Review: Ingenue

Author: Jillian Larkin 

Pages: 351

Publisher: Random House

Source: Library

Challenge: Ultimate Reviewer's Challenge

Synopsis: Power . . . love . . . scandal . . .

There’s never enough to go around.

In the city that never sleeps, Lorraine Dyer is wide awake. Ever since she exposed Clara Knowles for the tramp she was—and lost her closest confidante in the process—Lorraine has spent every second scheming to make her selfish, lovesick ex–best friend pay for what she did. No one crosses Lorraine. Not even Gloria. 

True love conquers everything—or so Gloria Carmody crazily believed. She and Jerome Johnson can barely scrape together cash for their rent, let alone have a moment to whisper sweet nothings in the dark. And if they thought escaping Chicago meant they’d get away with murder . . . they were dead wrong.

Clara was sure that once handsome, charming Marcus Eastman discovered her shameful secret, he’d drop her like a bad habit. Instead, he swept her off her feet and whisked her away to New York. Being with Marcus is a breath of fresh air—and a chance for Clara to leave her wild flapper ways firmly in the past. Except the dazzling parties and bright lights won’t stop whispering her name. . . . 

INGENUE is the second novel in the sexy, dangerous, and ridiculously romantic Flappers series set in the Roaring Twenties . . . where revenge is a dish best served cold.

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Ingenue is one of those books who's cover fits it perfectly. There's glamour but there's a bit of the gritty and the dark. It's about fearless people and fun. The cover designers hit a bullseye when it comes to Jillian Larkin's Flappers series.

The atmosphere in Ingenue is amazing. The second I opened the book I was immersed in the pages. The speakeasies, New York, clubs, 1924, were explained so well. I had so much fun reading about the new fashions and all the crazy adventures these people had. This was a part I definitely liked of the story.

Ingenue starts about six months after Vixen and all the shizz that went down in Chicago before Jerome and Gloria left. After killing Tony the mobster Jerome and Gloria are in hiding and kind of slumming it. They're trying to find employment and have resorted to thievery. I really liked their relationship and what happens to them. Gloria has always had this naive girl feel to me and I'm so glad that while she complains, she also is firm in her resolve to stay with Jerome. Their love is adorable and I totally root for them.

The other characters interested me less. Wait, did I say interest? I meant annoyed me more. Sure, they were interesting but I have a thing against Clara. She's in an incredible relationship and I really hope she doesn't mess it up. Although I do think I can grow to like her character someday. Lorraine on the other hand is a petty, foul, awful person whom I'm not sure I could ever like. She's way too selfish and mean-spirited. I think there is a soft side to her but it rarely ever sees the light of day. Her storyline was important to the overall story but I just didn't like her. Vera? GO GIRL! All I'm sayin'.

Plot pacing-wise, Ingenue fell in the middle. We have alternating perspective so most of the book is just putting things into place for the climax. There were some twists but none of them really shocked me or had me really excited or passionate. I guessed one of the biggest ones which isn't very fun. The plot and characters are what I have problems with. Something about them doesn't feel right. You wait for something huge to happen but the climax didn't excite me too much. The characters make decisions that I didn't understand.

Overall, Ingenue is a nice read but not really a must read. I think it's a good continuation and I'm curious to see what happens next in Diva. 3.5 stars,

*** & 1/2 *