BOOK OF THE WEEK

Bridget Jones's Baby: The Diaries

Helen Fielding

Pages devoured: 216. Embarrassing laugh-out-loud moments on public transport: numerous. Overall thoughts on latest Bridget Jones book: V.v.v. gd.

Helen Fielding reminds us once again that she's the Queen of encapsulating the female experience in all its messy, funny and emotional glory with her fourth Bridget Jones book. Now, forget for a second that Hugh Grant didn't want to join in the fun in the film of the same name, which was released in September, and that Colin Firth's character Mark Darcy was killed off in Fielding's previous Bridget book, 2014's Mad About The Boy. This is the Bridget we were all clamouring to see: in a chaotic conundrum over who the father of her baby is - Mark or Daniel. There's a flashback five years to her engagement party to Mark, when we find out exactly why he left her, and then we're at the christening of the film where she sleeps with Mark. After sexist lothario Daniel wins over the feminists when he hands out the Archer-Biro Prize For Women's Fiction (in a brilliant scene that allows Fielding to have a pop at critics of 'chick-lit'), a drunken Bridget falls into bed with him too, thus teeing up the 'Who's the daddy?' plot. Cue a return to much-loved Fielding ground, with more squabbling between the old enemies (remember Mark walked in on Daniel sleeping with his first wife), Bridget almost killing both suitors with some lethal muffins and having some powerful revelations about the difference between Singletons and Smug Marrieds and the power of saying 'No'. All the while, her career at Sit Up Britain! is teetering on the edge as journalism increasingly dumbs down, and her mum's fussing about the Queen's visit to their village. Daniel gets some of the funniest lines, and there's a couple of poignant reprises of Bridget and Mark's most memorable lines. It's short, pacy and perfect.

9/10