3.5. Good story about a ruthless American living in Britain and trying to attain social status. He makes money by causing misery to others (the book narrates one specific example of suicide). He also marries women who he believes will give him access to higher social groups - a strategy that has not worked for him in his first three or four marriages. I enjoyed the story of his maneuverings and those of the individuals in his life.. He is ruthless. His fourth marriage is to a young and naive woman who becomes world savvy due to his duplicity. The story tries to teach a moral lesson about the futility of living only for money and social status. The character development of the male protagonist is good. There are too many other characters to be fully developed, however, so for parts of the book my biggest struggle was remembering who was who and how they fit into the story. The female protagonist was likable though somewhat insipid until the very end. And her transition was somewhat lacking in credibility. Author's writing style was a lot of foreshadowing which left this reader frequently wondering if I had missed something in earlier parts of the book.

This book was full of fun, quirky characters - the aristocratic Trelawneys who have been kicked out of their castle by the brash financier and his young upstart wife, who happens to be their half-sister. Following the family through their adventures is delightful. When the young wife, Ayesha, discovers she is about to be discarded by her crooked husband for a newer, brighter model, she develops a plan to try to keep the ancestral home and develop ties with her elusive family.

I read a lot of fiction and these characters captivated me and kept me wanting more. I am very excited to go back and read Ms. Rothschild's first Trelawney book!

Thank you NetGalley for the early access to this book. Absolutely loved the colours and design on this cover. As somelne who judges a book by its cover, I was intrigued from first sight. I really wanted to enjoy this book. But it just wasn't what I expected. The story was slow and just couldn't finish it.

I wish that I had read The House of Trelawney first, since this book is a follow up to that novel. Nonetheless, I enjoyed this modern English comedy of manners. It is definitely a delightful and witty romp through the world of the British upper class and high finance. The characters were all well-developed and interesting (although some sort of family tree or something of that nature would have been helpful to keep straight all of the characters and their relationship to one another), and the excellent writing made for a pleasant read. I now need to read the “prequel” to this novel and see what I missed out on.

I really liked this book. It was such an enjoyable read. The characters were a blast especially Tony, Barty, and Clarissa. I was really rooting for Ayesha to stick it to Sleet. I liked how she brought the family together.

This was a fun and unique read! The story follows a woman who is the illegitimate child of an aristocratic family who married into wealth and bought her family's ancestral castle. It obviously causes even more of a rift until the woman enlists them to help her in the fight to keep her husband from selling it off, and keeping she and her daughter together after their divorce.

It's a lively narrative in which a woman who is about to lose "everything" navigates the world around her and faces the reality of the relationships she has built or left to flounder. I was thoroughly engrossed by power dynamics and social games everyone was playing. The characters were dimensional with different motives and histories making it an entertaining read. I was a bit confused on the main character's relation to the Trelawneys, but it became more clear near the end. I think a family tree would be helpful. Overall great read!

An updated look at wealth and nobility. We follow the members of the Trelawney family as they struggle to move on in more ways than one. While still becoming immersed in the story, I would recommend reading 'The House of Trelawney' first. This would definitely provide the back story to a lot of this book.

I had really high hopes for this book. High Society britain? Humor? Count me in. However I was somewhat mislead when the description of the book was posted as I was not aware as part of a series. After some research I found it can be read as a standalone however at 30% I was still having difficulties getting into the storylines. At 50% I had to DNF. Maybe someday if I read the other book I will come back to it.

I had not idea this was part of a series, but thought the description of a "biting satire about England's upper class" sounded great. I might have enjoyed it more if I were familiar with the series, but I didn't need it to follow the story. It was a funny, even silly at times.

I did not realize this book was part of a series and you are plunged into what seems like the middle of a story right away. It took a while but I largely caught up with which character was which and was curious to see how the story unfolded. I enjoyed some parts (mainly those focused on Ayesha) and overall felt this was a little too long, focused on too many characters and wasn’t as exaggerated as I hoped regarding the social satire. I do think this can be enjoyed as a standalone.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

Trelawney, the Cornwall estate owned for 800 years by the Trelawney family, is flourishing under the careful hand and bottomless purse of Aisha Sleet, wife of one of the most revolting hyper-wealthy slobs in recent literature. Her marriage has lasted eight years, she has a lovely daughter, and she thinks she has almost learned how to manage Sir Thomlinson. Sadly, this is not to. Soon Aisha and other members of her estranged family will be thrown together as they try to keep Trelawney from being sold to a theme park developer. The result is a funny, tart novel that will make you want to read Hannah Rothschild's earlier "House of Trelawney" as soon as you close this book. "High Time" stands alone, but you will wish it were part of a long series because it is a total joy. Many thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this delightful book.

High Time by Hannah Rothschild

Super good story with a boatload of family drama.. I had a hard time keeping up & realized most of the way through that it’s book #2! Whoops! My bad… I paused and read House of Trelawney & then all was right in my reading corner!

4 stars!

I am only 25% of the way into this book and think I will have to put it down. Ms Rothschild's writing is so descriptive that I feel I am in the scene, so much so that I felt embarrassed by Sleet's behavior at the Palace.

However, I am lost on who is who and how they are related to one another. I just realized this is a series so perhaps if I had read the first book, it would make more sense. Based on the blurb, I was expecting something funny and farcical, but instead it feels too real life and sad. I feel like I need to draw up a chart of the family to better follow the many characters. Perhaps, I will try it again after I have a chance to read the first book.

This British family drama is like drinking a warm cup of tea! It was perfect for the soul. This kept me entertained and I really enjoyed it.
I just reviewed High Time by Hannah Rothschild. #HighTime #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

I want to thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. I am not sure what I expected from the blurb, but it was't this. It is confusing , jumpy and weird. I see now that it is the second in a series, if I had know that, I would not have read this before reading the first. I see that some people have said it wasn't necessary, but I disagree. I felt dropped int he middle of something I could not understand. I tried, but sorry, not for me.

Received a complimentary copy of High Time by Hannah Rothschild from
Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor/NetGalley. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

BOOK REPORT
Giving High Time by Hannah Rothschild 3 stars because I can’t do 2.5. Sigh.

The story was interesting, of course because of the near-innumerable parallels to real-world people/places/events, but this book was in need of some serious editing. It felt bloated, if you will.

Also, I wouldn’t call it satirical. To me, satire is much more finely drawn.

Finally, I was very surprised to realize that it’s the second book by this author about essentially this same group of people. Had I known that, I would’ve read House of Trelawney: A Novel first. Do have it on my list because I’m especially interested in Uncle Tony’s story.

Just not very high up.

DESCRIPTION
A modern English comedy of morals and manners, about a highborn family of outrageous characters, in a story that proves revenge can be sweet

In the months leading up to the Brexit referendum, Ayesha, the beautiful, young secret daughter of the late Enyon Trelawney, has married the much older thuggish banker Tomlinson Sleet with whom she has a young daughter, Stella. Ayesha is busy restoring the once run-down Trelawney Castle in Cornwall, which Sleet has bought, to its former glory, as well as studying art at the Courtauld in London. The elderly Countess Clarissa—still ensconced on the property—the host of a camp television show, is about to head into a disastrous marriage. Lady Jane has separated from the hopeless Trelawney heir Kitto, who is crazier than ever, and found an enlightened woman to keep her company abroad. Sleet is becoming increasingly difficult, distracted by the seductive and ruthless bitcoin goddess Zamora, but Kitto’s sister Blaze and her husband, Joshua, will support Ayesha’s clever plan as she discovers shocking secrets, takes action, and brings the family together.

Biting and satirical, but also poignant and moving, High Time is a delicious story of madness, mayhem, and mischief run amok.

I went into this one blind, but it was enjoyable even without reading the previous Trelawney family books. Hannah Rothschild delivered on a biting satire set in England in 2016. There were times when I found the tonnage of characters and intertwining storylines a little bit hard to track, but overall this was a great read that I tore through in two days.

3.5 stars rounded up. Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC.

Crazy story of a manor house that needs work and the woman who is trying to fix it up while dealing with her domineering and just awful husband.

Ahhh I absolutely loved this one! It was so fun and such a quick read. I read it in a day because I couldn’t stop