THE FIRST WIVES CLUB by OLIVIA GOLDSMITH msc

This empowering romp will delight and invigorate nearly any woman who's ever stewed over a bad breakup. In late-'80s Manhattan, three well-to-do, middle-aged divorcees are brought together by the suicide of a friend whose spouse, a bigoted Wall Street shark, abandoned her and later wed his ambitious protegee. Annie, a gentle, generous novelist, was dumped by her ad-exec husband for the woman who was their marriage counselor; Elise is a hard-drinking actress whose ex now dates a young artist/heiress; and Brenda is a compulsive overeater who was left by a crass salesman she had helped succeed in the retail biz. Calling themselves the First Wives Club, the three attend society functions together and seek methods of winning not only revenge but the nobler reward of justice for themselves and, posthumously, for their friend. As they stylishly, systematically and nonviolently foil the schemes of their callous former partners, they conquer their own weaknesses and find appreciative friends and lovers who complement rather than rule them. Goldsmith's glitzy, addictive and credible first novel is certain to raise smiles--not to mention a few hackles. Major ad/promo; Literary Guild featured alternate; author tour; movie rights to Paramount. 
Annie, Elise, and Brenda are all good wives who have helped their husbands achieve success. Now that their men are at the pinnacle, they find themselves dumped for younger, sleeker "trophy wives." So they band together to form the "First Wives Club" for the purpose of seeing justice done. There are obvious problems with this first novel. For one thing, the husbands are the kind of guys you love to hate and the younger women are all immature and selfish. The first wives may have their problems (drinking, overeating, and so on) but they are warm, likable characters, unlike their rotten spouses. Despite all this, it's still easy to cheer when the men reap their just rewards, and the first wives find love, happiness, and success. Money, sex, drugs, and revenge make for a heady mixture sure to be popular in any general fiction collection. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 11/1/91; Literary Guild alternate; movie rights to Paramount.