Flavor of the Month [Mass Market Paperback]

Olivia Goldsmith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1994

The author of the best-selling The First Wives Club offers a satirical look at fame and fashion on the Hollywood scene, dominated by sycophants, gossips, and back-stabbers. Reprint. PW. K.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Tell-all patter from a fictional gossip columnist spikes this deliciously juicy novel about Hollywood celebrities and secrets. In the beginning is Mary Jane Moran, a talented New York actress whose lumpish face and figure corral her in the small-time. Then she spends $67,000 on plastic surgery, becomes drop-dead beautiful and moves to L.A. where, reborn as Jahne Moore, she's instantly cast in a sizzling TV series. Co-starring are Lila Kyle, towering bitch-goddess daughter of an aging screen star, and corn-fed Texan Sharleen Smith, who's been on the lam since she and her half-brother Dean left their abusive father for dead. Goldsmith ( The First Wives Club ) spins out a dizzying whirl of subplots--Lila's crazy mother cooking up a comeback; Jahne's second chance at love with the director who broke her heart back when she was Mary Jane; an embittered comic who starts stalking Lila--and she enlivens each with a twist. While Goldsmith has little truck with realism, she perfectly conjures up the envy and insecurity, the toadying and backstabbing associated with the celebrity circuit. Raucous energy speeds the tale to a climax in which hitherto buried secrets (including one final lollapalooza) bring the stars crashing down. 100,000 first printing; BOMC main selection.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 896 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (May 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671794507
• ISBN-13: 978-0671794507
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #348,045 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW! CAN YOU HAVE 6 STARS?, December 10, 2000

By 

Simonetta Cavilli - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flavor of the Month (Mass Market Paperback)

For a lover of crime fiction, this has got to one of the best books around that is definately not crime! I could not put this book down, I was even reading this at work! It was a very long book (800+ pages) but believe me, you will not notice it as you will just wanting to read one more chapter...

This book is a real eye-opener into the beloved world of Hollywood and L.A. Even though this is a fiction book, you can't help but wonder if that what REALLY goes on in Tinsel Town (and I am SURE that it does!).

This centres around the lives of three young actresses - Jahne Moore, Lila Kyle and Sharleen Smith, each with their own style, each trying to make it big in Hollywood, each with their own problems and secrets. I am definately not into books by Jackie Collins etc but this was one trashy, hilarious, sexy, excellent book that has a serious undertone and an insight into the false world of the entertainment industry.

If you REALLY want to know what goes on 'behind the scenes' with all your favourite actors, producers and directors or if you just love a wickedly funny, trashy book, then definately do yourself a favour..pick this up, have a couple of days off work and READ IT!!!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars best contemporary trash i've ever read, March 3, 2000

By 

judy (Cleveland Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flavor of the Month (Mass Market Paperback)

I am usually a reader of murder mysteries and just happened to pick up this book. Without a double this is the best contemporary trash i have ever read. finished it in no time, laughing myself silly through the entire read. Several of my friends have recently become seriously ill and i have bought them copies of this book - they all report how it helped take their minds off of the illnesses. I have probably bought over 2 dozen copies of this book to give to family and friends. I hand it over with the words "enjoy - it's a terrific ride!". Thanks Olivia Goldsmith. This was the best book you've written so far - although Bookseller wasn't bad either.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very entertaining read but evil, hateful characters, May 7, 2004

By 

Ke'Anna Means (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flavor of the Month (Mass Market Paperback)

I liked reading this book very much. I'm on my second read now and the first time I read it, I could hardly put it down.

But it's unique to me in that I've never read a book where almost all the characters were so unlikeable. I even wanted to smack the nice girls, Jahne and Sharleen, for just acting stupidly. Evertime I would feel sympathy for a character, they would start acting hateful(Neil Morelli), and I thought Sam was just dispicable. But nobody was worse than queen bitch supreme Lila Kyle. I have never seen such an entitled, self-centered, crazy, and all around mean character, and yet once in a while, I had to admire her ability to get what she wanted.

It was a real eye-opener to read a book where there were really not many characters to root for, but I guess that's what intrigued me about it the first time. It kind of turned my expectations upside down, and that wasn't a bad thing.