Love Lies (2009) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit

Write a ridiculously simplified synopsis.

Characters/People edit see section history

• Fern: Fern is the main character of this book. At 30 years old, she is ready to get married and start living her life. Flowers have always been her lifelong passion, and she made a career of it by working as a florist in her friend's flower shop. Fern is ambitious and her goal is to simply be happy with the people she loves, but she is also impatient and often makes hasty decisions. However, she knows what she wants and she always does what she thinks is right.
• Scott Taylor: Scott is one of the UK's hottest rock stars. Sexy, exuberant, and wild, Scott is any girl's dream man. He comes off as passionate, kind, and caring, but also has a very big selfish streak that gets him into trouble. He relies heavily on other people to manage his problems, but he pushes hard to achieve success.
• Adam: Adam is Fern's boyfriend of four years. He works as a rigger in the music industry, and doesn't have too much planned for his future. He seems non-committal and unsure of his next step, but he is fiercely loyal to those he loves. Adam comes off as a simple guy, but has a lot of surprising characteristics that make him intelligent and obviously attractive.
• Jess: Jess is one of Fern's best friends. Forever single, Jess likes to party hard and change men like she changes shoes. She lives with Adam and Fern in their flat, and works as a book shop manager. While Jess may not make great decisions, she is fiercely loyal to her friends and tries her best to make everyone happy.
• Lisa: Lisa is Fern's other best friend. The most level-headed member of the group, Lisa often gives advice to the other girls and acts as their rock during difficult times. Lisa fulfilled her lifelong goal of marrying rich, having kids, and managing her household with her husband's platinum credit card.
• Ben: Ben is technically Fern's boss because he owns the flower shop where Fern works, but they are also very close friends. Ben is very flamboyant, outspoken and the go-to guy for fashion advice and gossip. While Ben does care very deeply for Fern, he is also very concerned about his own popularity, and ends up having a selfish streak that leads him to make bad decisions.
• Mark: Mark is Scott's manager. He is a middle aged man who has a lot of experience in the music industry, so he knows what it takes to be successful. Sometimes he seems kind and caring, but his priority is cleaning up Scott's messes and getting him the most attention possible. As a result, he is actually quite careless and will do whatever it takes to get and stay rich.
• Saadi: Saadi is Scott's personal assistant. She is very organized, driven, and good at what she does. She does not show much emotion in the book because she too is responsible for cleaning up Scott's messes. As such, she seems cold, and Fern is quite intimidated by her.
• Rick: Rick is Fern's little brother. Out of all the siblings in their family, Rick and Fern seems to be the closest. Rick becomes more prominent after Fern gets to know Scott, but is not very outspoken. However, he is very supportive of Fern's decisions, and makes her feel better when she needs a pick-me up.
• Fiona: Fiona is Fern's older sister. They don't have much contact over the course of the book, but Fiona gives Fern good advice when she needs it most.
• Charlie: Lisa's good enough husband.
• Colleen LaFontaine: Colleen is Fern's wedding planner. She talks a lot about wedding details and helps Fern prepare for the big day.

Quotes edit see section history

• “In the past we often came at the same time. Now, it's unusual if we both are in the room at the same time.”

  Fern

• “Sadly, my best friends shake their heads. I know they love me enough to want to lie to me and enough not to do so.”

  Fern

• “Right now, I could do with some hard abuse of my commitment-phobic boyfriend in the name of female solidarity.”

  Fern

• “This might be the first moment of my grown-up life. The happily ever after I'm hankering for. I might just be about to receive the allatrope of carbon that makes every girl a princess.”

  Fern

• “My tolerance is soused; pickled in 13.7 per cent proof wine.”

  Fern

• “'Yeah, that might have helped, but I think it was because of you,' says Scott. The 'you' is dropped like an atom bomb. It mushrooms and eclipses everything that has gone before.”

• “'I'm sorry for Adam,' he whispers in my ear. 'To have held you like this and then to have let you slip away, how does a man live with a mistake like that?'”

• “My family never visit me at my flat because it's hard to squeeze all the animals of the zoo into a bird cage.”

  Fern

• “He kisses my shoulder again and my resistance shivers like a leaf hanging by a thread from a tree.”

• “I even scribbled something on the hotel wallpaper this morning. It's great. It's a forlorn space, the place that's left where ideas used to be made.”

• “I think LA is a little like a big plate of microwave lasagne; empty calories but tasty. The trick is not to gorge yourself, not to eat the whole thing- believe the whole thing- because you'll be left feeling sick.”

  Scott

• “We kiss again and I don't tell her that my hope has a way of vanishing; I spend it like liquid gold.”

  Scott

• “Poor Fern, I think she's beginning to realize that the tiresome thing about getting what you want is that you always have to lose what you had.”

  Scott

• “I can already see stall after stall of colourful amaryllis, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums, and gerberas; the sight of them is the equivalent of seeing a good friend holding a glass of wine and a bar of chocolate.”

  Fern

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Clapham
• Brixton
• Hull: A city and port in northeastern England
• Reading: A town in southern England. Where Fern was born.
• Los Angeles: Where Scott lives.

Organizations edit see section history

• NCT: National Council of Teachers of English

First Sentence edit see section history

Table of Contents edit see section history

Glossary edit see section history

• pomander: a ball or perforated container of sweet-smelling substances such as herbs and spices
• surreptitiously: kept secret, esp. because it would not be approved of
• voluble: speaking or spoken incessantly and fluently
• pugnacious: eager or quick to argue, quarrel, or fight
• tawdry: showy but cheap and of poor quality
• kowtowed: kneel and touch the ground with the forehead in worship
• pedantic: of or like a pedant
• gamine: a girl with mischievous or boyish charm

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

• War Bar: This is a bar in the book where Fern, Jess and Lisa go one night. Fern states that the name is suitable for the venue, and Jess alludes to the appropriateness of the name for what goes on in the bar. "At least the place is well named; everyone does appear a little shell-shocked. Jess is always telling me that the competition is tough, 'out there'."

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Adele Parks (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Literature & Fiction
• Books › Romance