CRÈME VICTORIA

by Justin Daab ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 20, 2025

In Daab’s novel, two half-brothers battle to take control of their father’s mega-successful cosmetics company.

Initially, the two brothers are unaware of each other’s existence. Kenny Baines is an eighth-grade science teacher at the local junior high school in Middlebury, Vermont. He is going about his ordinary morning routine when he hears that a man sharing his last name—the CEO of one of the UK’s largest privately held companies, Victoria Cosmetics—has died. Almost immediately, he is whisked away to London, where he learns that this man was his father, who decided to leave his entire estate to his “most deserving son,” either Kenny or the ultra-posh, spoiled Alistair Baines. This revelation shocks both brothers, especially Kenny, who did not know he had a sibling or a living father—his mother had told him that his father died when he was young. As stipulated in the will, both brothers are appointed Co-Vice Presidents of Innovation at the company for one year, after which time the board will vote to determine which brother “exhibits the greater ability to make the world ‘a more beautiful place.’ Winner takes all.” Kenny receives his father’s Aston Martin and a new Savile Row wardrobe, though it doesn’t quite suit him: “There I was. Kenny Baines, newly minted co-owner (sort of) of a cosmetics empire, proud possessor of a car that cost more than my house, and about as comfortable as a cat in a washing machine.” From the start, the deck is stacked against him; the board is considerably unenthused about an American taking over their company (especially one with no business experience). To make matters worse, Alistair’s half of the company contains the profitable part of the business, while Kenny’s portion “could best be described as, the dregs.” Kenny’s odds of winning are estimated to be roughly one in a million, but he eventually finds an ally in Thaddeus Wong, the owner of a Hong Kong–based cosmetics company and the second-largest shareholder in Victoria Cosmetics after the brothers. With Wong’s guidance, Kenny adopts the practice of MBWA, or “management by walking around,” meeting with employees lower down in the company hierarchy to gain a clearer picture of operations. From these conversations, he begins to piece together a plan that might give him a real chance to succeed.

While the set-up reads like that of a classic 1980s slobs-versus-snobs comedy, Daab throws enough curveballs into the mix to keep the story from becoming too formulaic. There are fun and fully-realized side characters, like Nelly, the blind busker and comedic soothsayer; Mrs. Bellingham, who memorably describes herself as “one part ninja, one part Aunt Jemima, with a splash of Walter White”; and Lily Watson, a mad scientist in the R&D department who has developed a new, unconventional cosmetic line that makes skin appear younger and fresher. Daab deftly mixes Kenny’s witty first-person narration, funny back-and-forth dialogue, and deadpan observations (“It was about profit. About maintaining the status quo. About selling more stuff, even if that stuff wasn’t as good, or as clever, or as genuinely useful as it could be. It was, I realized with a sinking feeling, a business”), keeping the laugh rate high even if the momentum dips a little in the final third.

A consistently funny and breezy read.

Pub Date: July 20, 2025

ISBN: 9798292943259

Page Count: 175

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL FICTION