The Quest For the Holy Veil

By Kimberly Llewellyn

New from the author of Tulle Little, Tulle Late Small-time actress Lucy Ladelle needs some cash. So when a matchmaking service hires her as date bait, she jumps at the chance. She'll meet a few men, flatter their egos, and have them sign on as clients. It's sort of like an acting job...and it's only temporary, right? But Lucy's first date goes down the tubes when she's caught on tape by a sting-operation TV exposA1/2, and her name-and fetching new sandals-are dragged through the mud. Then, she meets a larger-than-life woman who offers her a chance to audition for a Broadway show, Of course, the offer comes with a price. And before she knows it Lucy is juggling a surprising romance and the chance of a lifetime.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425213730
• ISBN13: 9780425213735
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: Berkley Trade
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.3" x 0.9" x 5.5"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

Laugh out loud funny!

What an entertaining read! This is the perfect feel good book. I laughed out loud too many times to count and then bought copies for my friends. The emotions were real. The characters were so varied and colorful I wanted to meet every one of them. This book strikes a balance between chick lit and contemporary romance that I wish more books would find.

fun tale full of quirky situations and humor

Lucy Ladelle dreams of making it big - as a singing actress. To obtain her goal she needs to make some money and working for free at her mother's bridal shop just isn't providing the funds she needs to make her dreams a reality. That's why when she's hired by a matchmaking service as date bait she thinks it's the answer to her problems. Get paid to go on a few dates, get some perspective on her life and finally have enough money to make the move to New York... only things don't quite go according to plan. Lucy realizes that her first `date' is going to go disastrously wrong when downing Pamprin and chasing it with vodka actually had some appeal. When her friend, Prada, shows up and accuses her of being a dating prostitute well, that just reinforces her thought that going on this date is a bad idea - but she doesn't let it stop her. After all it is a paying job and it's technically acting so it can't be all that bad. Things go far worse than she ever expected when her `date' turns out to be involved in a sting-operation against the iffy matchmaking firm's sneaky practices of planting potential love matches in order to lure men into renewing or joining their service. Lucy is suddenly center stage - and not in a good way! To complicate matters she's extremely attracted to the man responsible for the sting-operation - Lance Booker. The only upside to the day is while escaping the media hounds and the humiliation, Lucy runs into a larger-than-life woman named Queendah who sees potential in her and offers her a job and the professional chance of a lifetime. Lucy's life is about to become very exciting as she struggles to maintain a new romance, her time sensitive and secretive job for Queendah and the very real possibility of having all her dreams come true? THE QUEST FOR THE HOLY VEIL is a bright witty tale that had me giggling my way through many of the scenes and waiting anxiously to find out what would happen next. I have to confess I am a sweatpants and t-shirts kind of girl so a lot of the talk about fashion really was over my head but I had a great time with the plot and the dialogue. I especially loved the scene where Lucy gets into a heated debate with a pregnant bride over a wedding veil. It's really just too funny. Kimberly Llewellyn brings a quirky sense of humor and drama to life in this story about one woman finding her dream, love and discovering some truths about herself at the same time. Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)

fun chick lit I'll take Manhattan tale

Wannabe actress Lucy Ladelle dreams of the bright lights of Broadway, but remains buried in her family's bridal shop in Nahant, Massachusetts. Needing a stake before storming the Big Apple, Lucy obtains work as "date bait" for Straight Dates, a matchmaking firm. Her job allows her to practice acting while providing a phony date to a customer. To her chagrin, her first and only date with the service is with Steve Johnson, who is wired so she is caught On the Inside "candid camera" show exposing the fraudulent practices of matchmaking services; worse she is accused of "beck and call" solicitation. However, besides the humiliation, she is rescued by the ultra large Queendah. The stranger offers Lucy a chance to audition for a Broadway part but also to perform research dating for her next book; Lucy considers accepting the deal though she is a bit wary of dating. This is a fun chick lit I'll take Manhattan tale starring a fascinating protagonist whose sharp wit makes for a fine read. Lucy dreams of the big time, but every giant step forward seems to land her in excrement. Readers will enjoy her exploits starting with her first date bait role with Steve to meeting Queendah and her "safari" with Lance Booker, who makes her tingle with desire and a need to choke him simultaneously. Harriet Klausner