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Book Review of Malibu Rising (Audio CD) (Unabridged)

Malibu Rising (Audio CD) (Unabridged)
VolunteerVal avatar reviewed on + 594 more book reviews


I'm a fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid novels and missed Malibu Rising last summer, so I was excited when it was one of two titles for my book club in August 2022. I listened to the audiobook (thank you @libro.fm) with Julia Whalen's excellent narration. My timing was perfect as the action in the novel occurs on Saturday, August 27, 1983 and I read this on Saturday, August 27, 2022 - love when that happens!

I enjoyed this plot with its mix of family drama, rich people behaving badly, SoCal surf life, and 1980s pop culture. I could picture the scenes and hope it will be adapted for TV - the party scenes would be wild!

I've heard that the author wrote The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones and the Six, Malibu Rising, and Carrie Soto is Back as a series of novels featuring strong, confident women of the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s facing the challenges of their respective eras. This makes me curious about the direction of her next book. Knowing that, I appreciate the links between books. Mick Riva, the mostly absent father in Malibu Rising, was the third husband of Evelyn Hugo and is mentioned as a famous singer in Daisy Jones. And of course, Carrie Soto has a small part in Malibu Rising but is, of course, the main character in Ms. Reid's August 2022 release.