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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
Meh. Not sure how I feel about this book. Halfway through I was convinced I could live without continuing the series. However, the ending picked up the interest. Still on the fence though. All the main characters are pretty off the wall and not believable. Or rather characters that you already knew and can see their actions coming a mile away. Clara, the woman with the secret life, was my favorite. Gloria and Lorraine, the spoiled rich girls, were hard to tolerate. The time period is amusing enough, as most of my friends know I love a good Prohibition tale. The whole book just needs to go farther I think. More gangster, more danger, more romance, more turns. Granted, I didn't know it was a "young adult" novel which probably explains most of it.
A little slow in the beginning, but it picked up around the middle and moved relentlessly to an amazing ending.
This book started out as a solid four with vivid characters and setting but ends up a three because there really isn't much of a plot to speak of, just lots of atomosphere.
The one element that really interested me was that the characters are seventeen and eighteen years old, but are engaged women jumping into a life with the maturity of teenagers. It was interesting to see how much society has changed.
The one element that really interested me was that the characters are seventeen and eighteen years old, but are engaged women jumping into a life with the maturity of teenagers. It was interesting to see how much society has changed.
I loved it! I am a sucker for a 1920's flapper book and I felt like I was in 1920's Chicago while reading. I am definitely reading the next book in the series
17-year-old Gloria has it all: she's a wealthy Chicago socialite engaged to Harvard-graduate and most-eligible-bachelor Sebastian, despite their impending marriage being one of political and social convenience. Chicago's hottest speakeasy and its live jazz call to her--or at least the piano player does. But for Gloria to follow her heart, she'll have to be prepared to sacrifice everything. Her cousin Clara has just arrived in Chicago, playing the part of the innocent country girl despite running from her own tawdry flapper past. And Gloria's best friend Lorraine wants nothing more than to win their mutual friend Marcus's affections, but he only has eyes for another--despite Lorraine's increasingly-desperate attempts to catch his eye.
The ideas are solid and the prohibition setting is unusual, but those things aren't enough to overlook the dull characters and "tell, don't show"-ness of the writing. The cover will almost certainly suck in fans of The Luxe, with its sultry flapper striking a pose.
Can't speak to historical accuracy, though, as everything I know about the 1920s I gleaned from A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
The ideas are solid and the prohibition setting is unusual, but those things aren't enough to overlook the dull characters and "tell, don't show"-ness of the writing. The cover will almost certainly suck in fans of The Luxe, with its sultry flapper striking a pose.
Can't speak to historical accuracy, though, as everything I know about the 1920s I gleaned from A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
I could have written this book, and it would have been a bajillion times better.
Looking forward to the next book in this series. Jillian Larkin totally leaves you hanging!
Novels set in the early 1900s are my kryptonite. Vixen was no exception. It was glamorous, scandalous and “absolutely gorgeous, darling!” Sorry. It had to be done.
Gloria Carmody has it all: wealth, looks, a stunning voice, not to mention a rich, handsome fiancée, Sebastian Grey, scion of one of Chicago’s most powerful families. To the surprise of Gloria’s jealous, social-climbing best friend, Lorraine Dyer, Gloria isn’t happy with her life. She wants the flapper lifestyle – the bobbed hair, cigarettes, and music-filled nights. It’s just too bad for Gloria that her mother has brought in Clara Knowles, Gloria’s goody-two-shoes cousin, to ensure that the wedding runs smoothly, and that Gloria doesn’t step out of line. But Gloria is determined not to let her party days to slip away before they’ve even begun, and with Lorraine’s envy spilling over into a desperate state, it seems that no one is safe. Not to mention the fact that Clara isn’t exactly as lily-white as she appears, and has some dirty little secrets of her own that she’ll do anything to keep hidden…
Okay, so I’m going to be completely honest here and admit that the cover was what made me buy the book. Not the cover as much as the blurb on the back: “Young. Wealthy. Defiant. Beautiful. Dangerous. It’s 1923… And Anything Goes.” And then this quote from the dust cover: “Jazz… Booze… Boys… It’s a dangerous combination.” So let’s just give a round of applause to whomever came up with those quotes (as well as the Exclusive Books Winter Sale) for making me abandon my two rules of: a) never judge a book by its cover, and b) never buy anything unless you’ve read the first couple of pages (duh, to check if the author can actually write a book, because I have suffered through way too many books with potential, but the author messed it up with their terrible writing style). Well, I did it. I judged. And I loved it.
Let me make this quick and simple:
Storyline: 4* - at times it tended to drag on a bit (understandably – most books do - but this would have to be at Hunger Games level for five stars)
Writing: 3* - the writing sometimes tended to have a bit of an amateur touch, but was overall pretty good
Characters: 5* - wow, I loved them. They were relatable, cute, funny, and daring. Everything that 1920s flappers should be.
So overall, Vixen scored a fabulous four-out-of-five.
I recommend it to everyone who loved The Great Gatsby (yes, even those of you who only watched the movie… You’ve got to start somewhere, right?) And if you didn’t like The Great Gatsby… Well, you obviously need to go read/watch it again.
Check out my blog at http://www.amybouwer.blogspot.com to read more of my reviews and blogs!
Gloria Carmody has it all: wealth, looks, a stunning voice, not to mention a rich, handsome fiancée, Sebastian Grey, scion of one of Chicago’s most powerful families. To the surprise of Gloria’s jealous, social-climbing best friend, Lorraine Dyer, Gloria isn’t happy with her life. She wants the flapper lifestyle – the bobbed hair, cigarettes, and music-filled nights. It’s just too bad for Gloria that her mother has brought in Clara Knowles, Gloria’s goody-two-shoes cousin, to ensure that the wedding runs smoothly, and that Gloria doesn’t step out of line. But Gloria is determined not to let her party days to slip away before they’ve even begun, and with Lorraine’s envy spilling over into a desperate state, it seems that no one is safe. Not to mention the fact that Clara isn’t exactly as lily-white as she appears, and has some dirty little secrets of her own that she’ll do anything to keep hidden…
Okay, so I’m going to be completely honest here and admit that the cover was what made me buy the book. Not the cover as much as the blurb on the back: “Young. Wealthy. Defiant. Beautiful. Dangerous. It’s 1923… And Anything Goes.” And then this quote from the dust cover: “Jazz… Booze… Boys… It’s a dangerous combination.” So let’s just give a round of applause to whomever came up with those quotes (as well as the Exclusive Books Winter Sale) for making me abandon my two rules of: a) never judge a book by its cover, and b) never buy anything unless you’ve read the first couple of pages (duh, to check if the author can actually write a book, because I have suffered through way too many books with potential, but the author messed it up with their terrible writing style). Well, I did it. I judged. And I loved it.
Let me make this quick and simple:
Storyline: 4* - at times it tended to drag on a bit (understandably – most books do - but this would have to be at Hunger Games level for five stars)
Writing: 3* - the writing sometimes tended to have a bit of an amateur touch, but was overall pretty good
Characters: 5* - wow, I loved them. They were relatable, cute, funny, and daring. Everything that 1920s flappers should be.
So overall, Vixen scored a fabulous four-out-of-five.
I recommend it to everyone who loved The Great Gatsby (yes, even those of you who only watched the movie… You’ve got to start somewhere, right?) And if you didn’t like The Great Gatsby… Well, you obviously need to go read/watch it again.
Check out my blog at http://www.amybouwer.blogspot.com to read more of my reviews and blogs!
My friend gave me this book, an advanced reader copy. It is set in the 20's during Prohibition. The main character, Gloria, is everyone's sweetheart. She is engaged to a handsome, rich man and seems to have it all. She attends her first speakeasy and is enthralled by the flapper world and especially a young musician who happens to be of another race.
Her cousin Clara comes to 'help' her with her wedding but is really sent in exhile from her former flapper life in New York. And her best friend Lorraine is an odd mixture of jealousy and desperation. I had a hard time getting into it but once the plot was firmly set I was intrigued by the characters and enjoyed learning about Prohibition and the slang used.
I would recommend this book for the high school level.
Her cousin Clara comes to 'help' her with her wedding but is really sent in exhile from her former flapper life in New York. And her best friend Lorraine is an odd mixture of jealousy and desperation. I had a hard time getting into it but once the plot was firmly set I was intrigued by the characters and enjoyed learning about Prohibition and the slang used.
I would recommend this book for the high school level.