The Vibrant Years

Three generations of women grapple with bad life choices, limiting fears and personal crises while trying to support each other.

"She always said loving yourself is a foundational requirement of knowing how to love anyone else and that most meanness in the world comes from self-loathing."

Sixty-five year-old Bindu Desai inherits a million dollars from a man she had known when she was a young actress in India, whom she has kept secret from her family. Telling no one how she is able to afford it, Bindu moves into an upscale retirement community in Florida where she rebels against a group of sneering busybodies and meets some interesting men she enjoys dating. While Bindu settles into life on the beautiful coast, her ex-daughter-in-law Aly is fighting for the chance to make her mark at the news station where she works, and is sad that Bindu has moved out of her apartment. Aly's daughter and Bindu's grand daughter Cullie is a tech-genius but needs new inspiration in order to maintain control of her creative work. All three women have suffered from a previous heartbreak and are ready to create the vibrant and unconventional lives they envision.

I enjoyed these characters, the cultural flourishes and the fun descriptions of life in a retirement community. Sometimes the narrative was a touch melodramatic, but the story was engaging and I read it quickly.

"Managing your energy and your assets was the key to aging right."

Hardcover 316 pages, Audiobook 11 hours.