That’s (Not Exactly) Amore: A Novel (Drama Queens)

Tracey Bateman
FaithWords (2008)
ISBN 9780446698955
Reviewed by Nikki Pringle for Reader Views (8/08)


“That’s (Not Exactly) Amore” is the third installment of the ‘Drama Queens’ series by author Tracey Bateman. This time around, we find Laini Sullivan, still single and now living on her own, nearing the end of her interior design coursework. Her final, which she desperately needs to pass in order to graduate and receive her diploma, will be based on her work redesigning Nick Pantalone’s New York City coffee shop. Nick has confidence in her, but his nephew Joe, a gorgeous man who is out of Laini’s league and in charge of the day-to-day operations, seems less than thrilled with his uncle’s choice of interior designer. Laini isn’t so sure herself. She seems to be a design disaster and is unsure that she has chosen the right career path, but needs this job in order to pass her class, and forges ahead with the work with the help of another designer that Joe hires on to the project. With all of this going on she still has her weekend visits to her widowed mother on Long Island and the baking she does on the side for Nick’s shop to juggle.

Laini meets NYPD officer Mark Hall; she is surprised and delighted that such a handsome, hard-working man would take an interest in her, and tentatively dips her toe into the dating pool. She harbors feelings for Joe, but tries to focus on the man that actually seems to want her and tries to put Joe out of her mind as an option. Her friends and colleague’s are convinced that Joe is interested in her, but all Laini gets is mixed signals when she is around him. When Mark implies that Joe’s family may have ties to the Italian mob, and city permits and work crews seem to appear out of thin air months before they should be available, Laini has to wonder if Mark is right. Then she meets Joe’s uncles, as well as his overbearing Nana, and is even more convinced that this is one family she should not get involved with (not that Nana would ever approve of her grandson dating an Irish girl), yet she is still drawn to Joe. Will she be able to persevere with her work on the coffee shop and in her personal life?

Tracey Bateman has written a lovable character in Laini Sullivan. Her struggles with family, friends, career and having a personal life are funny, witty, sad and entirely believable. As Laini waivers between doing what she loves and doing what she thinks she should career wise,  the readers are left with no doubt about which is the right decision. As Laini falters through the growing attention from Mark and the mixed signals from Joe, readers also bounce back and forth between their choice of which is the right man for her. “That’s (Not Exactly) Amore” is a satisfying read. The storyline is perfectly packaged and will leave readers feeling as satisfied as you would when enjoying warm cinnamon rolls fresh out of the oven (read the book and you will see what I mean).

Make comment on weblog