Ana's Rating
Readers Rating
Stephanie loves the world of fantasy. Trix loves the real world.
The sisters battle for control of a lingerie company . . . for pajamas and lingerie . . . and for the Penthouse Man.
Reality catches up when Trix reads a letter that destroys Stephanie’s power. Trix is in love with her sister’s husband–the Penthouse Man.
The Penthouse Man is nowhere to be seen but his presence is felt everywhere.
A few months ago, I participated in a blog tour featuring Kea Noli’s first book, Pearl Lover. Although my review was far from complimentary, it sparked a friendship between me and Kea. And so despite the fact that Penthouse Man, in all if its adult-centered target audience, is way out of my comfort zone, I agreed to make an exception to my strict YA policy and read it. I’m glad that I did.
In this novel, Kea perfectly captures the intricacies of a family tied together by nepotism, cruelty and a unique and plainly hateful loyalty. Sure, there’s love, too, but the relationships based on ridicule and the sadism masked in polite humour are overbearing.
These ladies make up such an interesting cast of characters, too. All riddled with flaws, repulsive racism among them, they are malicious in their need to outdo each other. Leave it to Kea to present us with hopelessly disgusting people, force us to like them, and entertain us with their family dynamics. Because, the truth is, I love how deliciously unlikable the two sisters are– one an infantile drama queen who lives in an imaginary world, the other a conniving business woman whose family values are barely existant. At least the latter is a strong woman: a drastic improvement considering the nature of Nixie, Pearl Lover‘s protagonist.
I agree with many reviewers out there when I say that Penthouse Man is fast-paced, action-packed, and short enough to read in one sitting: the perfect recipe for a sizzling-hot play. This book is for you if you enjoy this kind of drama, or just nasty women in general. I do.4/5 stars.
I’ll keep you posted,