Book Review: "The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives" by Kristin Miller

What a fun, soapy read Kristin Miller's new mystery, The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives, was!!

When Brooke and her much-older, tech-magnate husband look at a mansion in a prestigious Bay Area neighborhood, they think they’ve found a home where Brooke can write her mystery novels and there won’t be a lot of interference from their neighbors. (Although the HOA rules are rather ridiculous.)

But what they didn’t realize is that one of their neighbors is Georgia, the so-called “Black Widow,” whose first two husbands died mysteriously. Many people think she’s behind their deaths even though the law has found otherwise. But now she claims to have found true love with another wealthy man, and everyone’s wondering whether she’ll strike again.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s best friend Erin, a news anchor and the HOA president, has her own issues. Jealous of Brooke’s youth and freshness, she walks off her newscaster job in a snit, hoping her husband will make her a trophy wife, too. But he’s less than enthused with her stunt, and she starts to wonder whether there’s something he’s hiding from her.

When an incident occurs after Georgia’s engagement party, Brooke starts to realize that her neighbors and friends might be the inspiration she needs to break out of her writing slump. But it’s not long before she finds herself drawn into their web, which gets crazier and crazier by the second.

No one is quite what they seem in this neighborhood…and not knowing whom to trust could be dangerous!

I had such a great time reading The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives. It reminded me of a great nighttime soap opera and I was hooked on the story, which was twisty enough to keep me guessing but not ridiculous. I love reading about the fabulously, dastardly rich. Heck, I’d even love a sequel!

Book Review: "Perfectly Impossible" by Elizabeth Topp

It’s totally easy to hold your life together at the same time as your employer’s, right? Elizabeth Topp's Perfectly Impossible weighs in on that question.

Anna has been the private assistant to Bambi Von Bizmark, an immensely wealthy NYC matriarch, for a long while now. Her job is simple: make sure there are no surprises in the family's life and do everything perfectly. It’s always hectic because she never knows what she’ll be asked, what will be needed, or what she’ll need to remember, but she’s excellent at what she does.

Things are tense in the Von Bizmark household right now. Bambi and her tycoon husband are on the outs, but with them being selected as honorees for the Opera Ball, Bambi’s demands and mood swings are increasing exponentially. Anna has to walk many a delicate line between fulfilling Bambi’s wishes and not bankrupting the family, not to mention helping her employer accept reality, which isn’t easy.

Meanwhile, Anna, who really wants to be an artist, is struggling with getting attention for her work. She can’t figure out why it seems she’s better at being a private assistant than an artist, and that tension impacts her relationship with her boyfriend, Adrian, whose prestigious new job keeps him occupied and unable to support her the way she needs.

When roadblock after roadblock occurs as the Opera Ball approaches, Anna is finding it tougher to keep everything running smoothly. Will she be able to pull it all off? Can she make sure the Von Bizmarks are getting along in time for the Ball? And what will happen to her career and her own relationship?

Perfectly Impossible was a fun read about the excessive lifestyle of the NYC elite and the typical chaos a private assistant must face. So much of it seems over the top, but I totally believe people like this exist—if not worse!

Little A, Amazon Publishing, and Blankenship PR provided me with a complimentary advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making it available!

Book Review: "The Lion's Den" by Katherine St. John

The Lion's Den by Katherine St. John is a soapy, melodramatic beach read about money, friendship, and betrayal.

Belle and Summer have been friends since high school. And while there were lots of good times, a great deal of their relationship has consisted of Summer taking advantage of Belle or Belle having to clean up after her.

Still, when Summer invites her on her extremely rich (and much, much older) boyfriend’s yacht for a Mediterranean cruise, Belle jumps at the chance to get away from her flagging acting career and her hellish bartending gig for a bit of luxury.

But it’s not long before Belle realizes that while the boat is beautiful and the locales are gorgeous, everything is not what it seems. Summer’s boyfriend is tremendously controlling, and the women are expected to be seen and not heard. It’s Summer’s behavior, however, that is most worrisome, and one night, Belle sees just how dangerous Summer can be to anyone who threatens what she wants.

So…I didn’t like this. I really wanted to DNF it, honestly, but kept with it in the hopes it would get better. Given the fact that the book fluctuates between past and present, you see what a horrible friend Summer was to Belle, so I don’t honestly understand how anyone would put up with Summer for as long as they did and believe all of her utter lies. I also didn't understand why everyone else seemed not to care about what was going on. St. John threw in some twists, which were interesting, but at the same time even those seemed a little far-fetched.

Others have really enjoyed this, though. I'm not sure what I missed here, but don't take my word as the sole decision whether or not to read this!

Book Review: "Anna K" by Jenny Lee

Anna K is a retelling of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, set among rich, privileged teenagers of New York City and Greenwich, Connecticut society.

Anna is the beautiful, smart daughter of a powerful South Korean businessman. She mostly prefers the company of her horses and show dogs to the society elite, so she attends a fancy prep school in Connecticut, as opposed to her older brother, Steven, who attends a private school in New York City.

Anna has been dating Alexander since she was 14 and he was a few years older. He now attends Yale and has his future mapped out, including marrying Anna. This is a perfect match society-wise. Anna really does love Alexander and can see spending the rest of her life with him. But sometimes she wonders whether something is missing, something more exciting.

When she meets Alexia Vronsky, she realizes that something has been missing from her relationship with Alexander. From the moment the two set eyes on each other, they are physically and emotionally drawn together. Anna knows that Alexia has a reputation as a womanizer—he’s allegedly called “the Count” because you can’t count how many girls want to be with him—but even though she knows her future is supposed to be with Alexander, she can’t stay away from Vronsky. Does she do what is right, what is expected, or does she follow her heart?

The book follows the pair’s tempestuous relationship along with other romantic duos. There’s scandal, sex, lots of drugs, and outrageous spending, not to mention a great deal of melodrama. There are elements of so many other stories and movies in here, which makes it compelling even though I felt the book moved fairly slowly.

Do you need to have read Anna Karenina? No, I haven't, and it didn't detract from my being immersed in the story. Jenny Lee shares in her author's notes some general plot points and how they parallel her story.

This is the first YA book I’d say parents should really read first to determine whether it’s right for your kids given all of the drugs, mostly. And if you’re looking for a light read, this isn’t it!

Book Review: "The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue" by Mackenzi Lee

Just when you think that no one is writing anything original, along comes a book that is so different in many ways that you wonder how the author came up with the idea in the first place, and how they were able to sell it to a publisher. Mackenzi Lee's The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue is one of those books. What a sensational story, with characters I won't soon forget!

In 18th century England, Henry "Monty" Montague has grown up a son of privilege. His father is a lord with a sizable estate and business concerns, all of which he expects Monty to take over sometime soon. The thing is, Monty is more than a bit of a rake—a lovable one at times, but a rake nonetheless—one who is far too fond of carousing, drinking, causing trouble, and finding himself in romantic situations with a large number of young men...and women. All of this and he's not quite 18 yet!

Monty and his best friend, Percy (with whom Monty is more than a little besotted) are scheduled to have one last hurrah—a Grand Tour of Europe, where they will see the sites and have their last gasps of fun, after which Monty will begin working alongside his father and becoming a responsible adult, while Percy will leave for law school in Holland. But Monty's father has tired of his son's escapades and sharply curtails what his son has planned, sending along a teacher/chaperone of sorts who will monitor all of their activities. And then his father makes the ultimate threat—embarrass the family one more time, or get caught with another young man, and Monty will be disinherited.

"I'm too useless to make a life on my own, no matter how odious the one selected for me is. I'm well shackled to my father, no way to escape or want things for myself."

While at first his father's restrictions put a damper on the Grand Tour, it's not long before Monty and Percy begin to sneak away and enjoy themselves, under the watchful and jealous eye of Monty's younger sister, Felicity, who is supposed to be dropped off at finishing school along the way, despite her desire to pursue an educational and career path open only to men in those days.

"It occurs to me then that perhaps getting my little sister drunk and explaining why I screw boys is not the most responsible move on my part."

The more time Monty and Percy spend together, the more he wants to divulge his feelings for his best friend, despite his father's warnings. Yet one of the many things Monty is clumsy at is expressing his feelings, and more often than not, he winds up pushing Percy away, which is precisely what he doesn't want. One night, in a pique of jealousy and mischief, Monty makes a rash decision that puts the trio in danger, and sends them fleeing through France into Spain and Italy, throwing them into untenable situation after untenable situation, and forcing them to do—and say—things they never thought they would.

Along the way they will reveal and uncover secrets about one another which may forever change their relationships and their futures, and Monty, in particular, will finally begin to understand what life is like for those not born into privilege. But will these discoveries be enough to free them from danger and change the course of their lives?

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue is both a rollicking adventure and an emotional book about finding what makes you happy (or whom), and accepting who you are and where your life should lead. It's also a book about coming to terms with the world around you and finally acting like an adult when you've been coddled and indulged for far too long to really understand the challenges other people face. Despite the setting and the characters' backgrounds, this is book with universal themes, and one that is just so wonderfully told that it made me laugh, smile, and, of course, get a little teary-eyed more than a few times, too.

I seriously loved this book. The characters Lee has created, from Monty, Percy, and Felicity to those they encounter along the way, are all fascinating in different ways. Monty does get annoying from time to time, and you wish he'd just do and say what he needs to, but I just couldn't get enough of him. I would love to see this as a movie, because I think these characters and their story would be as fascinating to watch unfold as it was to read. I can't wait to see what Lee comes up with next.

I really don't have any more words to express how I felt about this book. Maybe Meryl Streep can help.