I have always found stories about New Yorkers very interesting because they seem to live such a vastly different life than I can imagine! Carnegie Hill captured my interest for a few chapters, mostly because the characters were so intriguing, but I must admit - I lost interest and did not continue to read.

I enjoyed most of this book. It was a fun read with an inside look at the lives of various generations living in a New York City co-op. Their interactions and the relationships they developed were the strengths of the book. I also enjoyed the references to various places in New York City. While there were some slow points, the book as a whole is a great reminder that things with the people you think you know (neighbors, friends, and even spouses and parents) aren't always what they present to you or what you perceive them to be.

Enjoyed reading the book, but was just "okay". Was confused at times, until the end, as to the neighbors and whom was whom. Best parts as a member of my own NYC co-op board, were the descriptions of the meetings. Spot on!

Pepper has no career and no kids, and she decides to look to her neighbors who have been married for years while deciding whether or not to stay with her boyfriend Rick. Doing so, however, leads her to understand that not everyone has the perfect marriage as she first thought. This is a lovely coming of age story for all to enjoy.

I normally love this type of read.

However, I felt as though this book was so boring. Nothing much happens and when it does, it is so detailed, that I completely lost interest.

These types of books, in my opinion, need to be light and fun - not the case here.

Interesting book, tells us about love stories in a New York block apartment.
Thank you to Netgalley for this advanced copy, I believe this is a good book with lots of captivating characters, well written, with a good approach to life.

I was excited when to read this book when I read another reviewer say it was like a book form of the movie Love Actually. I love a well-written book where there are characters with interwoven tales. Sadly, this was not at all what I was hoping it would be.

First, the characters were a struggle, because none were very likable. We first meet Pepper, who you want to cheer on as she "grows up" and accepts being a responsible adult. Despite the events of the book, she doesn't show any growth. The same really goes for the rest of the characters as well.

I think the difficulty in trying to make this a story with interacting characters is that the majority of the characters use internal dialogue. Since it's all self-exploration and self-doubt, but done internally, there's no chance for the characters to interact at more than a surface level, so what's the point in having so many characters??

Thank you to NetGalley for the free copy of this book for a fair and honest review.

Carnegie Hill by Jonathan Vatner a three-star read that shows promise. I was expecting so much more from this one, it has the makings of a very good story, but missed the mark in my eyes. That being said I do advise people to give this a go if they think its their type of thing, as reading is selective and just because I didn’t enjoy it doesn’t mean it isn’t good.

Carnegie Hill is about Penelope moving into a New York building and all the relationships between everyone in the building. It had many various like different interracial relationships, different sexual orientation relationships and other types of relationships. I felt that some of the book I would catch myself thinking of other things and no be completely engaged in the story. Overall, it was enjoyable but didn't keep my attention as well as I would have liked.

This is normally the type of book I enjoy but this was a little flat for me. I didn't really connect with any of the characters. I liked the premise of them all living in Carnegie Hill but they just were not terribly interesting. I wish they had been fleshed out more.

3.5 stars. This is a novel about the inhabitants and staff of an upper class apartment complex in New York. The main protagonist is a woman called Pepper who is still figuring out who to grow up at the age of thirty. She’s unhappy in her marriage and looks to the other building residents’ marriages for inspiration. The stories of the residents forms the plot. I enjoyed reading these vignettes and finding out about how the relationships had developed over time
Sometimes, however, the book was a little slow and the writing didn’t flow consistently. The exception to this was Caleb and Sergei’s story, which was very nicely done. Another thing was that out of all the characters, the main one, Pepper is the least developed: in fact, we learn more about her from the other characters’ stories than from hers - sometimes contradictory!
Overall, not a bad read, I did like the range of themes tackled in the book.

I love NYC has a backdrop for novels, it's a city that I definitely romanticize so I enjoy seeing the inside look at the lives of New Yorkers, even if they are fictional. Carnegie Hill is a delightful read with well-developed characters who are entertaining to follow as they deal with the challenges of love and marriage. The book is relatable and entertaining, I really enjoyed it.

The book was exactly how I thought it would be. An easy relaxing read. The Upper East Side in NYC has always intrigued me and reading this book was like a little journal or soap.

Intersecting lives of several couples all living in the same apartment building in New York City. Twentysomething Pepper is confused about her own life with Rick, and finds solace and intrigue with the older couples who also live in the building. Their lives appear tranquil but inside each marriage are tenous trials. Engaging story with a few unexpected twists.

Rich girl Penelope moves into a new building with her soon to be husband and joins the building's co-op board. Joining the board also means joining in the life and drama of the building. It was a long read. Long but fairly enjoyable. There was a dedication to exploring diversity that I found confusing. I wasn't sure if this was an examination of love, discrimination or new york. As much as the plot was lacking and meandering, the writing was very good, so it was ultimately an enjoyable book.

Carnegie Hill is a character-driven novel set in the Upper East Side neighborhood. The narration frequently shifts between four couples: Pepper and Rick, Birdie and George, Francis and Carol, and Sergei and Caleb, all of whom are connected to an expensive apartment building called the Chelmsford Arms. The book is more like a series of vignettes about each couple’s trials and tribulations, their relationships and lives at varying stages, and their unique problems. Vatner is a talented writer for his ability to communicate the subtleties of boredom, doubt, and unhappiness in marriage. He has an easy way with language that made this book a treat to read.

The vacillation between the different storylines is difficult to pull off, especially as all of the characters intersect throughout the novel. I didn’t feel like I knew the characters as well as I wanted to - I sensed that I was supposed to appreciate them for all of their wild messiness and their flaws, but I did not feel sympathetic towards them much of the time.

For those who enjoy delving into that inaccessible world of the Upper East Side, this will be a delight to read. Vatner weaves a nuanced tale about people who seem to have everything, but are not as happy as one would think.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Carnegie Hill is like a soap and. Essentially, it is the various love stories about the people who live in this apartment building. A lot of variation just like life. Different races, sexual orientations, levels of commitment etc. I found it entertaining and well written. The characters are likeable and relatable. It's a good read overall. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Was not a huge fan. Only managed to get through half the book before I finally gave up. Sadly, can't recommend.

#CarnegieHill#NetGalley
CarnegeiHill by Jonathan Vatner, is about a coop, Chelmsford Arms, and it’s inhabitants on the Upper East Side in New York City. We mostly meet the officers and their spouses and gradually learn about their lives. Also prominent in the novel are two gay employees, one of whom is black.. it makes for some interesting action and dialogue. The characters are well developed. Some of them are funny and some so very sad. It is a readable story.

I had high hopes for this book. I greatly enjoy anything set in New York City, especially tales that center around the city’s storied apartment buildings. Unfortunately, my hopes were immediately dashed when I started reading Carnegie Hill.

Penelope Bradford, also known as Pepper, comes from old money and she’s engaged to Rick who is a self made man with no discernible pedigree. In the first few chapters it’s clear that Pepper is head over heels for Rick, and he for her. However, it’s unclear what brought the two of them together besides their bank balances. At once Pepper is a rather flat, unlikeable character who does little to endear herself to the reader. Rick presents as nothing more than a jet setting money monger. All they talk about is money and their stunning new apartment in Carnegie Hill.

When the point of view shifted to the other occupants of the building I had hoped I might find a character I could invest in but I couldn’t. Every successive character was more insipid and immature than the next. Birdie, Pepper’s nearest neighbor and seeming confidant, is an ice princesss with a severely depressed husband of whom she is completely embarrassed but we only ever scratch the surface of their relationship, seeing Birdie throwing repeated tantrums because her husband is too depressed to get out of bed. Francis, Pepper’s only ally on the coop board that she decided to join, hates everyone and everything. He is an impossible little man who finds joy in nothing except perhaps sticking it to Patricia, the board president whom he despises. He and his wife Carol barely speak except to needle one another. The remaining cast of characters is simply window dressing for a story that barrels through multiple plot lines that barely seem to connect.

I found myself skimming a great deal of this book looking for something better that never arrived. If I hadn’t been so determined to find a plot twist, I would have put this book down after the first few chapters.