I finally got to read the three books in the Spa Girls Series by Kristin Billerbeck.
Check out Kristin Billerbeck's website at http://www.kristinbillerbeck.com/
Book one: She's All That
Description:
Forever friends Morgan Malliard, Poppy Clayton, and Lilly Jacobs live completely separate lives---and "catch up" at California's Spa Del Mar. When Lilly decides that "bad hair" is at the root of all her problems, her cohorts are full of "helpful" advice. But what does God have in store for three gals pursuing the perfect pedicure?
From Publishers Weekly
Christian chick-lit star Billerbeck has moved on from her popular Ashley Stockingdale trilogy with an engaging new novel that features struggling fashion designer Lilly Jacobs and her two best friends, Morgan and Poppy. The trio met at Stanford, and they couldn't be more different: Morgan's the down-to-earth daughter of a wealthy diamond dealer, while Poppy is a tie-dye-sporting chiropractor who's always prattling on about nutrition and energy. Now in their late 20s, the three are still best friends, and they make periodic trips to a spa when life gets too rough. As the novel opens, Lilly's just been passed over for a promotion, and discovers her boyfriend has been two-timing. She decides it's time to launch her own couture company. Along the way, Morgan gets ensnared in a curious May-December romance, and Lilly falls for a gold-digging Brit she meets at church. As if her plate weren't full enough, Lilly's birth mother, who abandoned her as a baby, turns up out of the blue; what's more, $20,000 of Lilly's start-up money vanishes. But all's well that ends well: Lilly finds true love and is trumpeted as the next Vera Wang. Snappy dialogue and lovable characters make this novel a winner.
Book 2: A Girl's Best Friend
Description:
Morgan's a girl who has it all, or so it seem. But even with diamonds at her disposal, a fabulous figure and a doting daddy, her well-sculpted life has left her without an identity to call her own. To add insult to injury, the Prince Charming she thought she'd found to rescue her proved to be a dud. So with all of that going on, a getaway with her best friends was in order. And it's then that Morgan can rejuvenate, regroup and figure out with God's help how to make a life she can live with.
From Kristin's website:
The second novel in the Spa Girls Collection focuses on Morgan, who seems to have it all--diamonds at her disposal, a willowy figure, elegance, and a doting daddy. But her etiquette-controlled, well-sculpted life has left her without an identity to call her own.
Book 3: Calm, Cool and Adjusted
Description:
Best friends since Johnny Depp wore scissors for hands, "The Spa Girls" live very separate lives, but stay in touch with routine visits to California's Spa Del Mar. The third novel in the Spa Girls Series focuses on Silicon Valley chiropractor Poppy Clayton, who is as calm, cool and adjusted as they come. ..Or is she? Known for her bad fashion sense, a love for all things natural and the inability to get a second date, Poppy is beginning to wonder if she might be misaligned herself. Her route to self discovery will be an unnatural one--a plastic surgeon, a house in Santa Cruz and a wedding date from the dark side. It's all enough to send a girland her gal palsrunning for the spa.
My Review:
I read these books over our weekend getaway and enjoyed them very much. I think Billerbeck does an amazing job with dialogue. I just wish I could be as profound with my words as these girls are! In typical Billerbeck fashion, she looks at women who struggle with self-image, relationships, family dynamics, and their friendship with each other. Each book is from a different friend's point of view. One cannot help but recognize the way that this special friendship fills a void in these women's lives. In all three cases the women's mother's have died or are absent and the friendship fills that place. The friends are hard on each other when it is needed--holding each other accountable when they get out of balance when their quirks and obsessions get out of control. I am actually quite amazed at how frankly they speak to each other, but they do it out of love and concern.
Lilly struggles to break out on her own in the fashion world. While she is gifted in this area, she cannot seem to recognize her talent and a miriad of problems seem to be roadblocks to her success, including her our doubts and insecurities.
Morgan is forced to break out from under her father's control to be her own person and not just his puppet when he is accused of breaking tax laws. She must learn to value herself and her faith enough to get free and find out she can make it on her own, and in fact, it is better for her to be free.
Poppy has taken natural health to an obsession and uses it to stuff away her real issues. Her friends think she is taking her tree-hugging tendencies too far. When her foot ends up in a cast, she has to figure out what she has been literally running from.
I really like Billerbeck and enjoyed the series for a wonderful reminder of the value of friendship, the importance of looking to God for our self-worth and not to things or family, and, of course, the importance of a good spa date to make it all better! :)
I give this series a sunny day rating!
