Review by Schalk and Monika -- Randy Love...at your service

[Schalk and Monika]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Randy Love...at your service" by Shay Carter.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Randy Love...at your service by Shay Carter is a charming fictitious comedy about a young man finding his way through life, love, work and adult responsibilities. Randy is a happy-go-lucky guy who sees the world a little bit differently. His sister Heather even describes him as “Zeus descending from Mount Olympus to lay favour at the door of [his] minions”. Not that he does so intentionally – he genuinely has no clue that he sometimes stumbles through life like a spoiled (but charming – and good looking) brat. Randy also has to come to terms with the fact that a night out on town, girlfriends and bills are expensive. Finding a job that pays enough money to cover these expenses - without boring him to death - is also an adventure of its own that Randy navigates more or less successfully. Luckily he has a family and good friends that bring him back to earth! Or to London, for that matter! Here he has to move from place to place to find his eventual home. I can relate to his woes at finding a place in a big city that is affordable and does not come with nosey busy-bodies as house mates!

Being a fan of the occasional comedy, I did enjoy this book very much and would therefore give it 3 out of 4 stars. It is a well-written book with funny, poignant dialogue that gives you deep insight into a young man’s mind and thought processes – or the lack thereof sometimes. The theme of this book speaks to me: growing up, accepting adult responsibilities, falling in and out of love and navigating city life is surely something we all have come across. The author also uses everyday - wonderfully British - and descriptive language that makes for easy reading. The occasional typo does not interfere with that.

I did, however, not like the sometimes drawn out and repetitive parts where he has to move house yet again. Surely he should have gotten a clue about his self-induced troubles by the second time? The fact that his (older and wiser) friends point it out to him on numerous occasions and he still does not understand the real problem was a bit frustrating. I wanted to take him by the shoulders and shake some sense into him. I do suspect, though, that this was the author’s intention and is therefore an integral part of the story.

The other characters in the book are not forgotten and their stories interweave with Randy’s in such a way that everyone gets a fair chance in the spotlight. Especially the description of Randy’s father and brother give a deeper insight into the man that Randy has to become. I also like that women are portrayed as strong and independent and have their own niche to carve out. Randy actually learns a thing or two from them, which is a refreshing change from other books where only the males dish out wisdom.

All in all, Randy Love…at your service is a delightful book that I’ll recommend to anyone who appreciates not being able to put down a good book. And maybe the next reader will be as pleasantly surprised by the ending as I was.

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Randy Love...at your service
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