1.5 Stars. Overplayed theme with un-relatable characters. It’s hard to want to root for any of them. Storylines were cheapened by being written off with convenient scenarios as opposed to digger deeper into personal details that would make them more likable. Also, the author tries to do math around the characters salaries and expenditures and some of it straight up makes no sense (Wendy’s husband blowing at least 500k on his projects through the book, a 12 sq ft bedroom)? Wild. 1.5 because there are two quotes about New York and success that I liked.

On one level, this is a bland enough book that would pass by the reader as soon as the book was put down. It tells us about three ruthless female executives in New York who "do lunch" together whilst in pursuit of the "American Dream". This apparently involved backstabbing, sniffing out more money, more backstabbing and generally acting completely immorally whilst looking for even more money again. One of the more poignant moments - and there are one or two - is when one of the characters questions what you actually do with all this money you can't spend. But the question is frivolously rhetorical - no attempt is made to answer it. I can't remember which character asks it because despite the author's best attempts to persuade us otherwise, I really can't distinguish between the three main protagonists of the novel. Even their assorted, constantly changing "other halves" generally merge into the same bland, faceless goo to be honest.

On another level though, the fact that a book like this can be written, obviously read quite widely, and can be repeated again and again by simply changing the names of the characters, the title of the book, the TV series or the film really should be quite disturbing. If our world is in a mess - and many would say in the second decade of the 21st century that it has been in better shape - then it's the fact that somehow our society allows people like this to run roughshod through it, answerable to no one except the mighty dollar (or Euro, or Pound or Yen etc.) which is at the root of many of our travails.

"The Great American Dream"? More like the dreadful worldwide nightmare.

A story of three successful New York Woman in their early 40s who know exactly what they want : Love, passion, power and a lot of money.

Victory Ford, an elegant and determined fashion designer, awaiting the fate of her latest innovative collection during fashion week. However, she is annoyed by the fact that no matter how successful she is in her profession, society will dem her failure as long as she remains single.

Wendy Healy, president of Parador Pictures, has problems of her own life at home is upside down. Her unconventional marriage to her stay at home husband is falling apart and she doesn’t know how to put it back together, further more she doesn’t know if she wants to.

Beautiful Nico O’Neilly who’s no nonsense attitude has taken her to places most people only imagine. Her hunger to be satisfied sexually leads her into a adulterous affair, while her hunger for power leads her into a battle with the one person standing between her and her dream of being CEO in a division of her company, her boss.

A great light read a great girlie read , predictable glamorous unrealistic all things we all dream for.

I want to preface this by saying I love Candace Bushnell. I've read One Fifth Avenue and Trading Up and loved them both. However, this book really fell flat.

A wannabe feminist inspiration this novel really just missed the point. It had CONSTANT comparisons of men and women in the workforce and for a novel that tries to battle the stereotypes, it is completely hinged on cliches.

The writing was predictable and fluffy. No character development. Everything was tied up in a completely unbelievable, boring, and predictable way. Horrible book. Don't read.

Great read

With a 21st century edit this book would be really great. I loved the story, the reality of life, the rawness and how friendships come before anything, but it is rather dated in some ways. To read that, to be a successful woman is, to be like a man. As if success was defined by gender.

I liked this book a lot! I loved that it was switched gender roles. the females were super successful and powerful, while the men (moreso husbands) in the book were the stay at home dads. but because the females were the powerful ones, it made you question the way you thought about society norms. For example, shane was my least favorite character, for obvious reasons. he used wendy & her money. he was so rude & a crybaby. but he was a good father. and when they were getting divorce, it made so much sense why wendy couldn’t take custody away from him. he took care of them. i completely agreed with wendy, he could’ve gotten a job and provided for himself, but i probably wouldn’t say that if it were a women. I loved Victory, i loved her outspoken personality. I thought the Nico plot line of her having an affair was great. i also kind of agree w her. i think the affair was good for her, it made her appreciate what she had. and lust & excitement can’t replace security & love. but no harm, no foul. i liked that Nico and Wendy had children, they were successful in the business world yet they were still good mothers. but they relied on their husbands & it shows that women can be the bread & butter just as much as the man.
lastly, i liked that victory was dating Lyne, the billionaire. it was a great plot line. i think she stood her own & wanted it to be known that she was successful without him & her success was just as important as his, if not more because she was a women. she might not be a billionaire but she was working to be successful. good book, ahead of its time in my opinion

so cute and easy to read! the 3 intertwining storylines kept me super interested

I hate star ratings just FYI.
Lipstick Jungle is the stories of 3 women in New York. Each one in different industries typically dominated by men & their (sometimes ruthless) climb to be the best. I think the underlying story was good. If women acted just as men would, would they be judged the same. Why is a woman judged so harshly when she works (to the point of one husband calling it abandonment of the children) but a man should be allowed to work & the woman be thankful for all his efforts.

I didn't connect with the characters & they were all a little too similar for me. The scenarios were extreme & there wasn't a couple that had a good balance to offset the horribleness of the other relationships. I also wish there was more focus on the friendships & the women elevating women.

3.5 stars.

I found it quite hard to get into this book. It didn't really grab me and pull me in.
It flicks between each character and just as I was enjoying the goings on with one, it would change to another and I'd lose interest.
I would have liked to have read more about wendy and selden and how there romance developed. Also victory and Lyne. However I didn't really enjoy Nico's story as much.

I love a little light reading from time to time (just as I love a little romcom here and there). But this was just so... Shallow, trying to be "empowering" (but not succeeding), filled with cliches, etc. The characters were unlikeable, privileged, the relationships were so weird and seemed unrealistic... There are a lot of books you can read "just for fun", this was really not it for me.

Approaching middle age, Nico, Wendy, and Victory are soul sisters navigating high profile jobs in Manhattan. They work hard in the world of men, striving for fame, glory, fortune, and happiness. One has an affair with a young underwear model; one overcomes letdown when her fashion line flops. Challenges abound. Yet their love for each other and New York never wavers. This writer is outstanding.

I was very happy to find that this novel is not your typical chick-lit book (and not at all like the Sex and the City novel which I found jarring and strange). Bushnell basically tries to answer the following questions: What happens when women act like stereotypical men? Can they be respected and treated the same way in the workplace? How do high-powered careers affect a woman's relationship with her husband and family?

I am a big fan of the Lipstick Jungle TV series and was interested to see what choices were made in the creation of the series. While the same familiar characters are there (harried Wendy, cool calm Nico, and cute Victory) , they seem a lot more career-focused and more ruthless than their TV show counterparts. The struggles they have with office politics and family duties are shown in more detail and in a much less frivolous way. For example, in the novel Wendy is very overwhelmed with her responsibilities at work and struggles a lot more with achieving a perfect work-family balance than she does in the TV show. Victory, a very successful fashion designer, is older and only a little bit flighty; she shows the scars of a woman who has had to fight for her place in the world. Nico is a lot more cut-throat than in the TV show, necessarily so for her job I think.

The book is not perfect. I am not sure that Candace Bushnell achieves three distinct voices for her three main characters. Occasionally it just seemed like she had one ambitious character who was thrust into three different situations. Also, the ending felt very rushed, as though she realized that her word count was getting out of hand and decided to throw a happy ending together. But all in all, this was definitely a good read, and would probably be better received by those less interested in a fun, romantic romp and more interested in a serious-minded read.