Gilded Age
A Novel

The thing about books that are retellings of classics is that it's hard to gauge how good they are. Writing style is easy to decided upon, the story is somewhat more difficult. After all, this is a classic that's stood the test of time. Instead of plot what really needs questioning is how well this......more

I get how an author would create a junkie for a modern-day version of Lily Bart, but there are a lot of problems with that interpretation. The main objection I have is that McMillan made Lily (called Ellie for this volume) pathetic rather than tragic. I'm being picky about the difference because Lil......more

Edith Wharton's 'The House of Mirth' reimagined as a contemporary story. Very good read; heartbreaking, yet I didn't feel sorry for most of the major characters. Insular little lives; much as Wharton captured in her novels about society and it's mores. I recommend this!......more

Taken from the book: ELEANOR HART had made a brilliant marriage in New York, but it ended in a scandalous divorce and thirty days in Sierra Tucson rehab. Now she finds that, despite feminist lip service, she will still need a husband to be socially complete. A woman’s sexual reputation matters, and s......more

This book is supposed to be a new version of The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. I've never read the original story. But I did think this was like a modern day Downton Abbey set in Cleveland, Ohio in current times. The "rules" of society and family ties are very apparent. Women are still supposed t......more