This is the ideal beach read. As most of Jackie Collins‘s novels are. That’s why it was one of the first things I read on vacation. This is part of the Lucky Santangelo series, but it’s the first book featuring Lucky that I’ve read. Set in Las Vegas, Lucky owns The Keys, an exclusive hotel property, maintains a still-hot marriage with her husband, counts a famous pop star as her best friend and has two glamorous children.
The book gets off to a slow start simply because there are so many characters. The first 100 pages or so introduces you to each character, and gives you a slice of their life – Billy the movie star, Lucky the hotel magnate, Lucky’s daughter Max’s wild clubbing escapades, her son Bobby’s business sense and romance with down to earth Denver, and so on. But once the book gets going and the story lines of the characters begin to intertwine, the book gets interesting.
This can probably be classified as a thriller of sorts – while set among the glamour and excess of Vegas, at heart, the plot concerns Lucky’s refusal to sell The Keys and the middle eastern prince and business man who wants her dead because she refused his offer. My favorite B plot involved Lucky’s daughter Max, who is torn between her long time, boring steady boyfriend and Billy the movie star, her mom’s friends ex-husband who took her virginity. Max is a fairly realistic depiction of what its like to be in love at age 18 – it’s confusing, and reckless, and you do stupid things. I also enjoyed the chapters about the middle eastern prince’s mother, a former Vegas show girl who reminsces about the good old days in Vegas. It was a fun detour into some historical fiction in a few chapters.
This book won’t change your life but it’s a quick read, moderately engaging and pretty salacious. Perfect for the warm weather.
Book It. 