Synopsis
Alison has it all. She has an oh-so trendy job as a newspaper columnist writing about the single life. Her live-in boyfriend, Tom, is terrific. They have lots of good friends who come over for dinner parties. At one of these parties, Alison sends Tom out for some mustard and he never comes back. Not only is Alison appalled that he dumped her while they had company, but she is amazed that he thought so little of their relationship. When bad luck hits, it hits hard. Soon, Alison is unemployed. Her ex-boss and ex-fling Henry is dating her archenemy--the witless daily columnist of the other local paper. Then Tom returns, with the mustard. Seriously bad timing on Tom's part. Hilarious and heartbreaking, combining the emotional incisiveness of Jane Austen with the up-to-the-minute frankness of "Sex and the City," The Big Love will be the pass-along must-read novel for years to come.
The New York Times - Janet Maslin
The cover of The Big Love features a bed and the title in pink neon letters. It is an indication of the kind of opportunity that awaits any heroine in a flirty, effervescent novel of this genre. But the image also evokes, however back-handedly, the book's sense of a higher power. Alison already has one kind of big love in her life when she strikes out in search of something more earthly.
It's a testament to this book's sparkle that Ms. Dunn is able to express all this in warm, good-natured fashion without raising hackles.