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The Grace Kelly Dress

A Novel

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
"Exactly the type of book I love: charming, smart, and brimming with heart."—EMILY GIFFIN, #1 New York Times bestselling author of All We Ever Wanted
"Fast paced and entertaining from beginning to end."—KRISTIN HANNAH, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Nightingale
Two years after Grace Kelly's royal wedding, her iconic dress is still all the rage in Paris—and one replica, and the secrets it carries, will inspire three generations of women to forge their own paths in life and in love.
Paris, 1958: Rose, a seamstress at a fashionable atelier, has been entrusted with sewing a Grace Kelly—look-alike gown for a wealthy bride-to-be. But when, against better judgment, she finds herself falling in love with the bride's handsome brother, Rose must make an impossible choice, one that could put all she's worked for at risk: love, security and of course, the dress.
Sixty years later, tech CEO Rachel, who goes by the childhood nickname "Rocky," has inherited the dress for her upcoming wedding in New York City. But there's just one problem: Rocky doesn't want to wear it. A family heirloom dating back to the 1950s, the dress just isn't her. Rocky knows this admission will break her mother Joan's heart. But what she doesn't know is why Joan insists on the dress—or the heartbreaking secret that changed her mother's life decades before, as she herself prepared to wear it.
As the lives of these three women come together in surprising ways, the revelation of the dress's history collides with long-buried family heartaches. And in the lead-up to Rocky's wedding, they'll have to confront the past before they can embrace the beautiful possibilities of the future.
Look for these other captivating novels from Brenda Janowitz:
  • The Audrey Hepburn Estate
  • The Liz Taylor Ring

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      • Kirkus

        January 15, 2020
        A wedding dress designed in 1958 Paris is passed along the generations in this three-part story about the women who wore it to walk down the aisle. This is the tale of one wedding dress. One-third of the story follows its design and construction by Rose, a hardworking seamstress and orphan who creates the dress for Diana Laurent when Madame Michel--the head of the atelier where Rose works--suddenly dies without naming a protégé to take over the business. The daughter and granddaughter of the original woman who wore the dress adapt it in two subsequent generations to make it their own. College-student Joan inherits the dress from her mother, and one-third of the book details her ill-advised engagement in 1982 to a man she doesn't particularly care for even though she longs for a grand wedding and the inclusion of so-called "Princess Diana sleeves" on the dress. The remaining third of the book details successful video game app developer Rocky's wedding planning in 2020 as she prepares to marry her love, Drew, a venture capitalist, and her inheritance of the dress, which she does not want to wear. Author Janowitz (The Dinner Party, 2016) has created a frothy story where unlimited money and love flow freely. The tale touches ever so lightly on weighty issues--drug use and overdoses, death, infidelity, a quest to find a birth mother, and gay rights. Joan's story has the most depth, but it hangs together uneasily with Rose's and Rocky's as a result, as it is a much earthier exploration of self, autonomy, and maturity than is offered by the other two stories. A story for fans of happily-ever-after, where love and acceptance resolve every problem and money is no object.

        COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

      • Booklist

        January 1, 2020
        Three generations of women wear a wedding dress and make it their own, mirroring their own romantic struggles and triumphs, in this sweet family drama. Seamstress Rose is a struggling orphan in 1958 Paris. She lands a job in Madame Michel's atelier and her sewing skills soon earn her Madame's admiration. Unexpected circumstances force Rose to take a greater role in the atelier and alter her life's course. Joanie, still hurting after the sudden death of her older sister, is beyond excited to wear the dress for her upcoming wedding to college beau Matthew?as long as she doesn't think too hard about why she is more excited to wear the dress than she is to marry Matthew. Joanie's daughter, Rachel, is as tough as her nickname Rocky implies. Rocky is a tattooed tech CEO and is not excited to continue the tradition of the dress. Alternating between the timelines of the three women, Janowitz gives each of them a unique voice and weaves a delightful tale of mothers and daughters and the delicate balance of keeping tradition while still forging your own path.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

      • Kirkus

        January 15, 2020
        A wedding dress designed in 1958 Paris is passed along the generations in this three-part story about the women who wore it to walk down the aisle. This is the tale of one wedding dress. One-third of the story follows its design and construction by Rose, a hardworking seamstress and orphan who creates the dress for Diana Laurent when Madame Michel--the head of the atelier where Rose works--suddenly dies without naming a prot�g� to take over the business. The daughter and granddaughter of the original woman who wore the dress adapt it in two subsequent generations to make it their own. College-student Joan inherits the dress from her mother, and one-third of the book details her ill-advised engagement in 1982 to a man she doesn't particularly care for even though she longs for a grand wedding and the inclusion of so-called "Princess Diana sleeves" on the dress. The remaining third of the book details successful video game app developer Rocky's wedding planning in 2020 as she prepares to marry her love, Drew, a venture capitalist, and her inheritance of the dress, which she does not want to wear. Author Janowitz (The Dinner Party, 2016) has created a frothy story where unlimited money and love flow freely. The tale touches ever so lightly on weighty issues--drug use and overdoses, death, infidelity, a quest to find a birth mother, and gay rights. Joan's story has the most depth, but it hangs together uneasily with Rose's and Rocky's as a result, as it is a much earthier exploration of self, autonomy, and maturity than is offered by the other two stories. A story for fans of happily-ever-after, where love and acceptance resolve every problem and money is no object.

        COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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