Cynthia Weiner’s “A Gorgeous Excitement,” with its look back at the excesses of the ’80s which now seem so distant as to have happened on a different planet, had me recalling the sentiment of a real-life young woman from those times who said of a much-acclaimed TV series, “My So-Called Life,” that she didn’t find anything in the series remotely relatable to her own life.
Others at the time obviously begged to differ, though – the show was all the rage for a while – and Weiner in a foreward to her book tells us that the characters’ actions in her novel, for all their seeming remoteness to us now, in fact came out of the actual experiences of her and some of her friends. Still, I couldn’t help thinking, as I read the novel, that for many young people today, reading it might well have them feeling as if they were reading about life on Mars.
Those were times, after all, as depicted in the novel, when girls barely out of high school displayed a personal familiarity with sexual practices that would have shocked their grandmothers and, with an “illusory sense of invulnerability,” “ran rampant through the city streets” and “traipsed through Central Park in the middle of the night” and did the entire gamut of drugs, with the one of especial choice being cocaine (a “glorious excitement,” Freud said of its effects – hence the novel's title).
Even the novel’s protagonist, Nina, does no small amount of the drug – she’s even let go from a temp position for doing it on the job – for all her being presented as more perceptive or socially conscious than the other girls (think Ally Sheedy in “Heart of Dixie,” whose conscience is awakened to the civil rights movement, though, interestingly, it’s not Nina in the novel but a less sympathetic figure who speaks out against antisemitism).
But more than just a depiction of a period that with its excesses made for a particularly dangerous time for young women – in real life, as in the novel, there was indeed a Preppy killer – Weiner’s novel is a sobering look at mental illness, both with whatever faulty brain circuitry might have made for the killer as well as, more personally upfront for Nina, what might have made for the afflicted state of her mother, Frances, whose welfare is the chief concern of her husband as he seeks to keep her from being subjected to the sort of invasive treatment that incapacitated Rosemary Kennedy and to that end is optimistic about a new medical drug.
And indeed for a time the new drug seems to be working its magic – Frances is in particularly fine form when she gives what's what to a store boss who’s giving a friend of Nina’s a bad time — but soon enough the drug’s efficacy wanes and her situation goes terribly south.
A mix, then, of a depiction of a different time and place and a contemplation of mental illness, Weiner’s novel, and an exemplar of gorgeous writing as well. Though, again, in these conservative times of ours, I couldn’t help thinking that young readers might well see the novel’s milieu of excess (think “Scarface,” which is in fact cited in the novel) as something out of an alternative universe.

In the summer of 1986, Nina Jacobs is preparing for her departure of college by endeavoring to lose her virginity and to avoid her mother, Frances. Frances is prone to depression and rarely leaves her bed; when she does, it's with disastrous results. Nina's father, Ira, is left to deal with his wife (who he genuinely loves), his ailing father-in-law, and his own hostile family, miles away in St. Louis. Nina temps by day, and in the evening, joins her wealthy friends at Flanagan's, a local bar that doesn't care if you're underage. Fueled by alcohol and a variety of pilfered prescription medicine, Nina lurks on the fringes. Like many of her contemporaries, she's obsessed with Gardner Reed, a handsome bad boy who occasionally deigns to notice her--more so when she starts using and sharing cocaine.

Nina becomes good friends with Stephanie--who introduced her to cocaine--and also has a pretty strong nonsense meter, except when it comes to her own boyfriend. At the same time, Frances starts on a new medication which helps with her depression but leads her into mania. But a tragedy at the end of August will forever change their lives. Although I would have been a contemporary of Nina, I somehow missed the Preppy Murder on which this is based. #AGorgeousExcitement #NetGalley

Cynthia Weiner's A GORGEOUS EXCITEMENT is a very strong debut novel. The main character Nina Jacobs has just graduated and is engulfed in wanted to be one of the rich, blonde preppy girls from her high school and their hangout Flanagan's. Yet, Nina is Jewish (perhaps the only Jewish at her school) and struggles to fit in. Even her female classmates side with boys in making fun of her or making her feel "less than." What gives A Gorgeous Excitement its edge is that it opens with Nina reading a newspaper article about a model whose face was slashed after she refused her landlord's advances. And after reading that article, Nina walks alone to the bar dressed in a revealing outfit. This is NYC in the 1980s, long before the Disney-ification of Times Square. Nina's New York City is dark and full of young, wealthy white men who have yet to experience any repercussions for their actions (including murder). That these young men have never faced consequences for any of their behavior also makes the world and atmosphere of the book feel dangerous. Every step Nina took in this novel forced me to sit in discomfort. The way author Weiner creates this edgy, dangerously underbellied world for naive Nina to swim in is so excellent. In the first chapter alone, there's so much for my creative writing students to learn.

A Gorgeous Excitement by Cynthia Weiner is a fantastic debut novel flashing back to the summer of 1986 in New York City based on the Preppy Killer. This book brought me back in time with its references of trendy 80’s clubs, past fashion brands, popular bands/singers/songs, the small metal pins with sayings and pictures found on denim jackets or purses, and department stores of the past. The familiar news headlines during this time sucked me right into the fictional life of Nina Jacobs.

Nina Jacobs, the only child of Ira and Frances, has just graduated from a prominent private high school. Vanderbilt University is on the horizon, but she first needs to make this a summer to remember before she begins college life.

Nina frequents Flanagan’s, a bar near Central Park, meeting her friends Leigh and Meredith for a night of drinks, conversation, and the hopes to get close to Gardner Reed.

Nina’s home life is not one she readily and openly shares with her friends. As her dad is a hard worker, deeply in love and dedicated to her mom, her mother is not mentally stable. Nina tries to self-medicate herself to get through parts of her day.

Nina makes a new friend, who introduces her to a “gorgeous excitement”. Can Nina balance her summer temp. positions, her crumbling home life, her evenings with friends, and her new friendship with Gardner, and her new party lifestyle without completely losing the girl/woman she wants to become?

This debut novel can be torn through quickly. I felt as though I was walking alongside Nina watching the unpleasant happenings unfolding on the street of New York, smelling the unpleasantness of the stale smoke and alcohol in Flanagan’s, hearing the clanging of the metal grates, the feeling of the band of her Swatch watch, and running my hands through some of the lush materials she wore.

A Gorgeous Excitement is a highly addictive read!! From the way the author sets up happenings of that time, to the fast-paced middle, to the delicate ending, this book is so much more than a girl who is looking to experience her best pre-college summer. This book recalls many of the issues surrounding the mid 80’s.

Thank you to Net Galley, Crown Publishing, and Cynthia Weiner for providing me with an advanced copy of this novel.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
#netgalley #cynthiaweiner #crownpublishing #agorgeousexcitement #flashback80sread #debutnovel

A Gorgeous Excitement is a historical fiction novel about a young woman’s last summer in New York City before leaving for college. It is loosely based on the “Preppy Murder” case of 1986.

Nina Jacobs is temping at various offices in Manhattan and hitting the local bar, Flanagan’s, at night when she is drawn back into the orbit of Gardner Reed. He’s charismatic and sexy, and Nina quickly becomes obsessed with him. Meanwhile, she’s also navigating her mother’s declining mental health, a new friendship with Stephanie, and a rapidly growing drug habit. What starts as a final hurrah before heading to Vanderbilt University becomes a summer that ends in murder.

For those who remember the Jennifer Levin murder case, this novel brings us back to the mid-80s with its references to the music, fashion, party drugs, and the pretty young women who were attacked in New York City—and then blamed for their own vulnerability. I felt protective of Nina and Stephanie as they floated through the city, oblivious to the dangers around them, and angry all over again at the case that inspired this novel. It’s not a light read, but I recommend it to readers who enjoy gritty coming-of-age stories.

Nina is determined to lose her virginity before she heads to college. But that is difficult when her mom's depression is spiraling, she has a reputation based on a BJ gone bad, and she is a Jewish outsider in the WASPy upper east side. But then she makes a new friend who introduces her to cocaine and as her pursuit of that spirals, she starts to fall for the charms of local playboy Gardner, and misses all his red flags.

I enjoyed this book a lot! It was a fun read, though very reminiscent to a few books I have recently read.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This summer will change her life forever

Nina Jacobs, a New York City teen who has just graduated from high school, has some goals to accomplish during the summer before she heads away to college. First and foremost she intends to lose her virginity...everyone in her circle already has...and there is one guy in particular who she hopes will be the one to help rid her of this burden. She is also dealing with difficulties on the home front; her mother Frances, who has long struggled with mental health issues, is getting progressively worse and Nina shares the challenge of "managing" her day to day, doing whatever she can to avoid setting her mother off. On weekend nights Nina and the Upper East Side teens who make up her social group congregate at Flanagan's, where consuming alcohol helps Nina forget that she doesn't quite fit the mold of the blue-blood preppy crowd. In a circle where houses in the Hamptons are de rigeur and money is something one's family has had for generations, being Jewish and trying to conceal her family's "dirty laundry" has not set Nina up for success. That the boy she can't stop thinking about is Gardner Reed, the guy every girl wants as a boyfriend and every other guy wants to be, is a further challenge. Gardner may be something other than he seems but Nina can't fight the attraction she feels to him. Emboldened by her new friendship with outsider Stephanie who opens her up to the liberating effects of the glamorous "it' drug, cocaine, Nina ignores the stories that are swirling about Gardner's dark side. In the summer of 1986 few are thinking about AIDS, the downsides of addiction or the dangers that lurk in the night for unsuspecting young people of privilege...but Nina is on a collision course with those realities.
The 1980's was my era, and like Nina I was someone who didn't quite fit in in high school and was more of an observer than a participant in the many dramas of my peers. I wasn't Jewish but remember all too well the casual slights directed towards those deemed "Jappy"; I did not dress according to the dictates of The Preppy Handbook, but the same could not be said for many of my classmates. I also vividly remember what became known as the "Preppy Murder", when 18 year old Jennifer Levin was found dead in Central Park after spending time in a nearby "hangout" bar. A photogenic prep school boy named Robert Chambers was charged with the killing, and the resulting tabloid headlines and trial were impossible to avoid. All of the above certainly played a factor in my engagement in this novel which is set in that time and certainly borrows elements of that crime, but this is more than a thinly veiled novelization of that case. This is a coming of age story of Nina who like many young women her age is looking forward to the independence that awaits her at college and is eager to leave behind her those parts of her life that vex her. Her closest friendships are with two girls she has known for years, but friendships of three are dangerous...all too often two become closer and the third feels left out. The inherent invincibility of teenagers whose financial circumstances are comfortable coupled with freedoms granted by parents who had no idea of the dangers that were circling their children were a recipe for possible disaster, as Nina and her friends discover. Add in the hormonal cocktail of young people experiencing desire and attraction, and the stage is set for sex, broken hearts, and more. I have a great deal of compassion for Nina, forced by circumstances to be in many ways a parent to her mother while struggling to become her own person, and appreciated her view on the social scene she inhabited. If like me you came of age in the 80's and remember both the good and bad of that era, or if you enjoy the novels of Tama Janowitz, Bret Easton Ellis and Curtis Sittenfeld, then I recommend this novel that blends suspense with a coming of age story. My thanks to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for allowing me access to a copy of Cynthia Wiener's engrossing tale in exchange for my honest review.

This book definitely gave me the nostalgia of high school. Although I was not alive in the 80's or grew up in New York this book made me FEEL like I did. The typical Teen drama, banter and romance. The romance is minimal, slow-burn with Nina and Gardner. This book did have some surprising twists and unexpected turns. Overall, I enjoyed this book even though the main characters were so young and immature, I normally have a hard time relating to young main characters. This made me feel like I was back in high school again.
Thank you NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the chance to review this title

A coming of age story set in 1986, Nina Jacobs is just trying to get through the summer before she's off to college. She is also trying to avoid her mother's manic depressive episodes and lose her virginity.
However, the object of her desire, Gardiner Reed, is wanted by everyone else. This story is based on the "preppy murder" that actually happened in Central Park. I think I would have enjoyed this novel more if Nina wasn't so vapid and yet so self-conscious and easily bullied. She believes in Gardiner and his innocence almost to the detriment of everything else and doesn't accept the truth until she comes face to face with the irrefutable evidence. Well-written but a more annoying protagonist I have yet to find.. You just want to shake the crap out of Nina.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Crown for this digital e-arc.*I

It was interesting but I couldn't finish it. It lost my interest because it fel repetitive in the middle.

I really enjoyed this debut novel and will definitely be following this author. This is a very well written debut with excellent story telling skills on display. As someone who graduated high school in the 80s and loves NYC, I thoroughly loved this coming of age novel that seems to capture very authentically the "adulting" of a young woman as she experiences new freedoms in the city. It was a gorgeous excitement for our main character as she has lots of firsts during the summer before she heads off to college. I believe the author did an outstanding job of portraying a young woman on the brink of everything. The female friendships seemed very real as did the bar where they all hung out. The book doesn't shy away from the dark side of the city and of the world of young adults. Mental illness, addiction, class, misogyny are all explored as part of the plot. The ending is very satisfactory without being "happy". Thanks to Crown Publishing for the early copy and to netgalley. for a wonderful read. I will be expecting more great novels from Cynthia Weiner.

This gripping coming-of-age novel explores the gritty and thrilling corners of 1980s Manhattan, capturing the pulse of the city as seen in awe and terror by Nina Jacobs, a young woman desperate to fit in on the Upper East Side. Written with a gentle hand, Nina’s youth and vulnerability shine through the more pedestrian prose. Her story quickly intensifies as cocaine seeps into her world, making my heartbeat rise with each of her fervent lines and bumps. Drawing on the notorious Preppy Killer case, Cynthia Weiner crafts a lush and incisive critique of privilege and recklessness, while delivering a deeply personal story about identity, belonging, and the fragility of youth. Equal parts evocative snapshot and cautionary tale, <i>A Gorgeous Excitement</i> is a haunting, propulsive, and slightly overwritten read.

<i>thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the e-arc!!</i>

While I was looking forward this novel (and I love the cover), I ended up DNFing at 23%. I just couldn't get into the characters or the writing style. I think I'd like to come back to this at a later time and try again though as the reviews are positive and it's a storyline that's up my alley.

3.5 Stars

I was fresh out of college and working in New York City in the summer of 1986 when the "Preppy Murder" took place, so there's a bit of nostalgia for me about this time. Eighteen-year-old Jennifer Levin was found undressed and dead under a tree in Central Park, apparently strangled. She and her murderer Robert Chambers frequented a bar called Dorrian's that summer. I also remember the young female model Marla Hanson who was viciously attacked by having her face slashed that same year. Both of these stories were splashed across the newspapers in 1986. I wasn't that invested in either story at the time, but here I am several decades later intrigued to delve into this piece of historical fiction.

First of all, the names were changed of the people this book was based on. This turned out to be a brilliant trope, because I was totally surprised at who the murder victim wound up being towards the end of the book. That was a twisty thing to do! Up until that point I was mildly entertained by this story, because it did drag a little. I felt like it could have been edited down some, since it was almost 400 pages long. Being separated by decades from these young adults on the cusp of attending college, it is easy to remember the social practice and importance of going to bars and dabbling in alcohol and drugs. This activity was a mainstay in the book in the waning weeks before these young ladies were darting off to college, but their vapid ideas and conversations started to wear thin for me.

There was an interesting storyline involving the main character's mother, who was suffering from mental illness. Her moods would radically change and have to be managed by medications, treatment, and hospitalization overseen by her doctor. At times this behavior was humorous, but oftentimes extremely disturbing. It was thought-provoking as to what families go through who have a family member who is mentally unstable. There was also a bird's eye view into friendships, popularity, the have and have-nots, taking care of the elderly, and the rise of AIDS. This was a good book with interesting topics that just could have been more concise. It sparked my interest in this case to such a degree that I'm reading another true crime book about this incident.

Thank you to Crown Publishing for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

What a fantastic debut! Set in 1980s NYC, A GORGEOUS EXCITEMENT follows Nina Jacobs, who's just trying to enjoy her summer before beginning her freshman year at Vanderbilt in the fall. By day, she's working at unfulfilling temp jobs and walking on eggshells around her mother, who is suffering from severe mental health struggles; by night, she's frequenting a popular Upper East Side bar with her friends and trying to catch the eye of charismatic, handsome Gardner Reed. As Nina embarks on a life-changing summer, she just might realize that not everything is what it seems, and that getting everything you thought you wanted may come with a cost.

I was completely absorbed into Nina's world from start to finish! Cynthia Weiner perfectly captures that "in-between time" in the summer after finishing high school and beginning college, and all those complex feelings and experiences that surround it—the awareness that everything is about to change, the drive to reinvent yourself and be the person you might not have been in high school, the excitement (and nerves) about what lies ahead. Although the story is grounded in a very specific time period, Nina's insecurities and struggles resonate even beyond the setting, and Cynthia Weiner doesn't hesitate to tackle difficult topics, including antisemitism, addiction, mental illness, misogyny, class differences, and so many more. I especially appreciated how Weiner addresses antisemitism in the story and depicts how Nina's Jewish identity often makes her feel like an outsider. Additionally, I really liked how Weiner normalizes being more introverted and also maybe more inexperienced going into college when it comes to love, relationships, etc. through Nina's journey—I think so many readers will be able to relate to her desire to fit in/gain approval and acceptance, while also being a quieter type of person, more of an "observer." All of this makes Nina an even more compelling character to follow, in my opinion! The book's atmospheric quality was also a definite strength of the story. The level of detail Weiner infuses into the setting, from the features of the time period to what it was like to live in the city at that time, is so impressive and immersive, making me feel as if I were right there with the characters! 1980s New York practically leapt off the page.

Overall, I would strongly recommend A GORGEOUS EXCITEMENT, particularly for fans of literary fiction and coming-of-age narratives! The story handles some heavier topics and takes on a darker tone, so be mindful of that before reading. Cynthia Weiner is certainly an author to watch! Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the ARC.

I'm going to be the outlier on this because I struggled with separating what Weiner has created with the very real and tragic murder of Jennifer Levin by Robert Chambers. Those who did not live in NYC at the time might not have the same issue but those who did know that the media attention on the case was incredible (can't imagine what it would be like with social media). Weiner has done a good job with her characters and with the atmospherics of the period. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Over to others.

📖: A Gorgeous Excitement, a standalone

✍🏾 Author: Cynthia Weiner-debut author

📅Publication date: 1-21-25 | Read 1-14-25

📃 # of pages: 368 eBook

Genre:
*Historical Fic
*Mystery/Thriller
*Crime Fic
*Urban Fic

Tropes:
* coming of age
* mental health
* white privilege/the wealthy
* family drama
*female/male friendships

👆🏾POV: 3rd person, single

⚠️TW: death of grandmother, mental decline of grandfather, mental illness, racism, drug addiction/alcoholism, antisemitism, virgin h, SA, misogyny, grooming, serial killer

🌎 Setting: The Upper East Side, New York 1986

Summary: Nina wants to lose her virginity this summer before going to college, but she has to manage her mother's mental illness. She attempts to belong by hanging out at Flanagan's-a dive bar- taking drugs, drinking excessively, and stalking her crush. It's also the summer of "The Preppy Killer" and Nina has no sense of self preservation.

🎭Other Characters:

* Stephanie/Patrick-Nina's new friend she met in Central Park/Nina's drug dealer boyfriend
* Frances/Ira Jacobs-Nina's parents
* Gardner Reed/Holland Nichols-Nina's crush & a bad boy/Gardner's girlfriend
* Alison Bloch-Jewish, attends prep school w/ Nina
* Walker Pierson-Nina's first attempt to lose her v-card
* Leigh/Meredith-Nina's frenemies
* Rex Parrish-had affair w/ Holland

🤔 My Thoughts: I related to Nina's need to belong by doing things just to have friends. Leigh and Merdith were awful to her, yet she always hung out with them. She had to walk on eggshells at home because of her mom's unpredictability. The drugs and alcohol were a coping mechanism being under pressure to fit in, stay in her mom's good graces, and worry about her future. All the while there were predators everywhere. Nina didn't realize the danger she was in with older men like Freddie, boys her age like Rex and Walker, and strangers.

Rating: 4/5⭐⭐⭐⭐

🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley, Crown Publishing, and Cynthia Weiner for this ARC! I voluntarily give my honest review, and all opinions are my own.

I'm going to be honest, I actually finished this months ago - in September, apparently - and forgot all about it until now, when I realized the publication date is coming up. It must not have made a huge impression on me, because I am having a hard time remembering what I thought of it. I enjoyed the A plot, and felt like that part was well paced and engaging, but I feel like there were a couple different subplots that didn’t quite go anywhere or took too much space away from the main plot. I also feel like the ending was not super satisfying or didn’t hit very hard.
I did enjoy the main character as a fairly unlikable protagonist, and the cast made up of unlikable characters in general. It felt somewhat Gossip Girl-esque, so I’d recommend it to readers who enjoy that vibe.

Cynthia Wiener’s debut is a coming of age story starring Nina- an 18 year old Jewish woman living in NYC during the summer of 1986. As Nina counts down the days to her freshman year of college, she commits to reinventing herself by way of losing her virginity to golden boy, Gardner Reed. Along the way, she juggles having a mentally-ill mother, a series of awful temp jobs, making and keeping new friendships, and a new coke habit.

While I generally hate describing books as "relatable" (because IMHO I think it’s lazy reviewing), Cynthia created complex and captivating characters that I felt good about rooting for. And in the layers of Nina, I saw 18 year old Taylor (desperately horny, lonely, weird, naive, etc). Despite the secondhand embarrassment of watching Nina make all the same mistakes that I did at 18, I couldn’t put it down. I think that speaks volumes to Cynthia’s strength as a storyteller. "A Gorgeous Excitement" comes out on 1/21.

Thank you to NetGalley, Cynthia Wiener, and Crown Publishing for the ARC.

This debut novel, which is set in the summer of 1986 amid Manhattan's glittering, gritty setting, presents a gripping blend of family dysfunction, coming-of-age anguish, and the sinister draw of privilege and peril. The protagonist of the tale is 18-year-old Nina Jacobs, a perceptive but unsophisticated young woman negotiating a perilous social environment and a turbulent home life.

The social order of the Upper East Side, the charm of Flanagan's bar, and the perilous peaks of 1980s excess are all vividly depicted in the book. However, at times, the novel feels overstuffed with its ambitious examination of weighty subjects like mental illness, substance misuse, and sexual awakening, leaving key narrative threads undeveloped.


A Gorgeous Excitement is a captivating book with incisive social critique and a moving representation, even though it falls short of its full potential of young people getting out of hand.

We appreciate Crown Publishing and NetGalley giving an eARC of A Gorgeous Excitement before it was published.