Review Detail

Reader reviewed by Megan

THE LUXE is set in the glittering and decadent world of turn-of-the-century New York, where romance and intrigue rule the lives of society's elite. Elizabeth and Diana Holland are daughters of one of New York's oldest and most respected families. But when their life of luxury is threatened by the death of their father, Elizabeth must make a marriage of convenience in order to secure her family's financial future.

Her finance is Henry Schoonmaker, a notorious rake, who is also the scion of a rich and respectable family. Little does Elizabeth know that her best friend --- the flashy and provocative Penelope Hayes --- is one of Henry's lovers and had hoped to secure Henry's affection for herself. Elizabeth's engagement is further complicated by her own secret love affair with Will Keller, a family servant who grew up alongside Elizabeth in the Holland household.

Henry --- who is forced into the engagement by his overbearing and ambitious father --- has some secrets of his own, including a growing affection for Elizabeth's sister Diana. Their involvement offers some of the book's sweetest and most romantic moments, untainted by the societal expectations or rivalry that characterizes many of the other relationships.

THE LUXE also offers some glimpses into the serving class of New York's Gilded Age, including Lina, Elizabeth's envious and duplicitous maid. Lina discovers Elizabeth's clandestine romance and decides to use the knowledge for her own social and financial gain. She, in turn, is seduced by a shopboy, Tristan Wrigley, who --- in one of the books many memorable scenes --- takes Lina to a bar in the Bowery, a district infamous for its "groggeries, pawnbrokers, brothels, and dangerous characters."

Author Anna Godbersens excellent historical research makes the Gilded Age more than just a backdrop to the novel. THE LUXE is studded with tidbits of historical trivia and events, while her characters are influenced by the biographies of well-known socialites from the time. Godbersens descriptions of clothing and interiors add vibrancy to a world often pictured in the sepia tones of old photographs. But her plot owes more to the scandalous 19th-century newspaper serials than it does the serious drawing room reflections of Edith Wharton. The fact that THE LUXE begins with the disappearance and assumed death of one of the book's central characters only adds mystery to the authors deliciously dishy melodrama.