Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #616966 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-18
• Released on: 2006-04-18
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Bestseller Valdes-Rodriguez (Playing with Boys) shows she can brand name–drop with the best of them in her third chica lit offering, a busy celebrity fantasy populated by six women and the "him" of the title, Latin pop sensation Ricky Biscayne. Beyond product placement for Rock & Republic jeans, Dolce & Gabbana shoes and Cristal (and that's just the first page), this Miami yarn is heavy with dramatic touchstones: an abandoned child, domestic abuse, sibling rivalry, romantic infidelities and the pregnancy of Ricky's wife, Jasminka. Narrated mostly by Ricky's new publicist, Milan, the story shifts perspectives—sometimes changing narrators without warning—among Milan's sister, nightclub entrepreneur Geneva, Ricky's high school flame Irene, fatherless teenager Sophia, the famous (and familiar) singer/actress/brand Jill Sanchez, and Jasminka. Though a boon plot-wise, this crowd gives individuals little room to come alive; mostly, characters are either underdeveloped (Jasminka) or conform to types (Jill and Geneva), and they all resemble celebrities (Ricky: a "less greasy Antonio Banderas," Geneva: a "slightly prettier Penelope Cruz"). The villainous portrayal of Jill, obviously modeled after a real-life pop star, is particularly unimaginative, as is the predictable message she sets up. Despite these problems, however, our refreshingly imperfect and insecure heroine, Milan, shines, and there are enough reversals of fate and fortune to make this a satisfying read. (Apr. 18)
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From AudioFile
Meet Ricky Biscayne, the hottest Latino singer in Miami, and the women who are touched, loved, and occasionally tortured by him as they lead lives as his appendages. Daphne Rubin-Vega and Orlagh Cassidy portray six of those women with near perfection. Best are Ricky's publicist, Milan, from whose point of view most of the story is told, who slowly strips Ricky of his phony genius; a Madonna-like pop star; Milan's sister; Ricky's abandoned daughter; and his abused Serb wife, a model. The narrators create a fast-paced portrait of a thoroughly rotten heel, and although the end gets bogged down in graphic sex scenes, the misadventures of Ricky and his women make for compulsive listening. M.T.B. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
This lusty novel set in Miami focuses on six women whose lives are connected by one man--Latin pop singer Ricky Biscayne. Behind the handsome face, thrusting hips, and chart-topping hits is a man who abandoned his first love and child, a womanizer and a liar. It's going to take all the women in his life joining together to expose him for what he really is to change him. Valdes-Rodriguez relies on the sex and sass that made her debut, The Dirty Girls Social Club (2003), a runaway hit, and her strong suit is still creating realistic female relationships. Otherwise, many of her characters and plotlines seem ripped straight from the pages of tell-all tabloids--take the Latina diva with a famous derriere for example. Despite that, or perhaps because of it, readers will snap this book off the shelves and not be disappointed: Valdes-Rodriguez delivers the raunchy packed-with-attitude tale that her fans expect. Aleksandra Kostovski
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved