The Last Dance of the Debutante

“The Last Dance of the Debutante” by Julia Kelly   333 pages  

After reading two intense books (Melanie Benjamin’s “The Children’s Blizzard” and Dolen Perkins Valdez’s “Take My Hand”---I highly recommend both), I was looking for something a bit lighter. As I was strolling through the library, I saw that Julia Kelly had a new book out. I can always count on Kelly for a lighter read. 

Instead of World War II England, Kelly chose the 1958 debutante season for her third novel. The still-newish Queen, Elizabeth II, has decreed that will be the last season for high society parents to present their daughters to the Queen, in hope of finding a husband who is titled and/or wealthy. 

Lily Nicholls’ grandmother and mother have ties that can secure Lily’s future. But Lily doesn’t want to so “the season.” She wants to finish her studies and go the university. However, she gives in and allows herself to dive into the grind.  

I never realized how exhausting “the season” could be. From right after Christmas through late June, the debutante attends an ongoing array of teas, balls, outings, cocktail parties, and any other imaginable get-together that will put the young women near eligible men. Multiple events were held daily. It must have been exhausting…and expensive.  Lilly makes two friends, Leana and Katherine, who help her keep going. 

Lily’s family consists of her mother, her wealthy grandmother who is paying for most of the season, and a sister she has never met. The first half of the book is Lilly running from party to party, dance to dance. All she wants by halfway through the novel is a nap, and who could blame her. That first half deals with the pettiness, the sabotages, the gowns, the young men, the backstabbing.  

But halfway through, the plot gets juicy. Lilly is convinced that her mother, who has never recovered from her father’s death, doesn’t like her. Lily is certain she is hiding scandalous information about her hardly-mentioned sister, Joanna, and sets out---between parties---to discover the truth. 

To add to the intrigue, a tragedy near the end of the season shifts the plot into high gear, and I could not read fast enough. I admit that I got a little bored with the first half, but the second half shot this up to 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder (Book 1 in the series) by T. A. Willberg 336 pages

London 1958. The city is still trying to pick up the pieces shattered during World War II. Far below the city streets are a series of secret tunnels and passages, shifting doors and hallways, gadgets of all kinds and the home of Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries. A group of researchers, spies, agents that take on the cases that Scotland Yard cannot solve.

As the story opens, Michelle White is on duty, monitoring the letter boxes. All over London are secret receiver boxes that take letters (tips) from the streets down a six-mile pneumatic system, to land in Miss Brickett’s Filing Department, where they are read and either passed on or filed away. This night, April 11, Michelle received a letter addressed to her with only “a name, a time a place and one simple revelation.” She decides to investigate, grabbing her belongings and heading upstairs, toward the library and the locked room gate. Once inside, Michelle is murdered in a decidedly gory manner. Her body is discovered in a locked room, a la an Agatha Christie murder mystery.

Enter Marion Lane, a resourceful young woman, eager to rise through the ranks. She and her best friend, Bill, are apprentices, spending part of each day in various departments to learn what a successful Inquirer needs to know. I felt like I was on the set of “Get Smart” or a James Bond movie (without the coolness).

Michelle’s murder seems to just fade away until the last third of the novel, but all the efforts Marion and Bill have been putting forth are to solve the mystery. It’s convoluted and not very interesting. Well I will admit that the aluminum (I think) snake had cameras in its eyes and could detect movement was kinda cool in a creepy sort of way.

This is supposed to be the first book in a new series, but I’m done.  The story was interesting enough to keep me reading, but it was a slow read.  Therefore, Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder receives 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

The Grace Kelly Dress

The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz  336 pages

 

When a close friend married a few years back, late in life, he was amazed, nay shocked, that the main focus of the event was “the dress.” And as any bride will tell you, it’s all about the dress.

 

“The dress” in the novel is one dress that spans three generations, but not “the dress” the American movie superstar Grace Kelly wore to marry her Prince Rainier of Monaco. That dress is the inspiration for this novel, which begins in 1956, when Grace abandons Hollywood to become Her Royal Highness, Princess Grace to Monaco. Grace was living every girl’s fantasy. Grace’s dress is beautiful, and every bride in the world wants to imitate it.

 

This story is told in three alternating timelines with from a daughter’s, mother’s and grandmother’s point of view. In begins in 2010 in Brooklyn. Rachel, who goes by Rocky, owns a gaming company and is more comfortable in jeans and combat boots. When she becomes engage, her mother, Joan, is certain that she’ll wear her dress. Lacy with Princess Diana sleeves, it screams NOT ROCKY! But how does she not accept a family heirloom without hurting her mother and their relationship.

 

The second story is Joan’s story. After her sister died, it’s up to her to be the best…be good enough for both of them. This section was my favorite as it has the most suspense. I don’t want to say anything more for fear of spoiling the plot. Still when Joan’s mother brings out the dress, Joan would rather get married in her underwear. But once she makes some changes to it, it becomes the most beautiful gown in the world!

 

The third story is Joan’s mother’s story. Rose is a seamstress in 1958 in Paris. A young bride has come to the highly regarded bridal boutique where Rose works. The bride wants a Grace Kelly dress, and as the work begins, the plot takes several twists that keeps the reader on edge.

 

Rocky’s story is the weakest of the three and that weakness is why I am compelled to give  “The Grace Kelly”  4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.