A certain age - Tama Janiwitz

hen Florence Collins sets out for a weekend at her friend Natalie's house in the Hamptons, she boards the bus with an air of unspoken expec-

tation, especially when she spots the very wealthy and still available, if somewhat uptight, Charlie Twigall. But the weekend's promise of potential partnering spirals into a disastrous series of mishaps that include an unwanted nighttime visit from Natalie's husband, the near drowning of Natalie's daughter, a bad financial gamble, and the expulsion of Florence from the premises.

Here is a tragicomic novel about the plight of a woman on the make in New York who spends every cent of her not-so-hard-earned money on body wraps, designer clothes, and custom-mixed makeup—all in the vain hope of attracting a rich husband. In prose at once biting and sparkling, Janowitz has created a novel of modern manners with this sly and unforgettable portrait of New York soci-ety, as unforgiving today as it was a hundred years ago.