The Luxe (Luxe #1) by Anna Godberson

Pretty girls in pretty dresses, partying until dawn.Irresistible boys with mischievous smiles and dangerous intentions.White lies, dark secrets, and scandalous hookups.This is Manhattan, 1899. Beautiful sisters Elizabeth and Diana Holland rule Manhattan's social scene. Or so it appears. When the girls discover their status among New York City's elite is far from secure, suddenly everyone--from the backstabbing socialite Penelope Hayes, to the debonair bachelor Henry Schoonmaker, to the spiteful maid Lina Broud--threatens Elizabeth's and Diana's golden future.With the fate of the Hollands resting on her shoulders, Elizabeth must choose between family duty and true love. But when her carriage overturns near the East River, the girl whose glittering life lit up the city's gossip pages is swallowed by the rough current. As all of New York grieves, some begin to wonder whether life at the top proved too much for this ethereal beauty, or if, perhaps, someone wanted to see Manhattan's most celebrated daughter disappear...In a world of luxury and deception, where appearance matters above everything and breaking the social code means running the risk of being ostracized forever, five teenagers lead dangerously scandalous lives. This thrilling trip to the age of innocence is anything but innocent.

Okay, let's get started. Luxe is a book for all you romantics, it's got love, passion, gossip, treachery, vengeance, and acceptance.  This book is truly whole rounded, and what even better is that even though Luxe is set way back when the characters are people we (in this day and age) can still relate to. A forbidden love between the hierarchy, a enemy disguised as a friend, a child relentlessly defying the stereotype of her family. These thing sill happen now to everybody.
 I love Diana and how she is insistent on being who she is, but I really dislike that the her persona is shaped out of the hatred for perfection and her mother. Her fling with Henry is just like a red velvet cupcake, delicious! Even though the age difference is, shall we say considerable? Elizabeth really irritated me, don't get me wrong but honestly she didn't make up her mind. She was far too finicky and if she truly was Penelope's friend she would have told penelope about her engagement to Henry. 
On tho the setting! Anna Goldberson lifted my soul out of my body and transported it back to 1899. The description and language is just exquisite! Definitely a good read for new vocabulary! I have always loved the post victorian/renesancè era but now I love it even more. The houses, the people, the roads, everything appears fabulous and glorious. I seriously dislike the fact that nobody cares about you knowledge or your personality but the finesse of it all <3 
Not one of the books I would usually read and yeah, I guess that there isn't really a memorable plot, (the ending is quite disappointing) but the diction, oh the diction. It's really rare that an author can describe scenes so beautifully as Anna but what is a story without a plot? There was a sense of mystery when the reader was unsure if it was Penelope [SPOILER ALLERT!] who had Elizabeth killed or Lina's mystery man "dealt with it". Another thing that was a little confusing was how are we reading/getting to know about Elizabeth's thoughts if she died??? The ending did clarify that though. 
If I was picking The Luxe up for the first time, I might not have read it, but after reading it I am really glad I changed my mind. Once again, if you are into the whole Glitz and Glamour with scandalous secrets whilst waltzing around in a gorgeous dress then READ THIS BOOK :)

I'm super sorry if the post doesn't fit my theme it's just that blogger is being irritating -.-