Envy by Anna Godbersen
Published by HarperCollins
Publication Date January 27, 2009
Source: Library
Genres: Young Adult
Goodreads
Jealous whispers.
Old rivalries.
New betrayals.
Two months after Elizabeth Holland's dramatic homecoming, Manhattan eagerly awaits her return to the pinnacle of society. When Elizabeth refuses to rejoin her sister Diana's side, however, those watching New York's favorite family begin to suspect that all is not as it seems behind the stately doors of No. 17 Gramercy Park South.
Farther uptown, Henry and Penelope Schoonmaker are the city's most celebrated couple. But despite the glittering diamond ring on Penelope's finger, the newlyweds share little more than scorn for each other. And while the newspapers call Penelope's social-climbing best friend, Carolina Broad, an heiress, her fortune—and her fame—are anything but secure, especially now that one of society's darlings is slipping tales to the eager press.
In this next thrilling installment of Anna Godbersen's bestselling Luxe series, Manhattan's most envied residents appear to have everything they desire: Wealth. Beauty. Happiness. But sometimes the most practiced smiles hide the most scandalous secrets. . . .
Truthfully, this book pissed me off. I’ve never been “and they lived happily ever after” reader, in fact, I prefer they don’t as it can sometimes be too cutesy. In Envy, evil triumphs over good and it annoyed me that the two main characters I love to hate, Penelope and Carolina somehow always manage to fall on their feet. Penelope wins the guy, as read in Rumors, true she acquires a proposal through blackmail and is in a loveless marriage, but that is beside the point. As for Carolina, her sugar daddy dies and is left a vast fortune making her the “high society” she has always wished. Personally, I would have preferred if she lost everything and had to sleep in the gutter. (one can wish can’t they?)
The Hollands have their ups and downs and usually land on their butt rather than feet. Despite, Henry being a married man he still plays with Diana’s affections and I’m starting to think he’s a bit of a dog. Elizabeth has yet to make an appearance outside the home since her miraculous return and is starting to cause gossip, coming out on a trip to Florida only for her sister’s sake.
It is in Florida where horns come out. Penelope goes back to her skimming ways, this time pulling her brother into the act and Carolina continues her deceptive fictional past to win the heart of a wealthy bachelor who seconds Henry’s eligibility. Both Holland girls sit on the train to a hellish vacation seemingly oblivious to the devils surrounding them but catch on to more than they show.
Emotions run high on Envy and is a continuation to the highly addictive “The Luxe” series. Just because most of the characters are despicable doesn’t mean I toss it in the fire with the disgust, no, I devour it like Snow White’s apple.
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