Review: Snapped, Pamela Klaffke

Sara B. has been the preeminent fashion guru for her entire life. Her column on “Do”s and “Don’t”s is an absolute landmark. She can dictate or destroy a fashion statement more or less at her will. But all of a sudden, everything starts falling apart. She loses her sense of style, slips away from her relationships with friends and coworkers, and wants nothing more than to hide from her life. When she meets Esther and Lila, a pair of elderly ladies, she doesn’t immediately see the connection with her own life until Lila passes away and Sara finds herself remembering a true stylish woman and wondering what’s left of her own life.

I had quite a time with this book – it is definitely a roller coaster ride of emotions and events. I don’t think it’s for everyone, but it’s pretty sensational and at times shocking – the type of book I don’t normally get into, but for once I found that it worked for me. I was in just the right mood for a scandalous, saucy chick lit book – Sara’s whacky narrative combined with her genuine search for meaning worked very well for me.

What I think would probably turn others off is the absolute level of detail she goes into about her life. I had a really hard time believing anyone could live like that. She is constantly drinking, smoking, and even sleeping around – in a variety of graphic ways – and I would never have been comfortable if that was my life. That was the real downside of the book for me, as it’s just very vulgar at times. Sara is lost in many ways and her abuse of her body signals that loud and clear. As a reader, I was cringing for her, and really wanted her to put herself back together. I didn’t like her, but I felt sorry for her.

It’s really the fact that she’s so lost which makes the book so appealing, though. Sara is a woman who was lucky enough to virtually fall into a career related to a silly game she and a friend started out in college. She never had a chance to question whether she wanted that career, and once she starts to lose a piece, she starts to wonder what was holding her together in the first place. Even though her actions wouldn’t mirror my own, and I don’t think I’d be friends with her in real life, I did feel for her, and I found the end to be fantastic. It fit her character just perfectly. Plus, I just adored Esther – what a wonderful woman! She is very much what I’d like to be when I’m her age, except with a husband, because I’ve already got him.

If you’re looking for a contemporary novel focused on the disintegrated life of a fashionista and don’t mind a few graphic scenes, Snapped is a book you should be reading.

I am an Amazon Associate. I received this book for free from a publicist for review.