Chastity's Belt

This is a cute book and I downloaded it thinking it was a comedy or farce. Perhaps it was intended to be funny. Although it was not bad, I could see very little humor in it. Without the slapstick humor, it pretty much falls flat. A writer can get away with an outrageously unlikely premise in a book of humor. But here, the whole chastity belt thing seemed simply unbelievable.

Decent plotline, extremely distracting attempts to write in accents unsuccessfully, and a very unrealistic fantasy, but a decent read. (I wouldnt pay for it, but as a free read it was okay.

So, the title caught your eye. You read the sample. It was better than you expected. The sample had a certain manic and inventive charm, and some very funny bits. But where, you wonder, can the author go with his out-there chastity belt premise? Can he keep it going, and should I give it a try? No, I'm not a mind reader; that is just the same process I went through before downloading this book. And get this - it's even better than I had hoped.Plain Jane is inspired by the gamesmanship of the ladies in "Love's Labor Lost" to step out of her plain, blah high school self. She decides to wear a chastity belt, (a stylish, sleek, comfy, but effective modern version), which will make her both desirable and unattainable, and, in the best Shakespearean comedy sense, drive the boys around her mad with desire and the girls insane with jealousy. But, apart from wanting to be somebody, she wishes to find her true prince. Now, is that a great premise or what? Well, depends on what you do with it.What our author does is add about a dozen screwball complications, a vast cast of oddball characters, a hilariously dysfunctional set of parents for Jane, and two characters - Jane and Alfie - who are easily among the most appealing, alert, ruefully funny and self-aware teens I've found in recent YA fiction.He places all of this in a realistic high school setting that gently skewers all of the conventions of YA fiction and all of the classic types of high school student characters. This is a knuckle headed, goofy, big-hearted, sharply observed but generously reported, book. Every little secondary character and cameo player, (the class teacher, the neighbor boy's dad, the lady who buys Jane her chastity belt), has a bit or a moment of inspired lunacy or sharply witty dialogue.The upshot is that you get a funny, insightful, engaging and rewarding short read that's peppered with nice touches and just the right balance of snark, wit, earnestness, romance and silliness. A very happy discovery.Please note that I found this book while browsing kindleunlimited freebies. I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.

This was a cute, coming of age story that adds humor to a complicated situation. The main character, Jane, comes up with a plan to make herself desirable without being too easy. I enjoyed reading this and the author did a good job of bringing the characters to life.