I wanted to love this book, and it was off to a good start, but the quickly fizzled. I usually enjoy some politics, mixed with my women’s fiction so I was really looking forward to this read and as I stated, the first couple
Chapters were great, and then sadly the book became somewhat disjointed in addition to a platform for political rhetoric. Frankly, there was just a hair too much “white male” bashing thrown in! It was very clear which side of the political aisle the author is on, and how little regard or esteem held for the opposing side. I prefer a political book which remains somewhat neutral? The most interesting characters (Paul and Kara) has weak plot lines and were sorely under utilized, and as the book plodded along I began to dislike the main character (Charlie) or “heroine” more than I liked her. Finally, the ending of this book felt rushed. I enjoyed knowing that the read was to come to some of their own conclusions which was a positive, but wrapping it up as quickly as it did just added to the overall feeling of the book being “disjointed” as I mentioned earlier.

When I started "Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win" I didn't expect to like it. I have never been overly political, and, especially in today's climate, my distaste for all things political has grown. Now, while the entire novel focuses on Charlotte's run for a Senate seat for Pennsylvania, the novel is about so much more. Determination. Overcoming your limitations and life's obstacles. Family. Love. This book is a book about life and happiness disguised as a book about a political race.

"Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win" is a delicious illustration of a marriage and a family struggling to come back together after falling apart. I absolutely loved Piazza's description of Charlotte's inner monologue as it pertained to her history with Max, her husband, and her current feelings about their state of their marriage. "Stay, go, no stay. I hate you, I love you." It's a thought process that everyone can relate to and it was illustrated beautifully in her novel.

Many other review of this novel state that the novel is openly feminist. And that's partially true. Many of the female characters in the novel are headstrong and refuse to take shit from anyone. They know who they are and they stand true to their choices and values. Characters such as Charlotte, Roz, and Leila do not let others define who they are or what they stand for. They would make beautiful role models for the new generation (or even mine as millennials) - it's just a shame they had to be found in fiction. On the other hand, as a contrast to the independent female characters, there is Kara, Charlotte's sister-in-law. Now, don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying that Kara is not a strong woman. Due to circumstances outside her control, she is the head of her household and is the glue that keeps her family moving forward. But her relationship with Paul, Charlotte's brother, and her refusal to make him clean up his life for the good of their family, irks me to my core and knocks her off my "strong role model" lists.

I absolutely loved this book. Piazza kept me on the edge of my seat as she slowly fed me pieces of the mystery that was what broke Charlotte and Max's marriage and what secrets Charlotte was keeping from Max because of it. It is all revealed, as it would be in life, as it is necessary to the race and it is amazingly done. You feel for the characters that Piazza creates in her novel and you cannot help but silently root for them to succeed.

Favorite Quotes - which may change, as I read an Advanced Copy:
"Do you like them today?" He asked in a low whisper.
"No."
"Do you love them?"
"More than ever."
(Chapter 2, Page Unknown, Digital)

"This is what having it all looks like. It's not easy. It's messy and flawed and imperfect."
(Chapter 22)

"A marriage, it had taken Charlotte more than a decade to figure out, wasn't the sum of the moments like this, the ones that took your breath away and made you thank God for the person you married. It was the totality of the moments that weren't wonderful, the crises you weathered together, and the people you became on the other side."
(Chapter 23)

This is the beach read for the summer!

It's an amazingly timely book (how did she write it so quickly?) and I loved the story and the diverse cast of characters. The author brings her solid credentials as a journalist and they make the story even more believable

Charlotte's a successful, driven wife/mother/senior executive in Silicon Valley. She decides to take on the long term senate incumbent in her home state of Pennsylvania (where they have never had a woman senator). The ensuing story of the good, the bad, and the ugly of our current political situation and climate is compelling and entertaining.

In addition to the story, I loved the characters --- from the Elk Hollow locals Charlotte grew up with and stayed in place to those Silicon Valley people she now lived and worked with. And then, there's Tug Slaughter, the incumbent senator she's hoping to unseat.

I can't wait until the book is out so I can have a discussion about that ending!

Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win
Jo Piazza
Available: July 24, 2018
Thank you to NetGalley.com for the opportunity to read an Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Its not political fluff – just chick-lit in a political setting. Seriously – it would be great story about a woman and her family and all of the crap everyone deals with even without the political aspect in today’s society.
What I loved: Charlotte seems like a real person – flaws, mistakes, and great characteristics and all but I really would have loved more Kara. Can I get a whole book about her? And the ending – too perfect!
What I didn’t love: Do I wish she could have run a campaign without any mud-slinging and going personal? Of course – but then it wouldn’t be politics in America.

What I learned: So much about the state of Pennslyvania that I feel I could knock out a 5th grade state report.
Overall Grade: B

www.FluffSmutandMurder.com

Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win was a great summer read. On the surface it seems like more of a light fun read, but after spending many hours thinking about the story, the characters are quite complex. As the story follows Charlotte’s decision to move from her ultra-rich Silicone Valley lifestyle, back to her poor blue collar PA town, readers are given a taste of what running for office really means. Jo Piazza brings to light the infamous question of “can women really have it all?” What is the cost to your marriage, your children, and your career? Intertwined with deep issues within the American government; poverty, a broken health care system, gun control and gender biases. I struggled with the formatting of the various press releases intermixed in the writing, but did find them helpful to the overall story. Truthfully, I’ve spent more time thinking about the complexity of Charlotte and Max’s marriage and how likely many women can relate – to what marriage means, to Max and to Charlotte. The only really upsetting part of this book for me was the end and I’ll leave it at that to not spoil the fun for anyone else.

** Thankful to the publisher and Netgallery for providing a copy of Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win in exchange for an honest review **

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC. I could not put this book down and read it within 24 hours. So timely! It was riveting. Great characters. Great plot lines. And ug the campaign. You wanted her to quit but you knew, as a woman, she could not. Highly recommend. And if you like this and haven’t yet read Young Jane Young, read that too. This was fabulous. A treat. 41 📚✔️

Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win is just the book women need in 2018. In light of the current political landscape and the fact that for some reason women still don’t have equality in the 21st century, main character Charlotte Walsh is the powerful HBIC that women can stand behind.

Charlotte is the hottest CEO in Silicon Valley until she decides to take a sabbatical and run for Senate in her home state of Pennsylvania. While Piazza never outright mentions any real-life politicians by name, the prime reason Charlotte gives for running for office throughout the book is because she knows she can do a better job for American people than the current government. References are made to the last presidential election, of which we all know the result, and Charlotte’s opponent is an intolerant older white man who doesn’t think a woman can possibly hold office.

Readers are not only given an inside look into a fictionalized political campaign, but are also shown the difficulties of running a campaign and a family - a major issue for women in American society today. Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win is funny at times, heart-wrenching at others, and very true to reality throughout.

Didn't love this one! Why did we have to have a successful woman with some much baggage at home? Her husband dragged her down. It was quick and easy so another book that seems tailor-made for beach reading.

Absolutely love Jo Piazza's books! This is another great release from her, funny and interesting with a great female character. Perfect summer read.

Charlotte Walsh is an extremely successful Silicon Valley CEO. She has it all, a handsome husband, Max, three adorable little girls, and a great job. When she decides to move back to Pennsylvania to run for Senate her world is turned upside down, She gets judged for her success, has to deal with a drunk brother who she has not talked to in years, faces old friends and enemies, and enters a political race that scrutinizes her life. Throughout the book I appreciated how Jo Piazza makes it so realistic about how life is as a woman candidate. This is my second book reviewing for Jo and I absolutely love her writing. I would like to thank Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for a ARC. Keep writing Jo you’re my favorite!

Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win is full of energy and the momentum keeps the reader reading from start to finish. Charlotte Walsh is a driven woman. The question is, is it at the expense of her family? That is for the reader to discover and decide for herself. Highly readable, well written story, including dialog. I'd recommend this to everyone and suggest it as a book club read.

The latest book by award-winning author and journalist, Jo Piazza, Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, is due out July 24, 2018, just in time to tuck into your beach bag. It’s a wake-up call for readers everywhere to re-examine the way all political candidates and their families are treated on the campaign trail; and most especially, the strength it takes for a woman to enter and endure a political campaign at any level.

Charlotte Walsh is inspired by the chance to make a difference following a presidential election that rocked the country as no previous election ever has. Completely clueless as to how nasty and personal a political campaign can become, she enters the race for the U.S. Senate in her home state of Pennsylvania. Charlotte and her husband, Max, are also unprepared for the effects the rigors of campaigning can have on a marriage, as well as the harshness by which the press judges both of them.

In Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, Piazza notes with disgust the way in which Americans are practically at each other’s throats, more divided than ever. Important to note in this story is the truth that no one can bring back coal-mining jobs or other similar low-skilled jobs when companies have turned to automation. Older, mostly white men who once held these types of jobs are offended that they need re-training, but if they want work, they must learn 21st-century skills. Piazza skillfully works this and many other important points into this very pertinent novel.

Piazza examines many more important topics, including school teachers who cannot afford adequate medical care due to poor insurance coverage resulting from federal cuts in public school funding. She points out the difference between owning a gun for providing food, and owning an assault weapon that has the capacity to kill hundreds of people in seconds. Additionally, she brought up a topic I had not considered: the fact that, in trying to make work and daily life easier and more productive, Silicon Valley made so many jobs obsolete, it devastated the American worker.

I enjoyed Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, but was very disappointed at the ending. I hate it when the ending of a book is abrupt and/or leaves me guessing what happens next. I sure hope there will be a sequel.

Jo Piazza’s new book, “Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win,” takes on some of today’s most charged issues – political intrigue, red state-versus-blue state, Silicon Valley-versus-Rust Belt, gender roles, addiction, marriage, child-rearing – and wraps them into a page-turning satire.

Charlotte Walsh is a high-powered Silicon Valley executive who decides to make her economically depressed northeastern Pennsylvania hometown the base for her U.S. Senate run. Her husband, Max, quits his big job in the tech industry to join her and look after their three young daughters during the campaign, and they settle into her parents’ old house.

Propelled by Josh, her hot-shot campaign manager, and anchored by her trusted aide, Leila, Charlotte embarks on a year-long grind facing a bruising opponent and a demanding constituency that reflects every special interest.

While this cool Silicon Valley exec struggles to stay afloat in the scalding political environment, she also faces personal challenges, including an erratic, addict of a brother and a husband who isn’t quite a committed to the process as Charlotte. Inevitably, these tensions – and great curveballs from other characters – make Charlotte’s life and campaign even more harried.

This is a fun, engaging novel that tells a good story and builds complex characters while moving forward at a fast pace. I’m hoping it will be the first in a series about Charlotte Walsh – I liked her and the characters around her, and I want to spend more time with them.

I'm not a fan of politics, or political fiction, but I requested this book because I had read two of the author's previous titles. Somehow I ended up enjoying this book even more than the other two, which was a pleasant surprise. I found this very relevant and timely, and liked the strength of the title charecter. Characters were well developed and relatable in their own ways, which made for a fast, enjoyable read. Definitely one I could easily recommend to a wide variety of readers.

“Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win” is the story of Charlotte Walsh running for Senate in her home state of Pennsylvania. Charlotte takes her family from California to Pennsylvania, leaving behind her life and job as COO of a Silicon Valley company. Charlotte will face the pressures of being a female politician, a mom, and a wife.

Before reading this book, I heard amazing things about Piazza’s work and I was not disappointed. I love when stories have a strong female character and even more so when that female character is relatable, and Charlotte Walsh is. She is strong and smart but she is still insecure and I think that is something a lot of women can relate to – that feeling of never being quite good enough rather it be for your job or spouse, that feeling is still there when it shouldn’t be.

The pace of the book is quick enough to keep your interested but not so quick that you feel the book is going to be over too soon.

Piazza’s characters are real and believable and they face real situations and choices. This book is a must read given our political climate where more women are running for office and leadership positions. It says what should be said more often – that women face more pressure and scrutiny running for office than men do and are forced to tackle issues and answer questions that men never will (for example, the dreaded “what are you wearing?”).

The twists and turns towards the end left me surprised and the ending left me asking for more.

I received an advanced e-copy from Netgalley and Simon and Schuster in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this one. I found it to be timely, relevant, and insightful. It was all well researched and I think most women can relate to Charlotte as a woman juggling family and career and life while trying to keep it all from falling apart.

It also brings to the forefront the very real differences faced by women who enter the political arena, from the focus on their attire to questions about their family and kids, that men aren't subjected to.

Overall, Jo Piazza nailed it yet again with Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys political fiction!

**Many thanks to Elizabeth Breeden and Simon & Schuster, as well as NetGalley, for the digital ARC!! All opinions are my own.**

This is probably the best of the "summer reads"/"chick lit" crop that I've come across thus far this year. The backdrop is novel as compared to similar entries in the market (eg - a girl working at a PR agency, a woman planning her wedding et al) and the characters are very well developed. I had read several of Jo Piazza's books over the years but this one was so solid I immediately went to her website to make sure I hadn't missed any of her novels over the years. Highly recommend.

The plot follows Charlotte Walsh, a Silicon Valley COO who decides to run for Senate. She has three young children and a previously philandering husband. The book concentrates on her campaign and was overall an enjoyable read.

What I liked:
- the pace of the plot, moving quickly through the campaign year.
- the realistic struggles of a woman who appears to have it all.
- the insight into an American political campaign.
- the writing, overall.

What I didn’t like:
- the validation of the resentful husband trope. It would be really nice to read something about an ambitious woman who had a supportive husband.
- the last-minute scandal. It came from nowhere at the very end of the book and was tied up quickly. It seemed pointless.
- bizarre sentence construction (see my highlights on Goodreads). This made an otherwise quick-moving novel feel awkward and stumbling.
- the ending. Really? I feel like the lack of resolution is just setup for a sequel.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

We are currently living in a world where women's empowerment is all the rage. It's no longer a question of if women can have it all, but how fast they can get there. There's nothing that's out of grasp and every dream can and should become a reality.

So, with that in mind, there's probably no better time to publish a novel like Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win - a deep (fictional) dive into female ambition, gender politics and the balance between personal and professional achievement.

At the heart of the story is, obviously, Charlotte Walsh; a Silicon Valley phenom who returns to her home state of Pennsylvania in order to run for Senate - a seat that has been filled by a man for the last 30 years. Pennsylvania has never elected a female candidate to office and Charlotte is determined to be the first. As the race gains steam, Charlie finds herself stretched thin by the deceitful and dirty tactics used by her peers and the press to cut her down. Keeping her emotions and exhaustion in check becomes a battle as she juggles these professional pressures with her personal ones - a once unfaithful husband who is becoming increasingly resentful and ambivalent, three small children needing the time and attention of their mother, and a loose cannon older brother with an addiction problem.

For me, the most interesting and captivating part of this novel wasn’t the election, wasn’t the peek into women in politics or even just women in power – it was the evolving relationship between Charlie and her husband Max. The struggles of this couple – the loss of faith and connection in their relationship – was filled with such raw realism. I was invested in their story and ultimately in their success or failure. As such (and without giving too much away), I think it's why I found the ending both clever and frustrating. As I neared the last few pages of the book, I found my opinion batting back and forth - did I want Charlotte to win the election, to show that women can truly defeat the odds or did I want her to focus on healing her family? In the end, the author gave every reader exactly what they wanted - or at the very least opened a forum for an important and timely conversation. It was a well played strategy that, I think, made this novel completely satisfying.

Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win hooked me from the very first chapter as it wove a story of female ambition, political intrigue, marriage struggles and sexual politics. It's the perfect devourable, juicy read for a summer on the beach.

I will voraciously read anything Jo Piazza writes, including her magazine and web pieces. So glad her latest novel stays true to her sharp wit and incredible observations of modern society. The fictional Charlotte Walsh is beyond believable in showcasing struggles and rewards of electing women into public office in 2018. The ending may disappoint some but it’s worth the campaign rollercoaster.