DISCLAIMER: I received an advanced reader copy (eBook) of The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz from Harlequin through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The Grace Kelly Dress is part of Harlequin Trade Publishing’s 2020 Spring Reads Blog Tour.

Book Summary

Two years after Grace Kelly’s royal wedding, her iconic dress is still all the rage in Paris—and one replica, and the secrets it carries, will inspire three generations of women to forge their own paths in life and in love.

Paris, 1958: Rose, a seamstress at a fashionable atelier, has been entrusted with sewing a Grace Kelly—look-alike gown for a wealthy bride-to-be. But when, against better judgment, she finds herself falling in love with the bride’s handsome brother, Rose must make an impossible choice, one that could put all she’s worked for at risk: love, security and of course, the dress.

Sixty years later, tech CEO Rachel, who goes by the childhood nickname “Rocky,” has inherited the dress for her upcoming wedding in New York City. But there’s just one problem: Rocky doesn’t want to wear it. A family heirloom dating back to the 1950s, the dress just isn’t her. Rocky knows this admission will break her mother Joan’s heart. But what she doesn’t know is why Joan insists on the dress—or the heartbreaking secret that changed her mother’s life decades before, as she herself prepared to wear it.

As the lives of these three women come together in surprising ways, the revelation of the dress’s history collides with long-buried family heartaches. And in the lead-up to Rocky’s wedding, they’ll have to confront the past before they can embrace the beautiful possibilities of the future.

*Summary is courtesy of Harlequin

History Lesson: Grace Kelly’s Wedding Dress

“The dress was just as beautiful as she’d remembered. Crafted from rose point lace, the same lace used on Grace Kelly’s iconic wedding dress, it was delicate and classic and chic and a million other things Joanie couldn’t even articulate.”

Grace Kelly was an iconic American film actress of the early to mid-1950s. In April 1956, she became Princess of Monaco when she married Prince Rainer III. She was later known as, Princess Grace. According to our friends at Wikipedia, it is cited as, “one of the most elegant and best-remembered bridal gowns of all time, and one of the most famous since the mid 20^th century.” 

*Photos from Good Housekeeping’s article, 10 Hidden Details You Didn’t Know About Grace Kelly’s Wedding Dress

The Grace Kelly Dress

“Rocky felt like Dorothy, walking into Oz and seeing things in color for the first time. It was as if the streets of Brooklyn, where she lived and worked, were sepia tones, and the bridal shop, a store she’d walked by hundreds of times without noticing, was in full Technicolor. Rainbows bounced off the tiaras in the display case onto the mannequins wearing wedding dresses in delicate shades of white, ivory, and blush. There were ribbons, and tulle, and taffeta, oh my!”

Rumor has it, that every little girl dreams about her wedding day. She might have thought of every detail from what her future partner might look like, to her engagement ring, wedding cake flavor, and most importantly, her wedding dress.

The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz is a heartfelt story about three women over three generations who are all connected by a wedding dress – the Grace Kelly wedding dress. This novel is told by all three women in their own voice. Rachel aka Rocky, the bride-to-be (Brooklyn, 2020), the mother of the bride, Joan “ Joanie”, as the bride herself (Long Island, 1982), and Rose, the Seamstress (Paris, 1958). The stories show parallels and differences between the mother and daughter as they plan their weddings, and what their heirloom dress signifies for them.

Heirlooms & Heritage

I absolutely loved The Grace Kelly Dress. It was a fantastic read! I loved being transported to 1958 when the replica of the Grace Kelly dress was made, 1982, and modern-day 2020. Even though the story was told from three different perspectives, it was easy to follow and to keep track of each woman’s story.

I think that family heirlooms that are passed down from generation to generation are really cool. Heirlooms are part of a family’s heritage and connect each family member to each other through their stories. It was really neat to hear the story behind the creation of the dress and the journey the dress went on as it was passed on to Joan and to Rocky. Same dress, but drastically different stories.

Mother Like Daughter?

I liked that the story was about family, womanhood, and mother-daughter relationships. Even though they are mother and daughter, Rocky and Joan couldn’t be any more different. Rocky has a super edgy style that consists of tattoos and motorcycle boots. A big contrast to Joan’s pale pink ballerina flats. Rocky has green short and shaggy hair. She never wore dresses and would never wear white.

Joan is the complete opposite. In college, she was a sorority girl and super clean cut. Growing up, Joan would play dress up in her mother’s wedding gown and dreamed of the day she’d wear the dress on her wedding day. Joan was beyond excited for Rocky to wear her wedding dress, but Rocky didn’t share the same excitement.

“She did not want to wear any wedding dress, for that matter. She thought that wedding dresses were stupid and overly expensive and a symbol of the patriarchy and a million other things her mother just would not understand. But she could never say any of those things to her mother. Especially since it was her dress that they were talking about. The dress Joan proudly wore down the aisle on her wedding day. The dress that was passed down to her by her mother, Rocky’s grandmother.”

Rocky and Joan’s stories were vastly different, but in the end, it’s apparent that they are more similar than it may seem. They both have an older sister who they felt like they could never live up to and were always compared to. They also both experienced loss at a young age. I loved seeing Rocky and Joan’s relationship evolve throughout the story.

The Women Behind the Dress

Although Rose’s story is different than Joan and Rocky’s, all of their stories share the underlying topics of love, loss, family, and staying true to yourself. All three women are very strong and have been through heartbreak and hardships. I loved each character for different reasons. After all, each character is different in her own right. I loved Rose for following her dreams, Joanie for being brave enough to find herself, and Rocky for not being afraid to speak her mind.

My Favorite Read of 2020 (So Far)

By far, The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz has been my favorite read of 2020. I liked that the book wasn’t just about Rose, Joanie, and Rocky’s stories with the dress, but a story about the dress itself and the journey through time it went on. I like to think of the wedding dress as a fourth character. Kind of like the pants in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants or a quilt that you keep adding to throughout the years. Each woman made the dress her own by adding a piece of herself to it. The dress has seen so much history, and I loved traveling alongside it.

Rose, Joanie, and Rocky were really well-written characters. One character’s story did not outshine the other. I enjoyed each one equally as much. Although each character’s story was so different, Janowitz intertwined each story seamlessly together by the language she used and the parallels she created from one story to the next.

I give The Grace Kelly Dress 5 out of 5 stars. Although the book is about a wedding and a wedding dress, it isn’t sickeningly sweet or sappy. However, the story has a lot of heart and is about much more than romantic love. It’s about families and their heritage, as well as, heirlooms and the stories they tell. Whether you’re married, engaged, or still looking for your Mr. or Mrs. Right, I think you will enjoy this book!

★★★★★

Thank You

Thank you, Harlequin for inviting me to join Harlequin’s Blog Tour, and Netgalley for the digital advanced copy! The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz is part of Harlequin Trade Publishing’s 2020 Spring Reads Blog Tour. Check out The Grace Kelly Dress, which is now available in stores and online!

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♥ Candis