Review #6: Prospect Park West by Amy Sohn

The cover of this galley had the following teaser... "Finally, there's sex in another part of the city. You'll never look at brownstones, babies or Bugaboos the same way again."

Obviously appealing to a very specific demographic.

Well, that's me! You got me!

I am a huge fan of Sex and the City, a mom, and well...I happen to love fun, scandalous fiction. Seems as though we were meant to be.

Prospect Park West is what I am talking about, the new novel due out in September by Amy Sohn, bestselling author of Run Catch Kiss.

Having been only a tourist to New York every year for the past four years (missing one when my kid was a newborn) I have become quite familiar with Manhattan, not Brooklyn. My only experience and therefore, knowledge of Brooklyn involved a rather long train ride where I climbed the steps at my exit, scratching my head and saying "Oh crap, I think I'm in Brooklyn!" Train savvy at that time? Not so much. Interested in Brooklyn? Um, sure. No worries, I did what any other brave tourist would do. I ran back on the train and whisked myself back to the safe comforts of Midtown. (wink)

I have a little love affair with New York, so I had a lot of fun running around the "famed" neighborhood of Brooklyn's Park Slope, the setting of this book and getting to know the juicy characters that live there.

The characters are all mothers but four very different women.

Melora Leigh- the award winning actress who is not only bored with her career but can't quite figure out what it takes to be a mother and doesn't seem to care.

Rebecca Rose- a woman who begins a dangerous flirtation with a celebrity neighbor because her sex life is not what it once was.

Lizzie O'Donnell- the "hasbian" (former lesbian) of the neighborhood fights her attraction for a neighbor woman and wonders why her husband is not enough.

Karen Bryan Shapiro- the mother of one desperately trying for two obsessed with living in the perfect apartment in the perfect zone.

Not only do you get to live the lives of these interesting women you get to discover the personality and the character of the colorful neighborhood of Park Slope. The do's and don'ts, the best street to live on, the places to shop, and the best part of the park to bring your children to.

Parts of this book are so in-your-face honest and explicit and quite frankly, awesome that you may find yourself with your mouth hanging open in shock...especially if you are a mother. I loved it!

If you are a fan of Candace Bushnell or early Rona Jaffe, you will enjoy this book. This is a great end of the summer delight to treat yourself with. See if you can figure out if any of the juicy characters are based on real celebrities/residents of Park Slope. That was part of the fun for me.

Thanks to the publisher Simon and Schuster for this copy to review. Due out in September.

Happy Reading!

*red headed book child