A dollop of self -loathing, a scoop of insecurity, and a sprinkle of intelligence, whip it up and you have a recipe for a very predictable and superficial book. Although Danielle Steel is an international best seller, I found this book to be very common, and repetitive. The book starts with the high school quarterback marrying the head cheerleader and living happily ever after until Christine gives birth to her ugly duckling, Victoria. Victoria is big boned, chubby, and blonde unlike her skinny, brunette parents. Although she proves herself to be an intelligent, successful woman she struggles with her weight throughout her life and her parent’s criticism.
Victoria has an ordinary life, but nothing special like her sister, Grace. Grace had it all: the love and adoration of everyone, especially her parents, and the beauty and poise of a princess. Although there are different supporting characters, Danielle Steel still reiterates the weight issues and the lack of love at each point in Victoria’s life.

Growing up with a younger sister who is perfect is difficult, but being able to love your sister and not blame her for the reason your family despises your existence is even tougher, but Victoria loved her baby sister the moment she laid eyes on her. Victoria is able to love the one person who she envies the most and be the only person to take care of her baby sister.
Besides her struggles with weight, Victoria had a big, bulbous nose, the same one as her grandmother. She was so insecure about it, she got a nose job; her new nose was a combination of her sister, Grace’s nose and her mother, Christine’s nose.
Danielle Steel captivated my attention when she brought the New York private school named, the Madison school into the book. Whether it was the name or the fact that I could relate to her students, my interest was suddenly sparked. The novel started to pick up its pace and so did Victoria’s love life. After several heartbreaks, she finally meets the perfect guy, and when I say perfect, he really is. Collin White, is a sensible, gorgeous, man who defends Victoria in front of her family and fell in love with her even when the bandages were still all over her face after her nose job. He is the perfect man for Victoria, he also has family issues like Victoria and they are able to relate to each other on a deeper level.
After reading this book, I wanted my own Collin White who would take me out on romantic dates throughout New York City. Another character who brightened up this story was Harlan, her gay best friend. He was the “girlfriend” she never had. His love life, witty jokes, and maternal instincts kept her life upbeat and comical. The gay best friend made her dating life more amusing to read about; he would tell her tricks of the trade and bet her on whether her date was an official date or not.
This book is not a book I would recommend to others, simply because it was a slow, boring book that took a few weeks to read. I read three other books in between reading this book; however when my curiosity was intrigued, I was unable to put the book down. I finished reading the book on the bathroom floor of a hotel in London, at the crack of dawn. If Danielle Steel wrote the entire book at the same intensity as the last one hundred and fifty pages, I would have kept my eyes open for hours just to cease my wonder about how Victoria would survive the most wretched day in her life. Whether you read this book or not, its your choice, but the book had recurring events and a shallow exterior; on the other hand it was a novel about a war within herself and how to overcome that through love and therapy.