A Black Tie Affair : All About Romance

A Black Tie Affair

Grade : C

This book had two things I really like going for it: it’s set in Chicago, and is filled with fashion. There’s a lot packed into this relatively short book and, until about two-thirds of the way through, I thought I would give it a much higher grade. Unfortunately, it fizzled out in the end, with a very disappointing big reveal.

Athena Smith has a very full life. She’s curator of costumes for a major Chicago museum, is arranging for an exhibit to raise money for a scholarship fund for a young assistant, and has an interest in a vintage clothing store with her sisters. While trying to get four vintage dresses for the exhibit, things go awry. Problem is, the dresses are owned by the wealthy Clayworth family.

Things are difficult between the Smith and Clayworth families. Athena’s father recently left his long-standing job with the Clayworths under questionable circumstances. Making things even more complicated is the fact that Athena’s first love was Drew Clayworth.

Nevertheless, Athena heads out to a top secret storage facility to examine the dresses. While looking at one, Athena begins to hallucinate, imagining she’s seeing not only the long-dead socialite who originally wore the dresses, but also Jackie Onassis. No, this isn’t a time-travel romance, it’s a case of toxic poisoning by fashion. As Athena is rushed to the hospital, Drew is contacted and is soon on his way for his first meeting with Athena in 15 years.

Drew and Athena fell in love when she was just 17 and he wasn’t a lot older. They broke up over 15 years ago, and haven’t spoken to each other in the intervening years. Drew still believes that Athena betrayed him and he has never forgiven her. However, when the two learn that the four costumes have been stolen from the storage facility, they agree to work together to find the dresses and Drew agrees to let Athena put them in the exhibit she’s preparing.

Drew is almost too good to be true. In addition to being gorgeous (a young Paul Newman look-alike) and filthy rich, he teaches sailing to underprivileged kids. However, he also has a reputation for having dated (but never seriously) gobs of women around the world. He’s also holding on to some long-standing guilt, believing himself responsible for convincing his parents to participate in a major international sailing event in which they died.

Despite its short length, there was a lot I liked about this book. The plot is complicated but interesting and the book has a wonderful feel of place for Chicago. I was a little nervous when I realized it was set there since I’ve read too many books that take place in towns I know that have horrible mistakes. This one got it right, featuring numerous settings around the city.

If you don’t care anything about fashion, you will hate this book. There are lengthy details about costumes, both in the museum collection and in the sisters’ store. I found them fascinating. In fact, I became so intrigued by the costumes and by Bertha Palmer (the long-dead Chicago socialite), that I spent an inordinate amount of time while reading the book, doing research on various Chicago history Web sites.

The character development was weak in comparison to the care taken in plot and setting. Ultimately, I’m just all over the map with this one. There are parts of it that I absolutely loved, while others were very disappointing. What finally did it in for me, was the big reveal about the reason why Drew and Athena broke up. Without going into details, it just seemed too minor a reason to carry the hurt over a 15-year period.

So, while I can’t recommend this book, I am definitely going to give the author another try. Athena’s sisters seem to be natural heroines for future books, and I will look forward to trying them out.

Reviewed by LinnieGayl Kimmel

Grade : C

Book type : Contemporary Romance

Sensuality : Subtle

Review Date : February 1, 2010

Published On : 2010

LinnieGayl Kimmel

My first memory is sitting with my mother on a blanket in our backyard surrounded by books and she is reading one of them to me. My love of reading was encouraged by my parents and it continues to today. I’ve gone through a lot of different genres over the years, but I currently primarily read mysteries (historical mysteries are my favorites) and romances (focusing on contemporaries, categories, and steampunk). When I’m not reading or working, I love to travel, knit, and work on various community projects.

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