Beatriz Williams (351 pages)
Published by Putnam
Bookish rating:4
Set in the 1930s, this beach book is mostly set in on the beaches of Rhode Island, with lots of cocktails, cigarettes, gossip, and use of the word "darling." It follows the so-called friendship of our heroine, Lily, and her quasi-BFF Budgie, and Lily's past love affair with Nick, who is now Budgie's husband.
Cue the drama.
Williams writing style is tight and well-paced and the plotting is good. My biggest beef was that I couldn't identify WHY Nick fell so head over heels with Lily. They go zero to sixty falling in love, but . . . why? What did she adore about him, exactly? Why was she the most amazing woman he'd ever met? What was her sparkle? She wasn't funny and didn't seem to make him laugh; if she was smart, she didn't show it; she wasn't stunningly beautiful, but of course we like Nick more for that. In short, their obsessive ardor seemed . . . contrived.
Nonetheless, I found myself thoroughly entertained. It's rare to read 1930s-era books that aren't so depressingly Depression-esque. This one was fun.
Recommended.
First: You need to read Rules of Civility.
ReplyDeleteSecond: Agreed with the Nick and Lily attraction, but I thought part of Nick's attraction to Lily was that she wasn't as polished as the other girls in their social sphere. Although that's admittedly kind of a stretch (I'll also add "adorably virginal" to the lists of things that initially attracted Nick to Lily … ). I also thought it might have been a commentary on how some people can never get over their first loves. But that's a total stretch.
Really, if I start to think about this book too much, I might like it less. And it is a fun summer read.