Since November 2009Book Review: Revenge by Sharon Osbourne
February 25th, 2010 by Leah
Amber and Chelsea Stone aren’t exactly what you’d call close – they might have grown up together but their childhood’s couldn’t have been more different. Amber was the apple of her mother Margaret’s eye while she had a real disdain for elder daughter Chelsea, who just adores her father. When Chelsea gets an acting part Amber was auditioning for, the rivalry begins and nothing will be the same again.
Amber’s career then takes another direction and goes off in a big way, while Chelsea’s begins to flounder and she loses her way a bit. Their mother Margaret only seems to care for Amber, and this grates on Chelsea. So when a man decides to come between the sisters and have them vying for the same thing, will they do the sisterly thing and help each other or is it every Stone for themselves? And just who is going to take the ultimate revenge?
Allow me to be honest. When I first heard that Sharon Osbourne was releasing a fiction novel, I was dubious and thought she would probably use a ghostwriter like a lot of celebrities seem to do… and I was right! Apparently Sharon created the characters, setting and scenes but a “co-writer” helped her to bring the story to the page (Little Brown rep. actually said this!). The co-writer has chosen to be anonymous however, so we’re not going to be finding out who should actually take credit for the book! It’s rumoured to be based on the Minogue sisters Dannii and Kylie. When the cover was released, I loved it straight away and thought it looked like a really fun read, I mean – what book with a glittery cover couldn’t be a fun read?! When it arrived in its shocking magenta envelope, it looked pretty special and I was excited to get stuck in.
The book begins with a glimpse into the rivaly of the sisters and immediately leaves you wanting to find out more which was a great beginning. I was so curious to find out why the sisters had such a hatred for each other and Osbourne develops this part of the story so slowly you don’t want to put the book down as you’re itching to find out what’s going to happen to the Stone sisters next. I was impressed by the writing, it seemed to flow well and sound good too, so I can’t complain on that front.
Her characters are well written too, quite brashy and forward but for the purpose of this story it works well. It’s a bonkbuster without a doubt – there’s a lot of descriptive sex in there, bad language, drug use and more in there so if you’re a tad prudish this probably isn’t the book for you. It didn’t bother me too much because it fits in with the feel of the book and doesn’t feel out of place which makes it more acceptable. The sex scenes don’t happen too frequently which makes them more believable, so when they do happen its for a reason and does add something to that part of the book.
The Stone sisters were great characters, and so very different that you can’t help but like both. Amber was slightly more shy and reserved for the larger portion of the book, and she seemed a little bit wet to me. I wanted her to stand up for herself against her mother, but when the book takes a turn in the middle, we see a different side to Amber and it was great. I enjoyed having 2 stronger female characters and perhaps wish that the change in her had happened sooner! Chelsea is the opposite of her sister, and we mainly see Chelsea when she’s lost her job on her soap and is a bit of a Z-list celeb who doesn’t care what anyone thinks anymore. As her character changes, I warmed to her so much more and loved the rivalry between the sister as it grew.
A part of the book that surprised me was the trip back to 1960’s London and the youth of their mother Margaret. When the book went back in time almost at the beginning, I was curious to see where this was going to go because I wasn’t sure if it was going to stay in the past for a quite a while but it soon becomes clear that there is a big purpose to this trip back in time, and it was fascinating reading. I liked that Sharon did this, and I think it was so well written, you can imagine these characters in the time period, and it was fun to read this. Although we see more of Margaret in the beginning, she rarely appears in the rest of the book which was a shame as I’d have liked to seen her a little more. Even so, the characters were all really well written and all had their place in the book, and there wasn’t too many of them either which was good.
Overall, I was really impressed with this, and far more than I had expected to be! It jets from London over to LA where it spends the rest of the book, and I loved sitting back and imagining the fabulous surroundings of the Stone sisters, and transporting myself into their world for a little while! The gorgeously glittery cover with its neon pink is going to attract attention, and it deserves it. The story kept me interested all the way through, and the characters were strong enough to carry the book until the end, with some twists and turns along the way too. It will make a great beach read for your summer holidays, and I’m pleased to be able to give this book 4 stars! Recommended!
I’d like to thank the publishers, Sphere, for sending me this to review.
Posted in 2010 releases, Book Reviews, Rating: 4/5 | 1 Comment »
I’m 3/4 of the way through this book it’s brilliant just alot of sex in it lol