UK burlesque star Immodesty Blaize wowed us with her debut novel, Tease, in 2009, so I was pretty excited about her latest novel, Ambition, which was released in October of last year. Despite buying the book some time ago, I didn't get round to reading it until recently when decided to take it with me on a long flight to New York. After all, I'd been completely engrossed in Tease, and this one I wanted to savour just as much.Ambition focuses on Sienna Starr, daughter of famous burlesque artist Tiger Starr. Since Tease, Tiger has gone on to persue a career in Hollywood, leaving her daughter to take the reins as the hottest new showgirl. Living and performing in Vegas, Sienna leads a gifted life of luxury. Having only recently realised the truth that Tiger Starr is her mother (the previous book reveals a huge family secret), Sienna's determined to make it in the industry and make her mother proud. it's her ambition to make it of her own accord, and not simply be famous on the back of her mother's success. Although the other girls are convinced that this isn't the case...
But Sienna's life isn't as wonderful as she assumes. For example, there's her boyfriend Max, the super-rich son of a tycoon. After a string of girls, not to mention the ability to get any girl he wants, Max has persued Sienna and is trying his best not to mess up. But it's not that easy. Especially with a penchant for cheating and a huge gambling problem he can't seem to shake...
Meanwhile Paige, Sienna's 'rival', is determined to get what's hers. Even Max, and she'll try anything to grasp Sienna's seemingly adoring boyfriend. Anything at all. And superbitch Brandy is appalled when her unsuccessful twin brother appears in her life after the death of their mother. Showgirl Brandy, a renowned spoilt brat, left her old life behind her to create another. And she doesn't want Paolo to set foot in it. However, things take an odd turn when Paolo is mistaken for his sister whilst trying to find a necklace she'd taken. Before long, Paolo finds himself donning his twin's makeup and wigs while she's away getting plastic surgery, stepping into the notorious Brandy's shoes and attempting to put right the many, many things that she's done wrong.
Even though Sienna is the main character of Ambition, the book focuses on a number of characters, which makes the book a lot more interesting as their lives, and all of their secrets, intertwine.
However, even though it gets better as their lives and dreams collide, this book was nowhere near as gripping and interesting as Tease. Sienna seemed to be a weaker character than her mother, and I didn't feel as though I really knew Sienna like I did Tiger.
Another thing that irked me was the dialogue. When I first began reading the book, it seemed as though the characters were English. Then I realised that the story was based in Vegas. It was a little confusing (Immodesty Blaize is British so it's understandable, but I couldn't understand why her editors seemed not to have noticed this?) Not only that, but the story is extremely over-the-top, especially with the whole Brandy and Paolo subplot. I tried to take this seriously but there was just no way I could do it - the story is so far-fetched that it's laughable.
I generally enjoyed this book until about 3/4 of the way through, when it became not only OTT but reliant on coincidences and panto-villain characters. Brandy and Paige were downright nasty, which is of course believeable, but they were a bit too bitchy. It was as though the reason for their hate wasn't given enough depth (particularly when it came to Paige. It was explained why Brandy acted like she did, but still, something didn't ring true.)
Okay, it seems as though I've listed more negatives than positives here. Really, it's not that bad. If you're looking for a light, fun tale of Vegas glamour and scandal that's not entirely believable then this might be for you. However, I found that it lacked the intrigue that Tease had, and the plot that kept the reader guessing. I'm personally a big fan of Immodesty Blaize and should she release another book I'll definitely read it as Tease was brilliant. Ambition simply wasn't as wonderful as I'd hoped.
Rating: 3/5
