Review of "The Hotel: A Novel by Pamela Kelley"

Nantucket's Whitley Hotel, the epitome of luxury, caters to the rich and famous.

The resort is a family business founded by Wynn Whitley, and his children started their careers there.



Now Wynn's grown grandchildren work there as well: Nick is a chef;



Lucy is in customer service;



Paula is an accountant;



and Andrea is the general manager.



When business starts falling off because of a rival hotel, Wynn decides to make some changes. He appoints Paula general manager and moves Andrea to head of concierge services. Andrea resents the switch, becomes a bit spiteful, and starts looking for employment elsewhere.

Wynn also hires a hotel consultant named David Connolly, to help prepare Paula for her new general manager position. David - who travels widely for his job - welcomes the opportunity to work at the Whitley because his parents live on Nantucket and his mother has Alzheimer's.



Meanwhile, a famous romantic-comedy actress, who's going incognito as Bella Bryant, checks into the Whitley for a long vacation. To hide her identity the beautiful star turns her long platinum blonde hair into a brunette chin length bob, wears sunglasses, and dons a hat.



Bella is in Nantucket for a much needed rest, and she gets the opportunity to relax, go fishing, tour the island, go shopping, try various restaurants, etc.



The story is mostly about family relationships, the running of a luxury hotel, and romance. All the young Whitleys are attractive and available, and they have plenty of opportunities to socialize. They go to parties, have drinks with fellow hotel employees, and meet hotel guests.



Thus Nick, Lucy, Paula, and Andrea all meet at least one 'someone' in the story, and we follow along as things develop (or don't).

It's interesting to see the workings of a luxury hotel, where the guests expect (and pay for) first class service. The pool, beach, spa, bars, room service, breakfast room, restaurant, etc. all sound wonderful.



The hostelry also sponsors wine tastings and food tastings, and it all seems very inviting.



This is a pleasant light story with a fairy tale vibe, reminiscent of a Hallmark movie. Perfect for a vacation read.

Thanks to Netgalley, Pamela Kelley, and ‎ Piping Plover Press for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars