Social Lives

by Wendy Walker

Step into picture-perfect Wilshire, home to some of the most privileged people in the world, where one woman’s desperate act could bring the precariously balanced social order crashing down… Wilshire, Connecticut, the gilded enclave of Manhattan’s prosperous elite, appears to be a vision of suburban the mansions are tastefully designed, the lawns are expertly manicured, and the streets are as hushed as the complexities in the residents’ lives. While Wilshire's husbands battle each other in the financial world, their wives manage their estates and raise the next elite generation. Some women are envied, some respected, and others simply tolerated. But regardless of where they stand, each woman is defined by the world she inhabits and bound by the unyielding social structure that surrounds her. Rosalyn Barlow, the most envied woman in Wilshire, is waging a battle of social manipulation to silence the scandalous gossip that threatens her daughter's reputation while her self-made billionaire husband grows more and more distant in his young retirement. But for fourteen year-old Caitlin Barlow, navigating life as a teenager in a culture of wealth and sexual promiscuity has become far more perilous than either of her parents knows. Newcomer Sarah Livingston has nothing but disdain for everyone and everything around her and a growing terror at having another child in a world she's come to resent. As she is pulled into the Barlow family's storm, the walls begin to close in around her marriage and the life she once thought she wanted. And for Jacqueline Halstead, who's just discovered her husband is under investigation for fraud surrounding his hedge fund, saving her family from total ruin means doing the unthinkable - and shaking the Barlow family, Wilshire's insular community, and herself to the core.

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Womens Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published August 12, 2009

About the author

Wendy Walker is the author of psychological suspense. Her novels have been translated into 23 foreign languages, have topped bestseller lists both nationally and abroad, and have been optioned for television and film. Prior to writing, Wendy worked in banking and several areas of the law. She spent most of her childhood as a competitive figure skater. Wendy has three grown sons and resides in Connecticut.

Reviews

[Wendy Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

My second novel! After Four Wives was published, I was squarely in the women's fiction world, so I kept going! But this one starts to go down a darker path - following a billionaire and his family, including a teenage daughter who has gotten herself into some trouble and embarrassed her socialite mother. As with Four Wives, I wanted to get at some fascinating social issues, including modern-day teenage promiscuity, financial ruin, wealth disparity and of course - the ways people lie and betray one another. After this one, came the giant leap into thrillers, with All Is Not Forgotten. Lots of common threads... stay tuned!

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll be thinking about this one for a while. I thought it would just be a look at the foibles of the uber rich. It was that, but it was also more than that. It also explored how people sabotage themselves and their relationships with family, friends, and lovers because of chips on their shoulders and chunks taken out of their armor. We need to be kinder to ourselves and each other.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good chick lit book - it reminded me of a lighter version of “Big Little Lies.” Crazy wealthy Connecticut families who still can’t avoid marriage troubles, parenting issues or social scandals. I liked the alternating characters and got immersed in their complicated lives. It wasn’t particularly well-written, but the author did well with a fully character-driven story. The ending genuinely surprised me, too! It’s nice to sometimes have a lighter read like this book that isn’t just fluff!

[Lyz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Social Lives and was sad when I finished it. The characters are so flawed, yet I get it. The reader can like them in spite of their failings. Happiness was always a rung or two above what they could reach, despite the fact that they already had everything. The characters faced very real, very scary issues while presently carefully created facades of perfection and happiness. I couldn't wait to see what happened next.

[Delaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I needed a change from my regular Biography books i usually tend to read and find light fiction gets my head in a good place ( sometimes -lol )
Take a chance on this and just escape into " the lives of the monied" But not happy
Makes me glad i am poor! - grins
A great fun read .Well written.
D :)

[Lizelle de Oliveira · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been chain reading Wendy’s book lately and this one is my favorite so far.
Absolutely loved the complexity of human beings and proving that everyone has shit to deal with no matter the social stats, and in the end, we all just need someone to really see and hear us to make it through. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Barbara Nutting · Rating 1 out of 5]

So much for Wendy Walker. I read 70 pages and was slightly nauseated with the plot of graphic teenage sex. Do people really enjoy reading this stuff? Not me. 🙄 DNF

[Plumpernickel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in-between the other three somewhat more serious books I am reading at the moment. As the title suggests, the novel is about social lives of a group of extremely wealthy people living in the very wealthy enclave Wilshire in Connecticut, USA. You have Rosalyn Barlow, the pedigreed wife of a Multi billionaire and her friends Jacks and Eva and a new recruit in their circle, young Eva. Rosalyn’s daughter is caught in a scandal in the small very well networked community and Rosalyn goes into a social engineering overdrive to protect her daughter and have the incident blow over.
An interesting book, despite not being very deep. I am endlessly fascinated by the social personas people create and try to live up to, so I enjoyed reading it. If you want to read fluff about marriage, motherhood, socialites, social engineering and very wealthy people, you could read this.

[Sheryl Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only chose to read this because it was by Wendy Walker. Otherwise, the description wouldn't have pulled me in. But she's such a fantastic author that even though this seemed to be a different genre than her other books, it pulled me in. I cared about all of these cold-blooded characters, lol. I'll continue to seek out her books!

[Constance E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a girl from the golden area of Connecticut. I felt connected to these women the ending was as usual a total shock. But should have expected it from Wendy all of her books leave me in total surprise how does she do it? Great writer. Totally different book. Great read.

[Gu Gu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daha önce Walker’ın herhangi bir cinayet romanını da okumamıştım, ilk kez okuyorum ve beğendim. Sosyetik bir mahallede birbirine geçmiş yaşananlar. Dolandırıcılar, aşklı, aşksız evlilikler ve ergen sorunları.

[Gael · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Jacqueline K Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

I loved this book, and all the characters. The only disappointment was# the ending. Hoping for a follow up book ASAP.

[Missy · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Grace Crow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just felt like the ending didn’t have solid conclusion

[Sleep, read, repeat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poignant with pithy.
Wendy Walker writes beautifully, and she's one of the rare few adept at bringing to the fore nuances within our emotions, complex thought processes and reactions. To sum up, she poetically spits out all the spectrums of our emotions.

An epitome of show, not tell is what this book is. She definitely departs from authors who prefer longer sentences; but hers are powerful.

This book gives us a glimpse of affluent families, with new blood considered upstarts and the richest (Barlows), blue bloods. The Barlow matriarch is like the door bitch of the elites, but she has pedigree and also rightfully earned her chops by massaging the system, hosting legendary dinner parties (much like the Astors) and basically being involved on the boards of multiple country clubs. One thing I like is that all the characters are veritable intellectuals, variously educated in Stanford, Columbia etc etc, living gilded lives in ivory towers, but beneath that is the very human reality of betrayals, petty familial anxieties (ie. what schools their children should attend, the amount of donation/ shush money that is appropriate; presenting the right appearances). There is nothing worse than wasting precious time reading a book of entitled vacuous airheads that is reminiscent of some Real Housewives on reality TV.

ANYWAY, for all their comfort and wealth, these people make inane decisions too, although are insulated from common consequences; and in a warped way, Wendy has made it easy for us to feel sorry for these billionaires.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this book was a guilty pleasure, along the lines of watching the Real Housewives series. The lives of the wealthy are rarely as perfect as the rest of us believe. This was a fast read, not particularly well-written, and lacked any kind of humor, which the subject matter would have supported so well. Probably won't read anymore Wendy Walker books.

[TJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting tale of the uber rich. I found the book to be an enjoyable read and what most fascinated me was the idea that even with all the money a person could need they still make stupid personal decisions and are no happier than those with less money.

[Russty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!! Again, just wow...

I'm not gonna try to describe this one, just that you need to give it a shot, don't think you'll be disappointed. Currently looking for any and all of her other writings, and if I find them, they'll jump to the head of the list...

[Harvee Lau · Rating 2 out of 5]

Neither the plot nor the characters were able to hold my interest after the first 50 pages. Writing was bland, needed a lot of tightening up.

[Nikhil Takpire]

what

[Cheryl]

meh

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found myself moving through this one quickly. The characters were really great and many good sub plots, but then the ending was rather disappointing.

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Got bored after a hundred pages or so. I enjoy the author's writing style but it was formulaic to me. Tired of the rich people's life drama. Who cares?

[Rhonda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chick lit...about high-society couples and their drama... somewhat boring

[Jacqueline · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy reading chick lit books and I found this one very interesting and a quick read. The storyline with Caitlin hit home for me and I would recommend this book.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

slow starter

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Total guilty pleasure for anyone who likes to see inside wealthy couples' marriages.

[Catherine Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good characters

I enjoyed getting to know all the people in the book. It was also surprisingly suspenseful. I was expecting fluff but instead got a good story.

[Courtney Sieloff · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was fine. The characters needed more development, and it was a bit gloomy for a fluffy read.