Welcome to my stop on the blog tour celebrating the release of The Last Collection by Jeanne Mackin! Thank you to Berkley Publishing for the invitation! Stay tuned for information on how to win a copy at the bottom of this post!
About the Book:
An American woman becomes entangled in the intense rivalry between iconic fashion designers Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli in this captivating novel from the acclaimed author of The Beautiful American.
Paris, 1938. Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli are fighting for recognition as the most successful and influential fashion designer in France, and their rivalry is already legendary. They oppose each other at every turn, in both their politics and their designs: Chanel’s are classic, elegant, and practical; Schiaparelli’s bold, experimental, and surreal.
When Lily Sutter, a recently widowed young American teacher, visits her brother, Charlie, in Paris, he insists on buying her a couture dress–a Chanel. Lily, however, prefers a Schiaparelli. Charlie’s beautiful and socially prominent girlfriend soon begins wearing Schiaparelli’s designs as well, and much of Paris follows in her footsteps.
Schiaparelli offers budding artist Lily a job at her store, and Lily finds herself increasingly involved with Schiaparelli and Chanel’s personal war. Their fierce competition reaches new and dangerous heights as the Nazis and the looming threat of World War II bear down on Paris.
My Thoughts:
The focus of The Last Collection is the rivalry between fashion designers Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli. Oh my! What a rivalry it was! Fierce!
In 1938 Paris, Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli are each trying to be the most well-known designer in France. Everyone knows they are rivals. Because of this, they choose to be polar opposites in every way. Where Chanel is classic and understated, Schiaparelli is bold and edgy.
Lily Sutter is a young American teacher visiting her brother, Charlie, in Paris who offers to buy her a Chanel dress. The problem? Lily would rather have a Schiaparelli. Then Charlie’s influential girlfriend decides she wants more clothes from Schiaparelli, too.
Lily is offered a job in Schiaparelli’s store, and more and more, Lily is in the middle of the fight between Chanel and Schiaparelli. The threat of World War II only heightens the intensity of their rivalry.
The Last Collection is smoothly written, and the rivalry between Schiaparelli and Chanel hooked me in from the start. I was struck by how the two designers differed on most everything. Sometimes rivalries develop when there is overlap, but here, fashion, art, and creativity seemed to be the only general overlaps.
I also enjoyed Lily’s characters and how she shared her art and healed from the loss of her husband. The time period and historical backdrop were written beautifully, and the characters were well-drawn as the complex and dynamic women they were. Every ounce of this was perfect storytelling, and I adored my time spent with this book reading about these three strong women. Historical fiction fans and fans of strong female characters will be pleased.
I received a complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
About the Author:
Jeanne Mackin is the author of The Beautiful American and A Lady of Good Family. In addition to several other novels as well as short fiction and creative nonfiction, she is the author of the Cornell Book of Herbs and Edible Flowers and co-editor of The Norton Book of Love. She lives with her husband in upstate New York.
***Book Giveaway***
For a chance to win a finished copy of The Last Collection, please visit my instagram page! Giveaway generously sponsored by the publisher.
Lovely picture, wonderful review and blog tour, Jennifer! I added this historical fiction to my tbr list and cannot wait to read it! Happy Wednesday! 🌼🌼💕📚🌻🌻😊😘
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Thanks, Virginia! It’s such a good story, and I think you’ll love it! Happy Wednesday to you too! ♥️
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Awesome review Jen! I wonder if my library will have this one!🙏
Have a wonderful Wednesday and stay inside!🌞🌞😎💙
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Thanks so much, Sus! I hope they do! This was another great Berkley title! Gosh, yes, it’s hot! My thermostat says 96! I hope you are having a good day! ♥️
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I’m so glad you reviewed this book, Jennifer, I’ve had my eye on it, and I love the idea of such an interesting rivalry!
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Aw, thanks, Tammy! I hope you get a chance to check it out. The author did such a great job keeping that rivalry authentic.
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Paris and Coco Chanel? I am in!
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I hope you get a chance to check it out, Colline!
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Wonderful review! I don’t know much about Coco Chanel, but this definitely sounds like an intriguing read. I’m also really drawn to the cover.
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Thanks, Toya! I love that cover, too! I also didn’t know much about her before, but she was quite the intriguing character!
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Loved your review, Jennifer. 🙂 Would love to read this story about the three strong women, Anyways, is the character of Lily fictional?
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Thanks, Debjani! Yes, she’s fictional. It was a way to have a narrator that wasn’t one of the two designers. She was inventively drawn to be objective about the pair.
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Ah, okay.
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Terrific review! I am really excited to read this one later this month 🙂
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Thanks so much, Tina! I’ll be watching for your thoughts on it!
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Ooh, I bet this was a good one!
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It was so good, Jacquie! Full of drama and tension!
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This book sounds awesome, Jennifer!
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It was such a good one, Kris! ♥️
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I’ve had little reading time this week, but I’m at 80% so should finish today. I’m loving reading about these ladies! Coco would love this photo! Or maybe Elsa would like it more? Either way, its fab ❤
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Aww, thanks, Holls! I’m not sure if it’s more Coco or Elsa. Maybe a little more on the Coco side! 😂 I am happy you are enjoying it! We’ve had some great hist fic reads these last few months! I hope you were able to finish it! ♥️
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I’m done! Loved it and off to buy some of that Chanel No. 5 ….
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😂 I love that, Holls! That’s what my grandmother wore with her red lipstick!
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This blend of fact and fiction sounds fascinating, Jennifer:)
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Wonderful review! I definitely love the sound of this story.
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Thanks, Yvo! It was a great story!
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Great review! The idea behind this sounds fantastic— plus I’ve been looking for something with a similar feeling to War Paint. Who doesn’t love a good feud?
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Thanks, Christopher! I agree- the drama is always so fascinating!
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This book was a winner for me too, so I’m glad to see you enjoy it as much as I did. That rivalry was really something, wasn’t it?
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I’m so happy you enjoyed it, too, Suzanne! Yes, it was a fierce one!
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Oh my gosh, fashion rivalries! This sounds so interesting! There are a ton of male rivalries stories in media out there and I definitely want to see more of them set between strong women.
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It’s done so well, too, Kathy! They are both so strong and complex!
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Wonderful review, as always! I’m very intrigued by this book.
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This book sounds really good! I’m hoping to get my hands on a copy!
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I hope you get a chance to check it out, Shell! ♥️
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Wonderful review. This was a surprise “love” for me. It hit all of the right buttons including being beautifully written.
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Thanks, Mackey! I agree- the writing was gorgeous! What a story!
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OOOH YES – LOVE the historical, fashion element of this story. I’m always fascinated by anything to do with Chanel, so I’m sure I would love this! Adding to my list 100%.
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