The lives of two unlikely yet equally compelling women intertwine in Pulitzer's (Facade, 1992, etc.) latest glitzy gush, set...

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THE PALM BEACH STORY

The lives of two unlikely yet equally compelling women intertwine in Pulitzer's (Facade, 1992, etc.) latest glitzy gush, set in what has become her trademark community. NOKD (Not our kind, dear) photographer Meg MacDermott has arrived to shoot the rich and famous of Palm Beach in their natural habitat for a popular magazine. Entirely by accident she catches Ashton Kendall, a.k.a. the Countess Monteverdi, in a passionate embrace with a man who is not hubby Count Allessandro--and then finds herself suddenly on Ashton's good side and in the thick of the most exclusive social scene around. Since Meg's not only an exotic working woman but also a gorgeous babe, she attracts attention from men who don't care that she can't afford Chanel--the Count, for one, and Palm Beach's most eligible bachelor/party-boy, Ashton's cousin Spencer, for another. Meanwhile, Ashton, having been married to the most infamous adulterer on the island for years, finally meets a man who loves her not for her money (he's got much more than she does) but for herself: Hank Shaw, boy from the wrong side of the tracks who made better-than-good as a media mogul and who also happens to own the GL, the magazine Meg is on assignment for. All goes rockily for Meg and Ashton (if entertainingly for readers) until Pulitzer overextends herself: What she intends to be the meat-and-bones of her story--Ashton's brother Merritt's ties to the drug cartel and the mismanagement of the family trusts--is eclipsed entirely by the far more seductive charms of the rich and richer as they jump in and out of beds, mansions, boats, and ballrooms in attempts to find true love--as long as it comes with the right-sized bank account. As dangerous as a sugar high, with the predictable aftershock. Insider and real-life socialite Pulitzer dishes the dirt with customary zing--and an equally customary lack of substance.

Pub Date: Dec. 12, 1995

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1995

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