Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The new book from Taylor Jenkins Reid (Daisy Jones and the Six) is a gorgeous, sun-soaked novel that delves into the glamour and desperate hope of 1980s Malibu
Nina Riva – surfer, model, and oldest child of legendary rockstar Mick Riva – is dreading her annual end of summer party. Her husband left her, she doesn’t care for the Hollywood elite, and she's never wanted to be the centre of attention. Her brothers are keeping huge secrets that may well shatter their relationship. The baby of the family, Kit, is ready to dive into adulthood, no matter what her family think. The party is the night that will change everything for the siblings, sending them over the precipice of secrets and questions they’ve held for years. By midnight, everything will spiral out of control. By morning, Nina’s mansion and the Malibu coastline will be in flames.
Malibu Rising is both about one hedonistic, destructive party, and also the turbulent love story of Mick and June Riva – a man too selfish to care for his family and a woman whose dreams slowly slipped away. In the hands of a less talented writer, a story exploring whether we’re destined to repeat our parents' mistakes could easily slip into saccharine cliché, but Reid’s storytelling is evocative and sensitive, and the novel’s strengths lie in the emotional complexities of characters whom we can’t help but love, for all their flaws and misguided intentions.
A gorgeous, sun-soaked novel that delves into the glamour and desperate hope of 1980s Malibu, and the saga of a family that will never be the same again.
