Books like The Book Club

This book definitely wont be getting a standing ovation from me. This is hard to write; it's my first unflattering review but I have to be honest here. The plot is formulaic and the writing itself did not make the story outstanding. If I hadn't already lost interest by then, I really zoned out after Pg 134 where “Intelligence shone in his large, deep-set eyes and sensuality teased in his full lips”. Why do the men in these books always have sensual full lips? This is so over-done. The book was peppered with many examples of this annoying type of writing. The Book Club seemed to be all about Eve rather than about the four members of the club. It dwelled on her life extensively and only to a lesser degree, the other members lives. One book club, four women; Eve who thought she was happy but apparently her recently deceased husband wasn't, Annie who has everything going for her but struggles to have a baby, Gabriella seems to be handling everything and wont ask for help, Doris is overweight and has a philandering husband and Midge who's single, not really attractive and just might be a lesbian. Honestly, why are the Doris' in books always fat? These women all confront the demons in their lives, they resolve to always band together and life goes on – yada, yada, yada. Formulaic. Considering the title, I thought it strange that in the eighteen months of the story, the author fully describes only one meeting – the last one in the book. My first Mary Alice Monroe book and I doubt I will go back for any more; there are too many other more deserving books to read.