Sunday, July 22, 2007

One Dangerous Lady by Jane Stanton Hitchcock

After reading Social Crimes and falling in love with it, I had to see what other books Ms. Hitchcock had written. I was so excited when I found out there was a continuation to Social Crimes in One Dangerous Lady. I grabbed it from the library and it was just as good! An A-!

From Amazon:
New York grande dame Jo Slater, whose riches-to-rags-to-riches story entertained readers of Social Crimes, returns in Hitchcock's latest smart, genuinely funny novel to take on a sociopath socialite cutting a vicious swathe across Manhattan society. A Barbados wedding becomes the scandal of the year when the host, Russell Cole, a billionaire art collector with a psychiatric history, disappears off his yacht, and Jo puzzles over the suspect behavior of his much-younger second wife, Carla, an Italian with a shady past. Upon their return to New York, Carla angles for Jo's solidarity, but Jo, insightful and caustic, won't have any. Social life is hard work for these women, and Jo is soon vying for the upper hand in a deadly, high-stakes game with this ruthless social climber. (For Jo, a dinner party invitation from Carla heralds the "long reign of a rival queen in whose court I may very well become a prisoner.") Despite Jo's opposition, Carla achieves an exclusive co-op apartment (which she decorates "rococo-a-gogogo"), a seat on the board of the Municipal Museum along with Jo's resignation from said board, even Jo's romantic interest, Lord Max Vermillion.

It was such a great addition to what I hope will be a series. I love the inside look at New York's wealthiest and what some of the consider "problems". The characters are so lively and there are little other stories running throughout that make interesting on every page. There was not a boring part at all and was filled with twists and turns. There is suspense in it, though I think the insiders view is what really makes the story so much fun!

Well I am off. I am leaving for the airport and going to Ft. Lauderdale. I will not be blogging from there, so it probably won't be until next weekend! Everyone have a great week and happy reading!

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