovable she was portrayed made me nuts to pen something down. Days and days the title I Don’t Know How She Does It resounded constantly in my sleep, in my wake, every moment in my life (mainly because it was one hell of a funky title). I was practically haunted to put down my baby I Don’t Know How She Will Do It. Though they are both different stories, they both portray that sense of feminism that makes women all around the world proud. And that’s why I penned I Don’t Know How She Will Do It, a short story that would make women rejoice for their womanhood and cheering them for giving men a run for their money. There are points I might make you reach for your Kleenex, but forgive me for you will laugh at so many moments they would make up for all my sins. Best, Kobby
Win any one of the Three Digital Copies Kobby is giving out “http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/756fa81/”
About Kobby:
First of all, KobbyTettehGyampoh, simply Kobby, hates referring to himself in third-person
I just turned eighteen. I am Ghanaian and have always loved Chick-lit. My Chick-lit role models would be Sophie Kinsella, Marian Keyes, Janet Evanovich and Sarah Strohmeyer. I was introduced to the genre when I was thirteen. Sarah Strohmeyer made the introduction with her Bubbles Series. Since I read Bubbles, I quit writing Harlequin-styled romances and have always considered myself-since then, a humor writer.
My biggest dream is to be an EIC to a lifestyle magazine someday like Kate White-for my obsession for Cosmo’s language since she was running as editor. But for now, I am good with studying English to break into Advertising someday
I am currently working on my next title which is sort of a series like Cupcakes R US, but it’s based on the lives of editors, columnists and freelancers in a Cosmo-lookalike magazine. Which would be available in more formats than kindle. Epub, PDF, Docx, Doc, Mobi, PowerPoint. And oh, Paperback.
If I am not writing something funny, I spend most of my time reviewing something funny on my blog, ChickLit Pad “http://chicklitpad.blogspot.com
Contact Kobby:
Twitter: @chicklitpad
Facebook page: http://facebook.com/chicklitpad
Author’s Blog website: http://chicklitpad.blogspot.com
Buy the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Dont-Know-How-Will-Cupcakes-ebook/dp/B00HZ3EGQE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1390618534&sr=8-3&keywords=i+don%27t+know+how+she+will+do+it
My review:
I really didn’t know what to expect when I picked up this story. I know from Kobby’s reviews that he has a biting and somewhat “kooky” sense of humor and so I was not surprised that there were some laugh-out-loud moments in this book. I was, however, surprised by how heartwarming and touching this story was. There were moments that almost brought me to tears—in a good way.
Lily, the main character, has very low self-esteem. She’s very overweight and her Aunt Lizzie never fails to remind her that she can’t hold onto a man, having had two men leave her at the alter before the age of thirty. Lily doesn’t feel worthy and drowns her sorrows by eating cupcake after cupcake – cupcakes she bakes herself, one of her favorite activities. In order for Lily to receive the inheritance left to her by her father, Lily must get married. Since she’s already zero for two in her attempts to tie the knot, Lily has pretty much given up ever escaping her family and managing on her own. And then she meets Clare, an aspiring (and thin) actress/movie producer determined to make enough money to live her dreams of being famous, and the two decide to get married. Lily’s father only said Lily had to get married; he never specified that Lily had to marry a man. The fun ensues when the two trick Aunt Lizzie and the rest of Lily’s family into thinking they are in love and a wedding is planned.
As I mentioned above, this story had some belly-laugh moments. My favorite had to be when the old ladies taught Lily how to cook a meal all the while wiggling and shaking her behind for the benefit of her husband… er ”spouse.” But my true favorite part of this story was watching Lily discover her true spirit and not only find self-acceptance, but self-love – cellulite and all. This is truly a story about self-discovery and coming of age and finding out that friendship and love can come from the most unlikely of sources.
I definitely look forward to seeing what Kobby comes up with next.
