Customer Reviews

Some Like It Haute

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(12)

 

 

this book is a complete waste of time ... the protagonist is dumb and not very likeable, the plot is ludicrous (when ESPERANTO is a major plot point, someone's trying too hard), and the fashion "details" are about what you could pick up reading your local newspaper. How many times can the author make dumb 80s-hairspray references? You will honestly lose count. And repeatedly pointing out that the heroine has a "great education" which she's wasting by being a fashion journalist? That's fairly insulting to people who enjoy fashion and think it's important, as well as being overly-reductive about the value of education. (Not to psychoanalyze too much, but since the author went to Harvard and is now working at PEOPLE magazine, maybe someone is insecure about her own life choices?)

There are plenty of great, smart, enjoyable fashiony chick-lit reads out there. Too bad this isn't one of them.

It was a little early for "beach reads" when this book was originally released, but it should fit right in this summer. It's fun, light reading with characters who are mostly likable and a story that goes over the top just a little. Clearly not for the "fashion-illiterate", so if you don't know the difference between Chanel & Prada, or don't know who Michael Kors or Marc Jacobs are, you'll probably find this a little boring. But if you're a "fashionista" & enjoy a fashion-related "guilty pleasure" every now & then, this book is definitely for you!! Frequent name-drops of some of today's top designers & trendy celebrities can be found on nearly every page, which adds some fun (There's even a tongue in cheek reference to the "Hilton" sisters as our main character attends the same party as the "Sheraton Sisters"!). Designers from Prada to Chanel to YSL to Stella McCartney and so, so many more make such frequent appearances that it's almost like the designers & their clothes, shoes, handbags & accessories are supporting characters in the story! Definitely written with fashion-lovers in mind (what else would you expect from an editor from People mag?!) (WARNING! Do not attempt to read this book anywhere near the mall or while you have access to you computer & credit card!! Shopping is not recommended within 60 minutes of reading this book!!!)

If you need a break from deep, moving, emotional stories with characters you become emotionally invested in & attached to, you might want to give this one a try. It won't take you anytime to get through it & shouldn't give you much pause for thought!! It's a very light, fluffy, fun read that doesn't take much thought at all. Your only emotional involvement in the characters might be envy, as one might only dream of having a closet or clothing allowance like Alex's!!!

The last third of the book is definitely over the top with a pretty imaginative story that's just a little unbelievable - but if you can look past that and read it just for fun, you should find it entertaining. I appreciate the effort that Julie Dam made to write a story that's an escape from the "real world" of today. For just a little while each day, I was happy to put aside the trials & tribulatons that is my real life & enjoyed spending time with Alex & her friends in the City of Paris and the crazy, unrealistic world of fashion. Everyone needs a break and needs to have a little fun now & then - SOME LIKE IT HAUTE, if anything, will put a smile on your face, cause you to roll you eyes once or twice, and forget about being a grown up for just a little while!!! Isn't that what reading's all about after all?? Taking time out of each day just to relax & escape for a little while. This book definitely did that for me!!

I look forward to what else this author brings us & whether or not she's able to sustain the level, or whether she takes dive along the lines of Plum Sykes & Lauren Weisberger, who delivered very entertaining first-run novels, but seemed to lose themselves in their subsequent attempts! I'm crossing my fingers for future escapes from reality, into the imaginitive world of Julie Dam!!

I am all for an easy read now and again, something to take me away from the grind of the day to day, but "Some Like it Haute" was just lame. This commentary may seem harsh but I really did try to like to book and I made myself finish it. However, from Alex's whining about her mistakes in her predetermined outfit organization, to the fact that Paris is teeming with people from Texas, I overdosed in cheesiness. The plot thins more so when Alex hears of her love interests "big secret", bizarro at best.

All I can honestly say is that anyone who is interested in fashion and designers has the same amount of knowledge as Alex, who sadly has a career in writing about it. So many other good options out there for summer reads, bypass this one.

LOVED IT!!!

This novel was a fantastic escape from the day to day rat race and pre-beach-weather dreary April showers. Imagining myself as Alex playing dress up at Chanel, shoe shopping, dining at outdoor cafes, and fighting Parisians for taxis literally took me away like a Calgon bubble bath.

Not only was the story a suspenseful page turner, the references to the 80s, both music and hair, were precious. Most of all, I laughed out loud at the clever comments the author makes throughout the novel: highlighting the anxiety that a 30-something who went to high school in the 80s (in Dallas, no less!) would experience today "committing to bangs" or "declaring orange the new black". This book simultaneously embraces and satirizes the modern woman's "no brainer" of sacrificing comfort for fashion. As a reader, I cheered Alex on as she donned the "rubber dress" and stilettos, only to get busted "adjusting" while waiting for the elevator.

I'd be first in line to see this as a movie, and I can't wait to read the sequel.

Reader beware: I admit I succumbed to the seductive salespeople at Saks after reading this book. (I also picked up a copy of the book for my sister)

I have had a hard time getting into this book! It reads like a badly written blog. I just can't relate to the character who is addicted to haute couture and...? That's about all I could get from the character-- who IS she?? It's reads like a 2nd draft, rather than the finished edited book.

Alex Simons is in Paris on a plum assignment, covering fashion week for London's The Weekly. Her dreams have carried her far from her big-hair days in Texas, landing a career as a fashion correspondent on first-name basis with all top fashion houses' PR reps.

A sudden cat-walk collision with this season's "It girl" lands Alex in the midst of a media feeding frenzy that has her cowering in her hotel watching reruns of the debacle on Fashion TV. When she ventures out to a promising fashion debut she meets Nick Snow, a bad boy who spurns the fashion world but sends Alex's pulse into overdrive. Will this fashion insider get her bad boy and the scoop of the year?

This latest entry into the increasingly crowded genre of chick lit offers a breath of fresh air. Some Like it Haute has avoided many of the major minefields now infesting the genre: heroines stuck in their 20's, overly whiny main characters and paper-thin plots.

Julie Dam recognizes that the readers of chick lit have moved into their 30s and, while still concerned with fashion and romance, they also face serious worries about their careers. By moving her heroine into the next age category but leaving her single, the author has taken a courageous yet fresh approach.

Within the context of haute couture and Paris' fashion week, Alex's obsession with clothes and footwear makes sense. The insider's view of this closed society is enthralling and since Alex's clothes obsession isn't overblown, she shows readers an insider's view into this elite world.

One of Julie Dam's main strengths is her ability to pen intelligent, rapid-fire banter: words delivered so fast that your head is spinning in admiration. Some Like it Haute contains some fabulous repartee between Nick and Alex, chocked full of pop culture references and delivered with deadpan accuracy. Like the icons of old, the sexual tension leaps off the page as Nick and Alex play with words as easily as others toss dice.

More style than substance, this light-weight confection has readers kicking off their kitten heels and curling their toes in longing for the Manolos casually tossed around by Alex.

Armchair Interviews says: Dam has provided a window into a world guaranteed to delight any wanna-be fashionista, a stylistic fable that marries mystery and romance and wraps it all in a glamorous world filled with killer shoes.

While I wasn't expecting this book to be deep and meaningful, I DID expect it to be at least a little entertaining. I waited through a few chapters, hoping it would get better. But ultimately I had to stop and find something better to do with my time.

Simply boring. I make it about a third of the way through, and kept waiting for an interesting plot or something to hold my attention. If anything exciting happens later in the book, someone please let me know.

I would describe this book as An American fashionista in Paris. The story blends together fashion and even some mystery.

I did not enjoy this book at all. It was pointless and uninteresting. There are even few parts in the story where you need to know French. No translation is offered and even the surrounding dialogue doesn't give you a clue.

Chick lit lovers (and everyone else): pass on this one.

There were only two good things about this book:

1. I got it for free in a gift bag. If I had purchased it, I would have been tempted to write the author for a refund.

2. It passed some time while on the beach.I only finished it because

a)It was the only book I brought and had difficulty finding another novel in Mexico.

b)I was incredibly bored.

In other words, don't waste your time. Spoiler alert: girl meets boy only to find out that he was only dating her for a segment of reality TV?! Shocker!