Janna King | MALIBU BLUFF

Plot (via Goodreads):

Every summer is designed as a dream for six twenty-something seasonaires chosen by Lyndon Wyld, the founder of her namesake clothing line. This year takes the new brand ambassadors to the West Coast, led by last season's Mia, who has been roped back in after her mother’s death by a sweeter deal and the hope to leave her grief behind for the California sun.


Mia is thankful that she won’t have to live with another former seasonaire, Presley, who is now handling Lyndon Wyld’s public relations in Los Angeles after making a meal out of the previous summer's tragedy. In Malibu, Mia will share a stunning modern manse with Eve, an outspoken activist; Alex, a gorgeous boundary pusher; Chase, a warm-hearted surfer; Oliver, a preppy charmer; and Brandon, the son of Lyndon’s business partner, and the young producer of the brand’s new digital channel, which will up the seasonaires’ social media game.


Malibu is the perfect playground for their antics, which serve as juicy entertainment for their growing fanbase. But detractors from Mia’s past come back to haunt her, and when the line between what’s real and what’s staged gets blurred, the results could be deadly.

Review:

Last Spring, I was completely bewitched by The Seasonaires. Something about the combination of the setting, the mystery shrouded in cashmere, and  the plethora of characters just kept my eyes glued to the pages. Well, Janna King completely outdid herself with Malibu Bluff and did exactly for California what she did with The Hampton's in The Seasonaires. The California waves, the wealthy Lyndon Wyld, and some familiar faces - King really took all of the good from The Seasonaires and made it even more addictive and intense.

I loved the combination of old and new characters within this story. It was great to read about some familiar characters and also be introduced to some new ones. Similar to that feeling of the first day of summer freedom, the novel starts off light and airy (with the exception of a rather dark and inviting prologue) and slowly dives deeper into the summer heat with intensity and desire. Not only is the pacing with this novel one of its greatest assets, but it really builds the story. I also enjoyed how King took her time settling into the story and building it from the ground up and similar to the pacing, the dark elements in this novel are introduced slowly and were increased brilliantly. Everything about this novel is a step up in the right direction. The characters are more intense, the story darker and more thrilling, the setting more dazzling, the ending even more twisty and scary.

I just let this novel take me over from the first chapter and found myself in a dreamlike haze throughout the entire thing, but my favorite part was the ending. I loved how Janna King wrapped this one up with a dash of a cliffhanger, but what I enjoyed most was the nostalgic feeling that took over me when I was finishing it. King captured that emotional feeling of the end of summer brilliantly and incorporated it in the end of this story so effortlessly that it truly made this the best kick-off read to my summer. All I can say after this one is I hope I'm devouring another Seasonaire novel this time next year.

Special thanks to Kathleen Carter and Pegasus Books for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 5/5