REVIEW: Lady Be Good by Amber Brock @crownpublishing @ambrockwrites

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Amber Brock, arc, Crown Publishing, historical fiction, Lady Be Good, Reviews

Lady Be Good

by Amber Brock

Thanks so much to Crown Publishing for this gifted copy!

An adorable historical fiction novel that put a smile on my face.

Publisher: Crown Publishing

Publish Date: June 26, 2018

Hardcover

288 Pages

Standalone

Genre: Historical Fiction

Set in the 1950s, Lady Be Good is Amber Brock's mesmerizing return, sweeping readers into the world of the mischievous, status-obsessed daughter of a hotel magnate and the electric nightlife of three iconic cities: New York, Miami, and Havana.

Kitty Tessler is the winsome and clever only child of self-made hotel and nightclub tycoon Nicolas Tessler. Kitty may not have the same pedigree as the tennis club set she admires, but she still sees herself as every inch the socialite--spending her days perfecting her "look" and her nights charming all the blue-blooded boys who frequent her father's clubs. It seems like the fun will never end until Kitty's father issues a terrible ultimatum: she may no longer date the idle rich. Instead, Kitty must marry Andre, her father's second-in-command, and take her place as the First Lady of his hotel empire. Kitty is forced to come up with a wily and elaborate plan to protect her own lofty ideas for the future, as well as to save her best friend, Henrietta Bancroft, from a doomed engagement: Kitty will steal Henrietta's fiance, a fabulously wealthy but terribly unkind man from a powerful family--thereby delivering the one-two punch of securing her now-fragile place on the social ladder and keeping her friend from a miserable marriage.

Then Kitty meets Max, a member of a band visiting New York from her father's Miami club, and her plans take a turn. Smitten, but still eager to convince her father of her commitment to Andre, Kitty and Hen follow Max, Andre, and the rest of the band back down to Miami--and later to Cuba. As Kitty spends more time with Max, she begins waking up to the beauty--and the injustice--of the world beyond her small, privileged corner of Manhattan. And when her well-intended yet manipulative efforts backfire, Kitty is forced to reconsider her choices and her future before she loses everyone she loves.

My Review:

Historical fiction isn't usually my cup of tea. Then I get introduced to the likes of Fiona Davis and Amber Brock and these reads keep me picking this genre up periodically and I'm so glad that I do. This one is a super cute, light, quick read that is sure to delight fans of this genre... and those that maybe aren't.

Kitty is a hard character to like. As we know, I do like to hate on characters sometimes, but for at least the first half of the book I wanted to throttle her. Then I had to remember the era... not that this helped much! Haha. Eventually though I did warm to her.

Essentially this is a story of a woman coming into her own and having life experiences help to define her in a less selfish and narcissistic way. Who doesn't like to see growth in people?! While predictable, this lesson learned, finding yourself type of read is exactly what I needed at this time. I certainly had a smile on my face upon closure. Though, admittedly, I would love to dive into this book and give a few characters a huge high five across the face.

I would certainly pick up more of Brock and do recommend this story for those who need to take a little mind vacation from New York to Miami to Havana. Happy travels. 😉

★★★★