Publisher: Random House Audio
Published: June 1, 2021
Source: ALC via Libro.fm
Summary:
Four famous siblings throw an epic party to celebrate the end of the summer. But over the course of 24 hours, the family drama that ensues will change their lives will change forever.
Malibu: August 1983. It’s the day of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas: Nina, the talented surfer and supermodel; brothers Jay and Hud, one a championship surfer, the other a renowned photographer; and their adored baby sister, Kit. Together the siblings are a source of fascination in Malibu and the world over – especially as the offspring of the legendary singer Mick Riva.
The only person not looking forward to the party of the year is Nina herself, who never wanted to be the center of attention, and who has also just been very publicly abandoned by her pro tennis player husband. Oh, and maybe Hud – because it is long past time for him to confess something to the brother from whom he’s been inseparable since birth.
Jay, on the other hand, is counting the minutes until nightfall, when the girl he can’t stop thinking about promised she’ll be there.
And Kit has a couple secrets of her own – including a guest she invited without consulting anyone.
By midnight the party will be completely out of control. By morning, the Riva mansion will have gone up in flames. But before that first spark in the early hours before dawn, the alcohol will flow, the music will play, and the loves and secrets that shaped this family’s generations will all come rising to the surface.
Malibu Rising is a story about one unforgettable night in the life of a family: the night they each have to choose what they will keep from the people who made them…and what they will leave behind.
My thoughts:
This is only the second book I’ve read, or in this case listened to, by Taylor Jenkins Reid. A few years back I read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and to this day, that remains one of my favorite books. I keep saying I’m going to read more of her books and I’m glad I finally had the chance to do so.
This latest one of course appealed to me because it’s the story of siblings and we all know I love books about siblings. There was so much to enjoy about this one – it’s set in Malibu in the 1980s and it’s about a surfer/rocker family. I found the dynamics between the siblings to be so incredibly interesting and loved how the book was structured – taking place over the course of one day, but also flashing back to the siblings’ parent’s relationship years earlier.
This book kept me engaged and while there are a ton of characters involved, I really had no issues keeping everyone straight. Like any good gossip magazine, I loved watching all the secrets unfold and found myself glued to the story for just this reason – the party really was quite the mix of drama and scandals galore.
There really is something so compelling about the way TJR tells a story and while this latest one doesn’t quite knock Evelyn Hugo off my number one, it was still very enjoyable and I do look forward to reading more of her books.
Audio:
Of course, when I saw that Julia Whelan was narrating this one I knew I had to listen to it – she is one of my favorite audio book narrators and she really made this story come to life!
