Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen

New York City in the Roaring Twenties is a place where dreams are made. Best friends Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey board the train for New York with little other than battered suitcases and the brightest hopes. Both girls couldn’t stand being stifled in their tiny Midwestern town, so they take the only chance they have to escape for better places. They just know that things will be better in New York City: Letty can’t wait to be singing on stage with her name in lights, and Cordelia is impatient to fulfill her most secret wish to meet her father and gain a real family. But as these girls and their new friends navigate the glamorous speakeasies of Manhattan and the magnificence of the wealthiest parts of Long Island, they will learn some of the hardest secrets of their new lives, and that though their fortunes will change, they’re lucky to have lasting friendships.

I definitely was not the only reader spellbound by Godbersen’s magnificent Luxe series, so I couldn’t be happier to revisit New York City in a different era for Godbersen’s newest series. Godbersen sweeps readers off their feet and into a spectacular image of the Roaring Twenties, famous for its decadence, not-quite-freely flowing champagne, and flapper fashion. Preparing an irresistible setting is by far one of Godbersen’s strengths; her luxurious descriptions of everything from the lighting in a speakeasy to the beading on a girl’s dress makes historical New York City feel so vivid and real. I can’t say that I was nearly as taken with the new cast of characters in Bright Young Things; the girls are a little too flippant and naïve for me to truly sympathize with their plights yet. Nevertheless, I have definitely been charmed by Bright Young Things and cannot wait to see where Godbersen will take her characters next in Beautiful Days.

Fans of The Luxe series by Anna Godbersen will definitely not want to miss the start of her next fantastic series in Bright Young Things.

Rating: 4.0

Review copy from BEA