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The Love Machine
The spectacular bestseller from the author of VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. In a time when steak, vodka, and Benzedrine were the three main staples of a healthy diet, when high-powered executives called each other “baby” and movie stars wore wigs to bed, network tycoons had a name for the TV they called it “the love machine.” But to supermodel Amanda, socialite Judith and journalist Maggie, “the love machine” meant something Robin Stone, “a TV-network titan around whom women flutter like so many moths…The novel deals with his rise and fall as he makes the international sex scene (orgying in London, transvestiting in Hamburg), drinks unlimited quantities and checks out the latest Nielsens.”—Newsweek “I READ IT IN ONE GREEDY GULP, ENJOYING EVERY MINUTE.”—Liz Smith “[Susann’s] pulp poetry resonates to this day. WITH HER FORMULA OF SEX, DRUGS, AND SHOW BUSINESS, Susann didn’t so much capture the tenor of her times as she did predict the Zeitgeist of ours.”—Detour
500 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1969
131 people are currently reading
2854 people want to read
About the author
Jacqueline Susann
25 books705 followersJacqueline 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.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 176 reviews
August 19, 2010
So I've been having a pretty spectacular summer full of excellent beach days and trips out of town, but even with all the sweating and skin-showing, something does seem a bit off. So I sat down and did some thinking as I sipped a very tall glass of black iced tea cut with mint. Through the haze and humidity, the thought slowly dawned that the fly in my tanning oil might just be my reading list. Naomi Klein? Coetzee? With these temperatures?? I settled back in my deck chair, nibbled some homemade ice cream, and I thought a little more (it wasn't easy). Finally I realized what -- besides the endless heat wave -- would make Summer 2010 truly one for the record books: a little summer Love Machine! Yeah, we'll make out under the dock.... we'll stay out 'til ten o'clock.... yeah, that's right: Jackie S and I sunbathing in matching Pucci bikinis. Could there possibly be a more scorching vision?
So far this book is amazing, and the horrifying plight of its beautiful heroine finally a tragedy I can relate to. Enough with the torture chambers and violence and geopolitical horrorshow. Bring on 1960 network television executives and their slutty secretaries! Then please hold my calls, cancel my table at "21," and just have the pharmacist send my scrips over. I'll be out by the pool if anyone needs me!
----
THE REVIEW:
Okay, so this was no Valley of the Dolls, but honestly, what is? The Love Machine isn't a timeless classic of Western Literature like Dolls, but it was sure a lot of fun. The main character here is hunky, emotionally crippled Robin Stone, who epitomizes Susann's image of masculinity. Women love him, men fear him, etc., etc., rinse and repeat.... The "structure" (if I may) of the novel is that it's divided into three parts, each named for one of the many women who madly love Robin. And madly love him tragically because, being as he is the Übermensch-with-Mommy-Issues, Robin sure can screw, but he cannot Love Back. So it is with great irony that he is known as "The Love Machine," which also refers in this book to television, the industry of which dominates the characters' lives.
As my mother's comment below suggests, it's almost impossible to review this book today without mentioning Mad Men. This book is to Mad Men as the authentic, stained, and unflattering but brainshakingly awesome 60s housedress you found at the Goodwill Bins is to a three-digit-price-tagged designer retro-chic sixties-inspired skirt selling at a Soho boutique. In other words, friends, The Love Machine is the real deal, and it's dreadfully hideous, but it's just so much fun. My favorite thing about this book was all the insane period details, which I fervently hope describe a culture that actually existed, even though that's pretty hard to believe. Even though it's not overtly about the despair of substance abuse like Dolls was, the people in this book just drink and smoke constantly, and when it's time to go to sleep, they always take sleeping pills. Like that was just what you did when it was time to go to sleep in this era, you took a pill (or some pills) and then lay down in your bed. Also the only thing anyone ever eats in this book is a steak. When a girl's really in love with the guy and is trying to get him to marry her, instead of going out to "21" she has the guy over and cooks him a steak. And then they hold hands and watch television and drink a beer, which in this book is not considered an alcoholic beverage (vodka and scotch are alcohol, and people drink beer when they're "on the wagon"). The girls are all always putting in their diaphragms or taking them out, depending on their intentions and the demands of the situation. From what I could tell, "making love to him" is lingo here for a blowjob. I believe that cold cream is employed as a lubricant. When the girls cry about something, as they do pretty frequently, it takes them literally an hour to fix their makeup because they're all wearing false eyelashes and pancake. Occasionally if they're sad or casual (in light makeup) they'll have a hamburger instead of a steak. When the girls get dressed up, they have to put on a FALL! All these bizarre period details were my favorite thing here.
My other favorite thing was the deranged, unabashed, over-the-top inventive silliness of the plot. This is one of those no-holds-barred books: out-of-the-blue medical drama? Of course. Orgies? Why not? There is a ton of gay sex in this book, which was fun. Psychotherapy? Amnesia? Plastic surgery? Italian villas? Graphic violence? Check, check, check, check, CHECK! Yeah, basically every soap opera cliche and insane, shameless plot turn you can think of is crammed into this baby, to wonderful effect. For me, one of the more memorable parts of Barbara Seaman's underwhelming biography Lovely Me: The Life of Jacqueline Susann was her portrait of the author as a young girl. I seem to recall her playmates describing Jackie as a loud, sex-obsessed child who always craved attention and had no shame in pursuing it. And I remember remembering the kids like that that I knew -- larger than life children who just said and did and thought the most insanely filthy and creative things, who told bizarre, outlandish lies that no one would believe but which were fascinating, and who never toned it down or were shy or afraid of consequences. Jacqueline Susann was obviously one of those kids, and she never grew out of it. That's what makes this book so much fun: there's no sense of restraint or effort at anything more elevated than purely pleasurable entertainment. It's just wild, and out there, and she never stopped typing to ask, "Is this really believable?"; "Is it offensive?"; "Is this dumb?". No, she just kept probably popping Dexedrine and letting her imagination go wild. No distracting thoughtfulness, no inhibitions.... like a regular love machine.
Reminiscent of some monstrous creamsicle nearly too big for one's mouth, this was the ultimate summer novel, and I truly did relish it.
So far this book is amazing, and the horrifying plight of its beautiful heroine finally a tragedy I can relate to. Enough with the torture chambers and violence and geopolitical horrorshow. Bring on 1960 network television executives and their slutty secretaries! Then please hold my calls, cancel my table at "21," and just have the pharmacist send my scrips over. I'll be out by the pool if anyone needs me!
----
THE REVIEW:
Okay, so this was no Valley of the Dolls, but honestly, what is? The Love Machine isn't a timeless classic of Western Literature like Dolls, but it was sure a lot of fun. The main character here is hunky, emotionally crippled Robin Stone, who epitomizes Susann's image of masculinity. Women love him, men fear him, etc., etc., rinse and repeat.... The "structure" (if I may) of the novel is that it's divided into three parts, each named for one of the many women who madly love Robin. And madly love him tragically because, being as he is the Übermensch-with-Mommy-Issues, Robin sure can screw, but he cannot Love Back. So it is with great irony that he is known as "The Love Machine," which also refers in this book to television, the industry of which dominates the characters' lives.
As my mother's comment below suggests, it's almost impossible to review this book today without mentioning Mad Men. This book is to Mad Men as the authentic, stained, and unflattering but brainshakingly awesome 60s housedress you found at the Goodwill Bins is to a three-digit-price-tagged designer retro-chic sixties-inspired skirt selling at a Soho boutique. In other words, friends, The Love Machine is the real deal, and it's dreadfully hideous, but it's just so much fun. My favorite thing about this book was all the insane period details, which I fervently hope describe a culture that actually existed, even though that's pretty hard to believe. Even though it's not overtly about the despair of substance abuse like Dolls was, the people in this book just drink and smoke constantly, and when it's time to go to sleep, they always take sleeping pills. Like that was just what you did when it was time to go to sleep in this era, you took a pill (or some pills) and then lay down in your bed. Also the only thing anyone ever eats in this book is a steak. When a girl's really in love with the guy and is trying to get him to marry her, instead of going out to "21" she has the guy over and cooks him a steak. And then they hold hands and watch television and drink a beer, which in this book is not considered an alcoholic beverage (vodka and scotch are alcohol, and people drink beer when they're "on the wagon"). The girls are all always putting in their diaphragms or taking them out, depending on their intentions and the demands of the situation. From what I could tell, "making love to him" is lingo here for a blowjob. I believe that cold cream is employed as a lubricant. When the girls cry about something, as they do pretty frequently, it takes them literally an hour to fix their makeup because they're all wearing false eyelashes and pancake. Occasionally if they're sad or casual (in light makeup) they'll have a hamburger instead of a steak. When the girls get dressed up, they have to put on a FALL! All these bizarre period details were my favorite thing here.
My other favorite thing was the deranged, unabashed, over-the-top inventive silliness of the plot. This is one of those no-holds-barred books: out-of-the-blue medical drama? Of course. Orgies? Why not? There is a ton of gay sex in this book, which was fun. Psychotherapy? Amnesia? Plastic surgery? Italian villas? Graphic violence? Check, check, check, check, CHECK! Yeah, basically every soap opera cliche and insane, shameless plot turn you can think of is crammed into this baby, to wonderful effect. For me, one of the more memorable parts of Barbara Seaman's underwhelming biography Lovely Me: The Life of Jacqueline Susann was her portrait of the author as a young girl. I seem to recall her playmates describing Jackie as a loud, sex-obsessed child who always craved attention and had no shame in pursuing it. And I remember remembering the kids like that that I knew -- larger than life children who just said and did and thought the most insanely filthy and creative things, who told bizarre, outlandish lies that no one would believe but which were fascinating, and who never toned it down or were shy or afraid of consequences. Jacqueline Susann was obviously one of those kids, and she never grew out of it. That's what makes this book so much fun: there's no sense of restraint or effort at anything more elevated than purely pleasurable entertainment. It's just wild, and out there, and she never stopped typing to ask, "Is this really believable?"; "Is it offensive?"; "Is this dumb?". No, she just kept probably popping Dexedrine and letting her imagination go wild. No distracting thoughtfulness, no inhibitions.... like a regular love machine.
Reminiscent of some monstrous creamsicle nearly too big for one's mouth, this was the ultimate summer novel, and I truly did relish it.
September 26, 2020
رواية عن طغيان المادية وضياع المشاعر الإنسانية تحت ركام الحضارة .. رسالتها جميلة وفيها بعض المقاطع التي تستحق الوقوف عندها، لكن كان بالإمكان اختصارها حتى الربع دون إخلال بالمعنى والبعد عن هذه الإطالة التي لم تقدم أي إضافة سوى الملل.
"لكنك يوم تجد نفسك قادراً على أن تقول فيه لشخص ما: ” أنا بحاجة إليك “ ستكون قد أصبحت إنساناً سوياً. "
"لكنك يوم تجد نفسك قادراً على أن تقول فيه لشخص ما: ” أنا بحاجة إليك “ ستكون قد أصبحت إنساناً سوياً. "
July 31, 2008
I'm no longer afraid to say it. I LOVE JACQUELINE SUSANN! The lead male character of this particular novel, Robin, is a big pile of jerk, no question about that. The women he wants are untouchable, the women who want him (of which there are plenty) are superficial. He wants money, alcohol, a good steak, and lots of meaningless sex. But I love it anyway. It's tawdry and obnoxious and smutty and not particularly well-written, but Susann always has me thoroughly engaged. Somewhere underneath the shallow exterior of Robin lays a scared boy with a mysterious and questionable past, with major "mama" issues and a severely neglected "inner child" (if that was even a phrase in common usage during the time period of this novel). And for that, I grew to love Robin, though if he were a real man, I'd want to be several thousand yards away from him and all of his problems. That all being said, when your brain needs candy and a whirlwind visit to a past that perhaps never existed, pick up a Susann novel and get lost in the scandal. Just don't go looking for a Bronte when reading a Susann. Look for unabashed sex and cheap thrills.
May 17, 2018
This book and Valley of the Dolls were two books that my older sister read and had in her collection when I was a teenager. Of course I was told by my Mother that I could not read them. That made me just want to read them more. So guess what this teenage boy did -- I read them in private every time I got a chance.
Of course I had heard every one talking about Valley and the movie made from it, but I had never heard anyone talking about The Love Machine, but as much as I enjoyed Valley, I enjoyed The Love Machine that much more. I thought then that the book was very underrated and I still do today.
I have read The Love Machine at least 4 times through the years, and I enjoy it just as much each time as I did that first time all those years ago. It keeps my interest from page 1 all the way to the end.
Although there is a plot to the book, the book's strongest point is the character study of Robin Stone. He ranks up there with my favorite male characters in literature.
I saw the movie based on this once, and it does not do the book any justice at all. The book is a 1000 times better.
I have often thought that the book would translate well to a great HBO mini-series or series.
Of course I had heard every one talking about Valley and the movie made from it, but I had never heard anyone talking about The Love Machine, but as much as I enjoyed Valley, I enjoyed The Love Machine that much more. I thought then that the book was very underrated and I still do today.
I have read The Love Machine at least 4 times through the years, and I enjoy it just as much each time as I did that first time all those years ago. It keeps my interest from page 1 all the way to the end.
Although there is a plot to the book, the book's strongest point is the character study of Robin Stone. He ranks up there with my favorite male characters in literature.
I saw the movie based on this once, and it does not do the book any justice at all. The book is a 1000 times better.
I have often thought that the book would translate well to a great HBO mini-series or series.
February 11, 2020
"Because it sells love. It creates love. Presidents are chosen by their appeal on that little box. It's turned politicians into movie stars and movie stars into politicians. It can you engaged if you use a certain mouthwash. It claims you'll have women hanging on your coattails if you use a certain hair cream. It tells the kids to eat their cereal if they want to be like their baseball idol. But like all great lovers, the Love Machine is a fickle bastard. It has great magnetism--but it has no heart".
The Love Machine by Jacqueline Susann.
I know this is considered a classic but I have liked other books by this author way more.
SPOILERS:
Robyn has sex. He likes women. He likes threesomes. He likes orgies. He leads an empty life and cannot commit. He wont turn any woman down. (well..maybe one). He cannot love. So he has sex. More sex. Way more sex.
And more orgies. We follow this man as he has sex. With women. Whom he dumps. Brutally. One dies from cancer.
He then feels guilty. But still he has sex.
I don't know. I suppose if you are seeking to be turned OFF sex this book may do the job. Personally, I did not like Robyn, found him boring and tiresome not to mention not liking all his sex. I mean could he just stop having sex for a MINUTE?
The story is actually about how he learns to open up and need women. Which is good. Because for the majority of this book it seems he does not even LIKE women. Especially after he has sex with them.
But it is not THAT bad. Just a downer. And not my type of book. Not because of the sex but because of the main character who is having all the sex. Did not like him, did not feel sorry for him and just wanted to finish the book.
Which I did..try "Delores" for a great read by this author.
The Love Machine by Jacqueline Susann.
I know this is considered a classic but I have liked other books by this author way more.
SPOILERS:
Robyn has sex. He likes women. He likes threesomes. He likes orgies. He leads an empty life and cannot commit. He wont turn any woman down. (well..maybe one). He cannot love. So he has sex. More sex. Way more sex.
And more orgies. We follow this man as he has sex. With women. Whom he dumps. Brutally. One dies from cancer.
He then feels guilty. But still he has sex.
I don't know. I suppose if you are seeking to be turned OFF sex this book may do the job. Personally, I did not like Robyn, found him boring and tiresome not to mention not liking all his sex. I mean could he just stop having sex for a MINUTE?
The story is actually about how he learns to open up and need women. Which is good. Because for the majority of this book it seems he does not even LIKE women. Especially after he has sex with them.
But it is not THAT bad. Just a downer. And not my type of book. Not because of the sex but because of the main character who is having all the sex. Did not like him, did not feel sorry for him and just wanted to finish the book.
Which I did..try "Delores" for a great read by this author.
June 27, 2019
Тя е хипнотична, тя е съблазнителна, неустоима, привлекателна, на разположение във всеки един миг и безотказно готова да задоволи всяка фантазия... Тя е Телевизията! Най-гениалната машина за любов, измислена от човечеството през XX век.
Машината фабрикува светове на вечно щастие и младост. Манипулира емоциите и променя съдби. Застава като Златен телец на върха на хълма и посочва кое е правилното. Успехът на всяка цена, вчната младост под ножа на хирурга, неспирните оргии и купони като израз на щастие. Поднесени със съблазнителна усмивка.
Героите преследват неуморно своите химери, загърбвайки простички неща като почтеност, лоялност, човечност, любов. Те не се консумират на момента, и следователно са остарели и ненужно времеемки - лъскавите заместители са на една ръка разстояние.
Малцина излизат от кутията на собствените си заблуди, тъй като катарзисът често значи да излезеш от Машината и да изключиш копчето на илюзиите.
Авторката поднася драма в обилни количества и не гарантира щастлива развръзка. Героите са интересни, много тъмни кътчета има във всеки от тях, за някои от тях дори самите те не подозират. Много се учудих, когато разбрах, че книгата е писана през 60-те., остава доста актуална, само машините за илюзии са повече.
Машината фабрикува светове на вечно щастие и младост. Манипулира емоциите и променя съдби. Застава като Златен телец на върха на хълма и посочва кое е правилното. Успехът на всяка цена, вчната младост под ножа на хирурга, неспирните оргии и купони като израз на щастие. Поднесени със съблазнителна усмивка.
Героите преследват неуморно своите химери, загърбвайки простички неща като почтеност, лоялност, човечност, любов. Те не се консумират на момента, и следователно са остарели и ненужно времеемки - лъскавите заместители са на една ръка разстояние.
Малцина излизат от кутията на собствените си заблуди, тъй като катарзисът често значи да излезеш от Машината и да изключиш копчето на илюзиите.
Авторката поднася драма в обилни количества и не гарантира щастлива развръзка. Героите са интересни, много тъмни кътчета има във всеки от тях, за някои от тях дори самите те не подозират. Много се учудих, когато разбрах, че книгата е писана през 60-те., остава доста актуална, само машините за илюзии са повече.
April 6, 2012
Just awful. Like, five-star-so-terrible-it's-wonderful awful. I read this book once a year and never, ever get sick of it.
May 25, 2016
I was going to give a detailed critique of the gender stereotyping and misogyny in this book but can I be bothered? I am sure I will be criticised for reading through the whole 500 pages considering how much I was suffering. I guess I held out hope...no I didn't I am just a masochist. Don't make the same mistake.
The book needed a good editor to trim out all the irrelevant and depressing side-stories (notable Ethel) and cut it down to maybe 300 pages not over 500 for a start! It needs to be less casually approving of men hitting women for very little reason and stop portraying men's selfishness as sexy. It features gay men, seemingly in an effort to be even more phallocentric than the heterosexual main story (which was fragmented and contradictory) allowed.
If you are glassy-eyed and nostalgic for a time when men WERE men and acted like it then read this book as a reality check about how depressing it actually would have been. If you have a life then walk on by this one ain't worth it. (Note to people who don't think I should be so insulting of a book, please understand it insulted me, the female reader first!)
The book needed a good editor to trim out all the irrelevant and depressing side-stories (notable Ethel) and cut it down to maybe 300 pages not over 500 for a start! It needs to be less casually approving of men hitting women for very little reason and stop portraying men's selfishness as sexy. It features gay men, seemingly in an effort to be even more phallocentric than the heterosexual main story (which was fragmented and contradictory) allowed.
If you are glassy-eyed and nostalgic for a time when men WERE men and acted like it then read this book as a reality check about how depressing it actually would have been. If you have a life then walk on by this one ain't worth it. (Note to people who don't think I should be so insulting of a book, please understand it insulted me, the female reader first!)
June 18, 2010
My favorite book is Valley of the Dolls, so I was inspired to re-read that and then try out her other books. This one just wasn't up to par. It didn't go anywhere and none of the characters are even likable
September 3, 2017
It's dated. The females characters are needy, clingy and pathetic, chasing after a vile ass of a man who isn't even likeable, let alone someone to literally worship. Is that what "real" men were imagined to be like in the 60s? Ugh.
October 12, 2018
مش عارفة أكتب ريفيو عنها..
August 15, 2023
ain’t no valley of the dolls, but miss susann never fails to entertain
April 18, 2021
The Love Machine, Jacqueline Susann’s better written, WTF follow up to Valley of the Dolls, is more of a character study than a plot driven novel.
Against the backdrop of a television network, we follow Robin Stone—tall, dark, handsome, unattainable, alcoholic, misogynist and the three desperate women who love him.
There’s Amanda—the young, beautiful, clueless Vogue cover model constantly hurt by Robin’s aloofness yet always willing to put up with more. Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention she’s “doomed” as well.
Headstrong Maggie who won’t settle for anything less than what she wants on her terms—except when it comes Robin, letting him back in to hurt her again and again.
And Judith—the stylish, wealthy, delusional, married socialite looking to recapture her youth by falling for Robin and falling hard in the aftermath.
I think it’s a bit unfair to critique a 52-year-old novel through the lens of today’s society—by doing so, everything about this novel will become problematic. Instead, I’ve opted to list a few interesting observations I made while reading it:
• Robin Stone is an asshole
• Everyone subsists on a diet of steak, martinis, and cigarettes
• Eyes are constantly “blazing” and “flashing”
• There's no indication what makes these women so enamored with Robin outside of being good "in the kip". I hope by 1969 standards, women were a bit more independent than the ones in this novel
• Robin, she said call her not send a telegram
• If an ankh is the central imagery of your novel, it should probably show up sooner than a brief paragraph in the last seventy-five pages
• I think the novel would have been better if the three female character stories intertwined with each other
• The depictions of gay and transgender characters may be somewhat problematic by today’s standards but is very progressive for 1969—especially the fact that hyper-masculine Robin defends them by simply saying: “They’re my friends.”
• It’s poignant when one of the gay characters longs for the day he will be able to marry his boyfriend and buy a house with him. I think if Susann were alive today, she definitely would be an ally
• The Love Machine will make you think about the tv show Mad Men. I’m hard pressed to believe the writers of that show did not read this novel. The similarities between the two male leads are close. It’s like the writers said: “What if Robin Stone was an ad man and married his model girlfriend?”
• Robin Stone is an asshole
I have to say at over five-hundred pages long, by the three-hundred page mark I was getting tired of spending time with these people but Jackie spins a good yarn. It’s a compelling read in a train wreck kind of way. I couldn’t put it down. The last time I read this was thirty years ago and I hardly remembered a thing. It was fun.
Overall, it’s a fast, easy, and trashy read if you’re able to set aside some of the more problematic aspects of the novel that were acceptable back then and immerse yourself in the seamy WTF world Susann creates (and just to be clear, even though some of the attitudes and actions in the novel were “acceptable” back then I’m in no way implying that it was ok back then or even now).
Recommended with reservations.
Against the backdrop of a television network, we follow Robin Stone—tall, dark, handsome, unattainable, alcoholic, misogynist and the three desperate women who love him.
There’s Amanda—the young, beautiful, clueless Vogue cover model constantly hurt by Robin’s aloofness yet always willing to put up with more. Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention she’s “doomed” as well.
Headstrong Maggie who won’t settle for anything less than what she wants on her terms—except when it comes Robin, letting him back in to hurt her again and again.
And Judith—the stylish, wealthy, delusional, married socialite looking to recapture her youth by falling for Robin and falling hard in the aftermath.
I think it’s a bit unfair to critique a 52-year-old novel through the lens of today’s society—by doing so, everything about this novel will become problematic. Instead, I’ve opted to list a few interesting observations I made while reading it:
• Robin Stone is an asshole
• Everyone subsists on a diet of steak, martinis, and cigarettes
• Eyes are constantly “blazing” and “flashing”
• There's no indication what makes these women so enamored with Robin outside of being good "in the kip". I hope by 1969 standards, women were a bit more independent than the ones in this novel
• Robin, she said call her not send a telegram
• If an ankh is the central imagery of your novel, it should probably show up sooner than a brief paragraph in the last seventy-five pages
• I think the novel would have been better if the three female character stories intertwined with each other
• The depictions of gay and transgender characters may be somewhat problematic by today’s standards but is very progressive for 1969—especially the fact that hyper-masculine Robin defends them by simply saying: “They’re my friends.”
• It’s poignant when one of the gay characters longs for the day he will be able to marry his boyfriend and buy a house with him. I think if Susann were alive today, she definitely would be an ally
• The Love Machine will make you think about the tv show Mad Men. I’m hard pressed to believe the writers of that show did not read this novel. The similarities between the two male leads are close. It’s like the writers said: “What if Robin Stone was an ad man and married his model girlfriend?”
• Robin Stone is an asshole
I have to say at over five-hundred pages long, by the three-hundred page mark I was getting tired of spending time with these people but Jackie spins a good yarn. It’s a compelling read in a train wreck kind of way. I couldn’t put it down. The last time I read this was thirty years ago and I hardly remembered a thing. It was fun.
Overall, it’s a fast, easy, and trashy read if you’re able to set aside some of the more problematic aspects of the novel that were acceptable back then and immerse yourself in the seamy WTF world Susann creates (and just to be clear, even though some of the attitudes and actions in the novel were “acceptable” back then I’m in no way implying that it was ok back then or even now).
Recommended with reservations.
August 23, 2010
The only page worth reading in this book is the prologue.
I got the impression from some of the reviews here that this book is a classic and celebrated “trash.” I thought it might be a good time for me to ignore my prejudice against the genre and give it a try – with me moving back to the sunny and happy Southern California and all. I was hoping for good, fun, and entertaining trash. This book is not trash. It’s crap. I leave it at that.
It is also possible that my sense of fun and humor is hopelessly damaged and I just don’t get it. In any case – soap opera is not my thing. This book established that fact.
This is the prologue that tempted me to read the book:
MAN CREATED THE MACHINE.
A Machine does not feel love, hate or fear; it does not suffer from ulcers, heart attacks or emotional disturbances.
Perhaps man’s only chance of survival is to become a machine.
Some men have succeeded.
A machine who passes for a man often rules societies – a dictator is a power machine in his country. A dedicated artist can turn into a talent machine.
Sometimes this evolution occurs without the man realizing it.
Perhaps it happens the first time he says, “I am hurt,” and his subconscious replies, “If I cut all feeling from my life – I cannot be hurt!”
Amanda would have laughed if you had told her this about Robin Stone – because Amanda was in love with him.
Robin Stone was a handsome man.
He could smile with his lips.
He could think without emotion.
He could make love to her with his body.
Robin Stone was The Love Machine.
I got the impression from some of the reviews here that this book is a classic and celebrated “trash.” I thought it might be a good time for me to ignore my prejudice against the genre and give it a try – with me moving back to the sunny and happy Southern California and all. I was hoping for good, fun, and entertaining trash. This book is not trash. It’s crap. I leave it at that.
It is also possible that my sense of fun and humor is hopelessly damaged and I just don’t get it. In any case – soap opera is not my thing. This book established that fact.
This is the prologue that tempted me to read the book:
MAN CREATED THE MACHINE.
A Machine does not feel love, hate or fear; it does not suffer from ulcers, heart attacks or emotional disturbances.
Perhaps man’s only chance of survival is to become a machine.
Some men have succeeded.
A machine who passes for a man often rules societies – a dictator is a power machine in his country. A dedicated artist can turn into a talent machine.
Sometimes this evolution occurs without the man realizing it.
Perhaps it happens the first time he says, “I am hurt,” and his subconscious replies, “If I cut all feeling from my life – I cannot be hurt!”
Amanda would have laughed if you had told her this about Robin Stone – because Amanda was in love with him.
Robin Stone was a handsome man.
He could smile with his lips.
He could think without emotion.
He could make love to her with his body.
Robin Stone was The Love Machine.
September 22, 2014
Thanks to Grove-Atlantic Press, the novels of Jacqueline Susann are back in print 15 years after the mass market Bantam editions went out of print.
VALLEY OF THE DOLLS is still, after 30 years, one of the all-time bestselling novel of all time. Those expecting a weak sophomore effort in LOVE MACHINE will be glad to hear that her second novel is actually the best-written of all her novels.
This insiders view of the television industry (and specifically the rise of womanizing heel, TV anchorman Robin Stone) is a riveting, compelling and compulsively-readable tale that benefits from Susann's real-life background as a TV spokesmodel and actress who was married to a TV producer.
If you thought the showbiz folk in VALLEY were ruthless, wait until you get swallowed up by the cast of characters in LOVE MACHINE. There's also much more plot in LOVE than in VALLEY.
This is no romance novel, Jacqueline Susann wrote anti-romance novels. She liked to show readers the exciting and torrid lives of the rich and famous and always made readers feel they were better off living in the midwest than starring in a Broadway show or hosting a network news show.
The reissued VALLEY had a quaint feeling of once being a very blunt and racy novel that had mellowed over the years (probably due to it being the blueprint for countless bestsellers over the next three decades).
But, THE LOVE MACHINE still packs a powerful punch. This is Jackie Susann at her most assured, writing the kind of story that is hard to resist and shouldn't be resisted.
VALLEY OF THE DOLLS is still, after 30 years, one of the all-time bestselling novel of all time. Those expecting a weak sophomore effort in LOVE MACHINE will be glad to hear that her second novel is actually the best-written of all her novels.
This insiders view of the television industry (and specifically the rise of womanizing heel, TV anchorman Robin Stone) is a riveting, compelling and compulsively-readable tale that benefits from Susann's real-life background as a TV spokesmodel and actress who was married to a TV producer.
If you thought the showbiz folk in VALLEY were ruthless, wait until you get swallowed up by the cast of characters in LOVE MACHINE. There's also much more plot in LOVE than in VALLEY.
This is no romance novel, Jacqueline Susann wrote anti-romance novels. She liked to show readers the exciting and torrid lives of the rich and famous and always made readers feel they were better off living in the midwest than starring in a Broadway show or hosting a network news show.
The reissued VALLEY had a quaint feeling of once being a very blunt and racy novel that had mellowed over the years (probably due to it being the blueprint for countless bestsellers over the next three decades).
But, THE LOVE MACHINE still packs a powerful punch. This is Jackie Susann at her most assured, writing the kind of story that is hard to resist and shouldn't be resisted.
April 27, 2020
5 vodka martinis!
I have just finished this book and now I am lost and depressed. I miss the world Jacqueline Susann created in this book.
I miss the parties. The glamour. The martinis. The ridiculousness that was this world.
I even miss the Love Machine himself: Robin Stone.
This book is everything I needed during this point in my life. During a time when I cannot leave my apartment in fear of contracting Coronavirus. I needed the utter ridiculousness and trash that was this book.
It's such a delicious read and one that I did not want to end. I'm a sucker for a book about rich, bored, socialites.
Ya digg, baby?
I have just finished this book and now I am lost and depressed. I miss the world Jacqueline Susann created in this book.
I miss the parties. The glamour. The martinis. The ridiculousness that was this world.
I even miss the Love Machine himself: Robin Stone.
This book is everything I needed during this point in my life. During a time when I cannot leave my apartment in fear of contracting Coronavirus. I needed the utter ridiculousness and trash that was this book.
It's such a delicious read and one that I did not want to end. I'm a sucker for a book about rich, bored, socialites.
Ya digg, baby?
December 17, 2007
read it when I was 16. My English teacher asked every student what book we last read. He shamed me in front of the class after I proudly stated The Love Machine. I was impressed with myself because 1: It was the longest novel I had read thus far. 2. It was an "adult" book with sex and alcoholics throughout. He told me that it was trash. I went home and re-read some of it, especially the sex parts, which helped a modest Catholic girl learn the art of masturbation. And then the ending. The narcissistic protagonist, who drinks straight vodka on the rocks and pretends it's ice water, finally admits he needs someone. Profound enough for me Mr. Wolters.
November 26, 2009
Well...
I found it under my little sisters bed. WTF I thought, she is supposed to be an 'intellectual' isn't this the same lady who wrote that 'dolls' book I secretly read at 14?
My (ex) bf wasn't back for days, and I was stuck upstate with too much time on my hands and too much family drama to ignore I decided to read it..
Realised the Robin guy was... Well, my boyfriend!!!
Couldn't put it down.
Decided to hate him.
I don't believe I learned about 'men' because of 'the love machine'.
This book is AWFUL... but if you're ever in a relationship rut and truly bored... It gets to the point fast!!! No sugar coated love crap.. Get this.. he is not the one, and neither are you!
September 20, 2007
I'm not embarrassed, and I don't owe an explanation to anyone about this. Yes, I read Jacqueline Susann novels. And if you don't like that, well, clearly you haven't read one, or maybe you have no taste for kitsch, in which case, why are you looking at my page, anyways??
Go away, humorless voyeur!!
Go away, humorless voyeur!!
March 27, 2017
Same kind of fun, trashy glamour as Valley of the Dolls and Once Is Not Enough, just not executed nearly as well.
February 6, 2019
Old School theater of political incorrectness in popular culture.
November 9, 2022
Really two and a half stars.
October 26, 2017
وصلت لصفحة ٣٣٠ وأحس بأنني اكتفيت من هذا المسلسل المكسيكي الذي لا ينتهي من حب وبغض وخيانات وعلاقات جنسية في غرف الفنادق وحياة خلف الكواليس لممثلين وممثلات وعارضات أزياء.
رواية فاشلة ومملة . لا أدري كيف أجبرت نفسي على قراءة هذا العدد من الصفحات .!
هل يحق لي تقييمها وأنا لم أُنهيها ؟ بالنسبة لي نعم، لأنّها رواية ذات نمط واحد وبرتابة واحدة ولا تغيير فيها سوى انتقال روبن ستون (البطل) من حضن عاشقة إلى حضن داعرة .
الجمعة | ٢٠١٧/١٠/٢٧
رواية فاشلة ومملة . لا أدري كيف أجبرت نفسي على قراءة هذا العدد من الصفحات .!
هل يحق لي تقييمها وأنا لم أُنهيها ؟ بالنسبة لي نعم، لأنّها رواية ذات نمط واحد وبرتابة واحدة ولا تغيير فيها سوى انتقال روبن ستون (البطل) من حضن عاشقة إلى حضن داعرة .
الجمعة | ٢٠١٧/١٠/٢٧
September 20, 2012
Think this suffered the misfortune of resting in the shadow of Valley of The Dolls, so I may have rated it higher had I read it out of that context. But definitely a great read. Hilarious and jaw dropping at parts.
Um, good luck Maggie!
Um, good luck Maggie!
February 12, 2009
The absolute best of all her books.
January 7, 2010
What I learned from this bok... Gay men and what they did. Read this book when I was in the seventh grade. Very graphic love scene...descriptive. But still an amazing book.
August 7, 2015
THIS WOMAN ALWAYS WRITES GREAT BOOKS BUT THEY ARE VERY 1960'SISH......WHICH IS COOL.....
January 26, 2016
Best beach read. Obviously a time before feminism and gay rights, as the characters are far from pc, it's a page turner in the classic sense. Loved it.
February 11, 2016
Depressing.
February 17, 2018
I wish Goodreads had 1/2 ratings since I feel this book is more than a 3 but not a 4. My memory of this book being out back when I was a kid was the "ankh" which it seemed everyone was wearing due to the book. It really didn't figure much in the story but I am sure it sold a lot of ankhs.
As opposed to Valley of the Dolls this one doesn't have quite the camp factor -- set in the TV network world, it is more a business world setting than in front of the camera story.
While it isn't classic literature, she did know how to write a page-turner for sure.
I think if you are going for Jacqueline Susann, go for Valley of the Dolls but if you have already read that, you might give this a try.
As opposed to Valley of the Dolls this one doesn't have quite the camp factor -- set in the TV network world, it is more a business world setting than in front of the camera story.
While it isn't classic literature, she did know how to write a page-turner for sure.
I think if you are going for Jacqueline Susann, go for Valley of the Dolls but if you have already read that, you might give this a try.
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