Sparkles

January 1, 2007
British novelist-screenwriter Bagshawe (The Go-To Girl
) updates '70s mega-business romance Scruples
with this internationally flavored fantasia on love, lies and shopping. After 13 years of marriage, jewelry magnate Pierre Massot suddenly disappears from his British-born wife Sophie's life. For seven more years, Sophie (née Roberts) stays in Paris raising son Tom and cowering before mother-in-law Katherine until, with her priest's blessing, she has Pierre declared legally dead and starts showing interest in the family business. Naïvely, she allows herself to be taken in personally and professionally by the new CEO, Gregoire Lazard, and finds herself fooled by the grasping overdressed Oklahoma-born PR executive, Judy Dean, who was Pierre's lover until he disappeared. Gradually, Sophie masters retail, the family and even loves again, but not without a lot of hard knocks. Jewels and couture (Sophie's a clothes horse) are described in more detail than the sex, while murder and betrayal in Mother Russia give this story of the rich and glamorous its dark side. But House of Massot shenanigans and the mystery of Pierre's disappearance don't put much rock beneath the glitter.

April 15, 2007
When wealthy French jewelry mogul Pierre Massot disappears, his dutiful young wife, Sophie, waits seven years before declaring him dead, even though her mother-in-law and her son, Tom, disagree with her decision. Sophie decides to become actively involved with the family jewelry empire, working to revitalize it and save it from ruin and takeover. While doing so, she deals with her son's anger, a conniving CEO, a handsome business rival, Pierre's former mistress, and shocking family secrets. Fans of thick, glitzy, and glamorous novels in the vein of Judith Krantz should enjoy this one by British novelist Bagshawe ("For All the Wrong Reasons"), though they may be momentarily confused by the unannounced flashbacks, distracted by the meticulous detailing of clothing and jewelry (lots of Chanel and brooches), and disappointed by the lack of sex scenes. Recommended for public libraries.Samantha Gust, Niagara Univ. Lib., NY

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