The Bright, Young & Luxe Event!

It's a party! 

Hello everyone! I want to welcome all of my wonderful readers to our celebration of Anna Godbersen's latest book release, Beautiful Days. Myself and the wonderful Tiffany from over at For Those About to Read are hosting a Bright, Young & Luxe Event-- check out what's going on below!

We look forward to seeing you throughout the week for all the fun!

What To Expect:

Reviews!

The Luxe

Bright Young Things

Discussions!

Penelope: love or hate her?

Splendid endings: Diana and Henry

Dead, famous, and married: the fates of Cordelia, Letty, and Astrid

Giveaways!

Sept 10-20th~ Check out the linky for all our participating bloggers

Interview with Anna!

Be on the look-out for an exclusive interview with the author herself


Check out Beautiful Days!

Click on the Beautiful Days book cover for more info on Anna's newest release

Book Review: The Luxe

We are kicking off the Bright, Young & Luxe Event with a book review of The Luxe, written by yours truly :) Seriously guys? You NEED to read this book if you love historical fiction, scandalous romance, or just an awesome story that you won't be able to put down! Check it out below!

Author: Anna Godberson
Release Date: November 20, 2007
Pages: 448
Read it in: 2 days

LC's Take: Reading this book was like devouring a giant, heavily-frosted piece of dark-chocolate cake with a big glass of golden, bubbly champagne—it was just a wonderfully decadent and guilty pleasure from beginning to end.

The year is 1899, and sisters Elizabeth and Diana Holland are caught up in all the opulent wealth and scandalous intrigue of New York City’s Gilded Age. Anna Godberson does an incredible job of bringing this world to life in all its vibrant color—I absolutely loved it! From the witty dialogue to the luxurious descriptions of upper-class life, to the dynamics that unfold between the characters, this book had me hooked within the first couple pages.

The cast of characters really stood out for me. From Elizabeth Holland, the elder sister who is pulled along by her sense of duty to her family and outwardly conforms to all the etiquette of her class (while secretly harboring a love affair with the family’s coachman), to Diana Holland, the younger sister who is calculating, unconventional and rebellious towards everything having to do with “high society.”

The Luxe has totally turned my opinion and restored all my faith in the brilliance of historical fiction (which I have said I’m not a fan of). I absolutely adored this book and thought that its portrayal was not only accurate but vividly real in its descriptions of high society at the end of the 19th century. I loved all of the little details that painted such an amazingly brilliant and beautiful world-- for me they were almost as much fun to read as all the tantalizing secrets and scandals ;)

Get ready to be pulled into a 19th century soap opera where everyone is beautiful and no one can be trusted with their dirty secrets and two-faced games... Honestly, I haven’t had this much fun reading a book in a long time and could NOT put it down. LOVED it and can’t wait to read the sequels!!

LC’s Rating:

The Luxe is one big indulgent treat that you can’t help but find absolutely delicious!

Who is Saint Giovanni? (Part 1)

OK, so I really can't say just how much I am LOVING this blogging event, hosted over at The Lit Express. Basically, every week there will be a new installment of an all new book written by author Rane Anderson to debut her novel, Who Is Saint Giovanni? With each installment, there are illustrations, behind-the-scenes looks at how the author wrote the book, links to hear the installments read, etc. This is definitely going to be a reading experience like no other, and I am totally stoked to have found it! Below is a synopsis for Rane's book, and you can check out her blog through the links above :)

Book Synopsis: The morning after a near-death experience, seventeen-year-old Emily Edwards discovers an X carved between her eyes. It’s painless, bloodless, and she has no clue how it got there. No one else seems to see it. As if that’s not bad enough, Emily’s senses are freakishly sharper, like she has been living, until then, a little deaf, a little blind, and without taste buds.

Desperate for answers, Emily turns to Giovanni, the only person in Italy she promised herself she would avoid. He’s everything she hates in guys. Impulsive, secretive, and reckless, just like her father. What kind of guy grabs a girl he doesn’t know and kisses her? But Giovanni may be the only one who can see the mark. Though he denies it, Emily swears she’s caught him staring at it. 

Before long, Emily learns she’s a pawn in a deadly game that has existed for centuries. The only one she trusts has stolen her soul, and she doesn’t even know it. Although some call Giovanni a saint, others call him a devil. Emily must determine whose side he’s on by finding the answer to a single question. Who is Saint Giovanni?

***

I think that giving your readers such an in-depth and close-up look at your work is very ambitious and creative. I just read Part I, the first installment, and I am already hooked by the author's writing style and ability to draw in the reader, making them want to see what happens next. I am definitely looking forward to next week's installment. Just wanted to let you guys all know about this really awesome reader's event! Happy reading everyone :)