Tuesday, February 19, 2008

The Luxe by Anna Godbersen

I read a great review of this book a few months ago and have been anxiously awaiting it from the library system. The Luxe is a teen novel set in 1899 New York City high society and seeks to parallel Edith Wharton's world. While definitely not as good as an Edith Wharton book, it was still an enjoyable read. It was rather a light read and not something I would consider great literature, but it was good.

The Luxe is the story of Elizabeth Holland and her friends and family. The novel starts at young Elizabeth's funeral after her tragic drowning death only days before her wedding and then flashes back to what led up to her engagement, wedding planning, and death. It turns out that instead of being the perfect society miss, Elizabeth has led a tangled life of deceit that involves her friends and family. Her sister Diana, is in love with Elizabeth's fiancee, Henry. Her best friend, Penelope, is also in love with Henry and wants to win him back. Elizabeth herself may be the only one that does not fall under Henry's charms.

The only negatives with this book were that you are supposed to wonder at the mystery of Elizabeth's death, but I had it figured out right away. Also I would have liked better character development and more development of the main romances - why did Elizabeth love her one true love? There will be a sequal to this book in a few months and I'm looking forward to it.

I loved the COVER of this novel. It shows a young society miss in a beautiful pink ball gown. I want to wear it! The descriptions in this novel of the parties and the gowns were very good.

I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a fun read about high society teens behaving badly a hundred years ago.

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