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The Overnight Socialite: A Novel [Hardcover]

Bridie Clark
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (63 customer reviews)

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Book Description

December 22, 2009

Lucy Ellis moved to the Big Apple to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a fashion designer, but the native Midwesterner has just about had it with the city. A mousy, self-conscious girl trapped in a job at a designer sweatshop, Lucy has been mistreated, road-blocked, and otherwise insulted since her arrival. Overwhelmed by city life, Lucy is about to pack it all in and return home to Minnesota. Then she meets Wyatt.

After being publicly dissed by the glamour girl he’d been dating, man-about-town (and bored Ph.D. anthropologist) Wyatt Hayes wants to prove he’s still at the top of his game and boasts to his best friend that he can transform any girl—even wallflower Lucy Ellis—into this year’s “It” girl. If he can fool the upper crust of New York society into thinking an impostor like Lucy is the real thing, he can rip the chiffon veil off the whole Park Avenue social scene.

Lucy’s an unlikely candidate to become a red-carpet butterfly, but she considers it her last resort and jumps at the opportunity to “become somebody” in New York. Wyatt begins to rigorously train Lucy in the style, sounds, and sensibilities of socialites born with entire sets of silver spoons in their mouths. Three months of preparation culminate in Lucy’s appearance at the ultra-exclusive Fashion Forum Gala, where Lucy and Wyatt finally confront New York’s aristocracy—and their feelings for each other.

Set against the glittering backdrop of contemporary Manhattan, The Overnight Socialite puts a 21st-century sheen on a timeless story of transformation and unlikely love.


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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Clark (Because She Can) moves the Pygmalion myth to Manhattan, adds a dash of Thelma and Louise and proves what goes around, comes around to those born to the manor or trailer park. Professor Higgins is recast as suave bachelor Wyatt Hayes IV, the sleekest lion in the pride, who picks down-on-her-luck fashion designer wannabe Lucy Jo Ellis to make over into the toast of the town. The deal is eventually struck—makeover and a shot at well-born fashion contacts for a gentleman's bet that masks a lucrative and career-saving book deal. Along the way, these perfectly matched antagonists battle mean-as-a-snake society snoots and their own misguided ambitions to find happiness and each other. (And, it should be said, the Rain in Spain remix is pretty great: The snow in Gstaad puts Aspen's to shame! the newly svelte and prepped Lucy proclaims.) Yes, of course the ending's no surprise, but the rollicking, smart-aleck fun along the way is worth the price of admission. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Lucy Jo Ellis, from a small town in Minnesota, moved to New York with the dream of becoming a famous designer, but so far, working in a dress shop cutting out patterns, she hasn’t gotten very far. Wyatt Hayes is a Harvard-educated anthropologist from money, very old money, who just dumped his socialite girlfriend. Suddenly inspired while waiting for a taxi, he bets his friend that he can turn a girl, any girl, into a bona fide New York socialite, no matter how corn-fed she is. Lucy needs a job, so she agrees to the experiment. In a whirlwind of personal trainers, designer gowns, spa retreats, and elocution lessons, Lucy is transformed, and now she must decide which of the Lucys is really her, and if Wyatt is simply a scientist or if there is more to his story. Clark offers a charming twenty-first-century update of Pygmalion and My Fair Lady. --Hilary Hatton

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 304 pages
  • Publisher: Weinstein Books; 1 edition (December 22, 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1602860823
  • ISBN-13: 978-1602860827
  • Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 1.1 x 10 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (63 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #217,963 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

This is a great chick lit book. Tina Says  |  18 reviewers made a similar statement
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and was rather sad when the story ended. Ellz Readz  |  5 reviewers made a similar statement
I highly recommend this book and I look forward to Bridie Clark's next one!! Kathryn J. Calahan  |  11 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 21 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Charming story February 27, 2010
Format:Hardcover
My thoughts...When this story first began, I found myself overwhelmed with the name dropping. All the fancy designers, labels, $500 shoes made me sort of dizzy and a bit turned off. However, once the story started to take off and the plot took over the glitz blended nicely into the scenery. The plot was a unique twist on an old story infused with romance, heartbreak, and a whole lotta money. The Overnight Socialite gave readers a pretty good look into the elite social setting in New York City. Readers get several different POV's because story not only followed Lucy and Wyatt, the main characters, but also several of their friends and acquaintances. The ending wrapped up, but it felt a little abrupt. You could definitely make strong inferences about the character's lives, but I longed for more details.

As far as the characters go, they grew on me. Initially, I could not imagine someone taking Wyatt up on his offer to be a social experiment, but after considering Lucy Jo's dreams and the extent of her devastation, it seemed plausible. I mean what did she have to loose? Her character really changed as the story progressed, but not as much as Wyatt's. I enjoyed reading his scenes. His stubbornness, his denial, and his pride made him an interesting character. My favorite character by far was Eloise, Lucy's friend. Of all the characters in the book, she was the most real and down-to-Earth, (with the exception of Lucy's mother). Overall, most of the characters were interesting and memorable

The cons...The only issue I had while reading came from too many POV's. There were several characters in the story who's point of view really contributed to the story.
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19 of 22 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars The ending is a letdown December 12, 2009
Format:Hardcover
Lucy Jo Ellis is an aspiring designer who moves to New York to work in the sweatshops of the Fashion District in order to get her foot in the door. After the city nearly chews her up and spits her out, Lucy meets Wyatt Hayes IV, who has a bet going with his best friend that he can turn the average girl on the street into one of New York's most sought-after socialites.

OK, so the author borrows directly from My Fair Lady for the plot of her book. But it's really an enjoyable story. So there definitely is some predictability here. But Lucy Jo is a character with a lot of heart, and passion for what she loves best. Nearly all of these characters are a lot more three-dimensional than those in Clark previous novel, Because She Can. There are characters in the book, especially Wyatt and his best friend, who are undeniably flawed, but that makes them all the more real. Wyatt's ex girlfriend is a bit of a caricature, but other than that, I enjoyed reading about these people.

Nonetheless, there are a few aspects of the story that had me raising my eyebrows in disbelief (Lucy's transformation, especially her weight loss, is a little too rapid to be believable). Wyatt is in his mid-thirties, but he sure doesn't act that way most of the time. And the ending of the book isn't really an ending, as such. It just stops, without truly wrapping things up. But other than that, the story is fast paced, and extremely lively. It's cute, it's fun, and it's an engaging way to pass time. The plot just needs a little more work.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Please, let there be a sequel!!! December 15, 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Ms. Clark, please write a sequel to The Overnight Socialite!!! I loved this book from beginning to end. I want more of Wyatt and Lucy Jo, Trip and Eloise, and even Evil Cornelia! I didn't want to give 4 stars because of the ending, which does leave the reader hanging, but perhaps it ended that way simply because there is a sequel in the works, I hope???? So, five stars it is for what the book is in its entirety---a fabulous, fun read!!!
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing! January 6, 2010
Format:Hardcover
At first I enjoyed the endless label dropping and caricatures of the New York city social scene. But the main character was so flat that once the "Pygmalion/My Fair Lady" plot kicked in I tossed the book across the room. Paying homage is one thing---reusing a plot to make up for lack of imagination and any real writing skills gets two thumbs down from me. And most people from Minnesota (where the heroine is supposedly from) don't have Southern accents. Mock us Midwest transplants judiciously, please!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars It Just Ended June 9, 2011
By Lauren
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I want to say I really liked this book, and I would have - if there was an ending. There were a little too many secondary stories for my liking, but then I got used to it. I thought when I read the last page my kindle messed up and din't download the entire book. It just leaves you hanging, there's no true closure. Then, I learned it WAS the end.... completely disappointing. Just when the characters were finally fully getting developed...the book just stops. It could have used another few chapters. I loved where the book was going but it needed more of an ending. What happens with Lucy Jo and Wyatt? So they end up eventually going to dinner.... and then what....? What happened with Eloise and Trip's engagement? Did she end up saying yes? She didn't say no... she just sort of... stormed off. What happened with the article Townhouse was publishing? What happened with Lucy Jo and Eloise's line? There were also a ton of other secondary characters that didn't really have an ending either. I actually came on Amazon to see if I missed something or if there's some sort sequel. I just want more.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars A 5+ STAR OF PURE ENTERTAINMENT!
One of the best light reading eBooks I've downloaded..I envy a writer than can describe scenarios, with the characters and is able to create a dialogue with such wit and insight as... Read more
Published 23 days ago by Rudi A. Ferre
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyed it!
I really enjoyed this modern version of the classic tale. I also love when the underdog wins at the end.
Published 1 month ago by C. Logsdon
4.0 out of 5 stars Old plot but enjoyable story
From my wife: I agree with other reviewers that the ending was not enough. This story really needed an epilogue. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Dan Yeaw
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun book
This is a good book and the story was fun although unrealistic. But hey, that's why we read these kinds of books, for the fun of them and the escape.
Published 4 months ago by suzanne garzia
4.0 out of 5 stars Modern My Fair Lady
A little predictable following My Fair Lady but a cute and easy read nicely woven around modern NY fashion and social scene.
Published 5 months ago by Lara C. Stevens
3.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable chick lit, with strong MY FAIR LADY elements
Yes, there was a great deal of name-dropping at the beginning, which was irrititating. Aside from the products, I thought that the descriptions of the socialites were... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Book lover -Philadelphia
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable book
The story is fun! You will laugh and cringe and be wanting to know what happens. The only complaint have is the ending is abrupt. Its not a bad ending, it's just abrupt... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Scott Gregory
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable vacation read
Just as other reviewers noted, the books is just like Pygmalion only set in Manhattan. I enjoyed the book--especially the observation about how today's "socials" are infinitely... Read more
Published 8 months ago by me
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyed!!
It was everything I expected it to be, a fun, easy read. I couldn't wait to go on my lunch hour and pick up where I left off, lol! Totally enjoyed it!
Published 8 months ago by Tara
5.0 out of 5 stars The Overnight Socialite
I loved this book, as I did her other book BECAUSE SHE CAN! So many wonderful characters, I hated for it to end. Maybe there will be a sequel? Waiting for her next book!
Published 11 months ago by Maria Wilmas
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