Splendid

Splendor

To close out my winter break, I also closed out the Luxe series by Anna Godbersen by reading the fourth and final book, "Splendor" (click to see reviews of books two and three). I have to say, I had a really fun time with it. In the beginning, things were kind of calm and humdrum, but by the middle it got really intense and dramatic again. I was a little bored of Elizabeth by the end of the first book, but in this one there's a big twist in the Elizabeth story. By the end of the book, I found myself wanting even Carolina (who previously bothered me a little) to have a happy ending. And the ending is happy to some extent, but not all Hollywoody, cheesy, over the top, which I really appreciate. In fact, over the past day I keep returning to the ending, and the more I think about it, the more I think Godbersen handled it perfectly.

And speaking of Hollywood... usually I am completely against turning books I enjoyed into movies, but in this case I think I'm going to have to make an exception. These books could be such good movies if they were done well. The costumes would be gorgeous. A lot of what I like about the books is imagining the setting and way of life at the time, and I think movies could capture that really well. So, my final word on the Luxe series: it's a little soapy and girly, but it's also really fun and addicting to read. These were the perfect books for winter vacation. I give the final installment 8 pretzel bites.

KAY