Judith Krantz...

[CurlewKate]

I just remembered, out of the blue, probably the original "shopping and fucking" author!

Anyone else have happy memories of Scruples, Princess Daisy, Mistral's Daughter.....?

Yes! I remember reading Mistral’s Daughter on the sly at my Nan’a house when I was definitely too young!

Between Judith Krantz and Jackie Collins my expectations of adult relationships were set pretty far out of reality 😁. Loved these books and re-read them all after I had my kids and was struggling to focus on any new fiction. Pure escapism.

I only read Scruples but remember it well. She got really thin in France and married a billionaire! I was about twelve I think, way too young for that book. I wanted to be the glamorous Valentine who ended up with gorgeous Spider (- was he actually called that?).

Princess Daisy was the first one I read and was always my favourite.
Followed up by the ouevres of Shirley Conran ("Which one of you bitches is my mother?") and Jilly Cooper. Never got into Jackie Collins for some reason.
Read a piss-taking review by Jilly Cooper of Shirley Conran's which was a tad "pot and kettle".
She (JC) rounded up by saying that she envied the royalties SC must have got for Lace, so finished with a traditional JC pun about having "pennies envy".

Omg yes! Loved her books - and easy to get lost in her worlds!

she was so much more edgy than Danielle Steele!

Ive got a letter shirley conran sent to my mum, if i remember correctly the address at the header is Monaco!

I loved all those books and the Jackie Collins ones, I'm sure some of them might have been on TV.

Yes! I was so disappointed to find out that they weren't available on ebook. I wonder why?

My paper copies fell apart or went missing years ago.

I loved that as well as all the sex and shenanigans her heroines always had careers that they were passionate about and she was really good at writing that aspect of the story.

I remember when everyone I knew were excited about 50 shades of grey, and all I could think was, "you haven't read Scruples".

"I'll take Manhattan" was my favourite book for ages. Brilliant fun.

Elliott I think?

I enjoyed all 3 of the scruples books. And I'll take manhattan. The others I haven't bothered re-reading recently though I have them. I assume she died a while ago? Not seen any new books for years.

I was so hoping they were on Audible.....I want someone to read me Scruples....

Mistral’s Daughter is a proper epic, I love the descriptions of Paris and the characters are really engaging - it’s a fantastic story and shouldn’t be written off as chick lit (which nobody on this thread clearly would!)

I agree they were a cut above some others in the same genre. Much better than Jackie Collins. And Jilly Cooper's characters are cardboard cut outs in comparison-unless I am misremembering.....

"Anyone else have happy memories of Scruples, Princess Daisy, Mistral's Daughter.....?" Hell, yeah! And Lovers!

Krantz was great at heroine makeovers - Billy's in Paris in Scruples, and Gigi's in Scruples 2, which always works for me.

So weird this thread coming up - I was just randomly remembering Mistral's Daughter the other day! Like a pp, I got far too much of my early sex education from Judith Krantz, Shirley Conran, Jackie Collins and Jilly Cooper. I remember reading Lace under the desk during an English lesson (my mum wouldn't let me read it so I smuggled it to school) and my English teacher throwing a board rubber at the wall behind my head to get my attention (sorry Mrs Lewis)!

Some of it went over my head - I spent years wondering what Ram had done to make his wife leave him and his whole circle ostracise him.
My fav bit of Princess Daisy was when the movie producer (?) who was trying to show off and impress her, took her to the restaurant she went to with her dad and then found out she was a princess.
And Mistral's daughter where Maggie wouldn't go on a day to an art exhibition and went her new boyfriend went and saw the paintings and realised it was her!
Cracking books they were - not sure they gave me the right idea about relationships though. There were some very messed up ideas mixed up in there - Prince Abdullah and Pagan for ex.

I have Scruples, Mistral’s Daughter and Princess Daisy and read them all again about 5 years ago. I was a bit shocked at the main theme of Princess Daisy when I read it again - the incest and rape is all very dark.

I learned so much about clothes, food and art from those books as a teenager though.

@CrystalSingerFan

I love Killashandra too!!

Thanks so much for getting my username! You are the first (and I use it in two places.) It's high on my list of 'comfort reads' (along with Krantz, Jilly Cooper and Terry Pratchett.

I think Crystal Singer has aged terrifically well too. Great heroine - kudos to Anne McCaffrey.

It is really dark, and I was definitely too young to read it, but looking back Krantz dealt with it really well in the context of the time and the format of a bonkbuster - Daisy is believed immediately when she disclosed to those who love her, protected, and no excuses are made for the rapist. Obviously it would be better if he was arrested and chucked in jail, but I guess that would have taken away the whole of the second half of the book and he does get his comeuppance...

There are probably all sorts of plot points that I don't remember that are part of the reason her work hasn't been republished though.

I loved those books too. My mum had them all I think and we all read them. Probably far too young! Would love to read them again. Must keep an eye out for them.

I loved them all. JK wrote so evocatively about people and places. You could feel the hot Provencal sun on your skin and taste the rough, red wine in Montmartre.