Title: When Life Gives You Lululemons (The Devil Wears Prada 3)
Author: Lauren Weisberger
Rating: 4/5
Blurb (taken from Goodreads):
New York Times bestselling author Lauren Weisberger returns with a novel starring one of her favorite characters from The Devil Wears Prada—Emily Charlton, first assistant to Miranda Priestly, now a highly successful image consultant who’s just landed the client of a lifetime.
Welcome to Greenwich, CT, where the lawns and the women are perfectly manicured, the Tito’s and sodas are extra strong, and everyone has something to say about the infamous new neighbor.
Let’s be clear: Emily Charlton, Miranda Priestly’s ex-assistant, does not do the suburbs. She’s working in Hollywood as an image consultant to the stars, but recently, Emily’s lost a few clients. She’s hopeless with social media. The new guard is nipping at her heels. She needs a big opportunity, and she needs it now.
Karolina Hartwell is as A-list as they come. She’s the former face of L’Oreal. A mega-supermodel recognized the world over. And now, the gorgeous wife of the newly elected senator from New York, Graham, who also has his eye on the presidency. It’s all very Kennedy-esque, right down to the public philandering and Karolina’s arrest for a DUI—with a Suburban full of other people’s children.
Miriam is the link between them. Until recently she was a partner at one of Manhattan’s most prestigious law firms. But when Miriam moves to Greenwich and takes time off to spend with her children, she never could have predicted that being stay-at-home mom in an uber-wealthy town could have more pitfalls than a stressful legal career.
Emily, Karolina, and Miriam make an unlikely trio, but they desperately need each other. Together, they’ll navigate the social landmines of life in America’s favorite suburb on steroids, revealing the truths—and the lies—that simmer just below the glittering surface. With her signature biting style, Lauren Weisberger offers a dazzling look into another sexy, over-the-top world, where nothing is as it appears.
***
Review:
When I was approved to read this book, I was absolutely ecstatic. This seemed like the perfect summer read: funny, chick literature, and with characters from one of my favourite books, The Devil Wears Prada. I cracked open this book in June, read one page, and then froze. What do you mean, this is volume 3? Have I read the second book? A quick look at my Goodreads revealed that no, I hadn’t, and so I put this book down in order to read the second one.
Well, summer is summer, and next thing I knew, we were mid-August. I didn’t want to wait until fall to read this book, so I decided to skip Book 2. I don’t feel like I missed any joke or any reference, so if you have read The Devil Wears Prada but not Revenge Wears Prada, it’s okay, I promise. I do, however, recommend reading the first book, because you will miss out on some of the references.
Back to the book itself: it was funny, it was witty, it was glamourous, and it was both so relatable (who hasn’t eaten a doughnut after a workout or felt supremely uncomfortable in a girl group gathering?) and yet so unrelatable (who can really afford a thousand dollar purse?), but that’s what makes this universe so lovable, isn’t it?
The new characters are endearing and the story line kept me captivated from the beginning to the end. It didn’t make my stomach clench like the first book did, but at times, I went to bed past my bedtime because I jut had to read one more chapter.
I’d like to thank Simon & Schuster Canada, as well as Netgalley, for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I recommend that you pick it up before summer escapes us once and for all until 2019!