3.7 out of 4 stars.

Marvelous darling!

A Texan version of Gossip Girl years before its time. Anton Disclafani’s “The After Party” is full of secrets, scandal, and feelings of inadequacy. It takes place in the 1950s in the suburbs of Texas where the more oil you strike the bigger deal you become. Joan Fortier’s parents were amongst the lucky ones that did just that. If money wasn’t enough, Joan was also tall, blonde, and a pistol. She stayed out late, could hold her liquor, and never met a man she didn’t like.

It is a surprise to all that Joan’s best friend was Cece Buchanan. Their appearances were not the only thing totally off between these two. Cece was reserved and liked to follow the rules. She was more of a mothering figure to Joan than a best friend. You can only imagine the amount of nights she stayed up worrying when Joan would run away for days at a time. Not an unheard of friendship dynamic but certainly one that is not the easiest. Cece can barely handle Joan’s life let alone start trying to live hers. It is not until their mid twenties that they start to realize the secrets have to come out and that they cannot keep living with all these skeletons in the closest.

What Joan reveals is absolutely baffling to Cece. How could she of kept it a secret for so long? why did she feel like she couldn’t tell her best friend?

A GREAT read for this summer. I highly recommend.