Southern Charm

September 3, 2012
Reality show star Mortimer draws from her experience as a Southern belle in New York City society's limelight for her charmingly fluffy debut. Mary "Minty" Davenport is a wealthy socialite from Charleston, South Carolina. Since she was a little girl, she's been fascinated by New York City, and now that she's arrived to pursue a career in fashion, she wastes no time in grabbing the rungs of Manhattan's social ladder and starting to climb. Minty picks up with the same privileged circle she ran with in Charleston, including Tripp du Pont, her teenage crush. Though he broke her heart one youthful summer years ago, she never let the flame die, and Tripp appears to have also kept the candle lit. They kick off a whirlwind and highly publicized courtship, and despite warning signs of his unfaithfulness, Minty and Trip marry. But as the relationship begins to show its true colors, Minty must reckon with what she really wants out of her new life in NYCâand whether her husband is really the One. Mortimer's entrée into fiction isn't particularly memorable, but readers will delight in watching Minty sweetly take on the Big Apple.

April 15, 2012
Minty Davenport leaves her charmed life in South Carolina to pursue a career in fashion in New York City, but her childhood, Eloise-fueled fantasies are a far cry from reality. Or, readers may ask, are they? Minty's New York is a magical place, where a woman can become a big name in fashion without knowing what Women's Wear Daily is or possessing any sewing skills. In Minty's New York, the roguish trust-fund baby (with the physique of a Division I athlete!) who broke her heart eight years ago is ready to make amends. Friends are not particularly kind, mean bosses lose business, and everything goes with Mary Janes by Manolo Blahnik. Mortimer's first novel will sound familiar to anyone who has followed her socialite lifestyle of southern upbringing, stylish mother, quick (and failed) marriage complete with disapproving in-laws, and even a handbag line. This reviewer would have preferred that Minty have a flaw or two (besides unrealistic naivete) or at least reveal some really salacious details. For readers who wished The Devil Wears Prada (2003) didn't have so many big words.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)