Sexy socialites, wily widows, and lonely hearts by Brenda Janowitz

Who doesn't love a little romance on Valentine's Day?  I'm a sucker for chocolate, hearts and all things St. Valentine.  But by far, my favorite thing for Valentine's Day is a great read.  Today I've got three for you: THE GIN LOVERS by Jamie Brenner, THE WIDOW'S GUIDE TO SEX AND DATING by Carole Radziwill, and a sneak peek of my latest, THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB.

THE GIN LOVERS by Jamie Brenner

Oh, how I loved THE GIN LOVERS by Jamie Brenner.  And I knew that I would from the killer first sentence—“It’s the party of the year, and it’s a funeral.”  The writing is amazing, the story, sexy and fast-paced, and it's filled with drama and smart period details.

THE GIN LOVERS tells the story of Manhattan socialite Charlotte Delacorte.  Living in the height of Prohibition and the rise of the jazz age, she wouldn’t know it, with her controlling husband and high society expectations.  When her wild sister in law comes to live with her after the death of her mother in law, Charlotte is introduced to the world of jazz clubs, speakeasies and a sexy, mysterious stranger.

The beauty of THE GIN LOVERS is that you can read it in any way you want.  It's available to read two different ways; you can either enjoy it piece by piece in six parts as the e-book serial or devour it whole as a paperback.  So far everyone I've recommended this book to has absolutely LOVED it, and I know that you will, too!

THE WIDOW'S GUIDE TO SEX AND DATING by Carole Radziwill

You may know Carole Radziwill from the Real Housewives of New York City, or you may know her from her moving memoir, WHAT REMAINS, but now you have a whole new way to love all things Carole: her debut novel!

I couldn't get enough of THE WIDOW'S GUIDE TO SEX AND DATING.  I devoured it in two days.  Impossibly sexy, and incredibly stylish, this is the perfect read for Valentine's Day.

When Claire Byrne's older, very famous husband dies in a freak accident (struck down by a falling Giacometti!), she finds herself in a role she'd never imagined before: widow.  Untethered from her secure Manhattan life, Claire must reinvent herself and embark on a new life.  One where her own writing ambitions aren't overshadowed by her famous husband's career, one where she can carve out her own place in Manhattan, and one where she may even find something that's always eluded her: true love.

Funny and oozing with charm, THE WIDOW'S GUIDE TO SEX AND DATING is a must read.  It comes out this Tuesday, February 11, just in time for V-Day!

THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB

And while we're on the subject of Valentine's Day, I'm finishing up edits on my latest novel, THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB.  It's the story of a woman who, after a few too many lonely vodka tonics on Valentine's Day, inadvertently starts an anti-love movement.

Some of you may remember this as my "trunk novel," the one that got away.  The novel I wrote, but never published.  Well, now the fabulous peeps at Polis Books have decided to correct that grievous wrong, and THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB will be making its e-book debut on your e-readers in just  a few months.  But since it's Valentine's Day, I thought I'd offer a little treat.  A sneak peek at THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB.  Enjoy!

Chapter 12: Owner of a Lonely Heart

Valentine’s Day.  February fourteenth.  A day of love and romance and frills and doilies.  A day filled with chocolate in heart shaped boxes and all things pink and red.

Valentine’s Day is the day on which lovers freely express their passion for each other by sending flowers, candies, and insipid love notes.  Lots of love notes.  According to the Greeting Card Association, approximately one billion valentines are sent every year, making it the biggest card giving holiday besides Christmas.

Dozens of red roses are sent on this day and hundreds of couples get engaged.  Radio stations play love songs and bakeries bake heart shaped cookies.  February fourteenth is a day dedicated entirely to the pursuit of love.

It’s also the day that five of Al Capone’s men gunned down seven members of Bugs Moran’s gang with Tommy guns in a garage on Chicago’s North Side in 1929.  But people usually don’t send cards for that.

It being Valentine’s Day and me being alone, I do what any respectable single woman who’s utterly alone would do—I open a bottle of Stoli and order in some fried food from my local Italian place.

“That’ll be $32.15,” the hostess says after she’s tallied up my dinner delivery order. 

“But I get the same thing every time,” I say, pouring my first vodka tonic of the evening.  I pour way too much vodka into the glass, making it stronger than I intend it to be, but I’m not exactly drinking it for the taste this evening.  “Isn’t it $18 and change?”

“Oh,” she says, “Yeah, normally it is, but there’s an extra charge on all of the menu items for Valentine’s Day.”

“What?”  I say, since I must have misheard her.  There’s no way in hell that this girl just told me that even though I was ordering in for one, she was charging me extra because it’s Valentine’s Day.  In fact, since I’m ordering for one and it’s Valentine’s Day, shouldn’t I actually get a discount instead of a price increase?  The whole situation really brings out my Irish.  Being a Jewish girl from Long Island, I don’t really have much Irish in me, but it brings it out nonetheless.

“Oh,” she says, “I was just saying that there’s an extra charge on all of the menu items for Valentine’s Day.”

“But, I ordered for one,” I say, pacing around my kitchen with my glass as I speak, “Clearly I’m alone and it’s Valentine’s Day.”

“Yeah,” she says, “I know, it’s just that there’s an extra charge on all of the menu items for Valentine’s Day.”

“I heard you,” I say.  I take a big gulp of vodka.

“Okay, so, then it should be there in about 20 minutes,” she says, trying to get me off the phone.

“I ordered for one.” 

Dead silence on the line. 

“I’d like to speak to a manager,” I say, polishing off my first glass in just one large gulp. 

“Um, okay,” she says, “hold on.”

“Hi there,” the manager’s cheery voice announces, as I’m pouring vodka tonic number two.  To call this one a vodka tonic would be a bit of a misnomer.  Glass number two is more like a vodka with a splash of tonic.  “I’m Greg.  I’m the manager here.”

“Hi, Greg,” I say as I sit at the kitchen counter and swirl the glass to mix my drink, “I understand that it’s Valentine’s Day and that means that you have to gauge the eyes out of all the lovesick puppies that come into your restaurant tonight.  I would do the exact same thing, Greg.  The same thing.  I mean, fuck them, okay?  Fuck ‘em, Greg.  But, I am home—alone—ordering for one.  How dare you charge me extra for my goddamned Caesar salad and chicken parm.  Tonight of all nights.  I mean, what the fuck, Greg?  What the fuck?”

“You are absolutely right, miss,” manager Greg says to me as I down the second glass of vodka, “I’m so sorry.”

My Caesar salad and chicken parm arrive hot on my doorstep twenty minutes later, and the delivery guy presents me with the bill.  I glance at the bill, ready to pay, but then I notice something.  It’s not a bill for the usual amount—it’s a bill for the jacked up Valentine’s Day price.

“I’m not paying this,” I say, handing back the bill to the delivery guy.

“Um,” he says, shifting his weight from foot to foot.  “Whaddya mean?”

“I mean you can tell Manager Greg to go fuck himself,” I say.

“Um, wait?  What?”

I hand the delivery guy a tip.  “This is for you.  You can tell Manager Greg I’m not paying for this.  If he has a problem with that, he can come up here himself.”  I grab the bag of food just before I slam the door.

I barely even taste the chicken parm.  Minutes later, I realize that I must have eaten—the take-out container’s empty—but it’s like I didn’t even have a bite.  Anger coursing through my veins, my face getting hotter by the second, barely processing a thought.  Just seeing red.  Blinding red.  I look down at the take-out container and realize I’m still hungry.

But I don’t want to eat.  I want to rage.

Put it into a song, I tell myself, Get it out with your music.

But the words don’t come.  There’s no structure, no rhyme or reason—I just want to scream at the top of my lungs for a while.  To blow off the steam.

A tear comes to my eye as I think about everything that’s happened to me in the past few months.  All the things that I’ve lost, all the things that were totally out of my control.  The job, the guy, the freelance gig, the wedding. 

The guy.  My eyes burn as I force the tears back, refuse to let them out.

I look at my computer across the room, its black cursor against the pale white screen flashing in the dark.  Talking to me.  Beckoning to me.  Write.  Get it all out.

So I do.

I’m the author of SCOT ON THE ROCKS and JACK WITH A TWIST. My third novel, RECIPE FOR A HAPPY LIFE, was published by St. Martin's on July 2, 2013. My fourth novel, THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB, will be published by Polis Books this winter.

My work’s also appeared in the New York Post and Publisher’s Weekly. You can find me at brendajanowitz.com or on Twitter at @BrendaJanowitz.

Books I Loved This Year (and I hope you will too!) by Jenny Gardiner

I am always looking for that book. The one that leaves me wanting more. The one that makes me drop everything and read. The one I mourn when I've finished it. So I'm always seeking out recommendations for books, especially in that post- fabulous-book-lull in which you revisit the book and wish it hadn't ended. Which is where I am now, so I'm scouring our Girlfriends Book Blog for suggestions myself, too! But I also want to tell you some books I've really enjoyed that I hope you'll find enchanting/interesting/fascinating/compelling/unputdownable. Tangled, by Emma Chase I'm amazed at how well this author nailed the voice of a narcissistic male. I was so certain it was written pseudonomously by a guy, so quick shocked to see the author picture and she is decidedly not a he. Funny writing, great dialogue, loved the voice. Man Alive! Mary Kay Zuravleff This is quirky, I'll warn you. But in a good way. The outwardly perfect family starts to crumble when the titular head, the wise father, is struck by lightning while inserting a coin in a parking meter. Zany behavior ensues. It's funny yet serious, and definitely a bit out there. The author is masterful with word play, which is something I love. She's a gifted writer, indeed. What Alice Forgot Liane Moriarty I love Liane Moriarty's books because they make me think. And this certainly did, about a woman who wakes up in a do-over of sorts. She's got a great voice and engaging writing style. The Husband's Secret Liane Moriarty Again, loved this book. Moriarty has such a great premise for this novel: what if you found out something so unbelievable about your wonderful husband. Then what? A compelling read. Crazy Little Thing Tracy Brogan Loved her voice, just a fun writer Beautiful Ruins Jess Walters Fabulous story set against a backdrop of the Cinque Terre in Italy, my favorite country. Imagining a huge backstory set during the filming of Cleopatra back in the 60's. Terrific read. Making Waves Tawna Fenske Fun voice, very engaging writing. The Anatomy of Peace: Resolving the Heart of Conflict The Arbinger Institute I'm not much for non-fiction, but loved this book, written by two men, one Israeli, one Palestinian, who both lost fathers to their "enemy" during wars in their lands, and who joined forces to help troubled children figure out their lives. Wonderful book, shows you the power of possibility Eat Cake by Jeanne Ray Always love her books Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain I'm in the midst of this book right now. I'd read a recommendation by Maria Semple, whose writing I adore, but then it got lost in my kindle and I forgot about it. Fabulous read, terrific writing, terrific storytelling. Where'd You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple Such a talented writer and storyteller -- go read this book! You'll love it! Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo Wow, non-fic that reads like a novel. Boo went undercover in a Mumbai slum and knits the tale of several families together. Heartbreaking but unputdownable. Erasing Death by Sam Parnia I got so into this concept, by a doctor whose devoted his career to what happens when people die and are resuscitated. Amazing insights. And of course there are so many wonderful books written by my fellow Girlfriends. This is such a diverse group of talented authors, I just hate that I don't have time to read everyone's books in a timely way! And I don't want to forget anyone and I fear I'm going to. But in the past year I've read and loved books by Maggie Marr, Malena Lott, Brenda Janowitz, Leslie Lehr. And here are a few great escapist books: About That Night Julie James Susan Mallery -- any of her books Jill Shalvis -- any of her books Most overrated book, in my opinion? Wild, by: Cheryl Strayed. I'm sorry, but the woman was an idiot. Shooting up heroin just as she plans to depart for this lengthy journey, about which she did virtually no preparation? I don't buy it. (I will grant you, she's got writing chops, however).

Fighting for the underdog by Brenda Janowitz

It's so hard to get publicity for your books.  For every 50 Shades of Grey, there are about 50,000 other great books that get published and go un-noticed.  For each of my three books, I tried so hard to get the word out-- but I was never able to break into the pages of People or Entertainment Weekly, or any of the big publications that cover books. And the only way to sell books is, well, you know, to have people know that you actually wrote one.

That's why I was so thrilled when the wonderful Debbi Honorof offered me a mini book review column called Brenda's Book Briefs in Long Island Woman Magazine!  It was a no-brainer for me to accept the gig-- after all, I usually read a different book each week-- but then, I realized it could be bigger than just talking about the books that everyone else was talking about.  This gave me an opportunity.  I could champion the books I love, the authors I've fallen in love with, the ones who don't have a voice.

My first column was published yesterday, and I talked about the women's fiction novel NEW MONEY, by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal, an amazing writer who also writes Young Adult.

What do you think of the first column?  I hope to keep bringing you books written by the underdogs-- the ones who don't get coverage in People Magazine, the ones who aren't all over the NYT Book Review.  I hope you'll come along with me for the ride!

I’m the author of SCOT ON THE ROCKS and JACK WITH A TWIST. My third novel, RECIPE FOR A HAPPY LIFE, was published by St. Martin's on July 2, 2013. My work’s also appeared in the New York Post and Publisher’s Weekly. You can find me at brendajanowitz.com or on Twitter at @BrendaJanowitz.