Candy at Last

by Candy Spelling

The followup to the  New York Times  bestseller  Stories from Candyland  has even better stories to tell—about Candy Spelling’s notorious rift and reconciliation with her daughter, Tori, her misadventures in dating and sex, and her new life as a producer, writer, and businesswoman.
After thirty-eight happy years of marriage to influential producer Aaron Spelling, raising two children in Hollywood, and co-managing one of the largest estates in the country (finally selling Spelling Manor, as detailed on her HGTV series, for $85 million), Candy is now adjusting to life on her own. In her new uncharted territory, she’s ready to share the most intimate details of her life with Aaron; how his illness caused her to question her identity; and how she’s reinvented herself as an independent woman, businesswoman, and television personality. Along the way, Candy reveals all-new dishy stories including those of Hollywood friends Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Michael Jackson, Janet Leigh, Dean Martin, and Elizabeth Taylor (her lifelong rival over their jewelry).
Engaging, heartwrenching, intimate, and hilarious,  Candy at Last  shares her story of how family, friends, and her husband’s inspiring advice to “follow your dreams” has made her determined to live life to the fullest.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Celebrity

288 pages, Hardcover

First published September 3, 2013

About the author

TV star, producer, author, public servant, wife, mother, designer, blogger—Candy Spelling has performed more roles than the busiest actresses in her beloved Los Angeles, becoming one of the city’s most iconic women in the process.

Candy’s (née Carole Gene Marer) life has been colorful, glamorous, sometimes dramatic and always full-to-the-brim. Born and raised in LA, she excelled in school cooking and sewing classes, was a cheerleader, model and interior designer, married, had two children, became the ultimate Hollywood wife, built the largest home in Los Angeles, ran a gift store, designed dolls and jewelry for cable shopping networks, and generously donated her time and energy to her favorite causes—animals, children and the city of LA. After her husband Aaron Spelling passed away in 2006, Candy began a new act, one she’s filling with TV roles, writing, producing, philanthropy and more that’s yet to be revealed.

Recently, she has starred in “Beyond Spelling Manor,” a three-episode special that aired on HGTV, written Candy at Last, a follow-up book to 2009’s best-selling Stories from Candyland, become a blogger for The Huffington Post, and continued to relish her roles as mother, grandmother and hard-working supporter of her favorite worthy causes. To keep up with Candy’s latest projects and passions, and to pick up style tips and practical wisdom gleaned from a life very well-lived, check out her blog, like her and follow her on , Instagram and .

Reviews

[no elle]

people are so cruel to me about my creative outlet, my gift wrapping room as well!! how utterly dreadful! to be rude to me of all people all over a simple room in my mansion dedicated solely to wrapping presents!! and when i moved to my brand new condo and installed a brand new gift wrapping room they had the GALL to judge ME! ME! OF! ALL! PEOPLE! i have simply never related to a book more than this one!

[Meredith]

This is the second book by Candy Spelling, her first written about 5 years before. I have not read the first, which may have helped fill in some gaps with this one, but maybe not. In this book, Candy documents a bit of what her childhood was like, her time as a single woman (which was really not very long, she was married at 19 to another many prior to marrying Aaron Spelling and married Aaron Spelling pretty quickly after that). Each chapter is short and discusses some small event or thoughts on where she is or was in her life. She does address her complicated relationship with her daughter, Tori, but does not make it a main issue addressed, unlike Tori in one of her books. The book is easy reading, like Tori's books, they are fine for airplane reading or beach reading. Nothing too complicated or heavy. Candy addresses her own shyness on several occasions, but she seems anything but shy. She also pats herself on the back for accomplishments that seem less like successes than minor events that weren't complete failures (as in the stationery store she and a friend owned that lasted for 2 years, her shows on HGTV that ranked higher in the rankings than 3 other channels, like TLC, and a TV show that ran one season on E!). However, if she wants to look on the positive side of things, than who can fault her for that. Perhaps she's a glass half full kind of person. She discusses her husband's passing and says he had Alzheimers, but much of what she describes sounds much more like he had a series of strokes that impaired him. Furthermore, he was never officially diagnosed with Alzheimers as he did not go through the entire battery of tests, so it seems a bit sketchy and disrespectful to people who really do have Alzheimers when she explains some of his behavior as attributable to that, such as paranoia, when her daughter has accused her of having an affair with Aaron's attorney and having him change the will just prior to his death when he wasn't well enough to protest. Candy never addresses the alleged affair at all, though she does talk about dating after her husband's death. Also, not all dementia is caused by Alzheimers, but she seems to have convinced herself that is what he had and really paints herself as the ever-loving, ever-vigilant martyr of a wife during his decline, while somehow still forcing herself to get out for lunches or Mah Jong games with her friends. I was left ambivalent as to her as a person. It is difficult to get a grasp on who she really is rather than the experiences she has had. Overall, this book is light reading- that I'm glad I purchased for 50% off- that allows Candy to applaud herself on her excellent taste, the importance of having a decorator and a gift-wrapping room and what a strong woman she feels she has become. So, best of luck to her as she continues on her path in life.

[Lindsay]

Poorly edited and if Candy Spelling wants me to think she is a kind person, she has failed.

[Sue Kelley]

Not bad

The reason I bought this book was because it was mentioned Candy’s therapy journey had led her to understanding and rebuilding her relationship with Tori and that she realized why her children had issues with her. Well if so she doesn’t bother to share those details although she is much more complimentary to Tori in this book than I gather she was in the first one. She does talk about Tpri’s difficult pregnancy with her 4th child but thankfully stays off the topic of Tori’s money troubles except for saying she has set up trust funds for all 6 (now 7) of the grandchildren’s schooling. It is good to read that she dropped everything when Tori went into distress in her pregnancy . In Tori’s most recent book which I read earlier tonight she also seems to have repaired her relationship with mom some which is good. They both seem to be trying .

OTOH I really didn’t need to read about Candy’s dating adventures as a widow and I have the utmost pity for her son Randy having to walk her through condom purchases long distance (although it was funny). Honestly i skimmed through Candy’s endless description of parties she has hosted (name dropping is her friend) and pages of how she decorated her home (in fairness Tori gets way to bogged down in that as well) I just renovated my parents 40 year old home for myself and yes I put lots of pictures on FB but I sure didn’t discuss the warp and weave of every sheet I bought for the beds

[Robert]

A book on Hollywood elite Story covers childhood marriages moving on and recent events
Excellent about we cannot choose our parents and the results Pressure to marry have children
PRoblems of how Dateing goes now Liked her view on being unseen and unappreciated as a woman
As of no importance Bonus info on stars older people will know

[Marie]

Reading between the lines gave me a lot of insight into who Candy is, and why Tori had a lot of issues with her. She seems to be a name dropper and out of touch with real people. If she wanted to portray herself as a nice person, she did the opposite.

[Terri]

I'm glad I read this book about Candy Spelling. She's mentioned in it that most people don't like her or think she is cold and unfeeling. That's what I thought too until I read the book. She came from an average family but they didn't show their feelings to each other. She was always criticized by her mother and always felt like the outsider. When she married Aaron Spelling, he was just beginning his road to success. He wanted her by his side all the time. She embraced being a wife and mother and was known as Mrs. Aaron Spelling...not Candy Spelling. She took care of him during his last years of illness and protected his image. Once he was gone, she decided to reinvent herself. She was very good at mixing well with the Hollywood crowd and worked tirelessly for charities and other places in need. She also talks about her relationship with her daughter, Tori. She admits she made mistakes but said all the family did as well. She also dispelled the rumor that Aaron did not leave Tori much money. She said both children got advances from trust accounts over the years. Also all the grandchildren have education funds that will help them in the future.

At times I felt she didn't really understand how tough the world is if you don't have a lot of money but I think she really works hard to do the right things.

[Angie]

I have read a few of Tori Spelling's books, which I surprisingly enjoyed. Same thing here- I really enjoyed her mother's books too. Yes, she talks about her enormous wealth rather often. However, she apparently worked very hard, married the right guy, and made some pretty good business deals during and after her marriage to Aaron Spelling. Translation- she earned it. I can respect. While I can't empathize with her need of huge china and doll collections, I do appreciate that she takes care of what she values instead of being a disorganized hoarder. She's likable, smart, and was loyal in her long marriage. I hope she continues to improve her relationship with Tori for both their sakes.

[Debra Maldonado]

I loved this book

Candy Spelling is a gracious and warm woman. I had the pleasure of meeting her and working with her at the Department of Recreation and Parks. I read her first book when she was a Commissioner and she signed it for me. I gave her a picture of the Manor under construction that was taken by helicopter by my husband who also worked for the City of Los Angeles. she was very touched by that picture.

This book was very well written and interesting.

[Chris]

This is the 2nd book by Candy Spelling. This one is about her life after the death of her husband, Aaron Spelling. I watched all of Aaron Spelling's shows growing up, and have followed the life of their daughter Tori Spelling, so I really enjoyed reading this book. She talks about the building of "The Manor", which is one of the largest houses in the U.S., and then finally just being able to let it go and sell, to move to a condominium penthouse. It was just fun reading about her life.

[Theresa Portman]

Interesting

I found this book to be very interesting. I didn't know much about Candy Spelling. After reading this book she came to life. I understand how she felt after the loss of her husband. I kind of put myself in her shoes too, someday I may have to do the same. Thanks for sharing some of your experiences. Loved the dating again part.

[Christine Grant]

I really enjoyed this second autobiography by Candy Spelling. Her stories and insider knowledge made for a delicous read. I found her candor especially entertaining. My only criticism would be that her stories jumped around so much that it was a little discombobulating--as if the book was a collection of essays instead of one long read. I finished the book in an afternoon.

[Cookie]

I enjoyed reading this book and all the stories of yesteryear. Candy Spelling has 'Come a long way, baby". She has the reader understand who she is as a person. It was nice to know her side of her story.

[Bridget Bailey]

I couldn't get past the fact that this book is full of grammatical errors. Sloppy proofreading. I think I liked her first book Candyland much better. After reading her most recent work, I get a bad taste in my mouth for the late Aaron Spelling and his character.

[Patricia Bunn]

I really enjoyed the book however I wanted more juicy details and gossip. I also thought that color photos would have been better because the black and white ones were too grainy. And I wanted photos of her new house!!

[Tracy Schillemore]

Solidly mediocre! Some good name dropping.

[Joshua]

Hard copy