Rouge: A Novel of Beauty and Rivalry

By Richard Kirshenbaum

St. Martins     2019

320 pages    Historical Fiction

This is a fun romp through the early days of the cosmetics industry, loosely based on the rivalry of Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden. Kirkus calls it “a vivid portrait of glamorous, feisty women contending for the crown of cosmetics queen.” I had just seen the musical War Paint, about the lives of Rubenstein and Arden, when the advanced copy of Rouge came to me, so I had a great time comparing plot lines. Loved War Paint; loved Rouge.

Here is the description from the publisher.

“Rouge is a sexy, glamorous journey into the rivalry of the pioneers of powder, mascara and rouge. It gives readers a rare front row seat into the world of high society and business through the rivalry of two beauty industry icons (think Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden).

This fast-paced novel examines the lives, loves, and sacrifices of the visionaries who invented the modern cosmetics industry: Josiah Herzenstein, born in a Polish Jewish Shtlel, the entrepreneur who transforms herself into a global style icon and the richest woman in the world, Josephine Herz; Constance Gardiner, her rival, the ultimate society woman who invents the door-to-door business and its female workforce but whose deepest secret threatens everything; CeeCee Lopez, the bi-racial beauty and founder of the first African American woman’s hair relaxer business, who overcomes prejudice and heartbreak to become her community’s first female millionaire. 

The cast of characters is rounded out by Mickey Heron, a dashing, sexy ladies' man whose cosmetics business is founded in a Hollywood brothel. All are bound in a struggle to be number one, doing anything to get there…including murder.”

Rouge begins in the early part of the 20^th century and closes near the end of the century. The characters are richly developed and the rivalry daunting. One interesting true fact about the cosmetics industry was that Victorian women did not wear makeup, and the inventors of the industry had to fight the stereotype that only hookers wore makeup. But under the guidance of these forthright (and also conniving) women, soon every woman in America was wearing makeup,and the novel’s two protagonists had become rich beyond measure.

Kirshenbaum is an advertising executive/author. His specialty is writing about the one percent that live in his neighborhood. Kirshenbaum must have had a great time recreating wealthy Manhattan through the eyes of Josephine, Constance, CeeCee and the others as they built their beauty empires. The reader finds herself thrust into the very heart of the city, its shops, and its nightlife. As one reviewer said, “it’s glitz, greed, and glamor.”  

Rouge is released tomorrow. Get a glass of wine, grab a lawn chair, settle down by the pool and enjoy.

Where the Crawdads Sing

By Delia Owens

Putnam     2018

384 pages     Literary

Despite some implausibility, which my book club friends were happy to point out at book club last night, I absolutely loved Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. Primarily, I was entranced by the descriptions of the marshlands of the Outer Banks and how Kya Clark learned to live by herself and become an expert in the life of the marsh.

When Kya was a small child, her mother walked away from the shack in the North Carolina marsh where the family lives, unable to endure her abusive husband any longer. All the children leave as well, leaving Kya alone with her drunken father. When her father leaves for good, Kya must fend for herself. As she grows, she becomes a sort of mystical character to the residents of the small nearby village. Called “the marsh girl”, she successfully is able to fend off attempts to get her to go to school, get sent to an orphanage, or in any way become part of the community.

As much as Kya hides from society, she misses human contact. Tate, a brilliant young man of the village, becomes her primary contact with other humans. He loves the marsh as much as she does, and over several years, he teaches her to read and write and study the environment. Additionally, a black couple who run the convenience store and gas station become the people who seem to watch out for her the most and protect her.

The story-line weaves back and forth between Kya’s growing up in the 50s and early 60s and the death of a young man in the village. Chase has been Kya’s off- and-on lover, and after his apparent murder, Kya is accused of causing his death. The trial is absolutely breath-taking. I found myself having to pace my reading and my breathing. The climax of the book is equally heart-stopping.

The parts of the book where Kya learns to forage, to live off of nature, and observe everything around her are so beautifully and skillfully written that I became completely enmeshed in the imagery. I found myself underlining many passages beginning with the first paragraph. “The morning burned so August-hot, the marsh’s moist breath hung the oaks and pines with fog. The palmetto patches stood unusually quiet except for the low, slow flap of the heron’s wings lifting from the lagoon.” Or in an especially vivid description of the village, the author writes, “Mostly the village seemed tired of arguing with the elements, and simply sagged.” Can’t you just see it!

There are reasons why Where the Crawdads Sing has been at the top of the NY Times bestseller list for thirty weeks. Delia Owens spent many years as a nature researcher in Africa, so she can relate to the isolation of the wilderness, whether it be the Savannah or the marsh. In a very interesting interview, she mentions that she picked North Carolina as the setting for the novel because its temperate climate would allow for foraging all year. Owens has written several nonfiction books about Africa, but this is her first foray into fiction. Reese Witherspoon has picked up the rights. We’ll see what can be done to make it into a movie.

Murder in Bel-Air

By Cara Black

Soho Crime         2019

312 pages     Thriller

Murder in Bel-Air is the first Aimée Leduc Private Investigator mystery I have read. This is book #19. How is it possible that I have never met her nor visited the Paris she investigates? I looked back and realized that the publisher had sent me an advanced reader’s copy of the 2016 book, Murder in the Marais, but I hadn’t taken the time to read it. Ah well!

It was fairly easy to get into Murder in Bel-Air; it is not one of those series that the author has to spend several chapters bringing the reader up to speed. Aimée Leduc is the owner of a detective agency in Paris, and the novel is set in 1999, when technology is seeping into the world of crime, as well as the world of private detectives. 

Aimée’s American mother is a thorn in her side. A supposedly retired CIA operative, Sydney doesn’t seem to be changing her ways. She was scheduled to pick up her baby granddaughter, Chloé, from her play group, when she disappeared once again. Aimée is called by the day care, and she must leave a technology meeting, where she is to deliver the keynote address, in order to pick up her daughter. Everything goes downhill from there. Sydney is missing, and is somehow connected with the body of a homeless woman from a nearby soup kitchen. As Aimée searches for her mother, she gets caught up investigating a potential coup in the Ivory Coast, a creepy Legionnaire, and a cadre of international spies.

All this happens as Aimée stylishly swishes her way around Paris—places I knew about, but many places I wish I knew about. She wears her vintage outfits as well as the stylish outfits of her best friend, and always has high heels or classy boots on her feet. Several times a day, she checks in on Chloé, who has a variety of babysitters, all the while keeping in constant contact with Rene and Saq, who run the Leduc Investigations agency.

Although there are some slow spots, as soon as Aimée figures out what is going on, things start to move fairly rapidly, and it becomes a very fun page turner. There is a great final confrontation and a fitting denouement.

I loved all the French phrases and Paris scenes. I knew very little about the history of the Ivory Coast and its fateful relationship to France, which is one of the subplots. I also really enjoyed seeing an extremely skillful author weave all of Paris into the plotline. It was a very enjoyable couple of days.  

Here is an interesting look at Cara Black and the Aimée Leduc franchise over the last 20 years. Murder in Bel-Air was released two weeks ago.