Customer Reviews

The Bestseller

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Though I must admit Ms. Goldsmith's stories have their faults (pat endings, too much anti-male rhetoric, and extremely dorky last names like Clapfish) her stories are damn entertaining. This one was definitely no exception. I read the thing in one sitting--something I've haven't done in ages. The characters are cocky, funny, and very interesting. We're given a very informative look inside the publishing business. Even though it was easy to guess who Peet Trawley (V.C. Andrews) and Susanne Baker Edmonds (Danielle Steel) are inspired by, it's still kind of cool to see Ms. Goldsmith's take on both of them. Terry's overwhelming sense of rejection and Opal's grieving are very sincere and realistic. The friendship between Opal and Roberta is genuine and touching. Even the bitchy Pam Mantiss (whose name is way too obvious)is fascinating and even sympathetic (in a weird villian sort of way)at times. I even loved that odd little fellow named GOD. Despite it's flaws, I definitely recommend the novel. It's one that you won't get out of your head for a long time.

The premise of "The Bestseller" is simple enough for a Hollywood producer to understand" "First Wives Club" author Olivia Goldsmith offers us five writers with their five books. By the end, one of their novels will hit the top of the New York Times Best Seller list. Which will it be?

* Will it be Gerald Ochs Davis, the president of Davis & Dash? He s hoping that resurrecting an uncle's tragedy decades ago will make enough money to keep his mistress and ex-wives satisfied, and himself at the head of the now corporately owned company. To that end, he'll do anything" order an expensive ad budget, set an impossibly high quota for the sales force and even steal sales from other authors.

* Then there's Susann Baker Edmonds, formerly Sue Ann Edmonds, a legal secretary from the Midwest, who at 58 is facing the end of her career. She is also beset by her daughter, who bitterly resents her mother.

* The college professor author of "In Full Knowledge," a thriller about a woman driven to kill her children, is being heavily promoted as a man who understands women. Little do they know that his wife actually wrote the book, a fact which her husband is not eager to make known.

* Poor Terry O'Neal. She kills herself after writing a 1,000-page novel called "The Duplicity of Men," after seeing it rejected by 23 publishers. Now the manuscript falls into the hands of her mother, Opal, who is determined to do anything to see it published.

* Camilla Clapfish is the dowdy, terribly lonely British girl, working as a tour guide in Italy, while finishing her first novel about a group of middle-aged women wandering around Firenze. As a neophyte writer, she has no idea what to do next, until her budding boyfriend suggests sending it to his sister, an editorial assistant at Davis & Dash.

From this premise, Goldsmith weaves an elaborate dance of backstabbing, determination, desire and romance that is guaranteed to have you turning the pages late into the night.

Those who have a smattering of knowledge of the publishing business will realize just how spot-on Goldsmith is. She knows the bottom-line nature of the business and the lengths people will go to stay on top. There is even the pleasure of guessing who the characters are based on.

For example, one of the subplots involves the uproar over Davis & Dash publishing "ScitzoBoy," by Chad Weston, a once-promising writer driven by falling sales into writing a misogynistic thriller about a Wall Street yuppie who dismembers women, and if you're thinking it's a wicked attack on Bret Easton Ellis and "American Psycho," you are correct.

"The Bestseller" is full of digs like this. With that, the heroic struggles of the authors to get their books published, and the machinations of G.O.D. and the marketplace working against them, "The Bestseller" is a candy box of surprises that, even after 500 pages, makes this reader hungry for a sequel.

Although The Bestseller isn't flawless, it earns a 10 because it so enjoyable to read. As a former member of the lowest echelon of publishing house employees (the temp. worker), I can vouch that there is incredible tension to produce a hit. One might as well work in Hollywood. On the other hand, if there is actually any of the illegal or immoral activity that goes on in her book, I certainly didn't know about it! Goldsmith accurately pigeonholed the view publishers take with manuscripts -- they can't just be great books, they must have a selling angle, such as a "Pink" (romance or other `women's fiction), a "Dick" [a Tom Clancy-ish adventure or war novel], a "spook"[horror] or an "Uh-oh"[a murder mystery or suspenseful legal thriller]. One wonders if The Bestseller's hot pink cover was some sort of subtle implication. From what little industry "insider knowledge" I had, I could tell that Goldsmith was using actual facts which I found troublesome on two levels. First, I don't feel it's fair of her to embarrass a famous author's wife under the guise of fiction. Secondly, I would imagine that readers who didn't know "the inside scoop" would feel a bit alienated. However, I would say that her use of real-life publishing power brokers such as Daisy Maryles or Phyllis Grann was effective in making her fiction seem very realistic. My one other issue with her story [STOP READING here if you don't want any clues] involves one surefire book that inexplicably doesn't pan out at all. She even has her characters marvel at the book's demise, but it's a bit too convenient. Despite this, The Bestseller is chock-full of solid writing and five great stories, all of which end in a perfectly satisfying manner.

Nice to get into the publishing world, I enjoy Olivia Goldsmith's style, she takes a lot of time to draw the picture, and to dig deep into the players, it was interesting and enjoyable. I am a big fan of hers, and this is one of her best.

A real page turner with memorable characters. A new writer seems to have no chance with the shrinking publishing giants, and Goldsmith, an advocate of new writers, dishes the dirt on the industry. Makes one want to toss their manuscript in the trash!

I've only been published in textbook form, whereas this novel details the fiction world, but even my limited experiences tell me that Goldsmith is uncannily accurate in conveying the modern day publishing world. She uses an ensemble cast of characters, all connected with one publishing house, to expose the loony tune world which now prevails. The novel opens with the literary star of the bunch killing herself after receiving 23 rejection letters. This unleashes her mother upon the publishing world. The mother literally camps out in person in publisher's foyers, manuscript in hand. The publisher himself, rather than seeking stellar talent, forces his own books to publication but, bad as they are, he needs the company's computer whiz to jiggle the sales' data so that his books look like they are selling whereas others' look like they are not. Then there is Alf, the boyfriend-agent of a Rosmund Pilcher-like author, who ignores her when a boy wonder turns up with a hot manuscript, which he just happened to steal from his wife. There are likable characters too with romantic elements attached to them but the book is really "made" by its bad guys and gals. One of the least likable characters is the chief editor, who is a big, blowsy woman with commercial instincts which have taken her far. She gets all blown apart by her own greed and growing alcoholism. If you've ever wanted a glimpse into the modern day publishing world, you must read "Bestseller."

A great story with wonderful characters! The Bestseller is fascinating and fun, especially if you are interested in the publishing industry. Very entertaining!

i like this book, fashionably late, flavor of the month and of course first wives club the best.
(the latter or Goldsmith's more recent books are fairly lame attempts of an established author making a quick buck which ironically is one of the storylines of this novel)

this book gives an insider's view of the publishing industry. i felt very informed after i read this book, as i did with fashionably late.

it's a long read, but always interesting as you 1) try to figure out which real life authors and publishers she's skewing: like danielle steele and bret easton ellis. 2) see which author will make it as a bestseller.

one of her best if you want a good summer read!

I could not put this book down, it was absolutely sensational! Goldsmith is a wonderful writer who lets the reader take a look of what it is like in the world of writing & publishing and what it takes stay on top! Goldsmith made all her characters come to life from the staff at Dash & Davis to all the writers trying to get their book published. It is an eye-opener for those who knlow nothing about this world and for those who do, realise how on the mark Goldsmith is.

I enjoyed Bestseller so much so, I could not put it down at any point. The writing is great, the scenes made me laugh and wonder 'who' she was actually writing about!

I will definately be getting another book by Goldsmith and this one was worth every cent.

Of the two books I have read by Ms. Goldsmith -- "The Bestseller" and "First Wives Club" -- this is definitely the better of the two in my opinion. Writers -- unpublished and published --, agents and publishers will get love the behind-the-scenes gossip, while the average reader will enjoy the horse race-like attitude of the five would be bestsellers struggling in their own way to get their books noticed, published, and on the bestseller list. Several of Ms. Goldsmith's characters from "First Wives Club" either are mentioned here or make cameo appearences. The only flaws I found are the same ones that made "First Wives Club" so unappealing to me. There is a definitely pro-female slant in the story with the two novelists who actually succeed being women, while the two male writers are portrayed as heartless, cruel, vindictive. I also dislike Ms. Goldsmith's fascination with lesbians in her stories. I don't deny that they exist and if their orientation is crucial to the story, then it's fine with me. However, in this case I am actually repulsed by her Ellen Degenneres-esque "Look at me! I'm a lesbian" slant on two of the characters, especially when their lesbianism is unnecessary to the plot. Despite all that, I actually re-read the book at least once a year and is part of my "will read it again" collection.