What readers think of A Certain Age, plus links to write your own review.

Delicious! Delectable! Daring! Oh, dahling...you simply must read this. Great literature it is not, but it is so much fun. So between Joyce Carol Oates, Jane Austen and Anne Tyler (all of whom I highly recommend), read this sinfully delightful book by Beatriz Williams.

It's the dawn of the Roaring '20s where sex (not necessarily with your spouse), drink and other shenanigans rule the day. The rules of society are changing. The plot is complex (so I won't even try to summarize it here--you can read that easily enough elsewhere), and the writing keeps up the pace in what turns from a love story/love triangle to a murder mystery (with exciting twists and turns) and then back to the love story/love triangle. Williams brilliantly captures the aura of these freewheeling times from the sordid speakeasies to the grand parties in elegant Fifth Avenue apartments that are mansion-like in size.

This is a fun, easy read--ideal for the beach or a snowstorm. This is the classic "can't-put-it-down" novel. Get it!

Let me begin by placing a few key phrases before you.

"hedonism of the Jazz Age" in New York City Captain Octavian Rofrano (BOY)... honorable, devoted war hero, "battle scarred" paramour of the flamboyant Mrs. Theresa Marshall. Miss Sophie Fortescue... naive, charming ingenue, advancing and retreating on the fringes of "the Roaring 20's."

"As a fateful triangle forms, loyalties divide and old crimes are dragged into daylight, drawing Octavian into transgression…and Theresa into the jaws of a bittersweet choice." (publisher's note)

This is an excellent rendering of the jazz age in NYC and the colorful characters dabbling in conventional and forbidden pursuits.

Loved this book! It's not a deep, demanding read, but the romantic intrigues worked for me and the mystery line added just the right degree of complexity. Is it "the perfect summer beach read," which is the way it was described before I decided to read it? Maybe, but that doesn't mean the reader won't enjoy it at other times. I almost passed it up because of the "summer beach read" description, and that would have been my loss. "A Certain Age" addresses not only the contrast in the ages of the characters (youth and middle age, primarily) but also the "certain age" in which they lived, the 1920s. By page 3, the curious reader will have looked up "Helen Rowland" and will have encountered other names like Sophie, Octavian (unusual name, isn't it?), and Ox (Ox???). Then comes the nigh king question: Have I heard this story somewhere before?

Williams does such an expert job of pulling together her story lines at the end - nothing is forced or unbelievable - that the reader almost wants to clap his or her hands. Beatriz Williams is now on my list of authors whose books I will look for in the future.

I am half way through the book and I have enjoyed it. Her historical background is great. She really know how to intertwine the characters and I amazed how her dialogue is as if you are there listening. I know by the time I finish the book it will be at the top of my list to recommend.

I enjoy Beatiz William's books very much, though since I only recently discovered her, I have not read them all. The three I have read so far are quite different from one another, so I look forward to reading the next one. This book was again a treat from Williams.

"A Certain Age" is delightfully written as it is in the style and vernacular of the rat-a-tat-tat dialogue of 40s movies. The characters are well-written and what I liked especially is that all the characters present a point of view individually. Even that character, snobby society woman, who one would expect to dislike or even hate, is redeemed by her version of events unfolding. The only character underwritten is that Sophie's older sister, who is living in a mysterious present, which we never really get to know about, though her story is resolved somewhat by the end of the book.

I definitely recommend this book as a delightful read.

This book has many twists and turns and keeps you reading forward to see what will happen. I now want to read more by this author.

I enjoyed this book very much. I thought it portrayed the lifestyle of the wealthy in New York City in the early 1920s vividly, with their summer homes on Long Island, the speakeasies where they drank bootleg gin and danced to the new jazz, and the lavish parties where the foyer might transform into an Amazonian jungle and the drawing room become Rio de Janeiro. The mystery provided by the newspaper gossip columns scattered through the book kept me reading when I should have been doing other things, because I was anxious to find out what brought about the murder trial they were describing. All in all, a very enjoyable book, and one I would highly recommend.

Beautifully written and very engaging. Characters that live and have unique voices. The main character's first person narrative is lush and inhabits the imagination. The Author clearly is an excellent researcher and excels in bringing fresh aspects of the early 20's to roaring life. Recognizable situations and familiar recurring romantic and life themes connect to the modern reader. Satisfying symmetry circulates through the plot from beginning to middle to end.