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Pride And Avarice: A Novel (2010)

by Nicholas Coleridge(Favorite Author)

3.52 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0312382626 (ISBN13: 9780312382629)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Thomas Dunne Books

review 1: This is what reviewers back in the day would have called a good old-fashioned romp through the world of the rich and famous in contemporary Britain: social climbers, coke snorters, captains of industry, doubledealing PR wizards. Author Nicholas Coleridge skewers pretty much everyone in his story except those who are trying to do some actual good (not just some good for themselves), and even they come in for some gentle jibes. He has a good eye for the hierarchy: those who made their money 20 years ago get to look down on those still making theirs, and those whose ancestors made (and generally lost) their pile float somewhere above it all with their shabby rugs, mismatched tea sets from Victoria's reign, and incomprehension of why you'd want to go out and buy the latest t... morehing.
review 2: Literary critics have buzzwords. I've seen many books described as a "delightful romp" but never really related to it. Until now. There is really no other way to describe this book. It's the best time I've had reading in a long while! Just fun, fun, fun. This is the story of a greedy bon vivant and his family as well as the family of a nouveau riche chain grocer who has had the nerve to buy adjacent property to build a home that the main character, Miles, finds an offensive eyesore that obstructs his view. He declares personal war on this unsuspecting man, Ross, who always ends up getting the upper hand in every situation. Their families intertwine in complicated relationships that bother Miles. For all his self-importance and greed, the reader is just waiting for him to self implode and the book does not disappoint. The novel is lengthy but the length is relevant and not at all indulgent on the part of the author. He has created fully fleshed-out characters and has an acute understanding of the workings of modern big business that is relevant to the story. As it should be: the author, Nicholas Coleridge, is the Managing Director of Conde Nast in Britain. The novel is extremely well written. The numerous references to business would have normally put me to sleep, were they beyond my comprehension, but they were deftly integrated into the context of the story and did not seem contrived in order to accentuate Mr. Coleridge's business acumen. Probably if I had any criticism at all, it is that some of the situations, although charming and appealing, were pretty far-fetched. Not being knowledgeable about business myself, perhaps I can't fathom that a grocery chain could so quickly expand to include a budget fashion line, a chain of hotels, and even at the end, a make-or-break arena for new recording artists. For merely playing (and selling) the latest offerings in their stores, the supermarket is said to be among the 50 most powerful influences on the music scene. So it's a enticing read if not necessarily a fully believable one, and maybe all the better for it. The last chapter catches up with the characters and their lives and wraps it all up in a pretty bow, ending as you would have it end. I plan on reading the other two Nicholas Coleridge books, "Godchildren" and "A Much Married Man." You know how it is when you've just finished a very heavy tome and you just want to lighten up a bit and have some fun? This book is it. less

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