Hilderbrand, Elin. The Five-Star Weekend. Little, Brown & Company, 2023. 384pp. ISBN 9780316258777 $30.00.

****1/2

Elin Hilderbrand is a master of her craft, queen of beach reads, and likely needs no extra promoting–if you’re a fan, you’re going to run out and buy her novel, in hardcover no less, the week it comes out. I loved The Hotel Nantucket a little bit more, and nothing quite compares, for me, to The Blue Bistro, but The Five Star Weekend is a solid addition to her oeuvre.

Recently widowed pandemic food blogging sensation Hollis has invited a friend from each era of her life to join her for a girl’s weekend in her home on Nantucket: Tatum, the high school bestie who still lives in town, cleaning and running errands for the wealthy; Dru-Ann, the college roommate/sports agent; Brooke, Hollis’s Wellesley friend who she raised her children with; and Gigi, a new Internet friend who’s been a rock as Hollis navigates Matthew’s untimely death. Each of the women is dealing with their own issues: Tatum is awaiting results of a breast biopsy; Dru-Ann has been cancelled on social media due to dismissing a client’s mental health claims; Brooke’s husband has been served for sexual harassment (again) and Gigi was having an affair with Hollis’s husband Matthew when he was killed in an automobile accident. Their interpersonal dynamics between the women adds another level to the tension and drama: Tatum hasn’t forgiven Dru-Ann for a slight from Hollis’s wedding. and Brooke is glomming onto the mysterious Gigi. Hollis’s first love, Jack Finnigan, is also on the island, visiting Tatum’s hubby and bringing back many memories of their double-dates in high school. Meanwhile, Hollis’s daughter Caroline, in the middle of an internship (and an affair) with a documentary filmmaker, has been invited to return to the island and is getting paid to film the entire proceedings. Caroline comes off as super entitled and bratty, all eye-rolling and whining… but the personal interviews become a way to understand her mother as a student, a friend, and a woman, and help to heal the rift between them.

There is a LOT going on, but Hilderbrand manages it all adeptly. As in her more recent novels, one of the narrative voices is a collective we, observing the goings on from a slightly detached perspective. We also get points of view from all of the major characters. The original concept of the five-star weekend is not Hollis’s (she reads an article about it and decides it will help her out of her funk), and I’m wondering if there is a missed opportunity to delve more deeply into ownership and appropriation issues (thinking of Black feminist and activist Tarana Burke, who coined the #MeToo movement while Alyssa Milano got a lot of recognition for promoting it, and Black poet, activist and rage baker Tangerine Jones who got scooped by white cookbook authors). Throughout the novel, Hilderbrand does address issues of race, mental health, generational gaps, the orgasm gap, and queerness.

The Five-Star Weekend has all the things we’ve come to love about an Elin Hilderbrand book set on Nantucket. It’s self-referential to other characters and their stories, it’s full of mouth-watering descriptions of gourmet food, both prepared at home and while dining out. It name-drops favorite beaches, shops, and eateries. The familiar natural beauty and landmarks are described with love. And, if you didn’t google and then buy a trendy patio dress (yep, muumuus are back!) to wear while hosting your next barbeque, you’ve missed the memo.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #TheFiveStarWeekend from #NetGalley.