The New York Times
…Candace Bushnell … has delivered Trading Up, her most fervent catalog yet of the critical distinctions - between a Ferrari and a Jaguar XK-120, say, or the Four Seasons hotel and the Four Seasons restaurant - that supposedly define a chic life. … Bushnell proves she's still the philosopher-queen of a social scene propelled not by vanity or conscience but by sheer perversity. If Bushnell's prose is like her trademark drink, the fruity pink Cosmopolitan, she's still making it with plenty of vodka and Triple Sec. — Virginia Heffernan
The Washington Post
Bushnell writes fluidly and offers enough titillating drama to keep the pages turning. Will Janey do what it takes with Mimi's billionaire spouse in an effort to secure his help in staving off the rude mogul? What about Janey's attraction to that polo player; will she seduce him? Bushnell dashes off some hilarious one-liners and funny, fresh descriptions. — Susan Adams
Gotham
Bound to be a huge success
Publishers Weekly
"It was the beginning of the summer of the year 2000, and in New York City, where the streets seemed to sparkle with the gold dust filtered down from a billion trades in a boomtown economy, it was business as usual." In other words, it is business as usual for bestselling author Bushnell (Sex and the City; 4 Blondes), who expands here on the career of shallow, predatory Janey Wilcox. In 4 Blondes, Wilcox was a mildly famous one-time model who bedded men based on their ability to provide her with a great house in the Hamptons for the summer. Now she has become a Victoria's Secret model, a bona fide success in her own right. As the latest summer in the Hamptons kicks off, Wilcox becomes the new best friend of the socialite Mimi Kilroy, who is eager to introduce beautiful Janey to the very rich Selden Rose, the new head of the HBO-like MovieTime. Unlike Janey's many previous hookups, Selden is the marrying kind. What ensues is a grim if well-observed account of a match made in hell. Here's the problem. There is a black hole in the center of the book in the form of Janey Wilcox, a character so dull and humorless that she makes this whole elaborate enterprise one long, boring slog. Granted, Bushnell sets out to chronicle the workings of "one of those people for whom the superficial comfortingly masks an inner void," but Wilcox is not evil enough to be interesting, not talented enough to be Mr. Ripley. Wilcox proceeds from model/prostitute to "Model/Prostitute" on the cover of the Post. But who will care? Bushnell has committed the real crime here: failure to entertain. (July) Forecast: Bushnell's name and a major marketing push should insure strong initial sales, which are bound to fall off as all but the most die-hard fans spread the word that her latest sex bomb is a dud. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
From The Critics
"Bushnell has her milieu down cold." (New York Times Book Review)
Library Journal
The author of Sex and the City takes another look at pre-September 11 New York City high life. As the novel begins, glamorous but generally unlikable supermodel Janey Wilcox is fit to be tied. While she is stuck in traffic on her drive out to the Hamptons, the truly elite are traveling to the weekend resort via seaplane. Although she has achieved success in her own right as a Victoria's Secret model, Janey yearns to scale even higher up the social ladder. Tired of trying to sleep her way to the top, she decides that a friendship with old-money socialite Mimi Kilroy just might be her ticket to the top rung. Mira Sorvino perfectly captures the tone of the book in the abridged version, and while Ellen Archer's reading is also good, many will find 17 hours of the life of Janey to be a bit much. The abridged program is recommended for public libraries.-Beth Farrell, Portage Cty. Dist. Lib., OH Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
Rapacious social climber gets the rich husband and fame she’s always desired--and it’s far from enough. This being the fifth from Bushnell (Sex and the City, 1996; Four Blondes, 2000, etc.), one expects generous lashings of fashion, sex, and New York City--and such expectations are more than rewarded. Stage center in this gaudy little bauble is Janey Wilcox, a morally challenged model at the upper end of the allowed age spectrum (early 30s) who’s managed to stay on top as one of the lithe, lingerie-clad Victoria’s Secret vixens. Sick of not-so-subtly trading sex with powerful Manhattan men for favors, invites, meals, and money, she decides that she needs to do what "friends" do (thinking of other people as anything but accessories and tools is somewhat of a stretch for Janey) and get a rich husband. The poor sucker is Selden Rose, a basically nice guy from Chicago who’s CEO of a successful cable movie channel. A quick romance ends in marriage and an Italian honeymoon that quickly has Janey throwing tantrums at being so far away from good shopping. Ensconced in their New York apartment, Janey quickly comes to realize that she could have married much better than Selden. Though she’s a past master of the New York scene and the neuroses and accoutrements of its more fabulous denizens, Bushnell runs into more than a few snags when she tries to rev this lumbering, chaotic novel forward. It’s all well and good to create a creature as devastatingly cold-hearted and childish as Janey just so we can stand back and watch the chaos ensue (á la Valley of the Dolls, too bluntly alluded to), but a lurching, frequently stalled plot gets in the way to an almost embarrassing degree. A nearly nonexistentsense of humor unfortunately negates any vicarious pleasure to be got from either Bushnell’s better observations or Janey’s monstrous diva-tude. Author tour
