Book Review: Diva (The Flappers #3) by Jillian Larkin

Diva (The Flappers #3) by Jillian Larkin

Release Date: 10th July 2012

Publisher: The Inkhouse
Format: Paperback
Pages: 306
Rating: 3.5/5.0

This book was read as part of the 2014 RC and 2014 SSC

Summary from Goodreads:

"Parties, bad boys, speakeasies—life in Manhattan has become a woozy blur for Clara Knowles. If Marcus Eastman truly loved her, how could he have fallen for another girl so quickly? Their romance mustn't have been as magical as Clara thought. And if she has to be unhappy, she's going to drag everyone else down to the depths of despair right along with her.

Being a Barnard girl is the stuff of Lorraine Dyer's dreams. Finding out that Marcus is marrying a gold digger who may or may not be named Anastasia? A nightmare. The old Lorraine would have sat by and let the chips fall where they may, but she's grown up a lot these past few months. She can't bear to see Marcus lose a chance for true love. But will anyone listen to her?Now that the charges against her have been dropped, Gloria Carmody is spending the last dizzying days of summer on Long Island, yachting on the sound and palling around with socialites at Forrest Hamilton's swanky villa. Beneath her smile, though, Gloria's keeping a secret. One that could have deadly consequences . . ."

Review:

Being the shortest book in this trilogy, I feel like I can sum this up with just a couple of words - it was just alright. There was nothing spectacular about this ending, nothing unexpected. All the character's ended up where you'd expect them to, in what is essentially just 300 pages of tying up lose ends. Character's are redeemed, couples end up together, everything ends exactly as you would have predicted it. Which makes for a fairly boring read, to be honest.

I did enjoy this story, but it was just following the motions. After falling completely in love with Vixen, and finding Ingenue a bit forgettable, it's a shame that this series came to a close with something so blasé. Let's take the Marcus and Clara storyline for example. After breaking up in Ingenue, Marcus is on the rebound and is engaged to some girl named Anastasia. As it turns out, Anastasia isn't all she claims to be. Which could have lead to an interesting storyline...if we heard a bit more from Anastasia. Besides one confrontation between her and Clara and Lorraine, you don't hear anything from her. Maybe exploring that storyline could have done more than just be the catalyst for Clara and Marcus getting back together, and Lorraine getting her redemption. There is another storyline in there, involving new character's, that could be interesting to some, but I didn't care enough about these character's lives to care much about their ending. So overall, blasé. 

In the end, I think this book was just lacking what I loved in it's predecessors. The romances and relationships I loved weren't there, with Jerome (Gloria's other half) hardly present at all, and interaction between Marcus and Clara only occurring twice in the book. Even though I knew it was bound to happen, I still enjoyed reading Lorraine's road to redemption. And I just simply adored Melvin. But, that's not enough to pull this book from mediocrity.

Book Review: Ingenue (The Flappers #2) by Jillian Larkin

Ingenue (The Flappers #2) by Jillian Larkin
Release Date: 12th June 2012

Publisher: The Inkhouse
Format: Paperback 
Pages: 351
Rating: 4.0/5.0

This book was read as part of the 2013 OTS, 2013 ODY and 2013 BSR 

Summary from Amazon:

"In the city that never sleeps, Lorraine Dyer is wide awake. Ever since she exposed Clara Knowles for the tramp she was—and lost her closest confidante in the process—Lorraine has spent every second scheming to make her selfish, lovesick ex-best friend pay for what she did. No one crosses Lorraine. Not even Gloria.  

True love conquers everything—or so Gloria Carmody crazily believed. She and Jerome Johnson can barely scrape together cash for their rent, let alone have a moment to whisper sweet nothings in the dark. And if they thought escaping Chicago meant they'd get away with murder . . . they were dead wrong.

Clara was sure that once handsome, charming Marcus Eastman discovered her shameful secret, he'd drop her like a bad habit. Instead, he swept her off her feet and whisked her away to New York. Being with Marcus is a breath of fresh air—and a chance for Clara to leave her wild flapper ways firmly in the past. Except the dazzling parties and bright lights won't stop whispering her name. . . ."

Review:
I really enjoyed this second instalment in Jillian Larkin's 'The Flappers' series, but to be honest, writing this review about a week after finishing the book, I'm finding it to be a bit forgettable. When I was reading the story itself, I was enthralled with it. I enjoyed reading each girl's story, just as I had the first time, but I found this time around, their stories followed a much more predictable path. Lorraine tries to scheme again, but of course it all comes crashing down around her, Gloria continues on her tumultuous relationship with Jerome, and Clara is back on the wagon (sort of). Whilst I enjoyed reading each girl's story, it was pretty predictable. However, there was a little twist in there regarding Lorraine and a love interest, so there are still surprises to be had. 

What I did enjoy immensely was the setting. Historical fiction has to be one of my favourite genres, and this novel vividly depicts the 'Roaring 20s', both the good and the bad. The underground culture of speakeasies during the prohibition, the racial tension between black and white, the life of the high society - I can't really flaw on its portrayal of this era. Overall, Ingenue is a fitting second novel in this trilogy, and I'm interested to see where the third and final novel takes each girl's stories (especially Gloria's).