Review: The Flappers: Ingenue by Jillian Larkin

Huge thanks to Harriet at Random House Children's Books for being awesome and sending me a copy to review.

Power... love... scandal...
There’s never enough to go around.
In the city that never sleeps, Lorraine Dyer is wide awake. Ever since she exposed Clara Knowles for the tramp she was—and lost her closest confidante in the process—Lorraine has spent every second scheming to make her selfish, lovesick ex–best friend pay for what she did. No one crosses Lorraine. Not even Gloria. 
True love conquers everything—or so Gloria Carmody crazily believed. She and Jerome Johnson can barely scrape together cash for their rent, let alone have a moment to whisper sweet nothings in the dark. And if they thought escaping Chicago meant they’d get away with murder . . . they were dead wrong.
Clara was sure that once handsome, charming Marcus Eastman discovered her shameful secret, he’d drop her like a bad habit. Instead, he swept her off her feet and whisked her away to New York. Being with Marcus is a breath of fresh air—and a chance for Clara to leave her wild flapper ways firmly in the past. Except the dazzling parties and bright lights won’t stop whispering her name…
INGENUE is the second novel in the sexy, dangerous, and ridiculously romantic Flappers series set in the Roaring Twenties… where revenge is a dish best served cold.

I absolutely adored the first book in this series ‘Vixen’ when it was released earlier this year. And now, six months later I’ve finally got to see what happens next.

However the second book, whilst still showing a solid base and instalment in the series, had lost a little of its shine in the move from Chicago to New York. Whilst all the characters were intertwined in their small circle in Chicago, no one really meets each other (despite being in the same city) until the last section of the book, which left the first part of the book a little choppy and disjointed as we skipped back and forth between the characters and their very different lives.

The plot continued to move logically and coherently, building on the foundations that had been set up in ‘Vixen’ but sadly the characters did not always follow the same logic. There were abrupt moments where behaviour felt contrived and forced, especially with Clara, who still remains my favourite character of the book, and yet she swung back and forth so abruptly and became so selfish with her writing that I found has actions and motives a little less cohesive than they were in the first book. I still loved her story, and I really liked seeing her development and I’m really excited to see where this set up takes her to in the final book in the trilogy ‘Diva’ but I wasn’t as enthralled on the ride as I thought I would be.

The most natural storyline really went to Gloria and Jerome. I was thrilled with their relationship and how Larkin had handled it, so it was great to see this natural progression between the two of them as they’re forced to face the consequences of their actions. Larkin really plays on and highlights how taboo their relationship was, detailing the extreme lengths they have to go to with the flat, the problems with a white singer and a black piano player trying to get work and the tension and strain this puts on their relationship.
It was devastating at times, and uplifting at others, but I really feel that their story is the most fascinating and well concocted of the series. I can’t wait to see where Larkin goes from here with them and what happens next.

It was great to see a new voice and plot interwoven into this book in the form of Jerome’s sister who comes to New York to try and help save Jerome. We were introduced to her very briefly in the first book so it was really good to see her try and atone for her actions in the first book and make things right from the events she helped to set in motion. It was also great to see her find her own love interest in Evan (who we again met in the first book briefly.)

Lorraine continues to be a bit of an enigma. She swings back and forth so rapidly between being incredibly childish and selfish, to actually being half decent. I can’t really seem to get a handle on her, and I’m not quite convinced by her yet. If there was some foundation to her character, other than the fact that she’s selfish I find her storyline a little more interesting, but as it is I still haven’t warmed to her in the slightest.

However, with the final events that unfolded in this book she’s in a solid place to really take off in the final book and I really hope that we get to see her grow and develop and mature into the woman that we keep seeing glimpses of.

Ingenue is still a very good book. It’s a good instalment in the series, progressing the story along and setting up a great foundation for the final book in the trilogy. Sadly it just didn’t quite sparkle for me in the same way as the first book, but I still highly recommend the series and cannot wait to see what happens next.

Author Q & A with Jillian Larkin

One of my favourite new series out in the UK this year is The Flappers by Jillian Larkin. Ooozing sex appeal, fabulous jazz, and girls breaking free from tradition it's Gossip Girl set in the twenties, and absolutely fabulous. The first book in the series 'Vixen' is available now. And to celebrate, Jillian was kind enough to answer some questions about her writing and books.

"Your new book Vixen, the first in your debut trilogy, is out now in the UK, can you tell us a little bit about it?"

Vixen is the story of three girls—Gloria, Clara, and Lorraine—who come of age in the early 1920’s in Chicago. Gloria is engaged to her fiancé, Bastian, only she’s not entirely sure she wants to marry him … especially when a hunky musician named Jerome enters her life. Clara has a torrid past, but comes back to Chicago for a fresh start. But will her secrets be revealed? And Lorraine is a schemer who is in love with Marcus, Gloria's best friend, who doesn’t love her back. To what end will Lorraine go to capture his love?

To me, Vixen is about doing what you love to do (even when others don’t want you to—especially your parents). It’s about the thrill of falling in love, and the sadness of realizing that certain friendships and relationships you have won’t last your entire lifetime. It’s also about going out and partying and having a grand old time with dazzling music, gorgeous dresses, and sexy boys.

"What's been the most exciting part of the writing and publishing process for you?"

I have always loved reading, and having the chance to actually write and publish a novel—let alone three!—has been an incredible honor and joy. I am so excited for readers to meet the girls of The Flappers and fall in love with them as much as I have. It's the oldest cliché in the book when a writers says that the characters on the page seemed to come to life for her, but it's true: Sometimes even I was surprised by what Lorraine or Gloria got up to! I hope readers find them as strong-willed and fun to read about as I have.

 

"And what has been the most challenging?"

The fear of disappointing readers. The first book, Vixen, was so well received here in the States that I worried whether readers would embrace Ingenue with as much love and fervor. I really mixed it up in the second novel—I'd added a new viewpoint character! I'd moved the action to Manhattan! I'd split up a key romance!—but it was a great relief to discover that my readers came with me and responded to the new viewpoint character and the events in the second novel with real glee. Now I've got my fingers crossed that they are as happy with how things wrap up in Diva.

"Was there anything specific that drew you to writing a trilogy set in the 20s?" 

I have always loved the 20’s, ever since watching Thoroughly Modern Millie as a kid. I love the music of this time period, the clothes and hats and style, and mostly I love that the fact that girls were truly starting to become independent and rebel against the image society had projected onto them. When I sat down to write my first book, Vixen, I knew the setting had to be the Jazz Age.

"A huge amount of research must have gone into these novels, was there anything you found most helpful to create the world?"

I went through lots of pictures and watched lots of movies from that era. I read The Great Gatsby and other wonderful novels. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York had an exhibit on clothing from the 20’s that I attended, which was incredibly helpful.

"Does anything in particular stimulate your writing, for example listening to a specific type of music?"

While I wrote The Flappers I had a constant stream of Bessie Smith, Scott Joplin, Robert Johnson, Duke Ellington—basically all the artists you can find on the Pennies From Heaven soundtrack and the Cotton Club soundtrack. So … yes, music! 

  

"What are your favourite books and authors to read for pleasure?"

I love reading books about the performing arts. I also love science fiction and fantasy. In the teen world, I love Lauren Kate’s Fallen series, and there are two exciting new books coming out in 2012 that I adore: Theo Lawrence’s MYSTIC CITY and Yelena Black’s THE DANCE DIABOLICAL. Readers, look out for these gems!

"Will you be doing any signings or tours in the UK?"

It’s harder for me to get out and meet fans like I did here in the US, which was fun and helpful to hear about what readers responded to. But I am thrilled that UK readers will get to meet these girls!

"What are you working on at the moment? And do you have any plans for books following this series?"

Even though I don’t think the girls’ stories are done yet, I have been working on something wildly different—set in the future! But like The Flappers, really lives in the heart of teen girls discovering who they are, what they want to be when they grow up … and who they want to date!

If you haven't yet discovered 'The Flappers' book one, Vixen is out in the US and the UK. Book two Ingenue is out in the US already and will be out in the UK later this year.