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anthony716's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
vlreid's review against another edition
4.0
An interesting historical fiction novel about a struggling writer in NYC in the 1990's. The author sells his semi-autobiographical book about his dysfunctional family, and at the first meeting with his editor discovers that it is non other than Mrs. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Half of the book deals with the author and his editorial meetings with Mrs. Onassis; she needs him to re-write the ending. Interspersed are his interactions with his various family members, both current and past. Secrets are revealed, clashes are described, memories are told from different points of view. All in all a very compelling novel.
Read more of my reviews at https://thegoodreader13.blogspot.com/.
Read more of my reviews at https://thegoodreader13.blogspot.com/.
mattypallett's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I read this since I am a big fan of Rowley’s The Guncle, and while this book didn’t impress me as much as Guncle did, I still liked it.
My biggest issue is probably our protagonist James; simply put, he’s insufferable. I can handle unpleasant characters but I think I was supposed to like him and i just didn’t. He was still interesting, but he was so immature and exasperating throughout and treated those pretty much everyone around him (minus Jackie Onassis) like crap - yet I was still supposed to be rooting for him.
The book really shone for me however during the interactions between him and Jackie Onassis. I didn’t know much about her beyond the immediate aftermath of her husband’s assassination, but Rowley certainly painted her as a wonderful person, and she was a lot of fun to read about. Similarly, I think he wrote the tension between James and his mum excellently - even if I thought the reason at the core of that tension was a slightly underwhelming reveal.
All in all, I had a good time. Not Rowley’s best work imo, but absolutely worth a read!
My biggest issue is probably our protagonist James; simply put, he’s insufferable. I can handle unpleasant characters but I think I was supposed to like him and i just didn’t. He was still interesting, but he was so immature and exasperating throughout and treated those pretty much everyone around him (minus Jackie Onassis) like crap - yet I was still supposed to be rooting for him.
The book really shone for me however during the interactions between him and Jackie Onassis. I didn’t know much about her beyond the immediate aftermath of her husband’s assassination, but Rowley certainly painted her as a wonderful person, and she was a lot of fun to read about. Similarly, I think he wrote the tension between James and his mum excellently - even if I thought the reason at the core of that tension was a slightly underwhelming reveal.
All in all, I had a good time. Not Rowley’s best work imo, but absolutely worth a read!
lizziekarpen's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
darcys01's review against another edition
5.0
Enjoyed this book. The author is compelling with the story and characters.
nicholslaw's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
kerinl's review against another edition
4.0
A definite 4.5! I love Steven Rowley's writing. Cant wait for the next book.
_logal's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
bargainsleuth's review against another edition
4.0
For this and other book reviews, visit www.bargain-sleuth.com
You know I can’t resist a book about the Kennedys, and after successful historical novels like Jackie and Maria: A Novel of Jackie Kennedy and Maria Callas and And They Called It Camelot, I decided to take a chance with another Kennedy historical fiction novel called The Editorbecause of the low price on Kindle when I saw it.
It’s the early 1990s. Let’s just start by saying that James has mother issues. So much so that he’s written a novel about his mother, but rarely communicates with her. His agent has sent him to a publisher because there’s some interest in his book, which is a new experience for James. When the editor he meets turns out to be Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, he’s gobsmacked. Why? Not just because she’s Jackie O., but because his mother revered the Kennedys; James middle name is Frances, told many times for Robert Frances Kennedy. So this is A. Big. Deal.
The book is humorous, poignant, and enlightening to me about gay life in New York in the early 1990s. James’ partner, Daniel, appears in only a few scenes, but is a fully-formed character. James’ relationship with his mother seems so real; even though I get along with my mother and always have, it is because of concessions I’ve made for the good of the relationship. James seems to refuse to take his mother as she is, and has issues with her because of it.
James keeps delaying the ending of his book, because he knows he’ll have to visit his mother in order to do it. James’ mother is a cold duck, not very giving of affection and doesn’t seem to care that his book is going to be published. When James does visit, she tells him some earth-shattering news that sends him reeling. I’m not going to spoil it here, but it’s a doozy. James spends much of the rest of the book dealing with the fallout of this news, and it affects him in all facets of life, most especially as a writer.
James and Jackie’s relationship seemed real, the way an editor and writer work together (or so I’m told). There’s a trip to Hyannis Port to work during the Democratic National Convention of 1992 (and a discussion of candidate Bill Clinton as well), as well as many lunches and get-togethers with Jackie. I thought the author did an all right job of portraying Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis according to the rare reports of her private life we have gotten over the years. She had a wonderful sense of humor, once you got to know her. You read some of that here. Her desire for privacy makes the dialogue and situations seem more real, not less.
The ending of the book, when Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis dies, is tastefully done and rather poignant. There’s closure in this book, not just for James and Jackie, but James and his mother.
You know I can’t resist a book about the Kennedys, and after successful historical novels like Jackie and Maria: A Novel of Jackie Kennedy and Maria Callas and And They Called It Camelot, I decided to take a chance with another Kennedy historical fiction novel called The Editorbecause of the low price on Kindle when I saw it.
It’s the early 1990s. Let’s just start by saying that James has mother issues. So much so that he’s written a novel about his mother, but rarely communicates with her. His agent has sent him to a publisher because there’s some interest in his book, which is a new experience for James. When the editor he meets turns out to be Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, he’s gobsmacked. Why? Not just because she’s Jackie O., but because his mother revered the Kennedys; James middle name is Frances, told many times for Robert Frances Kennedy. So this is A. Big. Deal.
The book is humorous, poignant, and enlightening to me about gay life in New York in the early 1990s. James’ partner, Daniel, appears in only a few scenes, but is a fully-formed character. James’ relationship with his mother seems so real; even though I get along with my mother and always have, it is because of concessions I’ve made for the good of the relationship. James seems to refuse to take his mother as she is, and has issues with her because of it.
James keeps delaying the ending of his book, because he knows he’ll have to visit his mother in order to do it. James’ mother is a cold duck, not very giving of affection and doesn’t seem to care that his book is going to be published. When James does visit, she tells him some earth-shattering news that sends him reeling. I’m not going to spoil it here, but it’s a doozy. James spends much of the rest of the book dealing with the fallout of this news, and it affects him in all facets of life, most especially as a writer.
James and Jackie’s relationship seemed real, the way an editor and writer work together (or so I’m told). There’s a trip to Hyannis Port to work during the Democratic National Convention of 1992 (and a discussion of candidate Bill Clinton as well), as well as many lunches and get-togethers with Jackie. I thought the author did an all right job of portraying Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis according to the rare reports of her private life we have gotten over the years. She had a wonderful sense of humor, once you got to know her. You read some of that here. Her desire for privacy makes the dialogue and situations seem more real, not less.
The ending of the book, when Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis dies, is tastefully done and rather poignant. There’s closure in this book, not just for James and Jackie, but James and his mother.
fagankelli's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0