Envy: A Luxe Novel
by Anna Godbersen

    ENVY by Anna Godbersen
    Category:  Historical
    Age Recommendation:  Grades 9+
    Release Date:  1/27/09
    Publisher:  HarperCollins
    Reviewed by:  Sarah Bean the Green Bean Teen Queen
    Rating:  4 Stars


    It’s 1900 in New York, and scandal and gossip are never far behind.  

    Elizabeth Holland is back and everyone is awaiting her re-entrance into society.  But things are not as they seem in
    No. 17 Gramercy Park.  Elizabeth and her sister, Diana, are both grieving the loss of their loved ones.  When the
    sisters are invited along on a trip to Florida by the newly married Schoonmakers, they decide this is the perfect
    escape.

    Penelope Schoonmaker isn’t pleased to invite the woman her husband is in love with along on her trip, but she
    knows she must keep her enemies close if she’s ever going to get what she wants.  

    Carolina Broad is climbing high in society, but her place is not secure and her newfound fame and fortune could
    disappear any moment.  

    I’ve been addicted to the LUXE series since it began, and ENVY continues to add more gossip and scandal to the
    story.  I thought the twists and turns in ENVY moved the story along quicker than the previous two stories.  I loved
    that the author moved a lot of the action to Florida - it added new scenery and lots of fun situations.  There were
    many times I told myself “just one more chapter” because I needed to know what would happen next.  

    Each chapter tells a part of the story from a different character and I found myself enjoying each storyline this time
    around.  Yes, I still wanted to yell at Penelope, would get annoyed at Carolina’s social climbing, and tell Diana not
    to make so many assumptions, but I think that’s part of the fun of the series.  

    Anna Godbersen does such a great job at getting the readers involved in the characters that you can’t help but cheer
    them on, or even root against them.  I also thought there were some characters this time around who got stronger
    and started to stand up for themselves, so I’m eager to see where they end up.  

    I will be first in line to get my hands on a copy of SPLENDOR, the next book in the LUXE series, when it's
    released.