Hotel Vendome

Danielle Steel, without fail, always writes a cracking story. I never fail to be amazed or gasp out loud at the trials and tribulations she puts her characters through. While there is almost always a happy ending, the road to get there is full of hairpin bends and danger. Say what you want about her books, but I know I can continually rely on Danielle Steel to entertain me and take me to places I’ve never been.

Poor Sydney Wells, the heroine of Fall From Grace, is not exempted from the torment of Steel’s characters. Things start off badly for her when her husband dies unexpectedly. The problem is, he never changed his will to include Sydney and her stepdaughters want her out – now. She’s cast from a life of luxury to having very show more little in an instant. (If you’re thinking, oh this is like The Duchess – it isn’t. Completely different). Sydney is practical – she needs to liquidate what assets she has and re-join the workforce at 49. Fortunately, she happens to be sitting next to the owner of a cheap, ‘knock-off’ fashion house on a plane when it runs into trouble. Sydney spills the beans on her troubles and Paul Zeller offers her a job as a fashion designer. Her daughters are aghast at this and warn her not to, but it’s the only job Sydney can get. She’s not comfortable with copying designers’ work so closely, but she makes a good friend working at Lady Louise. Sydney’s life seems to be on the up, but everything comes crashing down again for her. This time she’s portrayed as a criminal. Can she fight her way out again?

I thought the writing style was really strong in this book. Sometimes I’ve found Danielle Steel’s books to be a bit halting in their sentences with occasionally big jumps in the narrative, but this was the best yet for me. It flowed really well and captured all the highs and lows of Sydney’s life. The emotion was very well done as Sydney negotiates unfamiliar territory. I liked how even when she hit rock bottom, there was always an element of resolve in her character – how could she work through it? Sydney also wasn’t your typical heroine – she’s older, divorced and widowed. At a time when society sees women in their fifties as being past their use by date, Sydney bucks that trend in a combination of necessity and determination. You could argue that she should have ensured her husband changed his will after their marriage but if she did, we wouldn’t have a story. (But in real life, make sure your affairs are up to date!)

Another great thing about Danielle Steel is the variety of topics and settings in her books. In Fall From Grace, we get a look inside the fashion world. It’s good and bad with the glimpses into Fashion Week but also makes you consider the ethics around ‘inspired by’ fashion at cheap prices. Is it right to nearly copy designer pieces and sell them for lower prices? What about intellectual copyright? What about those who can’t afford haute couture?

As always, this was a comfort read that doesn’t disappoint.

Thank you to Pan Macmillan for the copy of this book. My review is honest.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com show less

4 stars only because I loved leaning about the inner workings of a hotel... the story was a nice easy read but I found DS was very repetitive in her explanations of characters and it drove me crazy. The second half of the book was much better then I anticipated, loved the ending!

I've read many Danielle Steel's books since the 1980s and this one was not the best nor the worst but I'm biased and never read a book of hers that I didn't like.

The title says it all without giving it away of course. It wasn't your usual romance per se and it was sort of sad but it was fast reading as always and I enjoyed it. A lot of the sentences were repetitive and I didn't think it was necessary since I'm sure readers knew what the story line was from the beginning.

The ending was opened ended but we all know what happens at the end of her books. Romance, of course.

I listened this while driving. It helped pass the time of a long 14 hour trip.
Sydney had the perfect second marriage until her husband dies in a motorcycle accident and she learns that he has neglected to change his will. The step daughters get everything. Sydney has to be out of the house in 30 days. It has been 16 years since she has worked in the fashion industry and no one wants to hire her. except for a man who runs a knock off business. Her own daughters who are also fashion designers are irate because this man has stolen so many designs and has never shown any remorse. His answer is that the common woman can afford these *elite* designs at a much lower cost. Sydney accepts his explanation; however, her trust in him turns sour show more when he abandons her on a stealing charge.
This book is well written and flows smoothly. show less

The hotel was old, run-down. But to Swiss-born Hugues Martin, a young, ambitious hotelier trained in the most illustrious European traditions, it is a rough diamond, tucked away on a quiet, perfectly situated Manhattan street. After begging and borrowing every penny he can scrape together, Hugues purchases the building—and transforms it into one of the world’s finest luxury hotels.
Under Hugues’s tireless, exacting supervision, the Hotel Vendôme is soon renowned for its elegance, its efficiency, its unparalleled service and discretion—the ideal New York refuge for the rich and famous, as well as a perfect home for Hugues’s beautiful young wife and their daughter. But when his wife runs off with a notorious rock star, Hugues is show more suddenly a single parent to four-year-old Heloise—who will grow up happily regardless, amid a fascinating milieu of celebrities, socialites, politicians, world travelers, and the countless hotel employees who all adore her.
As the years pass, Hugues and the hotel are the center of Heloise’s life, a universe of unexpected mysteries and pleasures, crises and celebrations that make every day magical. She longs to follow in her father’s footsteps and one day run the Vendôme with him. New challenges mark her way: an unexpected romance for Hugues and her own journey to hotel school in Switzerland. The lessons she has learned at her father’s side, in their exciting upstairs/downstairs world, will carry her through it all, as they illuminate a story no reader will forget.
Welcome to the Hotel Vendôme. show less

Well, DS is usually a fun bit of guilty pleasure for me. Not so this time. The hotel setting was interesting; however, the characters did nothing for me. A father with no backbone + incredibly spoiled daughter + ambivalent girlfriend = disappointment.

Review first published on my blog: http://memoriesfrombooks.blogspot.com/2011/12/hotel-vendome.html

Hotel Vendome is the story of Hughes Martin, a hotelier and a single parent to his daughter Heloise Maritn. The story covers a span of about twenty years following Heloise from her toddler days to her early twenties. The book is set in New York city at the Hotel Vendome, which Hughes Martin owns and runs. This is their home and where Heloise is raised.

In typical Danielle Steel fashion, the book is about beautiful people and beautiful places and some trying circumstances. The central relationship in the book is that of father and daughter, and Hughes' attempts at managing his needs as an individual and responsibilities as a parent.

The best show more thing about Danielle Steel books is their predictability and the similar pattern they all follow. Predictable characters, predictable story, predictable ending. That is what her readers expect and look forward to. The books do not make you think or reflect or challenge. They serve the purpose of light, easy reading for a beach afternoon or a winter afternoon by the fire. show less