Marianne Mancusi, Hoboken Hipster in Sherwood Forest

Hoboken Hipster in Sherwood Forest

Marianne Mancusi

Love Spell, Feb 2007, $6.99

ISBN: 0505526743

Chrissie Hayward is attending a Renaissance Fair when she receives an urgent call from her boss at La Style magazine, associate fashion editor Kat Jones (see A CONNECTICUT FASHIONISTA IN KING ARTHUR'S COURT). All Chrissie has to do is go back to the twelfth century to persuade the real Richard the Lionhearted to give her some blood from the Holy Grail. The job would be easy, but Chrissie is concerned that she does not have her traveling shoes.

Chrissie travels back to medieval times where she meets a pathetic Robin of Locksley and his not so merry men. They hide, brood and rationalize why they cannot confront the nasty Sheriff of Nottingham. Whereas Chrissy expected a Flynn (sorry generational gap by fearless reviewer), make that a Costner, she instead finds a loser in tights. Acting like a chick lit drill sergeant, Chrissie begins to shape up Robin and his merry men so they live up to the legend of robbing the rich to give to the poor though she has to demonstrate how it is done.

This is a fun, chick lit, time travel, romantic thriller starring a displaced twenty-first century heroine who demands that the legendary Hood live up to his reputation as she is appalled at his defeatist attitude. The lighthearted, amusing storyline takes poetic license with the Robin Hood myth as expected with a Starbucks female who sees bucks amidst the stars. Readers will laugh at the antics of a modern day female bullying Robin into becoming the prince of thieves.

Harriet Klausner