New in Paperback- Two Terrific Books Featuring Fascinating Women

Reprinted from auburnpub.com: 

Many of the main characters in novels tend to be young females (age 30 and under), and since I am a little bit older than that, I enjoy finding novels that feature main characters closer to my age. I like being able to relate to their stage of life. 

This month’s Book Report has two novels who have main characters who have lived a little, have more experiences in their lives to draw upon.

Jane L. Rosen’s novel, Eliza Starts A Rumor is set in a beautiful bucolic town in the Hudson Valley, a bedroom community a few hours from New York City. Eliza is awaiting a visit home from her twins, a son and daughter, who are in their first semester at college.

What her children and husband don’t know is that Eliza is suffering from agoraphobia. The thought of leaving the house to go anywhere, even to the grocery store, sends her into a severe panic. 

This happened once before, when Eliza was in high school. For a number of months she refused to get out of bed, something that puzzled her mother and her best friend Amanda. This time around, she has a relapse after her children’s high school graduation. 

Eliza has run the Hudson Valley Ladies’ Bulletin Board for fifteen years on social media. Mothers use it as a resource to discuss issues, like where are the best story times for children, and laundry tips. 

A new mother’s group has popped up, one where women graphically discuss their sex lives and their husbands’ shortcomings. When Eliza finds out that this group has more followers than her group, she decides to fight fire with fire.

She notices that a man is always stopping by her neighbor’s house during his morning run, and she makes up a story about two people who are having an affair. Her post gets a lot of attention and more followers, but it also causes big problems.

When Olivia, a young mom, reads this, she thinks it is her husband who is having an affair. She meets Allison, a lawyer who is a single mom to her child. Allison starts a friendship with a woman on the social media board who is not what she seems, and she meets a single dad of a tweenage girl, whom she begins to date.

Allison offers to help Olivia find out if it is her husband who is the cheater, and they end up beginning a friendship with Eliza and her childhood friend Amanda, whose Hollywood producer husband is caught up in the #MeToo movement.

The four women join together to help Olivia discover the truth. The story of their unlikely friendship drives this lovely story, and I related to Eliza having to deal with empty nest syndrome with her children away at school. I highly recommend Eliza Starts A Rumor for anyone who enjoys a story about women of every age coming into their own.

Amy Poeppel’s new novel, Musical Chairs also deals with a mom who has adult twins. Bridget is excited to be spending her summer at her rather rundown vacation home in Connecticut with her boyfriend. 

When he breaks up with her in an email after his ex-wife tells him he should, Bridget’s daughter quits her finance job in Hong Kong, and her newly married son shows up without his husband, her summer plans have drastically changed, and her house fills up.

Bridget’s best friend and musical partner Will will be spending the summer as well, as they must rehearse with the new member of their classical musical trio, hoping to revive their career. 

Oh and Bridget’s elderly father Edward, a highly respected composer, has announced that he will be marrying his deceased wife’s friend, which throws everyone into a frenzy.

Musical Chairs is a hilarious, sweet story filled with characters that you will want to hang out with. Reading this delightful novel makes you feel like you are a part of the story, as each of the characters is so interesting, especially Edward’s young assistant Jackie, a young city woman who is perplexed by these rich people. The scene where she gets drunk at Bridget’s house is howlingly funny. I adored everything about this book, and if you are looking for something light, an escape from the reality of our lives today, Musical Chairs is the cure.

Eliza Starts A Rumor by Jane L. Rosen- A

Published by Berkley

Trade paperback, $17, 336 pages

Musical Chairs by Amy Poeppel- A+

Published by Atria/Emily Bestler Books

Trade paperback, $17, 416 pages

Musical Chairs by Amy Poeppel

Musical Chairs by Amy Poeppel
Published by Atria/Emily Bestler Books ISBN 9781501176418
Hardcover, $27, 416 pages

Sometimes you read a book at the exact right time, and Amy Poeppel's new novel, Musical Chairs, is that book. I enjoyed her first two novels, Small Admissions, about a young woman who works as admissions officer at a fancy Manhattan school. n (My review is here).I loved her second one, Limelight, about a mom who moves with her family from Dallas to the Upper East Side of Manhattan, where she ends up accidentally becoming an assistant to a Justin Beiber-like character as he prepares for his Broadway debut. It was hilarious and sweet.

Her newest novel, Musical Chairs, features a protagonist closer to my age, which is refreshing. Bridget Stratton is preparing for a sexy summer with her boyfriend at her summer home in Litchfield, Connecticut. But like all great plans, this one falls apart.

First her boyfriend breaks up with her on the advice of his ex-wife. (She dodged a bullet there.) Her adult daughter moves in for the summer after she quits her finance job in Hong Kong, her married adult son shows up without his newlywed husband, and her best friend Will meets and falls in love with a woman from town.

Her house is rundown and now it is overflowing with roommates. Her father Edward, a famous classical composer and musician, lives close by and decides that he is getting remarried to his deceased wife's best friend, his best friend's widow.

Will and Bridget also have to find a new member for their classical trio after the young violinist they had hoped would help them revive their group and career quits before she starts. When Will suggests their only hope is their original violinist who ditched them and became famous in his own right, Bridget fears a secret from her past will surface.

Every character in Musical Chairs is so fabulous, even the secondary ones. Jackie, the young city woman from a much different background who becomes Bridget's dad's assistant, has so many great lines as a fish out of water, wondering how she got here with these crazy people. (The scene when she gets drunk at Bridget's house is priceless.)

Madge, Edward's housekeeper and cook, "a plump, short, direct woman who wasn't into small talk" keeps things running smoothly and is delightful, doling out kindness and orders in equal doses.

There are so many great scenes in this wonderful novel, and when someone compares a scene to a British Drawing Room Farce, I had to smile in recognition, as that was my very thought. (Although, given that it takes place in New England and a barn plays a major part, maybe it should be called an American Barn Farce?)

You don't need to enjoy classical music to like this book (I am not), but if you are an aficionado, you will get an extra layer of enjoyment out of it. I absolutely adored Musical Chairs, and even thinking about it now brings a smile to my face at a time when we could all use a little joy. This is a book I will return to again and again when I want to forget the troubles of the world. It will make you laugh out loud. I give it my highest recommendation.