9/10/24; 301 pages
Lake Union Publishing
The Essential Elizabeth Stone by Jennifer Banash is a highly recommended domestic drama about a Martha-Stewart-like character and her daughter.
Through her renowned parties, books, and TV show, Elizabeth Stone was a food and lifestyle icon for thirty years before her sudden death. She left her
multimillion-dollar empire
to her daughter, Juliet. A year later Juliet is still mourning the loss
of her beloved mothers and is struggling to fill her mother's shoes.
The company is in financial trouble and the idea of writing the definitive biography of her
mother is set forth as a way to keep the company solvent.
While researching her mother's past with writer Noah Sharpe, he
discovers that Elizabeth Stone never existed and the story she often
told about her childhood in Bar Harbor, Maine, was a fabrication. The
two set out together to discover who Elizabeth Stone really was. They
find out she was originally Billie (Elizabeth) Abbot and did not come
from a life of privilege. She worked her way up from nothing to become
the entertainment brand known across the world.
The narrative alternates between chapters following Juliet's research into her mother's past and chapters set in the past as Billie struggles to make her way in the world. The alternating viewpoints works out quite well in the plot and will keep interest high in both time lines. It makes a clear point that secrets and lies are not always what they seem to be and not always devious.
With each new fact, emotional details, and surprises uncovered, Juliet's emotions are expertly captured and shared. Billie's emotions are equally well presented. Readers will come to appreciate both of these complicated women, mother and daughter, and what they encounter along the way. Thanks to Lake Union Publishing for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.
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