Fiction Books Bay

Candace Bushnell

“It was part of the pain of living in Manhattan, this overwhelming ache for prime real estate,” writes Bushnell in her first novel since Lipstick Jungle (2005). Two events throw the inhabitants of One Fifth Avenue, Manhattan’s ritziest address, into a tizzy: the return of beautiful actress Schiffer Diamond, and the death of Louise Houghton, who owned the building’s swankiest apartment. Gossip columnist Enid Merle and her dashing nephew Philip Oakland think Louise’s now-available three-story apartment should be divided up, while ambitious Mindy Gooch, whose husband is on the cusp of literary stardom, wants it sold to a high bidder. Mindy gets her way, and nouveau riche couple Paul and Annalisa snap it up for $15 million. But when Mindy refuses to let Paul install a wall-unit air conditioner, he declares war, inciting a conflict that draws in all the residents of the building. Other characters include a scheming Lolita type who tries to sleep her way into One Fifth and a penniless male socialite who has aspired to One Fifth for decades. Devotees of Bushnell’s megahit Sex in the City and fans of New York–aimed satire will enjoy this scathing all’s-fair-in-real-estate novel.

(September 22, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1401301614
ISBN-13: 978-1401301613