Seating Arrangements

Author: Maggie Shipstead
Stars: 1
Review by: Saraswati
I picked this debut novel due to all the hype about it. I was very disappointed and it took me forever to finish.   This is a book about a family that "want to be aristocrats in a country that was not suppose to have aristocracy."  This book was filled with characters whining about how life didn't give them everything they deserved just because they are who they are.  1st world syndrome at its best.  How can you feel sorry for a character that was turned down at a country club because the club didn't like them? Meanwhile, he belonged to many others.  How do you engage with characters that can't understand why life isn't always roses?  I have enough true reality to keep me occupied.  I don't need a hedonistic fake one to keep me entertained.  This book just did not stand up to the hype.