cover image Sparkle Life

Sparkle Life

Kara Lindstrom, . . Other Press, $24.95 (290pp) ISBN 978-1-59051-232-6

The three 30-something stars of this ambitious debut are not friends but New York film world acquaintances at one degree of separation. Joy and Sara see the same psychiatrist, who turns out to be Liv's uncle. Liv is dating Sara's brother who cheats on her with Joy. And not far into the book, all three seal their romantic fates at the same movie premier party. The coincidences that bring them together drive their lives—yielding epiphanies, movie deals and weddings—but never bring them closer emotionally. Lindstrom is a Hollywood veteran and has production design credits on films from the cult classic Heathers to the Oscar-nominated The Mambo Kings . As her cast drifts apart through the second half of her narrative, Joy and Sara are feeling alone in new marriages, while Liv is still single but on improved terms with herself: she's found the peace that might one day let her find love. Readers who like a Sex and the City milieu but don't need their stories tied up with a bow on top will enjoy meeting this crowd. (May)