Customer Reviews

Envy (Luxe, Book 3)

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Penelope is the envy of society. She is married to Henry Schoonmaker and has everything money, privilege and blackmail can buy. But she cannot force the affections of her husband, or the loyalty of her friends.

Elizabeth has lived quietly since her return to New York. Grieving the death of her husband Will --- who she cannot recognize publicly --- her mother still hopes that she can make an advantageous marriage to fortify the family fortunes. But Elizabeth harbors another secret, one that will force her to marry or to live a life of shame.

It falls to Diana to uphold her family's position and reputation. The arrival of her father's mining partner has provided a temporary reprieve from the family's financial woes, but she still supplements her income by selling society scandal to newspaper gossip columnists. Diana is also nursing a broken heart. Why would Henry Schoonmaker marry Penelope Hayes when he was really in love with her?

Needing to escape the dreary winter that is post-holiday New York, ENVY features a trip to the opulent pleasure grounds of Palm Beach and the now-vanished splendors of the Royal Ponciana Hotel. Away from the prying eyes of the New York press, Palm Beach is the perfect place for clandestine meetings and new flirtations. Diana finds that Henry's marriage has not dulled his interest in her, while she also struggles to make sense of the attention she's receiving from Penelope's dashing brother Grayson. Elizabeth finds a renewed affection for Henry's best friend Teddy, while the self-styled heiress Carolina Broud finds herself courted by the wealthy and eccentric Leland Bouchard.

Unfortunately, the reprieve of the Florida resort does not last forever. After the death of Carolina's benefactor and guardian, Carey Lewis Longhorn, they return to New York's cold, damp streets and the lives they left waiting there.

ENVY is the third book in Anna Godbersen's Luxe series set in Gilded Age New York. Her characters still sit at the top of the world, but are now living with the consequences of their choices. Hope for love and personal happiness is swiftly vanishing, along with the cash they all require to continue living their lavish lives.

Carolina Broud's situation is most perilous. When her benefactor dies, she is ejected from her hotel room and has most of her belongings seized. Briefly acting as the social secretary to another upstart heiress, she is thrown out and spends a night on the streets contemplating her future. She has no real friends. Her friendship with Penelope is built on blackmail. The money she lived on was stolen or belonged to someone else. Her sister still works as a maid in Elizabeth and Diana Holland's house. Briefly taking a job as a seamstress, she sees the life she has always dreamed of vanish into drudgery.

The Luxe series affords the same guilty pleasure and curiosity that must have fueled readers of Gilded Age gossip columns. Godbersen's rigorous attention to detail with descriptions of parties, gowns, architecture and events are a large part of what make these books so much fun to read.

But I've also appreciated Godbersen's nods to larger forces in literature in history. Carolina Broud's descent carries echoes of Edith Wharton's classic about the Gilded Age, THE HOUSE OF MIRTH. The forces of history are strong enough to convince two of the novel's characters to enlist in Theodore Roosevelt's military during the occupation of the Philippines after the Spanish-American War. I imagine readers encountering these subjects in other parts of their lives with a sense of recognition.

As for the rest of the story, the question of whether any of these characters will be able to escape the narrow confines of their roles remains to be seen. Will Carolina manage to live the life of luxury of which she's always dreamed? Will Elizabeth find love and fulfillment after so much tragedy? Will Henry and Diana ever find a way to be together? Will Penelope finally reap the rewards of her villainous behavior? None of these questions are answered in ENVY, but the next book in the series, SPLENDOR, promises more romance and intrigue in Gilded Age New York.

--- Reviewed by Sarah A. Wood

Third Luxe book and my favorite cover to date. Could just be that it's Diana on the cover and she's my favorite character...but I really like the dress. Actually, this is my favorite book of the three as well. And I really wasn't sure it would be. What with Henry and Penelope being...shudder. But this one seemed the most real. People grew up and, in a couple of notable cases, grew spines. Whether or not it will all be too little too late remains to be seen. The fourth (and final) Luxe book, SPLENDOR, is due out in October and will hopefully settle a few things satisfactorily.

ENVY begins just a couple of months after the disastrous conclusion to Rumors: A Luxe Novel (The Luxe). Elizabeth is inexplicably back on the scene, but not really there. Diana is floating through a fog of numb and trying to rise above the crushing blows that keep coming her way. Ditto for Henry. Lina is capitalizing on all her success and makes a surprisingly apt romantic choice. And Penelope is Penelope. You just want someone to stash her in a broom closet for Two Seconds so everyone else can take a deep breath and perhaps hatch a plan to put her in her place once and for all. And amid all this, everyone manages to sweep off on a trip to Palm Beach where much of the book takes place.

I liked the change of scenery in this one. Putting everyone together in a Florida beach hotel for several days on end forced them all to interact despite the myriad tensions criss crossing between them. It also provided several quiet moments in which several characters reflected on how they ended up in the nasty mess they're in. It was nice to see some talk of doing the right thing at the cost of short-term (even long-term) happiness. Though I do hope happiness is in the cards for the most deserving (read: Teddy, Elizabeth, Diana, Henry). I liked this one best because it seemed the most natural. Every single character, at one point or another, was able to see beyond themselves for a moment to the people around them. I hope they remember what the view was like. This continues to be a diverting series and I look forward to its conclusion.

Oh the angst! My heart bleeds. Henry made me cry. Diana made me grit my teeth and Elizabeth made me sigh in exasperation. What's next I ask you?

While this series is ridiculous and completely over the top, it is a fabby guilty pleasure read. I swear the characters, apart from Penelope, are a few grapes short of a bushel, but vati are they entertaining.

Penelope has successfully trapped Henry into marring her, but because she is an evil, scheming wench, he is refusing to bed her, lol. She is certain that if she can destroy Diana's reputation, she can win Henry back, as if she ever had him, and therefore assigning her brother, Grayson, the mission of re-deflowering Diana Holland. (For those of you new to this series, Henry had his way with Diana on a bear skinned rug in Rumors, vair entertaining). Alas, things don't quite work out as Penelope intended, surprise surprise.

Elizabeth is still reeling from Will's death but is finding solace in Teddy Cutting, who just gets cuter by the minute. Sadly, Teddy, completely unaware of his appeal, sets out to war to win the respect and love of Elizabeth, which he was already well on his way of winning. This wouldn't be so bad if Elizabeth wasn't pregnant with Will's child. But she is and therefore ends up marrying Mr. Carnes in Teddy's absence. This caused me a great deal of frustration as I just know that Mr. Carnes is suspect and surely played a part in Will's unfortunate demise. Boo to that. Hopefully Mr. Carnes will meet a bad end and kick the bucket allowing Elizabeth to marry Teddy.

Lina is in lurve with a new character, Leland, and though I can't stand her, I find myself wanting her to nab him. Odd. Even more to my chagrin was that I actually felt sorry for her when her patron died and secretly hoped that he would will her his fortune, which he did. Didn't see that one coming :)

Diana. This character is frustrating to no end as she is quick to jump to conclusions, though I can't blame her, and causes her own troubles by following that hot temper of hers. But I like her, cause I would be a liar if I said that I didn't do the same things myself. I was a bit repulsed that she did the deed with Grayson, as he is described as having eyes that are too close together, and as a result, I was envisioning a #10 session with someone who looked like a fish. Hopefully she can find Henry in book 4 and put that disturbing image to rest.

Henry, oh I still love Henry, though he is incredibly stupid. I was so annoyed with him throughout this book and was nearly ready to throw my copy across the room, but I just couldn't do it, cause I lobes him in spite of his stupidity. Just when I was about to loose all faith in him, he enlists and sends Diana a fabby letter that reduced me to tears, and once again, Henry has earned his way back into my good graces.

Now all I have to decide is whether or not to run out to the store and buy Splendor in hardback or wait a year for it to come out in trade paper. Decisions decisions.

3.5/5 Stars. This book was better than Rumors, but not better than The Luxe in my opinion. I'm getting a little sick of Lina (even Penelope is less obnoxious to me). If she ends up with Tristan in the last book I'll be okay, but if she ends up with Leland I'll be pretty annoyed. I'm interested to see the cover of the last book to see what she looks like (assuming that The Luxe showed Elizabeth, Rumors Penelope, and this book Diana). I am continuously shocked by what the author puts poor Elizabeth through! I hope she finds some happiness in the final novel. My favorite character continues to be Diana, although the weird twists that have been happening with her and Henry in the last two books (Rumors and this one) aren't really that enjoyable. I loved their relationship in The Luxe because it was so fresh and pure.

In the third installment of this series things continue to heat up. No one is with who they want to be, and someone is telling every one's secrets. Only time will tell if these four girls, Diana, Elizabeth, Penelope, and Carolina, will ever get what they wish for.

This was a good book. However, it wasn't quite as exciting as its predecessors, The Luxe and Rumors. The plot was very slow. There were a couple instances where you could see what was going to happen, and it took too long for the actual event to occur. I think that if this book had been a bit shorter it would have been much better. There was a lot of waiting in this book. Everything felt so melodramatic because of that. Even though there was at least as much drama, in the previous books they went along fast enough to keep the readers in suspense. This book did not.


This was one of those books where I felt like slapping a lot of the characters over the head. Basically all of the waiting was due to the character's indecision. However, my favorites still kept me reading.


Overall, Envy wasn't a bad book. It just had a lot to live up to, and for me it didn't manage to do that. However, the ending still left me wanting more, so I will definitely be picking up the final installment of this series, Splendor. I'm hoping Godbersen can wrap this series up with a bang!

Warning: this review contains some spoilers if you haven't read the first two books in the series.

It's a new year and a new century in Manhattan, February 1900. However, the lives of its wealthy residents are not as happy and carefree as it would appear, and are filled with tragedy, blackmail, and secrets and lies that must never be revealed.

Elizabeth Holland is still struggling to cope with the loss of her true love, Will Keller, as well as her mother's insistence that she keep up the appearance that all is normal by appearing in society. Elizabeth's sister, Diana, is heartbroken that her own love, Henry Schoonmaker, has married Penelope Hayes instead of her, not knowing that Henry agreed to the marriage to save Diana's reputation. Meanwhile, Penelope has the husband she always wanted, but she finds it came at a price she didn't want to pay, as her marriage is painfully unhappy and her husband resents that she prevented him from marrying his true love. Fearing Henry will leave her, she schemes to separate him and Diana forever.

I loved the first book in The Luxe series, but was rather disappointed and frustrated by the second book, Rumors. However, I did feel book three was an improvement over book two, although still not as good as the first book. According to this book, there will only be one more book in the series, and this book does start to move things towards a conclusion. I would recommend this book to readers who read the first two books and want to find out what happens next to the characters.

Book 3 begins a month after Will has been killed. Penelope continues to be out for blood and will stop at nothing to keep Henry, a man whom has made it so clear that he is not interested. She continues to be obnoxious. Henry continues to be annoying, and passive. Diana is even more reckless than she has been in the previous 2 books. Poor Elizabeth my favorite character is distraught throughout book 3, and her mother is just awful. I'm really surprised that Mrs. Holland is not Penelope's mother, as she will stop at nothing to become wealthy again. Lina, continues to live the fabulous life on Longhorn's tab.

I love this soap opera style series. I really get into the characters and love the time period. Good read!

New York, 1900. Manhattan's elite has had a field day with the Hollands. Elizabeth, the eldest of the two sisters, once presumed dead, is now safe and sound back at home. But nobody knows that she had run away from home and married her groomsman. Now he is dead and she has to mourn him in silence. After all, now that her father is dead and the family is knee-deep in debts, either she or Diana has to make a good marriage. But Diana has no desire to marry. She is heartbroken now that Henry Shoonmaker is married to new-money socialite Penelope Hayes. He, too, loves Diana, but after taking her virginity one night, and Penelope finding out about it, he has to protect her reputation. And the jig is up for Carolina Broad, once a housemaid called Lina Broud. She is still causing mischief in her one-track determination to climb herself into the social status of her nemesis, the elder Holland girl. But her identity and status are in danger now that her protector has died, and she will have to rely on Penelope's "friendship" and on Elizabeth's secrets to continue her social climbing. Infidelity, star-crossed love, cunning and vicious gossip make out early twentieth century New York society, all of which is hidden in a façade of radiant smiles and gorgeous gowns.

I enjoyed The Luxe and Rumors very much. They were good and over the top fun. Envy, while also good, is a miss for me. This is the third book, and yet most of the characters are as one-dimensional and underdeveloped as they were in the first book. Elizabeth is the most troublesome of them all. She is proper and lady-like, so much so that she is extremely dull, a far less colorful version of Gossip Girl's Serena van der Woodsen. Carolina's story is too unrealistic, turning the character into a caricature. That, in turn, makes her my least favorite character in the book. I wish I could have skipped her chapters. Without a doubt, the love triangle between Penelope, Henry and Diana is the juiciest bit in the series, and you wonder how it will all sort itself out. However, I don't know if I'm interested enough in them to continue reading this series. It was a chore to read Envy in spite of it being a light and quick read on a warm Sunday afternoon. This is a turn-of-the-twentieth-century version of Gossip Girl with dumbed down Edith Wharton elements thrown in. Except that Gossip Girl is still fun (at least the TV series is). In short, this book is good for teens ages sixteen and more, but no longer palatable to me, an adult.

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.

Reviewed by: Sarah Bean the Green Bean Teen Queen