Elin Hilderbrand is in top storytelling form with The Five-Star Weekend, a juicy, intricately plotted novel about a popular Internet food blogger who hosts a girls' weekend of food, fun, and togetherness.
After Hollis Shaw's husband of 24 years dies in a car crash, the affable food blogging sensation tries to stabilize herself by inviting four women from different phases of her life to her picturesque Nantucket home. The guests are Tatum McKenzie, a local islander and Hollis's friend since they were toddlers; Dru-Ann Jones, Hollis's college roommate, who is now a premier sports agent for professional female athletes; Brooke Kirtley, a friend from the prime of Hollis's life and a rock through Hollis's grief; and Gigi Ling, a pilot from Atlanta, Ga., whom Hollis befriended via her blog and has never met in person. Hollis also invites her rebellious daughter, Caroline, with whom she shares a contentious relationship, one she'd really like to heal. Hollis pays Caroline, a film student at NYU, to attend the weekend event and film it.
Hilderbrand (The Hotel Nantucket; Golden Girl; 28 Summers) delivers a five-star read that beautifully traces the essences of contemporary women and the complexities of their lives. Readers will be fascinated by the surprising drama of bringing--and braiding--together such disparate personalities. In the end, it's not just Hollis at a crossroads. Each woman faces trials, challenges, and changes readers will identify with and be eager to invest in. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines