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Cover of Born To Be Wild

Born To Be Wild

Catherine Coulter

First published 2006 · 549 pages

A breezy, glamorous romp that balances soap-opera drama with small-town romance and a dash of deadly suspense.

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What it feels like

Reading this book feels like stepping onto the set of a daytime soap opera where the off-screen drama is just as wild as the script. The narrative moves at a brisk, entertaining clip, blending the champagne-soaked glamour of Malibu with the quirky, unpredictable charm of a coastal Oregon town. It balances a lighthearted, humorous tone with genuine suspense, ensuring that the threat of danger never entirely dampens the breezy fun. The prose is conversational and playful, inviting the reader to laugh at eccentric family dynamics while swooning over small-town love interests. It is a perfect escape for readers who crave a cocktail of Hollywood glitz, romantic tension, and cozy crime, all served with a wink and a smile.

Mood
  • glamorous
  • lighthearted
  • quirky
  • tense
Tone
  • playful
  • breezy
  • humorous
  • suspenseful
Pace
brisk
Themes
navigating fame · family dysfunction · romantic entanglement · surviving danger
The writing
Breezy, conversational, and laced with humor, keeping the tension light even when the stakes are high.
The arc
Moves from the carefree heights of a glamorous Hollywood life into a suspenseful, small-town scramble for survival and romance.
Who it's for
Readers who love a blend of Hollywood glitz, quirky small-town romance, and cozy but high-stakes suspense.
Content notes
  • attempted murder
  • family dysfunction

About the book

Get yourself ready for Mary Lisa Beverly - a soap-opera phenom who's just won her third Daytime Emmy for her role as Sunday Cavendish on Born to Be Wild. She's fun and lovable and has lots of crazy friends, most of whom hang out at her house in the Colony, the famous gated community in Malibu. Unfortunately, there is one bad thing to poleax her champagne life - someone is trying to kill her.

You'll meet Mary Lisa's family in Goddard Bay, Oregon. She's blessed with her father, cursed with her mother, and betwixt and between with her two nutzoid sisters.

And how about guys? There aren't any hotties in L.A. of interest to Mary Lisa, but in Goddard Bay - there are District Attorney John Goddard and Chief of Police Jack Wolf. And guess what? Even in the boondocks, bad stuff can happen.

Mary Lisa's best friends, Lou Lou Bollinger and Elizabeth Fargas, become embroiled in the baffling attempts on Mary Lisa's life in L.A., with unexpected results.

I hope you laugh a lot with Born to Be Wild, root for Mary Lisa in all of her roles, and all in all, have a fine time with this book.

Description from Open Library.

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