Rich Friends

Book excerpt: New York Times–bestselling author Jacqueline Briskin’s steamy romantic saga about two generations of a privileged California family that chases the American dream, from the post–World War II boom years to the turbulent, psychedelic 1960s The year 1946 in America is a time for seizing opportunities—and the best way for a woman to get ahead is to marry well. Descended from the wealthy Van Vliets, owners of a successful supermarket chain, Em Wynan is the first of her sorority sisters to walk down the aisle with a handsome war veteran. Nine months later, she delivers fraternal twin sons. Em’s younger sister, the fun-loving Caroline, is her polar opposite, championing liberal causes at UCLA and falling in love with a radical writer. For Caroline’s best friend, Beverly Linde, finding the right husband is more complicated because as a Holocaust survivor, she will carry the stigma and horrors of World War II forever. Set against the backdrop of a radically changing American landscape, the lives of these three women intersect through decades of friendship, rivalry, love, and inconsolable loss. As Em, Caroline, and Beverly’s children come of age during the 1960s—a time of danger and drugs, the breakdown of society’s sexual taboos, and inner peace found among bizarre cults—they discover that parents cannot always save their children from tragedy, even if they have powerful, rich friends. Steeped in atmosphere and authentic historical detail, Jacqueline Briskin’s novel of ambition, hope, and family still resonates today.