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Summary:

Welcome to the Starlite. Let your true self shine.

1962. In the middle of Brooklyn Heights sits the Starlite: boutique dress shop by day, underground women's club by night. Started by the shop's proprietor after her marriage crumbled, Madeline's social club soon becomes a safe haven for women from all walks of life looking for a respite from their troubled relationships and professional frustrations. These after-hour soirées soon bring two very different women into Madeline's life--Elaine, a British ex-pat struggling to save her relationship, and Lisa, a young stewardess whose plans for the future are suddenly upended--irrevocably changing all three women's lives in ways no one could have predicted.

But when Madeline's ne'er-do-well ex-husband shows up again, the luster of Starlite quickly dampens. As the sisterhood rallies around Madeline, tension begins to eat at the club. When an unspeakable tragedy befalls their sorority, one woman must decide whether to hide the truth from the group or jeopardize her own hopes and dreams. Sure to appeal to readers of Kathleen Tessaro and Suzanne Rindell, Glimmer As You Can captures the heartbeat of an era and the ambitions of a generation of women living in a man's world--a world threatened by a wave of change.

Review

This was such an opportune significant time for all women for this novel to be released. Glimmer As You Can was a nostalgic but necessary read that leaves a deep appreciation for who we had to be to who we can be. Such a fitting title that embodies the representation of women that spanned different ages and positions in life. I found this to be a beautiful and engaging debut that placed me right there in the moment with these women.

Themed and separated by the women featured in the book, the setting in the early 60s, brings these gals on the cusp of the traditional roles of women teetering on the transitioning progressive cultural norms. What I absolutely loved and looked forward to as I got into the book was the social club. Living their lives with them and going through their experiences, this is where the book came alive for me. These women finding a common bond through their experiences allowed them the freedom to be and find themselves whereas beyond those walls it was considered taboo to the social norms. I loved the relationships they built between each other finding hope and strength to aspire to be more than what society defined them as was really drawing me in.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and appreciate the support of these women through their obstacles to be there for each other. This was definitely one that I feel you will appreciate the friendship and support of other women. I’d recommend checking this one out.