It may conclude in 1992, but Sheldon's latest is sheer 80's excess
- the compulsively readable, sin-laden saga of a tycooness who's
part Donald Trump, part Leona Helmsley. Though Sheldon's recent
heroines (Memories of Midnight, etc.) have been sexy saints, his
earlier leading ladies had a crueler edge - just like young
Canadian Lard Cameron here, who in a series of canny real-estate
deals uses her body as well as her wits to climb out of backwater
poverty. With $3 million in her pocket, Lara moves to Chicago,
multiplies her fortune, and, in 1984, takes on N.Y.C. There, even
as she puts up a Monopoly board's worth of hotels and office
buildings, including the world's tallest; battles sexism in the
industry: and proves wildly generous to her employees, Lara reveals
a darker side - slapping one worker; drugging prospective investors
with Valium; harassing tenants by turning their building into a de
facto homeless shelter; bedding mob lawyer Paul Martin. Is Sheldon
depicting the evolution of a monster? Not at all - for outweighing
these flaws, he hammers home, are Lara's "independence and courage,
her talent and vision and generosity." And her loneliness,
dispelled by marriage to star pianist Philip Adler, the perfect
icing on Lara's cake. So where's the drama? It comes in spades in
the late 80's, as the market crashes: Lara's fortune dwindles; her
ex-secretary writes a tell-all book; and the law starts poking into
the casino that Lara set up with Paul Martin's crooked help, and
into the attack by a thug - hired by a jealous Lara? - who cut
Philip's wrist and career. Can it be that, like another hotel
queen, Lara will end up wearing stripes? Don't bet on it. Savvy
Sheldon knows that nothing becomes the rich and famous like a
little scandal, and that a faux-morality tale like Lara's needs an
upbeat ending to play big - as this one will, right to the top.
(Kirkus Reviews)
LARA CAMERON SEEMS TO POSSESS EVERYTHING THAT LIFE HAS TO OFFER…
Young, beautiful, a self-made tycoon, she has outshone her competitors to reach the pinnacle of international fortune and renown. But the real Lara is a lonely figure, driven by a childhood obsession, trying, at all costs, to bury the ghosts of her terrible past…
With her glittering marriage to a world-famous concert pianist, Lara is sure she has fulfilled her destiny. But what she cannot foresee is that terrifying, uncontrollable forces from her secret past are bent on destroying everything she has created, everything she values in life…
Moving from Scotland and Nova Scotia, to Chicago, New York, London, Rome and Reno, 'The Stars Shine Down' is a magnificent story of passion, intrigue, ambition and revenge.
'Sheldon shines again… a compelling read'
TODAY
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