Pandy "PJ" Wallis is a renowned writer whose novels about a young woman making her way in Manhattan have spawned a series of blockbuster films. After the success of the Monica books and movies, Pandy wants to attempt something different: a historical novel based on her ancestor Lady Wallis. But Pandy's publishers and audience only want her to keep cranking out more Monica—as does her greedy husband, Jonny, who's gone deeply in debt to finance his new restaurant in Las Vegas.
When her marriage crumbles and the boathouse of her family home in Connecticut goes up in flames, Pandy suddenly realizes she has an opportunity to reinvent herself. But to do so, she will have to reconcile with her ex-best friend and former partner in crime, SondraBeth Schnowzer, who plays Monica on the big screen—and who may have her own reasons to derail Pandy's startling change of plan.
In KILLING MONICA, Candace Bushnell spoofs and skewers her way through pop culture, celebrity worship, fame, and the meaning of identity. With her trademark humor and style, this is Bushnell's sharpest, funniest book to date.
This was much more complex than I was expecting it to be, but not in a bad way.
This features the New York City life that Bushnell's fantastic at writing but in a new perspective, with more of a mystery set on top,
The timing of this book was a little confusing, starting in the present, then going to the past, catching up, and continuing from there, but it worked to get me hooked into the book and even more curious as to what would happen once we did catch up.
The ending, however. Oh dear. The ending. I think the ending ultimately detracted from the book because it was a little too ambiguous so though I'm pretty sure I know what happened, I'm not entirely sure. It definitely wasn't what I was expecting, though it was definitely something I hope will pop up in more books. (Though perhaps not in such a sudden form.)
This raised some interesting questions about who a character really belongs to and the role that the public has in its formation, and I loved the behind the scenes literary perspective that came along with it.
This isn't Bushnell's best work, but it was definitely worth the read and the chaos added to the chick flick feel of this book.
3
