Mini-Reviews: Can You Keep a Secret? and Love Your Life by Sophie Kinsella

Sometimes I need to go back to my favorites, and when there are unread backlist books by those authors, all the better. That’s the case for my recent picks of Sophie Kinsella’s Can You Keep a Secret? (2003) and Love Your Life (2020). Both are classic Kinsella: quirky, flawed female leads in challenging (and humorous) situations and surrounded by a cast of equally eccentric side characters and friends with a dashing but frustrating male love interest. I enjoyed both of these books and rated them as 4-star reads: “Very Happy I Read, May Recommend.”

Mini Review: Can You Keep a Secret?

Emma has a lot of secrets. She is in debt to her parents, may not be in love with her perfect boyfriend, and doesn’t measure up to her super-successful cousin, Kerry. But, she’s been sent on her very first business meeting for Panther Cola, and things are looking up. Until the meeting is a disaster, Emma has too much to drink at the airport, and there’s a worrying amount of turbulence on her return flight—so much that she spills her soul to her seatmate and lets all her secrets out.

And of course, since this is a Sophie Kinsella book, that seatmate is Jack Harper, co-founder of Panther Cola and everyone’s idol at work. When Emma discovers that her secrets are with the company leader who’s just come to the London offices and set everyone in a tizzy, she fears for her job. Then, as Jack asks for more time with her, she fears for her heart.

Reading Can You Keep a Secret? was like returning to the early 2000s of my bookish life. Emma is a struggling professional with many doubts and many great ideas, and she might just find a great love, too. Jack is brooding and secretive, and his frequent disappearances were frustrating. This book went right along with what I expected: a meet-cute, struggles, drama, and redemption, and that made it a good comfort read.

Mini Review: Love Your Life

Ava is a flighty young woman with lots of ideas, including one that sets her off on a one-week writer’s retreat in Italy. There, she has a whirlwind romance with another retreat attendee, but their agreement to keep their histories out of Italy sets up a challenge when they both return to London and decide that they want to keep seeing each other. Ava quickly learns that Matt isn’t a carefree spirit at home, and they’re both frustrated with each other’s unwillingness to change.

Ava is probably my least-liked Kinsella heroine to-date. She prides herself on being a free spirit, but she was too rigid with Matt, though sometimes justified. However, she redeemed herself with her deep values in friendship and willingness to grow. Unsurprisingly, I loved the friend group, Harold the dog, and the Harriet’s House toys storyline.

Final Thoughts

With so many other books on my to-be-read list, it can be hard to justify adding backlist books from an author I used to be obsessed about. But, a good book is like a warm blanket and a hot cup of tea for the soul. In this stressful 2025, I’m all for that. Do you agree?