I OWE YOU ONE by Sophie Kinsella

"A triumph! There is no better word for this exceptional novel"

I Owe You One

Posted: January 27, 2019

"Fixie" Farr fixes things. After a personal failure, she has gone back to live at home and work in the family houseware store, Farrs, where her older siblings, Jake and Nicole, make sporadic appearances. When Ryan Chalker, Fixie's long-time crush flies in from LA, Fixie needs to calm down, and hops in her favorite café, where she saves her tablemate's laptop from certain annihilation. Sebastian Marlowe, the grateful customer, gives Fixie a blank IOU. When Fixie uses it, she comes to realize what her late father's motto "Family First" really means.

Sophie Kinsella's unparalleled talent at creating multidimensional and engaging characters has reached new heights in the extraordinary I OWE YOU ONE. I don't recall experiencing such strong visceral reactions to fictional beings ever before. I wanted to be Fixie's friend, comfort her, help her not because I pitied her, but because she was selling herself short and she deserved better. Some people might view Fixie as weak; I didn't; however she did let her brother intimidate her, she unwittingly encouraged her sister's weaknesses but felt powerless to do otherwise because family came first. Sometimes it's difficult to deem what's the best course of action for oneself, for others; we've all been there. I was outraged, incensed, and oh how I wanted to slap Jake, the pretentious, condescending snob! How I wanted to shake Nicole, the beautiful sister with her head in the clouds. I won't say anything about Ryan or Sebastian; you be the judge.

Gripping is a word I seldom associate with Women's Fiction -- at least, not as far as I'm concerned -- but I OWE YOU ONE is just that -- because of the exceptionally well-crafted characters, and Sophie Kinsella's ability to never repeat herself. The author's writing is flawless, as always; the story progresses at lightning speed; I was overwhelmed with emotions as I had accompanied Fixie on her journey, hoping that everything would work out for her in the end. Few authors can do that for me, and none as well as Sophie Kinsella.

Book Summary

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Sophie Kinsella comes an irresistible story of love and empowerment about a young woman with a complicated family, a handsome man who might be “the one,” and an IOU that changes everything.

Fixie Farr has always lived by her father’s motto: “Family first.” And since her dad passed away, leaving his charming housewares store in the hands of his wife and children, Fixie spends all her time picking up the slack from her siblings instead of striking out on her own. The way Fixie sees it, if she doesn’t take care of her father’s legacy, who will?

It’s simply not in Fixie’s nature to say no to people. So when a handsome stranger in a coffee shop asks her to watch his laptop for a moment, she not only agrees—she ends up saving it from certain disaster. To thank Fixie for her quick thinking, the computer’s owner, Sebastian, an investment manager, scribbles an IOU on a coffee sleeve and attaches his business card. Fixie laughs it off—she’d never actually claim an IOU from a stranger. Would she?

But then Fixie’s childhood crush, Ryan, comes back into her life, and his lack of a profession pushes all of Fixie’s buttons. As always, she wants nothing for herself—but she’d love Seb to give Ryan a job. No sooner has Seb agreed than the tables are turned once more and a new series of IOUs between Seb and Fixie—from small favors to life-changing moments—ensues. Soon Fixie, Ms. Fixit for everyone else, is torn between her family and the life she really wants. Does she have the courage to take a stand? Will she finally grab the life, and love, she really wants?