If you like Gossip Girl, you'll definitely enjoy The Luxe. I LOVED, loved, loved this book. It's definitely a fast, light read. To sum it up, The Luxe is pretty much Gossip Girl set in the late 1800s with all the same back stabbing, scheming and romantic trysts. Just add in some bigass ball gowns. It's a young adult novel, but I tend to enjoy YA books just as much as "grown up" ones.
The main character, Elizabeth Holland, is from an old, wealthy Manhattan family. The book mainly focuses on Elizabeth and her sister, Diana, Elizabeth's friend Penelope, and Henry Schoonmaker, one of NYC's most sought-after bachelors. Each chapter focuses on a different person, so it's interesting to dive into each character's head...especially the servant girl, Lina, who turns out to be just as spiteful and tricky (if not more so) than the wealthy girls.
The book definitely comments on a woman's place in society at that time: lack of choice, family commitment over personal happiness, marriage for love vs. money. Elizabeth especially, is the most reluctant to stray from the norm and do what her heart wants versus what her family and society expects of a girl in her position, but even she has some pretty dirty secrets.
The only thing I didn't like about the book was that I never really felt that connected to Elizabeth, and the only character you really like in the book is Diana, who is the most free spirited and interesting of the group.
The only thing I didn't like about the book was that I never really felt that connected to Elizabeth, and the only character you really like in the book is Diana, who is the most free spirited and interesting of the group.
I have to admit I was a little shocked at how the girls in this book acted at times, given the extremely strict standards of conduct for ladies in that time period. I think the author is pushing the envelope a bit to make it more scandalous/Gossip Girl like, which definitely makes for interesting reading. I liked the "clippings" from the society pages in front of the chapters, totally like Page 6.
I can't wait to read the next book in the series (I went to Borders to get it immediately after finishing The Luxe, but they didn't have it - grr). I'll update as soon as I read it, of course!
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
No comments:
Post a Comment