MRS. PERFECT By Jane Porter

I didn't think I was going to love Mrs. Perfect by Seattle author Jane Porter as much as I loved her preceding work, Odd Mom Out, but as it turns out, not only did I love it as much, I love it more! When I started reading the book, I had a preconceived notion of who the main character, Taylor Young, was. She was introduced in Mom Odd Out and appeared to be Marta Zinsser's complete opposite, not to mention nemesis.

Taylor Young is a beautiful trophy wife with control issues who lives in a fairy-tale world with her handsome, high-earning, ex-quarterback husband, Nathan - in the dream home she decorated - with their three exquisite little girls, Jemma, Brooke and Tori in Bellevue, Washington. To anyone who looks at her from the outside, Taylor is Mrs. Perfect. However, as we read this book, we watch in amazement at how Jane Porter peels back the layers of Taylor's character to reveal a woman that I didn't loathe, but rather fell in love with, just like I did with Marta Zinsser in Odd Mom Out.

Taylor's perfect life has begun to unravel when her husband takes a job in Omaha after finally admitting to her that for the past year he hasn't been working, and because they've been spending way beyond their means for a very long time, they are now millions of dollars in debt and are going to lose their dream home. Taylor Young not only rises to the challenge of a very difficult situation, but she shows everyone around her what she's truly made of. Even though she's falling apart inside, she manages to make the most delicious lemonade out of the hairy lemons in her life. She matures on a visceral, cerebral, and spiritual level before our eyes and we love her for sharing her difficult journey with us.

"You're bad. I silently repeat the last one as I load the dishwasher, knowing these voices are part of that horrible, hollow feeling inside of me. But I'm not hollow, and I'm not horrible. For all my mistakes, I do love my girls, and I try my best to take care of them. For all my flaws and my vanity and pride, I do love Nathan, and I love him with all my heart. The truth is, I do try. I always try.

Maybe Marta's right about something else. Maybe trying your best, and doing your best, even if it's not perfect, is enough.

Maybe it's unrealistic to think I can be perfect.

Or to put it in Marta-speak, that's why we have religion. God's perfect. We're human."

Jane Porter knows how to write a meaningful, emotional story for women. She knows how to find the chord that connects us all and how to tug on it to get our attention. She reminds us that many other people in this world are in the same boat as we are and she makes us feel as if we have a cheerleading team behind us, letting us know that we're going to be better than fine... that things are going to turn out great!

Her contemporary style is flawless and she speaks my language, fluently. She moved me to tears again with this book and in the three books of hers that I've read, she's managed to climb very close to the top of my favourite authors list. Don't let the candy-coloured book covers fool you. These books are much more substantial than a box of chocolates or a slice of cake. I can't wait to go and buy her latest 5 Spot release, Easy on The Eyes. It's at my local bookstore and I know exactly the shelf it's on.

If you're looking for a wonderful read with marvelous characterization and relevant contemporary themes, look no further than the divine Ms. Jane Porter.