The Starter Wife (Paperback)

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Key Phrases: mean high tide line, orange shorts, lifeguard tower, Malibu Colony, Fourth of July, Los Angeles (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The third and funniest in a succession of novels about the cutthroat social mores of the entertainment industry by a woman who has witnessed them up close."-- The New York Times Book Review

"Lively, wry."-- The Washington Post Book World

"Fearless and fabulous. Only an insider like Gigi Grazer could have so much wicked fun with the intricacies of Hollywood's power couples."-- Lauren Weisberger, author of The Devil Wears Prada

Product Description

IN HOLLYWOOD, THEY LIKE TO LOVE 'EM AND LEAVE 'EM.

The Starter Wife

A scathingly funny novel from the bestselling author of Maneater.

When her husband, Kenny, dumps her by cell phone (!) mere months before their ten-year wedding anniversary, Gracie Pollock is dazed and confused. Though life as the wife of a semi-famous Hollywood studio executive often left her yawning, Gracie always believed she and Kenny were different from other Hollywood couples. She never thought she'd be a starter wife.

But Kenny has upgraded, and with images of his new pop tartlet girlfriend everywhere Gracie turns, she seeks refuge at her best friend's Malibu mansion. Then a mysterious hunk saves her from drowning and suddenly drowning in her sorrows seems like a waste of time. And when she takes up with Kenny's boss, one of Hollywood's better-known Lotharios, she discovers that maybe life after divorce -- Hollywood-style -- isn't so bad after all!

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Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Downtown Press (April 4, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743265033
• ISBN-13: 978-0743265034
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #549,060 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't get me Started!, April 9, 2006

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Because she is a real-life "Wife Of," Gigi Levangie Grazer has been hailed as the "on the inside" Hollywood chick-litter. Inexplicably, it turns out, because "The Starter Wife" is full of the vapid, name-dropping superficiality that any housewife from Nebraska could dream up.

Gracie is a "Wife Of" -- wealthy, toned, dyed and perfectly preserved, and married to a Hollywood heavyweight with one kid. Until Kenny hits midlife crisis -- he dresses loudly, gets an earring, and then tells Gracie that he wants a divorce. In the dizzying whirlwind of divorce, Gracie finds out that he's having an affair with Britney Spears (presumably in the months before she started slumming it with Kevin Whatsisface).

A concerned pal lends Gracie her Malibu house, so the newly-divorced can get her bearings and life back on track. And as she wanders the California beaches with her gay pal and married neurotic friend, Gracie finds herself desired by not just one but two men -- a handsome homeless man, and Kenny's dissatisfied has-it-all boss. Can she become more than Kenny's "starter wife"?

Okay, it has a different plot -- one that Shar Jackson might find emotional satisfaction in, admittedly. But the core of "The Starter Wife" is yet another thin plot, with a moronic heroine and lots of name-dropping. It's even worse that much of Grazer's name-dropping is out of date -- since this book went to press, Brad and Jen have broken up. So no one's worried about them procreating.

Grazer's lack of inspiration shows through in the storyline itself, which meanders aimlessly between Hollywood-expose cliches and middle-aged-woman-reinvents-self cliches. The writing meanders as well, as if the author is desperately trying to fill up space. Grazer even has the excruciating taste to name Gracie's gay pal "Will." It's not witty or cute, just embarrassing.

Perhaps the biggest flaw is that Gracie -- the wronged Wife Of-turned-Starter Wife -- is a pill. Despite the men going gaga over her, the supposedly smart Gracie comes across as a bitter airhead, obsessed with age even when she's feeling good about herself. Kenny is a cliche of the Selfish Ex, while Will is a cliche of the Lovable Gay Pal. Only Lou, a tired mogul who wants to know what people really think of him, comes across as a real person.

With more Hollywood tale-telling and absurd cliches, Gigi Levangie Grazer slumps even further in her sophomore effort. Sure it's just a fluff book, but it's really BAD fluff.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars This book would be better if it were cut in half., May 8, 2006

By	frannyglass (West Hollywood, CA USA) - See all my reviews

I wanted to like this book. The first 150 pages or so are like indulging in a slightly more literary version of the tabloids. It's kind of weird, though, because the book is totally fictional...and she's using real names.

I like the parts where she's fighting with her soon-to-be ex--and there's a funny section on exclusive parties attended only by Hollywood A Listers and their wives. The book is also fun, for a while, for those of us who live in LA--you know where everything is, and you can knowingly smile when she mentions that La Cienega is the accepted border to Westside LA. That wears out by page 150, and the book becomes and insipid romance novel.

I only finished reading the Starter Wife because (1) The first 150 pages were decent, and I kept thinking it might pick up again; and (2) I can't stand to drop a book I've started. The book doesn't pick back up--and the only reason I found myself laughing past p. 150 was because it was ridiculous.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Really bad, especially if you're not from LA, January 10, 2007

By	Jeni18 (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

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I bought this book because while Maneater wasn't a masterpiece it was fairly well written and entertaining. I hate to give bad reviews but I feel the professional reviews are so misleading that I want to save someone else their time and money. This book could have been much better if Mrs. Grazer had made it more of a satire and less of a "comedy". The "jokes" are fairly groan inducing and really should have been left out. Even better would have been to make it more of a serious tone but I know that is not her forte.

The only part of the book I find mildly entertaining are the location based comments on Los Angeles and only because I live here, but I don't really know how much someone living outside of LA cares if a book character goes to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf on San Vicente Blvd.

Giving two stars instead of one because I'm actually going to finish it, and I don't have a problem not finishing a book if it's awful.