Dolores

by Jacqueline Susann

Romance novel -- by the author of Valley of the Dolls.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Historical Fiction, Chick Lit, Classics, Novella, Own

201 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Jacqueline Susann was one of the most successful writers in the history of American publishing. Her first novel, Valley of the Dolls, published in 1966, is one of the best-selling books of all time. When The Love Machine was published in 1969, it too became an immediate #1 bestseller and held that position for five months. When Once is Not Enough was published in 1973, it also moved to the top of the best-seller list and established Jackie as the first novelist in history to have three consecutive #1 books on The New York Times Best Seller list. She was a superstar, and became America's first brand-name author.

Reviews

[Bren fall in love with the sea. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never judge anyone by another's opinions. We all have different sides that we show to different people.

Jacqueline Susann

This quote is NOT from this book, though it is from this writer.


Reread. And first book ever read by this author.

Now I do not give out fives easily. But this little Novella..it's never left me and it's light does not dim with rereads.

I loved "Dolores". I get that is is loosely based on Jackie Kennedy but at the time I first read it , I did not know this. Then again I think I was like 7 when I first read this. (much to young.)

But I loved it and through the years have reread. Dolores or "Dolo" as she is called is the First lady of The United States. And her husband is Jimmy. Like with JFK, he is murdered while in office.

This book reads as a character study of Delores and what a character study it is. I was absolutely mesmorised.

Delores, just Like Jackie Kennedy, was a prisoner of society. She was held to near impossible standards and because of that, happiness for Dolo was an elusive and impossible thing.

Dolo's sister Nita is featured in here as well. The relationship between the two sisters is fascinating. Both are famous, both are unhappy (for different reasons) and both are searching.


To the public they seem to have it all. But appearances can be deceiving as we well know.

This book combines two genres I love..Historical Fiction and Political Fiction and what a book is created! It is short..more a Novella. I have reread and always feel bad when it ends. I wanted to know so much more.


This book is not trashy, not typical chick lit and I hate that it does not have more reviews. Back when it was first published, it was very positively well known. It seems many books have just faded from peoples' minds.

I stole this book from my mom. At least I think I did. Details are hazy but I was already a little reader by then and would regularly pick up mom's discarded books and gobble them up. Some stayed with me, some didn't. This one did.

SPOILERS:

Ending is bleak and heart breaking. So many scenes from this little book are imprinted in my mind.

The ending is Visceral and never left my consciousness. Of all the books that I have read by this author this is my favorite. It is a short novella but intense as anything and very few books underscore how the depth of privilege and admiration can leave one empty and lonely. The fact that this book holds up so well over the years only adds to its allure.

Give it a try.

[Wendy, Lady Evelyn Quince · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Dolores" by Jacqueline Susann is a short, thinly-veiled, semi-biographical book...about Jacqueline Kennedy-Onassis...and it was Susann's last book... It was written when she was dying of cancer... Supposedly her buddy Rex Reed worked on it along side her...or finished it for her...

"Dolores" is not her best work, though..."Valley of the Dolls" is far more entertaining and "Once is Never Enough" is way more lascivious...

It's not a lousy book...but it feels...incomplete...more like a sketched outline than a "novel"...

"Dolores" is a super-quick read...not too overwhelming with the usual sordid sex and drugs of her other works...and unsurprisingly, it's quite melancholy...somber...sentimental...and very depressing...

Beautiful, wealthy, elegant Dolores longs for love...yet never finds it... She always marries the wrong man... Poor Dolores... She was no angel...but she deserved better...

The late, great Susann wrote just a handful of books...however her influence on trashy fiction was monumental... As far as I'm concerned, they were risque works of entertainment that exposed the salacious secrets of the glitterati...and Susann did it with style...

For a brief moment she was the queen of soapy, glamorous fiction... Before Danielle Steele...Elizabeth Adler...even before the legendary Jackie Collins...there was the Jacqueline Susann... I think only Harold Robbins predated her as far as mainstream, sexy smut goes...

Oh...and why SO many freaking annoying ellipses in this review...you might ask?

Read...the...book...and...you'll...see why... It's written in stream of conscious style...and it's the only punctuation she used to end her sentences...

(Hey...I am no better...I love those triple periods...in informal texts or posts... But then I've never published a book...so what do I know...?)

2 1/2 stars bumped up to 3 for nostalgia/ C-

[Lloyd Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

I believe this was Ms. Susann's last book before she died, it was published posthumously. The one good thing that I enjoy about authors like she and others is they keep the story simple and easy to read, there aren't too many characters to keep up with in this book. Too bad this book will be compared to her other books but that's show biz. The ending was terrific, so kudos to her for that, other than that it was just another novel at the time that she wrote and this was it.

[Jazmín · Rating 2 out of 5]

Leído en unas horas. No esperaba mucho, no obtuve mucho. Meh.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having just finished a biography of Jacqueline Susann (Lovely Me), I wanted to try a Susann novel. I had never read a one before, and was curious to see if my impression of her writing was correct. This one may not be typical. Like all her novels, this one was heavily edited and may have been added to. Since this one was published after Susann's death, she did not get a final say. I chose it merely because it was short.

The book is a thinly veiled take on why and how Jackie Kennedy became Jackie Onassis. It appears that Susann transferred the values of the characters she created for her novels (mostly based on friends and acquaintances in the entertainment world) and put them in these new characters, mostly based on the Bouvier/Kennedy/Onassis families. Women in this novel seek love, but never get it. The men in this novel may be re-creations of her philandering father. Money is a motivator for everyone.

[Marisol · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dolores es la historia de una mujer basada en Jaqueline Bouvier, después Kennedy, después Onassis.

Empieza justo cuando acaban de matar al presidente y ella se dirige de regreso a a Washington.

Aunque de toque ligero, da una buena perspectiva del carácter y personalidad de Dolores, una mujer guapa, culta y enamorada apasionadamente de todo lo que el dinero puede dar, y sobre todo de cómo se convirtió en un personaje de culto tanto en Estados Unidos como en el mundo entero.

Entretiene y muy bien.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished reading DOLORES by Jacquline Susann, published in 1974.

Susann was a very famous and popular writer. While she's most famous for writing the runaway bestseller VALLEY OF THE DOLLS and for being the first author to have three novels all on the New York Times bestsellers list (the other two being THE LOVE MACHINE and ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH), this novel was her last. It was finished before her death of cancer, but not published till after she died. She said that it was the hardest novel to write for her. Maybe that had to do with her illness at the time, or the subject matter itself.

The novel is really a fictionalized account of Jackie O's life after Kennedy. It's about Delores, a former first lady of the United States whose husband is assassinated while in office. From there the novel is really a character study of Delores, and a very dark portrait of media and publicity taking over and controlling a person's life, of the world expecting one thing from you and you not being able to make the right decisions for yourself, about love, or life, and how one who is in such a position must survive in the world.

This book is probably the least famous of Susann's novels. Heck, it's not even available, not even on Kindle. And this really surprised me. It's actually a fun read. It's short, coming in at only 200 pages. I think if you approach it as a novella or short novel and not a full-blown novel, like her three best-sellers, you'll really enjoy it. It's fast-paced and is extremely soap-opera, melodramatic, but in the most entertaining way.

All I kept thinking about while reading it was Ross Hunter. Who's Ross Hunter you ask? Well, I'll tell you... Ross Hunter was a very famous film producer who in the 50s and 60s was famous for producing films that starred over the hill actresses in glamourous roles. While other actresses like Bette Davis and Joan Crawford were making the "hag films" Hunter took the glamour queens of Hollywood and put them in beautiful soap operas. Jane Wyman in Magnificent Obsession, Lana Turner in Imitation of Life, Susan Hayward in Back Street. Hunter was also famous for pairing Doris Day and Rock Husdon together in Pillow Talk.

This book would have made a wonderful Ross Hunter film. It would have been a great vehicle for a glamourous middle-aged actress, it would have had a fast-paced, doomed romance in it, high-end fashion, etc. Don't know why nobody picked this property up. I found it to be very enjoyable without being long and drawn out. Many years go by but because it's a character study, it's really the highlights of that character's life that are discussed.

The ending is pretty depressing but was still satisfying to me as a reader. I don't know what else to say except that I found this little novel completely cinematic. All about presidential assassinations, widowed wives, rich people who are trying to find love, the strength, and obsession with money, doomed love affairs, political stuff, and basically glamorous people who are tragic figures, and not at all what they appear to be to the public. eye.

DOLORES by Jacquline Susann, 1974. Definitely a 5/5 read. A fun, fast-paced, insightful, historical fiction account of a first lady as she sadly tries to find love and a life for herself after her husband, who just happened to be the president of the United States, dies. I don't know if it's your kind of book or not. it definitely was mine, and I only wish it was available for others to read if they wanted to. The real tragedy of this novel is that it's out of print.

[Nashwa S · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Oh how marvellous!”

Yes, that’s the kind of language this book was written in, perfectly appropriate for children even though it’s about a grown woman called Dolores, former First Lady whose husband was assassinated. Based on the life of Jackie Kennedy, this book was less than impressive.

Firstly, if this family is modelled after the Kennedy’s, why are the Kennedy’s actually mentioned twice or thrice in the book? Dolores wants her husband’s funeral to be exactly like JFK’s. That makes it way too weird.

I know that this book was written in 1973 and has all the cliches of that era but some of them were especially bad. Dolores is looking for love in her next husband but she is also drawn to money, much like a greedy child in a candy-shop. The tropes also included petty jealousies between Dolores and her sister, and weirdly enough, between Dolores and her daughter. When Dolores’s “lover” showed affection to her nine year old, Dolores actually got jealous. Like WTF?

Also, aside from the petty jealousies, talking about physical appearance on every page can be exhausting. “He likes his women thin” glamourises a dangerous precedent but I guess you could say things like that in the 70s.

I finished it because it was a very quick read and entertaining enough for me to carry through. I know that this is not Susann’s best work since she wrote this when she was sick so I’m going to check out more of her books.

Another thing, I don’t think this book was edited. Some editor actually saw the word “fanny” in it and thought it was a good idea to publish?!

[Candice · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book rocks!

[lapetitesouris · Rating 4 out of 5]

💔

[Bethany Beachler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreakingly addictive! As you read you may start to see the similarities to the story of Jackie Kennedy! This book shows the down side to a life of wealth and glamour!

[Sheryl Shealey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring. Started OK then went downhill as the story became more and more about cheating men and women who marry only for money.

[Parinaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

It reminded me of seven husbands of evelyn hugo

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A widowed first lady marries one of the world's richest men. Sound familiar?

[Sammi Wallschlaeger · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun and easy read, glamorous and sexy as expected from a Jacqueline Susann joint. Not as good as some of her other novels, but the woman knew how to write an intriguing story from the perspective of the fabulous New York elite in the 60s and 70s and Dolores does not disappoint.

[sarahreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

loved the vibes sm. perfect train read

[ju · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muito bom, um livro para ler em um dia

[Asha · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is a part of me that would have rather read about Nita’s character than Dolores. Dolores character fell so flat for someone that cared about love more than money surrounded by people who cared about only money and image. Also, I wish there was a better ending. What was Barry’s reaction to her marriage? What about Nita’a reaction? Were these tears of joy or tears of despair? So many questions and yet not really.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book reads similar to a Dominick Dunne book. It's about a fictional woman who was married to the President of the United States when he is assassinated in office. It reminds me of Jacqueline Kennedy, and one wonders if it isn't loosely based on her life. I haven't read any biographies of Jacqueline, so I wouldn't know. There's talk of drugs that Dolores' sister takes, which is reminiscent of Susann's Valley of the Dolls book. There is talk of the wealthy and aristocratic, and the lifestyles they lead, which is reminiscent of Dunne's books. After Dolores is widowed, she tells her story of woe as she tries to continue her wealthy lifestyle on $30,000 a year. She has affair after affair, and ends up in one with a married man with whom she falls in love. Her sister, who is also married and lives in England, also has an affair with a Baron and falls in love with him. It ends up that the sister's lover--the Baron--wants to marry Dolores, because he wants to become the President of France and believes that Dolores' prestige can help him do that. However, Dolores is in love with her own lover, and so refuses to marry the Baron. Besides, the Baron is divorced, and that just will not do for Dolores as she is Catholic (ironic that it is okay for Dolores to have affairs, but that she can't marry a divorced man because of her religion!) Finally, Dolores' lover's wife has a massive stroke and dies, freeing him and Dolores to marry, except that her lover's wife has given away most of her money (for which he had married her in the first place) and so it ends up that Dolores and her lover are not able to marry after all, since they would not have the money to live the lifestyle for which he yearns. To add salt to the wound, Dolores' lover ends up marrying another wealthy woman, at which point, Dolores, wounded and angry, calls the Baron and tells him that she has reconsidered and will indeed marry him. And so, they go through with the elaborate wedding preparations and the wedding, even though she doesn't love him and can't bear the thought of him touching her (but she married him because she was lonely and for the money he could provide) and as she is laying in the bridal suite, preparing herself for their first night together as husband and wife, he leaves the suite and when she asks where he is going, it turns out that he is leaving her to go spend the night with his mistress! This is a short novel, and Susann's last, copyrighted in 1974. It's a quick read, with short chapters and interesting enough to hold one's attention.

[Sherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book from a small old bookshop which barely had any English books. I got hold of this because I liked the synopsis.

It tells us the bitter reality of high-class society and rich people, the problems you face when you've indulged yourself into too much luxury, the unimaginable turns your blood relations can take just for money and popularity, how you your own blood can manipulate you and use you as a bait for their hunt and so on...

Since the beginning of the story, the author lays the scenes before us like a well shot movie. Straight-forward writing and true bitter reality.

Being an animal lover I couldn't take all the times "Fur" was mentioned but that IS a reality of many rich houses. For instance, on Page 93 the chapter closes with this sentence:
"And they made love on the bear rug in front of the fireplace."
Humiliating & Gross. Imagine if someone does that to you. Kill you and use your skin as a rug and then have sex on it. NOT acceptable. But again, that IS the reality of some people.

Jacqueline actually shows you and makes you understand that these rich people don't have any choices to select the kind of humans they want to be. They HAVE to do certain things which normal people wont understand. If we try to, we can. But the truth is we never want to. The author has effortlessly made sure that we understand that these people have reasons for their actions and stunts.

When once you taste a certain kind of a lifestyle, it is very tough to go back to what you remember very vaguely.

Bitterly honest.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The end of the novel was the only time i felt sorry for Dolores. And even then just barely. I didn't like a single character in the book. I'm sure this book was written purely for fluff reading, but it just made me so angry. I couldn't handle how little anyone cared for anything but money. Is this the kind of stuff women in the 70's really enjoyed reading? And i only picked this up because the bookstore i bought it from didn't have Valley of the Dolls. Is that even worth reading?

[Kathryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be fair, I recall reading that Susann had written this toward the end of her life, and she was pretty sick by then. Dolores wasn't really supposed to be a book, but a piece for a magazine, IIRC - a "Jackie by Jackie" story that became a novella. It's basically a fictionalized account of Jacqueline Kennedy's life after JFK's assassination - her courtship with a rich Greek businessman. The writing is choppy and probably should have been polished more.

[Ruth Santana Valencia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Se nota que es el último libro de la gran Jaqueline Susann por la rapidez y agilidad de la trama.

La historia de Dolores es una versión novelada de lo que vivió Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis después del asesinato del presidente Kennedy hasta su boda con el magnate naviero Aristotle Onassis.

Una historia de como versa el dicho "el amor y el interés fueron al campo un día; pudo más el interés que el amor que te tenía"

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is a thinly veiled account of the life of Jackie O. It's about a woman who is married to an Irish Catholic president who is assisnated during a parade. The main character goes on to live a glamorous life in NYC.

[Maryann Fox]

I had read this book several years ago, and decided to reread it after reading the new Jackie Kennedy Onassis book. It is a fictional story based on the days of Jackie after the assassination of her husband and her remarriage.

[Jeff Mayo · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this Susann pulp trash many years ago because at just 175 pages, it was the perfect length for the time I had. It was what I expected. A thinly veiled, and highly fictionalized, version of Jackie O. Garbage, but it is short.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

A somber story about a widow, who once the First Lady.

[Kimberly Moses · Rating 3 out of 5]

meh..

[tabitha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Considered a five star but the ending was lame :(

[Larissa Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

This deserves a higher rating than it has FR. This was so good. My second by JS and I love her work so much.