Pride and Avarice

by Nicholas Coleridge

Hailed by The New Yorker as "wickedly enjoyable," Nicholas Coleridge's newest novel is a sharp comedy of manners about two powerful men engaged in a bitter rivalry. Their feud rages from the boardroom to the bedroom as old money takes on the new Gazing from his magnificent Chawbury Manor, Miles Straker has it all. But when noveau riche Ross Clegg buys and builds on the land adjoining his country estate, ruining his perfect view, Miles is irate. Even worse, Ross is quickly taken up by the country gentry, who admire his success and his down-to-earth manners. But Miles is a dangerous enemy and he vows to take the Clegg empire apart piece by piece. A rich read full of wit, Pride and Avarice is sure to be Coleridge's biggest selling book to date.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

496 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 2, 2010

About the author

Nicholas David Coleridge CBE is the Managing Director of the magazine publishing house Condé Nast in Britain. He was awarded the 1982 prize for British Press Awards Young Journalist of the Year when he was a columnist at the Evening Standard, and the Mark Boxer Lifetime Achievement Award for magazine journalism by the British Society of Magazine Editors in 2001.

He has written twelve books, both fiction and non-fiction, based largely upon either his professional life (The Fashion Conspiracy, Paper Tigers, With Friends Like These) or social novels (Godchildren, A Much Married Man, "Deadly Sins"). He has been Chairman of the PPA - the magazine publishers' association - and Chairman of the British Fashion Council. He was founding Chairman of Fashion Rocks, the fashion and rock music annual extravaganza, which has raised more than £3 million to date for the Prince's Trust charity. He was on the Advisory Board for the Concert for Diana, Wembley Stadium 2007. He has been a member of the Council of the Royal College of Art, and a member of the Trading Board of the Prince's Trust and is Deputy Chairman of The Campaign for Wool, 2009-. He is a Director of PressBof, the parent organisation of the Press Complaints Commission. As a journalist, he has been an irregular contributor to the Daily and Sunday Telegraph, The Spectator and the Financial Times.

He is the great-great-great-great-great nephew of the poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He was educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge where he studied Theology and History of Art.

He is married to the author and children's book reviewer Georgia Metcalfe. His enthusiasms include India and Indian art, gardening, sunbathing, hillwalking and photography.

Reviews

[Lea · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a dud for me - DNF @ 44%.

Given the cutesy cover and silly description, I didn't expect this book to be so dark. I'm no psychologist, but I'm pretty sure the main character, Miles Straker, is a sociopath. His evil rapist son is perhaps even worse. It is was scary to think that the author could very well have based them on real people - as connected as he is, he's definitely met his share of rich assholes.

I don't really know what the author was aiming for with the story, it is so meandering. I really couldn't muster up the enthusiasm to read 200+ more pages on these characters.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Literary critics have buzzwords. I've seen many books described as a "delightful romp" but never really related to it. Until now. There is really no other way to describe this book. It's the best time I've had reading in a long while! Just fun, fun, fun. This is the story of a greedy bon vivant and his family as well as the family of a nouveau riche chain grocer who has had the nerve to buy adjacent property to build a home that the main character, Miles, finds an offensive eyesore that obstructs his view. He declares personal war on this unsuspecting man, Ross, who always ends up getting the upper hand in every situation. Their families intertwine in complicated relationships that bother Miles. For all his self-importance and greed, the reader is just waiting for him to self implode and the book does not disappoint. The novel is lengthy but the length is relevant and not at all indulgent on the part of the author. He has created fully fleshed-out characters and has an acute understanding of the workings of modern big business that is relevant to the story. As it should be: the author, Nicholas Coleridge, is the Managing Director of Conde Nast in Britain. The novel is extremely well written. The numerous references to business would have normally put me to sleep, were they beyond my comprehension, but they were deftly integrated into the context of the story and did not seem contrived in order to accentuate Mr. Coleridge's business acumen. Probably if I had any criticism at all, it is that some of the situations, although charming and appealing, were pretty far-fetched. Not being knowledgeable about business myself, perhaps I can't fathom that a grocery chain could so quickly expand to include a budget fashion line, a chain of hotels, and even at the end, a make-or-break arena for new recording artists. For merely playing (and selling) the latest offerings in their stores, the supermarket is said to be among the 50 most powerful influences on the music scene. So it's a enticing read if not necessarily a fully believable one, and maybe all the better for it. The last chapter catches up with the characters and their lives and wraps it all up in a pretty bow, ending as you would have it end. I plan on reading the other two Nicholas Coleridge books, "Godchildren" and "A Much Married Man." You know how it is when you've just finished a very heavy tome and you just want to lighten up a bit and have some fun? This book is it.

[Stella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read the paper book. It is about 200 pages too long; too many characters, one more despicable, vapid, or just unlikeable than the other. Instead of being entertaining, it was mostly depressing (and borderline horrifying) to see just to what lengths people will go to because of greed and lust for revenge, and how people stay in really bad relationships. There was nothing redeeming about it - most definitely NOT an enjoyable read.

[Marcus · Rating 3 out of 5]

The experience is not unlike a having a "guilty pleasure". The plot and characters draw you into the world created by Mr. Coleridge and one is compelled to see the story through. A lot of typos in this first version, though, that will hopefully be corrected in future editions.

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want a juicy morality play about an evil sociopathic wealthy British businessman - satisfying.

[Jill Meyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as good as but a very good read, all the same. Nicholas Coleridge is a British writer who has been "discovered" in the US. This novel, "Pride and Avarice" was published in the UK last year under the title "Deadly Sins". I've read all three of his previous novels, and have found them to be very good takes at the British social mores. I reviewed "A Much Married Man", giving it five stars.

"Pride and Avarice" is good, not great, story of two men - both wealthy - at great odds with each other. Miles Straker, a British PR genius - resents his new neighbor, Ross Clegg, a self-made millionaire, who moves into Straker's sphere of influence. Straker tries to destroy Clegg, and nearly does. It's a story that's been told a thousand times before. Coleridge does a good job at knowing the ins and outs of British public and private life, but the characters, both primary and supporting, come off as somewhat "flat". The story is better than the characterization, but that's okay, the story holds its own. The novel is enjoyable.

I normally don't comment on the price of books, but I am impressed here that "Pride and Avarice" is priced at $26.00, retail. With book prices edging higher and higher, this book is priced quite nicely.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometime you just feel like a lazy romp and this certainly is that. The inside view of the life of a corporate publicist in England in 2010 is fascinating and there’s a certain Jilly Cooper vibe which is sweet. The snobbishness feels surprisingly dated, tho. Of course England is still very tribal (too many people in a small area, everyone trying to define themselves?) but it felt all a bit old fashioned and sad. And on that subject, is it possible that consciously or unconsciously Coleridge modeled Miles Straker on himself?
I have every book of his from the period he wrote them because I loved them. Life changes.

[Naomi Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always, a frothy, sharp, and funny delight.

Coleridge has only written one book that I would grade less than an A+ ("The Fashion Conspiracy", non fiction bitchery about the fashion industry). His grasp of the minutia of upper class mores, manners, and misbehavior is flawless.

If you like Julian Fellowes, Evelyn Waugh, Edith Wharton, and/or Candace Bushnell, you'll LOVE relatively undiscovered gem Nicholas Coleridge. The characters tend towards stereotypes, and the plots can be a bit thin or recycled, but the writing is delightful. 500 pages zips by.

[Shane Mott · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite author.

[Hilarie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish. Usually like rich people acting badly books but this was dull.

[Renske · Rating 3 out of 5]

hilarisch

[Letitia Todd Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining and humorous read about a rich bastard who repeatedly tries to sabotage an unsuspecting parvenu, but is foiled at every turn by rotten luck. A bit heavy on the stereotypes, but overall highly enjoyable.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

On balance, I would say I liked this book. As an Anglophile, it's hard for me not to like something British and this was so interesting in terms of the contemporary world of business in England. But what made me not "love" it or give it more stars was that I felt like it really needed editing. It reminded me of a soap opera, not in the sense of lots of over-the-top drama, but because things just keep happening without, apparently, making a point. I get that the connective thread is that it's the saga of two families but I don't think the details about all the children and their significant others/spouses/children/careers, or even the parents' various couplings and uncouplings supported any kind of over-arching message. Miles is a bastard and he gets his comeuppance but we didn't need nearly 500 pages to do that. Some of his kids turn out well, some turn out badly. Some start going down a bad path but right themselves. A couple of times the families get connected via the children. And too many of the same scene (Miles becoming enraged a some new success or status symbol of Ross', Miles vowing to take him down, Ross being a sympathetic "regular guy" who is unspoiled by his wealth and has a great work ethic and good moral fiber. Repeat for 500 pages.)

[Luna Shen · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was able to hold my attention, although not enough that I could finish it in 2 weeks. The one thing that really made this books stand out to me was how wrong it was on rape. That son who impregnated that daughter RAPED her. Not only did he have sex with her when she was drunk, HE GOT HER DRUNK. Also, he continued to have sex with her when she resisted, THE RESISTANCE EXCITED HIM. What made me even madder was that the girl's father even mentions that this is rape, and yet he still wants to maintain good relations with the other family-- talking about how the son could be as involved or uninvolved with the baby as he wants to be-- and the mother WAS EVEN CONSIDERING A MARRIAGE BETWEEN HER DAUGHTER AND HER RAPIST.
I did like that this book wasn't the typical Pride and Prejudice spin off, with more subtle but important similarities: the commentary on pretty much every character, how many characters are first described one way but then we're able to go a little more in depth. For example, there's the silly old woman who's actually quite kindhearted and sincere (that one Lady in Sense and Sensibility).

[MB (What she read) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miles was so incredibly evil that I kept wanting to squash him like a bug! I glommed the whole book in suspended animation waiting for him to get his punishment. Needless to say, the end was very satisfying!

I found most of the female characters rather insipid and passive. This is a familiar characteristic to me from reading British authors. I'm not sure whether this is an actual cultural difference, or whether it is a weird preclusion/preference of my own to prefer more of a 'get up, get busy, take charge of your life, get even' personality in female characters? (Maybe a little of both.) I kept picturing Dawn as looking like Camilla for some reason.

3.5 stars for me.

Cover Art: Perfect for the book.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miles Straker has it all: a successful PR business, a dutiful wife & family, and a charming country manor. Chawbury Manor, that is. What could possibly ruin his happiness?

Enter Ross Clegg, another successful entrepreneur and self-made millionaire. Moreover, Clegg is building a new home right by Chawbury Manor. And, yes, Chawbury Park is bigger and grander than Chawbury Manor.

What begins as petty jealousy turns into an all-out war between the families. As the novel progresses, members of the Straker family find themselves entangled with the Clegg family, and the "treachery" becomes too much for Miles.

I really enjoyed the clever plotting of this novel, though it is a bit long.

[KW · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what reviewers back in the day would have called a good old-fashioned romp through the world of the rich and famous in contemporary Britain: social climbers, coke snorters, captains of industry, doubledealing PR wizards. Author Nicholas Coleridge skewers pretty much everyone in his story except those who are trying to do some actual good (not just some good for themselves), and even they come in for some gentle jibes. He has a good eye for the hierarchy: those who made their money 20 years ago get to look down on those still making theirs, and those whose ancestors made (and generally lost) their pile float somewhere above it all with their shabby rugs, mismatched tea sets from Victoria's reign, and incomprehension of why you'd want to go out and buy the latest thing.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miles Straker is a well to do man with everything going for him - society wife, town house in London, lovely children, successful PR business, gorgeous mistress and a fabulous country manor - he is a man who is used to getting what he wants and is somewhat ruthless about it. But it all starts to go horribly wrong when self made millionair Ross Clegg builds a modern monstrosity of a house right at the end of Miles' valley spoiling his once pristine view. What Miles does to take revenge will make you cheer for the underdog (even if he is worth millions.)

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this Coleridge novel after reading his "Much Married Man" while on vacation. It was very much the same novel with different characters, but an enjoyable soap opera beach read. It could have been much tightened up and made about 100 pages shorter, but all-in-all it was an ok read.

It is always fun when the evil man gets his come uppence in the end, while the "man in white" wins!

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

About one third of the way into the novel I realized exactly where it was going and I decided to just skip ahead to the last chapter to prove myself right. The whole thing reads like Candace Bushnell for men.

[Mary Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is really a 3.75. Two self-made rich guys in an upper class part of England try to outdo each other. Their wives & children,friends & acquaintances all end up embroiled in the controversies over the years. Great stuff!

[Kriste · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a lot of stuff in here I wouldn't recommend to my friends (language, crudeness, etc.) but it was definitely interesting! The characters were so stupid and shallow, it was kind of like watching a train wreck...

[Aimée · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK, pretty entertaining book about one man's obsessive hatred of his neighbor and the ways in which that obsession costs him far more than he realizes. Liked the British setting. Good for light summer reading.

[Karen Klein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow start but ended up being a pretty good read.

[Jesse · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was slow getting into this book because all of the characters were so unsympathetic. However, towards the end, I was pretty hooked and wanted to know what happened to everyone.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grabbed this to take on vacation and it was perfect, it even entertained me while flying. The author is quite brilliant and he aptly lampoons several sectors of modern British society.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Totally enjoyable. I didn't know where this was going till the last part of the book. Could not put it down. You just loved to hate Miles.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

What to read while waiting for the next Jilly Cooper.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the best. It was basically about a rich family that in the end splits due to the father's jealousy and competition with a new neighbor. Plot wasn't very good...

[Janet Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice fun tale!! Loads of melodrama and twists and turns!!