Anyone following this blog will agree that I dig the work of Davidyne Saxon Mayleas. She’s the epitome of ‘80s class trash, in my opinion. Her rich narrative plus the sure way she handles her characters always make for a fun read. Until recently, that is. I’ve never been attracted to Wall Street and I’ve never been that keen on reading about it in novels. And even though I know she incorporates the subject matter in almost everything she writes (those I have read anyway), it never really bothers me since it’s secondary to the main plot. But now in THE WOMAN WHO HAD EVERYTHING Wall Street takes the forefront, and I got to say it has been pure hell to even finish it.
The story revolves around Cameron Hightower, the queen of Wall Street, who starts out with almost nothing but quickly becomes the hit girl when courted by king of all trades, Timothy FitzGerald. When he dies and leaves her the business, she succeeds not only in bringing it to the top but also in landing her childhood beau. Her struggle from a poor kid to a force to be reckoned with is the best thing about THE WOMAN WHO HAD EVERYTHING. Mayleas once again proves that she has what it takes to be a good storyteller. It’s when she ventures out into the financial market ploy that the novel loses most of its steam. It isn’t anymore a story about a strong woman on the go but a how to survive among the Wall Street sharks guide. So much so that the reader feels cheated having invested any kind of energy into the novel. In fact, it almost killed my love for reading trash. But that’s another blog entry in itself. One that involves author J. J. Salem…
It’s the second time that I’ve tried to enjoy THE WOMAN WHO HAD EVERYTHING. I gave it another chance because I thought that I had missed something the first time around. Color me naive, but it had worked before with Penny Vincenzi’s OLD SINS or Shirley Conran’s SAVAGES. But I was way wrong on this one. It is as bad as I remembered it to be. Well, not bad; just a real doozie. Now that I’m done with it again (for good, I swear), I’m more than ready to move on to her next novel which I hope will give me the same thrill as her other work did before I encountered THE WOMAN WHO HAD EVERYTHING.
Until next post—Martin
