Good morning, y’all! I’m back with another book review! I absolutely loved three of the four of these books and can’t wait to start my June books {I have a feeling I’ll have some *REALLY* good ones!}. Anyway, let’s get started!
Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel (4.5 out of 5 stars)
Moral of the story: Mothers never forget, and daughters never forgive.
The story opens up with us meeting the protagonist Rose Gold, a young woman who believed that she was incredibly ill, confined to a wheelchair, and allergic to basically everything for the first eighteen years of her life. Come to find out she is actually in perfect health and her mother is a really good liar. {How could a mother do this to her only child?!} After Rose Gold testifies against her, her mom Poisonous Patty serves five years in prison, then gets out and begs Rose Gold to help her out, claiming she wants to reconcile and rebuild their twisted relationship. {Patty actually says she’s forgiven Rose Gold for lying to the jury about her abuse! How crazy!} However, Rose Gold spent 18 years with no one other than her mother, so she knows this is all a front and Patty wants to get even. And to Patty’s surprise, Rose Gold is not that once weak, young daughter in a wheelchair who was too sick to do anything. She spent the last five years waiting for her mother to come home… to settle the score.
When I saw this book, I thought it was going to be more light-hearted with its light pink cover and butterfly on the front. Per usual, looks can be deceiving. This book is as far from light-hearted as you can get. It has been described as a psychological suspense with real-world inspiration {think Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Hulu show The Act}, which immediately drew me in, and I couldn’t stop reading. Darling Rose Gold explores the dark, sinister corners of a mother-daughter relationship – an unbreakable bond – gone horribly wrong. Every page was filled with something ridiculously crazy or insanely dark. Be prepared to be sucked in to a wild ride, switching between the two points of view of two sick-minded individuals revealing the motives and consequences of eighteen years of abuse.
Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple (2.5 out of 5 stars)
The book begins with Bee cashing in on her parents’ promise that in return for straight As at school, she can have any gift she wants, and Bee chooses a family trip to Antarctica… a gift that immediately sends Bernadette’s social anxiety into hyperdrive. Bernadette is a complex individual, who is still suffering from a heartbreak caused 30 years prior during the peak of her architect career. This heartbreak led to Bernadette having severe social anxiety, which causes issues between her and the other parents at Bee’s school and between her and literally anyone outside of family. So, you can understand while a trip to Antarctica {by boat, surrounded by many people} would cause issues.
While trying to manage her anxiety for this trip, Bernadette’s petty neighbor Audrey Griffin picks a fight with her over her blackberry bushes *insert major eyeroll here* because Audrey is trying to hold a brunch event for the upper-class parents of Seattle to get new enrollments in the school {and of course their money…brunches are for asking for money}. Bernadette gives into the fight with Audrey and agrees to have all of the blackberry bushes removed, but here’s the thing, Bernadette lives on a massive hill, and without those blackberry bushes, there is nothing stopping the muddy mess from sliding all the way down into Audrey’s yard and home during a typical rainy Seattle day, which is exactly what happens. This is the point where Bernadette finally breaks down and disappears, leaving it up to her daughter Bee to find her.
I would give more of a summary, but I’m exhausted from all of what I just gave you. I don’t recommend this book to anyone. It had a silly plot that while it did engross me enough to finish the book was wildly painful to read. I felt that the book’s storyline was incredibly unrealistic. A fifteen-year-old putting together tons of documents into this story? Even with Bee’s level of intelligence, I find it ridiculous. I also felt like the author had thousandas of ideas for how the book could go and decided to throw all of them into one book, which is quite possibly how the mind of Bernadette worked as well… going in a million different directions all the time. Lastly, the majority of the book was background information to figure out where did Bernadette go and what went wrong to get to Bernadette’s breaking point, and it wasn’t until the last 25% of the book that you finally had some action. Personally, I found the lead-up to be quite boring and ongoing. I understand that the book is about self-acceptance, finding what makes you happy and learning how to balance your happiness with the expectations of others, but, in my opinion, there is a less painful way to get that point across to the audience.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (4.5 out of 5 stars)
Evelyn Hugo, a reclusive Hollywood movie icon, is finally read to tell the story and the truth of her glamorous and scandalous life. To write such a story, Evelyn chooses an unknown magazine writer named Monique, which surprises her more than anyone. Why choose Monique over a well-known reporter? Why choose to have your truth written now? Monique isn’t feeling that great about herself when she gets the news that Evelyn wants her to write her story: her husband left her after a few months into the marriage; her writing career has stagnated; her confidence is in the trash. But, regardless of all of that, Evelyn has chosen her, a choice that can catapult Monique’s writing career to the highest level.
Every day, Monique heads to Evelyn’s Upper East Side apartment to listen as Evelyn reveals the good, the bad, and the ugly of her Hollywood life: from making her way to LA in the 50s, to her decision to leave the business forever in the 80s, and the seven husbands along the way. Evelyn’s story is one of passion and love, of unexpected friendship, of unapologetic ambition. A story that inspires Monique to have the same in her own life despite the tragic way that connects Evelyn’s life and Monique’s.
This book is worth every single drop of hype that it has been given. It is a fictional, historic romance, switching scenes between Old Hollywood and present day, following the life of a famous Hollywood actress from losing her mother at a very young age, using her body to get her to places she wants to go, overcoming physical and mental abuse from her husbands… all so she can become something more, something greater: a powerful woman in an industry dominated by men. Throughout the story of Evelyn’s life, we repeatedly hear about having to conform to society’s norms, the consequences of doing so, and the freedom when we decide to be ourselves regardless of what society says. I found this book and Evelyn’s character specifically to be extremely empowering for all women. Evelyn is unapologetic in her actions to get to where she wants to be and to achieve all she has set out to achieve in her life. The moral of Evelyn’s story is life is too damn short to pretend to be anything other than yourself.
When Life Gives You Lululemons by Lauren Weisberger (4.5 out of 5 stars)
Book number 3 in the The Devil Wears Prada series, we are reintroduced to Miranda Priestly’s ex-assistant Emily Charlton, who now is a rebranding consultant to A-list celebrities and are introduced to two of her friends Karolina Zuraw, top super model turned senator’s wife, and Miriam, former partner at a prestigious NYC law firm turned suburban mother of 3 small kids. Miriam is the linked between Emily and Karolina after Karolina gets pulled over for a DUI with her son and son’s friends in the car and her reputation is ruined. Emily, being a rebranding consultant, becomes the star of the show, where she lands the client of the lifetime Karolina. Throughout the book, the unlikely trio of friends navigate their way through suburban life one glass of win at a time by revealing the truths and the lies that are just below the surface of this dazzling, uber-wealthy town of Greenwich, Connecticut.
The book is told from each character’s point of view with chapters full of heart, humor, and scandal. When Life Gives You Lululemons is a fun and easy read that is still well-balanced with a surprising amount of depth. It shows what it means for women to empower other women, to support each other no matter what, and stay real to yourself even with it’s hard during their darkest times.
I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’ve read any of these!
*Disclosure: Some of the links included are affiliate links, meaning that, at no additional cost to you, I may earn a commission if you click through the link and make a purchase.*
