On Gin Lane

This is my first time reading this author. I absolutely loved this book. Loved the characters even the ones that I hated. I loved the story of friendships old and new. So much we learn from relationships bad and good. An author I will watch for in the future.

With some hints of Gatsby, Brooke Lea Foster’s On Gin Lane is a fascinating look at the rich during the summer of 1957. Everleigh “Lee” Farrows has grown up in her parents three bedroom apartment on the seventeenth floor of the Plaza Hotel. She has been raised by her nanny as her mother has been absent many times due to mental illness. She has completed college and is engaged for the second time. When the book opens, we find that Lee is traveling to the Hamptons to spend the summer with hew new fiancé Roland. I rushed through the beginning of this book as we find Roland has given her the new hotel he has built. Tragedy strikes the Everleigh Hotel on its opening weekend. Over the summer, the reader follows Lee trying to find herself and her future. The mystery of what happened at the hotel, is Roland really who he says he is, and the self-discovery of where Lee fits into 1957 society will entertain the reader. At times, the book moves a little too slowly. On a personal note, I truly enjoyed the scene when Lee meets Starling and Starling talks about her first camera being a Kodak Brownie leather box camera with the viewfinder on the top. This passage took me back to my childhood at my grandparent’s beach house and the obligatory pictures taken by my petite grandmother with her Kodak Brownie camera. On Gin Lane is a book that will stick with me and will deserve a second read. My thanks to Simon & Schuster Book Club Favorites and Gallery Books for an ARC of this book. The opinions in this review are my own.

An interesting look back at how women were regarded and restricted in the 1950’s.

Okay, true confessions. I’m a Hamptons girl from the old money days. This book captures that time so beautifully, that all theses years later I am transported back to the golden summer light of a long ago time on the tip of Long Island. Everleigh is poised on the cusp of the women’s movement, in a time when women were groomed to be the perfect wife, existing only as an extension of their husband. How she navigates that makes for an epic tale, most satisfying in its twists and turns. I could not put it down.

I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher but it in no way influenced my review - 4.5 stars! It's summer, 1957, in Southampton, New York. It's the period of time when a woman's worth is measured by how well she marries. Everleigh Farrows is fresh off a broken engagement when she meets Roland, who appears to be perfect for her and her parents are thrilled. They buy them a house but Roland whisks her away to Southampton and surprises her with an engagement present - a hotel in her name. Hotels are a sore point for Everleigh - she grew up in The Plaza with a mother who struggled with mental illness. When there is a fire on the hotel's opening night, cracks start appearing in her world. This was definitely a step back into time, both in the atmospheric setting and the societal views. I adored so many characters in this book, but especially Everleigh, who fought against herself, her family and the world to try to be happy in her own skin. It's also a good mystery book. with many characters with secrets and who could have set the fire that destroyed the hotel. Definitely a good beach read!

Wonderful storyline with good descriptions of the Southhampton area. A little slow at first but once I got into it, the book took off and kept me wanting to read more and more. A definite good read!

When Everleigh is taken to Southampton by her dashing fiancee Roland, she is ecstatic - her parents are letting her weekend away with the man she loves (it’s 1957, btw) and the drive is beautiful. However, upon arrival, Roland surprises her with a hotel he has named after her. Everleigh tries to smother her disappointment - how could Roland suspect how miserable Everleigh had been growing up in hotels consumed by her mother’s depression? But then, opening weekend, a terrible tragedy befalls Roland, Everleigh and the hotel. With the tragedy, Everleigh starts to question everything she thought she wanted in life and things begin to spiral out of control in this picture perfect setting. This was a slow simmer - I didn’t love the characters, including Everleigh at first. But perhaps that was the point? Ultimately I was dragged into the mystery and the gossip among the rich and powerful Hamptonites. And Everleigh had me rooting for her to find herself.

Having never heard of this author or novel, I was quite pleased with this hidden treasure. From Everleigh's growth as a meek debutante to independent working woman, the long summer's search to find purpose and passion begins on Gin Lane in the Hamptons. Highly recommend this fast-paced, suspenseful story of heartbreak and renewed self-worth.