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Book Reviews Title Playing
Around Fiction-Net
Rating Buy It
From Amazon.co.uk - BUY
NOW! Cover
Story When Angie Knight
transforms herself into a mini-skirted dolly bird,
it's an escape from life with her bone-idle mother
in the East End. Angie soon has the world at her
pretty, white-booted feet as she dances the night
away in Soho's strobe-lit Canvas Club with her best
friend, Jackie. She's heard all
about the dangers of Soho, of course, but what can
go wrong? They're only playing around. Until club owner
David Fuller sets his sights on Angie and, on a
dark, rainy night, she climbs alone into his big,
shiny car… We
Say "Playing Around"
is not particularly deep and there is nothing
groundbreaking about the premise. 'Ugly duckling'
Angie turns into a beautiful swan and learns a hard
lesson - the dirty pond can be a dangerous place
when you are a delicate creature with newly grown
white feathers. You can clearly see the traps that
Angie is about to fall into but there are other
elements of the story that make this an
entertaining, if slightly trashy, yarn. The setting of
London in the sixties is evocative and alluring.
The real appeal of glamour and style is here in all
its glory making a welcome escape from today's
equivalents of grunge and heroin chic. Angie and
her friend Jackie drool over lime-green shift
dresses, polka dots and geometric haircuts - their
idols are Julie Christie and Dusty Springfield.
Gilda O'Neill effectively brings this era to
life. Of course, the
style on the surface conceals a seedy underside and
the story really picks up pace when Angie is pulled
into this. The middle section of the book is the
most gripping, when Angie becomes involved with the
evil David Fuller and the inevitable consequences
of his dirty dealing both in his business ventures
and personal life. I noticed that
the author was brought up in the East End and has
written some non-fiction books about women and the
history of this area. The characters are good and
she has shown her understanding of the people
through the compelling dialogue. It is this that
really keeps the story moving and heightens the
drama. Unfortunately, the ending was slightly flat
and predictable. Overall, "Playing Around" is an
enjoyable but not especially rewarding,
novel. Review by: Rachel
Taylor |
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