Getting to Happy

July 5, 2010
Fifteen years after Waiting to Exhale, McMillan brings back Savannah, Gloria, Bernadine, and Robin—now in their 50s—for a disappointing and uninspired outing. As the story opens, Gloria is very happy, Savannah believes she might be happy, Bernadine is fighting addiction and losing ground, and single mother Robin is trying to resign herself to being alone while things at her job begin to unravel. Within the first few chapters, Gloria and Savannah are struck by disaster, and things go rapidly downhill from there for everyone. Most of the misery has to do with men who lie, steal, cheat, or disappear, or with adult children who face similar problems. Unfortunately, the beloved cast isn't given a story worthy of them; instead, this reunion reads like a catalogue of personal catastrophes annotated with very long, rambling discussions, with more emphasis on simple drama than character.

September 1, 2010

McMillan's sequel to her popular Waiting To Exhale picks up 15 years later in the lives of the four Phoenix friends—Savannah, Gloria, Bernadine and Robin—still looking for love and happiness as they hit middle age.

It's 2005 and each of the women is facing a crisis. Formerly overweight Gloria has found domestic bliss until her beloved husband dies in a drive-by shooting on their anniversary. Then she learns she's about to lose the lease on her wildly successful salon, and that her son Tarik's unlikable wife turns out to be a child-abusing, law-breaking adulteress. Gloria starts packing the pounds back on. News producer Savannah is newly lonely after divorcing her husband of ten years because she's bored with him, although his addiction to Internet porn also factors in. Instead of allowing her hard-up sister's troubled son to visit, Savannah treats herself to a jaunt to Paris, but not before she has a dream blind date with a handsome retired doctor. Shopaholic Robin is the never-married mother of 15-year-old Sparrow, a nauseatingly perfect daughter. (Actually, the fact that none of these women have children who talk back or rebel or disappoint like real children may be the real fantasy wish fulfillment for readers, not the sexy romances.) How Robin's salary as an underwriter affords her the luxuries and savings she has amassed is glossed over, but then her company downsizes her out of her job. Soon after reconnecting with a "blast from the past" who has shed 40 pounds to become the love of her life, she decides to become a teacher. Bernadine is still recovering from the annulment of her second marriage six years earlier. Her "husband" was a bigamist who swindled her out of a chunk of her alimony settlement from first husband John. She's closed her café and become addicted to pills, but John and their kids support her when she goes into rehab.

Full of sitcom moments and windy dialogue—aging chick lit at its most superficial. 

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

July 1, 2010
Men let you down, sometimes by accident but more often not, so don't rely on them for happiness. That's the message of this sequel to the 1992 blockbuster "Waiting To Exhale" which picks up the story of four smart, capable, black women—Savannah, Bernadine, Robin, and Gloria—15 years later. Now in their late forties and early fifties, the girlfriends have changes thrust upon them at a time in their lives when they had expected to be settled down with decent men, careers, and families—and, especially, no more nasty surprises or shocking revelations around the corner. The four friends support one another no matter what, offering encouragement and truth telling as needed. As in its predecessor, the bantering, snide remarks, earthy language, and sharp-tongued commentary of the women carry this book. Male characters get short shrift, but who cares? VERDICTFans of "Waiting To Exhale" many now middle-aged themselves, will want to cheer on the women in this sequel. ["Essence"magazine is running a four-part serial in its summer issues; film rights optioned.]—Laurie A. Cavanaugh, Brockton P.L., MA

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2010
Fifteen years after the success of Waiting to Exhale (including a film version), McMillan returns to her quartet of friends, living the black middle-class good lifewith all its ups and downsin Phoenix, Arizona. Savannah, who still narrates most chapters, is working for a local television station and slowly watching the thrill leach out of her marriage, which came late in life when shed given up on her prospects. Shes now facing the realities of dating in middle age (from Viagra to online dating services). Her friend Robin is raising a teenage daughter and is so stressed by her boring accountant job that shes hooked on shopping and an assortment of pills. Bernadine is recovering from the spectacular failure of her second marriage and coping with the knowledge that her daughter is gay. Gloria has a successful hair salon, beautiful grandchildren, and a wonderful marriage, until disaster strikes. Theyre all facing the challenges of midlife, disappointment in love relationships, the fear of starting over personally and professionally, and the constant worry over their now adult and adolescent children. Fans of McMillan will enjoy catching up with this ensemble of friends and, as this novel has been optioned for a movie, can look forward to seeing the transition to film.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)