The Romantics

I like the in-depth description of each character. If you like Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld, you will love this one.

This is just the kind of novel I love -- lots of insight into human nature and social mores, beautifully written, scandals and mini-drama within a small group of friends (9 twenty-somethings who all went to Yale together), suspense -- all takes place during one wedding weekend. I devoured the book.

with the cast of "The Big Chill". I didn't much care for Niederhoffer's first novel, "A Taxonomy of Barnacles". In fact, I didn't finish it (rare for me, actually). Her writing was just way too "precious". It's as if she was trying to channel the "Royal Tenenbaums" and it just didn't work. This novel, her second, is much better. Not "5 star" better, but at least readable. The same cast of rich WASPs who populated the wedding family of the "Philadelphia Story" are here, complete with domineering mother, bratty little sister (called here "Minnow" - oh, don't you just love the nicknames the rich give each other?)and marginalised father. The bride, whether named "Tracy" or "Lila", is the same blond goddess we've seen before and will see again. The supporting players of the wedding, the "wedding party" is made up of "Big Chill" extras. While Niederhoffer tries to give the three groomsmen and the three bridesmaids some individual identities for the reader to respond to, I'm afraid all six just sorta merge into one big pile of late 20's Yalies. The two "stars" of the book are Laura, the maid of honor, who has had an off-and-on relationship with Tom, the groom-to-be since college 10 years earlier. Tom had basically flitted from Laura to Lila, back and forth over a ten year period, and now, has found himself marrying Lila. Not for any good reason, it seems, because he has always loved Laura. Laura and Lila have also been "best friends" for this period, not best friends who truly love each other, but best friends competing for the same man, so they have to keep each other in clear sight. This book is pretty good, and it's not long, so if you're so inclined, dear reader, go to it!