Going into this book, I had heard that it would remind the reader of HBO's Succession. I did find that the Western Alliances’ characters were a bit funnier, somewhat relatable, and made me laugh out loud a few times. The main character romps across Europe funded by his wealthy father. We hear about his mother who schemes, and sister whom he both loves and hates. I did find it that it started a bit slow and took me a little while to really get into it. That said, the novel is well-written and I would definitely recommend it.

This book just wasn't for me. Based on its comparison to HBO's Succession, I thought this book would have similar characters or a similar tone, but it doesn't really have either. Aside from the fact that the family is rich, they lack any real comparison to the Roys; they don't feel as layered, complex, or three-dimensional, and the family drama is not as cutthroat or malicious. This book also felt much more light-hearted and casual than I would have expected.

The book is fine, just not my personal taste.

I had so many hopes that I would love this book. I am a huge fan of shows like Schitts Creek and the description reminded me of the show. Unfortunately I just couldn’t get myself into the book. I didn’t find myself invested in the characters and found myself disinterested in the storyline. It was well written though, just not the storyline for
Me.

A wild romp across Europe with playboy and “dilettante” Roberto Costa. Populated with colorful characters who will, at times, make you laugh out loud, like his scammer mother, his sister Rachel with whom he has a love/hate relationship and myriad lovers of both persuasions. Roberto’s carefree lifestyle is financed by his father, Sal, who has made his money as a bond trader, the boring stepchild of high finance through astute investing for his clients and an outrageous TV financial advice show. Without warning, the financial crisis of 2008 looms and the high flying lifestyle comes crashing down, along with other serious life experiences.

The long and detailed travelogue descriptions of Roberto’s jaunt through countries and cathedrals was a slog for me; however that said, this is a very well written book. Thank you St. Martin’s Press for this advanced copy.

Western Alliances by new to me author W. Barnhardt, published by St. Martin's Press, is a full-length, stand-alone novel. A witty and fun read, that took me a minute to get acquainted with.
Roberto Costa and his travels, especially his travels through Europe had me in knots. Witty and fun, even when they're full of cliches, had me in knots at time. Like descriptions of food in Gemany -I know for a fact, they eat more food than weisswurst and drink more than beer- I enjoyed reading this book, 4,5 stars.