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A review by happiestwhenreading
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Even though this book doesn’t release until June 1, I couldn’t wait to read it any longer. As a huge fan of TJR (who isn’t), I was so happy to be pulled into another one of her worlds. This time she writes about Malibu, California in the 1980s. I could easily envision this world – the golden sunshine; surfboards everywhere you look, on top of cars and leaning on the sides of restruants; California girls with their golden legs and Daisy Duke shorts; the warm ocean breeze along the Pacific Coast Highway. It’s a world I’m familiar with and a world I love.
There are two parts to the story. The first one is about Mick and June’s tumultuous love story. It gives the reader background into the lives of their children – Nina, Jay, HUD, and Kit. This was by far my favorite part of the story and I could have explored this family dynamic for the whole book. It was layered and revelatory, making each of the Riva kids such a human touch and I was smitten with their loyalty and devotion to one another.
The second part of the book is the 12-hour lead up to the Riva’s annual Malibu party. The night promises juicy gossip, obscene behavior and epic tales to talk about for years to come. I really, really liked the set up of this part of the book, but as the night and the party wore on, it started to go off the rails for me. TJR chose to introduce and focus on a lot of random characters here and I was a bit confused by that choice. I hated the way these minor characters acted and it really detracted from the overall brilliance of the rest of the book. It’s a small complaint, but it was enough to knock it out of a 5-star rating for me.
Overall, I see this being a smash hit this summer – everyone is going to be talking about it and it’s sure to make all the Summer Reading Guides!
There are two parts to the story. The first one is about Mick and June’s tumultuous love story. It gives the reader background into the lives of their children – Nina, Jay, HUD, and Kit. This was by far my favorite part of the story and I could have explored this family dynamic for the whole book. It was layered and revelatory, making each of the Riva kids such a human touch and I was smitten with their loyalty and devotion to one another.
The second part of the book is the 12-hour lead up to the Riva’s annual Malibu party. The night promises juicy gossip, obscene behavior and epic tales to talk about for years to come. I really, really liked the set up of this part of the book, but as the night and the party wore on, it started to go off the rails for me. TJR chose to introduce and focus on a lot of random characters here and I was a bit confused by that choice. I hated the way these minor characters acted and it really detracted from the overall brilliance of the rest of the book. It’s a small complaint, but it was enough to knock it out of a 5-star rating for me.
Overall, I see this being a smash hit this summer – everyone is going to be talking about it and it’s sure to make all the Summer Reading Guides!