December 31, 2010

Bright Young Things - Anna Godbersen (blog tour)







Young Adult
Pages: 400
Publisher: HarperCollins
Bright Young Things. Anna GodbersenRelease Date: October 12, 2010

The year is 1929. New York is ruled by the Bright Young Things: flappers and socialites seeking thrills and chasing dreams in the anything-goes era of the Roaring Twenties. 
Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey escaped their small Midwestern town for New York's glittering metropolis. All Letty wants is to see her name in lights, but she quickly discovers Manhattan is filled with pretty girls who will do anything to be a star… 
Cordelia is searching for the father she's never known, a man as infamous for his wild parties as he is for his shadowy schemes. Overnight, she enters a world more thrilling and glamorous than she ever could have imagined—and more dangerous. It's a life anyone would kill for . . . and someone will. 
The only person Cordelia can trust is Astrid Donal, a flapper who seems to have it all: money, looks, and the love of Cordelia's brother, Charlie. But Astrid's perfect veneer hides a score of family secrets. 
Across the vast lawns of Long Island, in the illicit speakeasies of Manhattan, and on the blindingly lit stages of Broadway, the three girls' fortunes will rise and fall—together and apart. From the New York Times bestselling author of The Luxe comes an epic new series set in the dizzying last summer of the Jazz Age.

This was a delightful story to read. Anna Godbersen's writing is poetic and rich, letting the story flow from different perspectives in a carefully descriptive, dreamy way. Set in 1929, during Prohibition, this story will illustrate vividly a historical period marked by parties and glamour. The writing was incredibly atmospheric, I felt myself transported back in time, becoming a part of Cordelia and Letty's adventure.

I did feel sometimes that the story was heavy in details, letting the pace slow down for a bit, but it picked up rather fast as the secrets blossomed and the scandals grew. You can sense the tense feeling of the climax coming, but what happened shocked me nonetheless.

The reader can truly relate to the well-done female characters. The three girls were regular girls who just happen to live in that time. Godbersen switches swiftly from one girl to the other, allowing us to view the historical period through various points of view. The male characters though, were easily forgettable. Every time a boy's name came up, I couldn't help but feel I was lost. Yet, it clicked after reading a bit more. Grady, Thom, Luke, Charlie, Darius, Duluth, Glenn? and what's the name of the husband in the first chapter? Anyhow... You get the idea.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and cannot wait for the next one, where I'm sure I will have remembered and placed all the male names. If you enjoy ridiculously well-written novels with a creative and fresh story to tell, go get Bright Young Things right now.

**Check out my exclusive interview with Anna here!


4 comments:

  1. I look forward to reading this.

    Happy New Year!

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  2. Heey, Sab! :) You can go right ahead and use the 2010/2011 beach picture! Here's the link: http://i54.tinypic.com/2ahzlc.jpg

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  3. Now that you mention it there were a lot of boy names and I don't remember some of them now either.

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  4. Awesome! I have this on my reading challenge list so if you really liked it then I'll at least somewhat like it :P I kid. I hope I really like it cause it sounds good! Plus the 20's are awesome and I'm so doped up on cold medicine right now I am rambling in your comment section. Whooooo!

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