Candace Bushnell

Killing Monica despite the violent nature of the title, is a wonderfully warm and witty romp through a writer’s eyes. It takes in the hit series of movies created from the author’s books, the actress who rose to stardom and the shoes…hang on, doesn’t this all sound a bit familiar? PJ Wallis (aka Pandy) created the story of Monica, the girl’s guide to being a girl for her sister growing up. As a struggling writer in New York City, she penned the story of Monica which became an show more instant success. Monica then became a movie, starring SondraBeth Schnowzer and then there were the inevitable follow-ups. Monica is the girl every woman wants to be with the reveal of her shoes a closely watched event each year.

If you’re thinking that this could be a thinly veiled version of Sex and the City, you don’t get a prize. It’s spelled out for you on the cover that Bushnell is the author of Sex and the City and everyone knows Carrie Bradshaw and her shoe closet. Don’t diss this book as SATC in cloak and dagger form though because you’ll miss out on this crazy, witty story that marks Bushnell as an excellent comic writer. Like me, you might be used to Bushnell’s books being about social climbing, intricate relationships and the wonderfully named characters. I was a little concerned reading this back to back with Everybody Rise, but I shouldn’t have been. Killing Monica is a new direction for Bushnell and in my opinion, a successful one. There’s no social climbing, but there are some very interesting relationships and given PJ’s given name is Pandemonia, there’s some awesome names too.

I think given the subject of the story – that Pandy’s creation of Monica has taken over her life and been responsible for losing a great friend and her marriage – it’s easy to make comparisons with SATC. While I am a fan, I’m not a big one (sorry, I prefer Clarkson-era Top Gear) and it was easy for me to separate the real life events from the story. The plot is fast moving and easily carries you away. Bushnell also has the ability to know what her reader wants, so just when you’re thinking, ‘but I want to read about how Pandy and SondraBeth were such crazy best friends’, she’ll deliver. Just as the plot is getting a bit sad (Pandy’s new book is rejected, meaning she can’t settle with her very nearly ex-husband), the story moves to the glittering days of Monica, when all was new and brilliant.

The overall theme is how Pandy’s creation now defines who she is. Everybody wants Monica, not Pandy (even though Pandy repeatedly says that she is the original Monica). Nobody wants to hear what Pandy has to say unless it’s about Monica. Everyone puts Monica into conversation with Pandy (should try get divorced? Wouldn’t online dating be hilarious for Monica to try?). Hence, there’s only one thing to do to get Pandy back – kill Monica. The plan comes to fruition in bizarre circumstances and Pandy, in a daze, rolls with it. What starts off as a misunderstanding grows to King Kong sized proportions (or should I say giant Monica proportions) and it’s one hell of a crazy ride. It does require you to suspend disbelief and enjoy it for its comic nature. Perhaps one of the reasons why some people didn’t like this is because it’s meant to be crazily funny, not sedate and realistic. Another could be the inevitable parallels with Carrie and SATC. I think if you can separate them, you’ll enjoy this book. The characters, while not particularly likeable (SondraBeth in particular has some huge WTF moments) are instrumental in creating the constant drama. . It’s outlandish fun, written well and certainly without a dull moment.

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This was a fun and bubbly read about Carrie discovering NYC.

I really loved that this was set in the 80s. Reading this was different than reading about other stories about girls trying to make it in the city because it lacked the technology that so often colours it all. Getting the little cultural tidbits was just so much fun, from the very beginning.

Seeing Carrie struggle through her writing process felt very real, and at the same time her confidence was highly entertaining to see. She knows show more that she can be a brilliant writer and isn't afraid to brag about it, but she has several pegs knocked down over the course of the book.

I loved the relationship she gets involved in. Or rather, I hated it, but I loved hating it and seeing how it developed and how Carrie and her friends viewed it was so much fun to read.

This could definitely be classified as new adult, but lacks the tropes NA is usually guilty of, and I highly recommend it for all older fans of YA. show less

Forget everything you’ve ever seen connected to the TV show and movie, for the book Sex and the City is like entering a different world. Sure, all the familiar characters are there at least in name and the show even lifted some of the dialogue word for word (including my favorite moment in the whole show, “Abso-fucking-lutely”), but that is where the similarities end. The characters of Bushnell’s Sex and the City are cynical, jaded, and more fond of cocaine than their HBO show more counterparts. Unfortunately, this cynicism makes the ladies kind of unlikeable. There isn’t the idea of true love in Bushnell’s columns, just the idea of finding someone you can stand for a while. So while the humor is still there, the optimism related to relationships which is so crucial in the TV show, isn’t present, so it makes a lot of the situations in the novel more depressing than funny. The worst element though of the novel is Bushnell’s protrayal of women relationships. There are no true friendships in Bushnell’s world, just surface girlfriends who are more jealous than supportive. Which is a shame, since that’s probably the reason most women watch the HBO show. So while Sex and the City provides a couple of laughs, I can’t really recommend it to anyone except maybe die hard fans of the show who wish to see how it all began (even if it is kind of unrecognizable). show less

Marin's English teacher-- her favorite and her advisor for her role as co-editor of the student newspaper -- grooms her and takes her to his home and kisses her. She backs away and walks home. Her healthy, believably confused responses to this event kick off an opening of her eyes to many wrongs in the world, and relational shifts between her and many of her peers. Her parents, once she talks to them about it, are very supportive. Her school fumbles its investigation, leaving Marin exposed show more to gossip, exclusion, and having to sit in said teacher's class. Fortunately, a female teacher at her school comes alongside Marin right at the beginning of Marin's awakening and is there for Marin as Marin starts a feminist book club. So there's support for her at school as well.

Chloe, Marin's best friend, parts ways with Marin. At first it seems Chloe just doesn't want to make waves, but we later learn that the predator teacher has taken things much farther with Chloe. Chloe and Marin together publish an editorial calling anyone else abused by him to come forward, and they do, so the school finally removes him from his position.

This book might trigger some folks. It could also prevent some abuses by showing potential victims how a predator operates. And it would be a good discussion starter for all kinds of people about the way the adults and the students in the book react to events.

My description of the book makes it sound dull, but it reads like a chatty YA novel. The one things I didn't like about it for teens is how very much alcohol these kids drink. I suppose it makes the book seem "cool," but it also makes it seems like you have to drink, starting around 14, to be cool. show less