Everlasting [Hardcover]

Nancy Thayer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1991

Not even the success of her East Side flower shop can save Catherine Eliot from the love, lust, intrigue, and betrayal she finds in a Boston lawyer and a street-wise seductor. Reprint.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Thayer's ( Stepping ) eighth novel is a disappointment, a lightweight, predictable fairy tale of a young woman's success in business and in love. When 17-year-old Catherine Eliot decides not to attend college, her cruel, cold, socialite parents cut her off completely. With the support of her grandmother Kathryn, whose mantra is "It will come to you," Catherine stumbles into a job at a small New York City florist's shop--inadvertently discovering her true vocation. After three years, she blackmails an old pal of her dad's for enough money to buy the business. Her daring new ideas, sense of elegance, and social connections make Blooms the hottest floral emporium in Manhattan. Catherine and Harvard law student Kit Bemish fall in love; he's already engaged, though, and obeys his parents' command to marry. Work and an affair with her Blooms partner distract Catherine until Kit reappears in her life. Blooms expands as Catherine and Kit produce two perfect children and see her younger siblings safely into adulthood. Fairy grandmother Kathryn leaves her estate, Everly, and its extensive gardens to Catherine. With handsome knight Kit and her beauty, brains and independent spirit, it's never in doubt that this superficial (though likable) heroine will live happily ever after. Literary Guild dual main selection.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This novel is akin to Barbara Taylor Bradford's sagas of ambitious, entrepreneurial women. Catherine Eliot, at 18, is aimless until she falls into a job in a flower shop and realizes that this is the business she was born for. Though her social register family has cut her off, she uses her own social connections to build her business into a giant. This rejected daughter does all she can to rescue her family from financial and emotional distress. Though her help is neither understood nor appreciated, Catherine eventually finds contentment in herself, her marriage, and her business. An absorbing story and heroine, recommended for any popular fiction collection.
- Marylaine Block, St. Ambrose Univ . Lib . , Davenport, Ia.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; 1st Edition, 1st Printing edition (March 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670835706
• ISBN-13: 978-0670835706
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,899,281 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What an entertaining book!, April 23, 2002

By 

Busy Mom (Ohio) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Everlasting (Signet) (Paperback)

... It is such a fun and entertaining book. It's not a deep, thought-provoking book by any means, but if you're five months pregnant like me ~~ you wouldn't care! It's written with passion and it keeps you turning the pages.

Catherine Elliot comes from a moneyed family; her parents threw her out on the streets when she refused to attend college. Down on her luck, she stumbles into a flowershop and found her destiny there. After several years of working there, she eventually buys the shop and renames it Bloom. And it becomes this huge success in New York City. Much more than she ever dreamed of.

It's not all work for Catherine. She manages to fall in love twice ~~ once with Kit, a Bostonian lawyer whose family would never accept Catherine. He leaves her to marry someone else. Then there's Piet Vanderveld, a dark-eyed Dutch who works with her first along the first flower shop then became her partner in Blooms.

Catherine's family also plays strong roles in this novel as well and it was interesting to see how they all perceive Catherine in the end. It doesn't matter that she has worked hard to provide for them ~~ they still expected more of her.

It was an interesting novel ~~ I finished it in a day. I was amazed when a friend of mine told me that this book was out of print ~~ I think it should be back in print! It's such a good read ~~ fun, saucy, sexy and entertaining! If you can get a hold of a copy of this book, I'd urge you to read it. It's perfect for those long lazy days at the beach or at the poolside.

...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as Thayer's later novels, April 23, 2005

By 

Sheila Bronte "Pleasure Reader" (Northeast Georgia USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Everlasting (Hardcover)

This book is one of Nancy Thayer's earlier novels. I enjoyed reading it, although the main character seemed rather superficial at times. She also seems to fall into bed rather easily with some of the men in the novel with no consequences. The flower shops setting and her drive to succeed in spite of obstacles in her path are the best parts. She suffers from the coldness of her parents early in the story, but good luck and a good friend almost immediately prevent her from being too miserable. As long as you aren't looking for the depth of character in her later books, you'll be content.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Love in a Flower Shop, March 30, 2005

By 

Virginia Allain "(retired librarian)" (Poinciana, FL) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Everlasting (Hardcover)

This reminds me of Danielle Steele's books. Catherine achieves in business (flower shop), and in love (somewhat delayed). The wealthy family that disowned her eventually becomes dependent on her in a reversal of fortunes.

Catherine is not very likable as a rebellious teen, but grows on the reader as she develops and takes initiative. Throughout the book she remains jealous of her family and unable to let go of old baggage despite her successes.

The author pens some nice descriptions and builds a credible story.