Speechless by Yvonne Collins & Sandy Rideout
What do you say when you’ve uncovered an office scandal and discovered that the man you’ve been lusting over is behind it?  You need to find the right words.  You need to speak up.  It’s not the time to be speechless.  Good thing for Libby she’s not easily intimidated – perhaps it has something to do with her 6 foot height advantage.

Libby is quite an amusing heroine.  Despite being known as “Flower Girl” for her uncanny ability to catch bridal bouquets, she remains very single and seems to seek out relationships that go nowhere.  But after her 12^th catch, Libby meets a man with real possibilities.  He’s cute, he’s charming, he’s smart, and he has a couple of inches on her!  There’s just one little problem.  He’s a do-gooder, and Libby’s feelings of inadequacy cause her to sabotage the relationship.  Instead, she seems to believe that pursing an inappropriate office romance with a dashing and egotistical political consultant is better for her.

Speaking of her career, at least that seems to be going well.  Then again, maybe not.  Libby is excited about her new job as political speechwriter for the Minister of Culture.  But it seems that no one will actually let her write speeches.  She is instead subjected to the seemingly more urgent tasks of carrying the Minister’s purse and coat at social functions and making scrapbooks of various trips and projects.  Not exactly what she had in mind.  But perseverance, scheming and outwitting, finally pay off and Libby gets the chance to show her speechwriting talents - even though she rarely gets credit for them.  In the midst of it all, Libby teeters dangerously on the brink of romantic involvement with the new political consultant.  If she falls for his charms, she risks losing her job.  Lucky for her, he soon shows how un-charming he can be, and it’s up to Libby to step in and save her naïve boss from a political scandal that could ruin careers.

This book was quite entertaining.  Perhaps it was Libby’s witty comebacks, the digs from her self-centered girlfriend Lola, the compromising positions that Tim (the do-gooder) keeps finding her in, or Libby’s relationship with her gay psychic-turned-good-friend Elliot.  The right mix for a light, fun read.

About the authors:  Long time friends Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout began writing to entertain each other as teenagers.  Two decades later they collaborated to write a work of nonfiction.  Speechless is their debut novel.  Both authors live and work in Toronto .

Speechless