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Dominick Dunne
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Fatal Charms: And Other Tales of Today Kindle Edition

by Dominick Dunne (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 out of 5 stars 690 ratings
Dominick Dunne has met them all--stars and slugs, criminals and victims, the innocent and the hideously guilty. From posh Park Avenue duplexes to the extravagant mansions of Beverly Hills, from tasteful London town houses to the wild excesses of million-dollar European retreats, here are the movers and shakers--and the people who pretend to be.

Among colorful profiles and revealing glimpses of Elizabeth Taylor, Claus von Bülow, Gloria Vanderbilt, and Aaron Spelling, discover who dumped an heiress the night before the wedding to run off with the best man . . . what happens when the ex-husband of a movie legend becomes president . . . why a beautiful singer fell in with the mob . . . and, in Dunne's most personal story, how a lying murderer and a limelight-loving judge denied justice to his family after his daughter's life was brutally destroyed.

Filled with pathos and wit, insight and sass, this candid, controversial volume gives you an extraordinary peek into the rarefied world of the rich, the royal, and the ruined. For Dunne is the man who knows all their secrets--and now those secrets are out.
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  1. Print length
    259 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Crown
  4. Publication date
    November 7, 2012
  5. File size
    5.0 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"THE BOSWELL OF THE BLUE BLOODS".

-- San Francisco Examiner

From the Publisher

"The Boswell of the blue bloods."--San Francisco Examiner.

"One of the snappiest writers around."--Liz Smith, New York Daily News.

From the author of the best-selling People Like Us and The Two Mrs. Grenviles comes this unvarnished look at the gilded world of the real-life rich and famous. Here are the highly colorful and highly provocative look at the gilded world of the real-life rich of famous. Here are the highly colorful and highly provocative close-up interviews Dominick Dunne has written for Vanity Fair. In them, Dunne tells all about today's creme de la creme as only as insider can tell it. Here is his engaging profile of the everlasting regal Elizabeth Taylor; a bizarre encounter with Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos exiled in Hawaii; a revealing, behind-the-scenes portrait of the great poseur Claus von Bulow; an inquiry into the squalid life and mysterious death of Alfred Bloomingdale's mistress, Vicki Morgan; Dunne's moving account of his daughter's violent death and the man who got away with her murder; as well as revealing glimpses of Ivan Boesky, Ava Gardner, Diane Keaton, Gloria Vanderbilt, Candy and Aron Spelling, and others-plus a look inside the exclusive Mortimer's restaurant and the real Palm Beach. Sassy and stirring, candid and controversial, Fatal Charms is a startling expose of charm-in all its guises-both fatal and benign.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B009QJMVNA
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Crown (November 7, 2012)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 7, 2012
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5.0 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 259 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 out of 5 stars 690 ratings

About the author

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Dominick Dunne

Dominick Dunne

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Dominick Dunne (1925-2009) was the author of five bestselling novels, two collections of essays, and "The Way We Lived Then," a memoir with photographs. His final novel, "Too Much Money," will be published in December 2009. He was a Special Correspondent for "Vanity Fair" and lived in New York City and Hadlyme, Connecticut.

Photo (C) H. Thompson

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
690 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book engaging and never boring, praising Dominick's writing style. The stories are interesting, with one customer highlighting fascinating true stories about celebrities. They appreciate the content, with one noting the inside information provided.

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40 customers mention "Readability"34 positive6 negative

Customers find the book engaging and never boring, describing it as a great and fun read.

"...This book is much the same and truthful and not sensational like many writers like to portray people - that is why I enjoy Mr. Dunne - he had a..." Read more

"I liked the content of the book, stories of people in high society and the entanglements and situations they find themselves in." Read more

"All of his other books were very enjoyable. This one not so much. I had no idea whom some of the people in the book were...." Read more

"...It was a great book ,I would have preferred a more in-depth information." Read more

19 customers mention "Story quality"16 positive3 negative

Customers enjoy the stories in the book, finding them interesting and well-told, with some reviews highlighting tragic narratives.

"...Makes one appreciate the art of good storytelling when it's done by someone with a fluid command of language, respect for well-placed manners, and a..." Read more

"I liked the content of the book, stories of people in high society and the entanglements and situations they find themselves in." Read more

"I throughly enjoyed the compilations of stories. I read read all of Mr. Dunne's books...." Read more

"...reader on a regular basis, voice is so captivating, rich, famous read into their lives." Read more

15 customers mention "Writing style"15 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy Dominick's writing style, with one customer specifically praising his fluid command of language.

"...art of good storytelling when it's done by someone with a fluid command of language, respect for well-placed manners, and a taste for the absurdity..." Read more

"...value of FATAL CHARMS lies in its being a sampler of excellent personality-profile journalism. That, dear reader, is easier said than accomplished...." Read more

"Love Dominick as a author and a person, not a reader on a regular basis, voice is so captivating, rich, famous read into their lives." Read more

"...He's a great writer and I enjoy the stories he tells...." Read more

3 customers mention "Content"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book's content rich and fascinating, with one mentioning it provides inside information.

"...a person, not a reader on a regular basis, voice is so captivating, rich, famous read into their lives." Read more

"Enjoyable, fascinating, tragic and so much more. A great writer with a fascinating story himself. RIP Mr Dunne. Thank you." Read more

"Delightful morsels of gossip and inside info from the man who knew everybody worth knowing - the wonderful Dominick Dunne (RIP)...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Boston reader
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good Stuff
    Reviewed in the United States on November 28, 2009
    Verified Purchase
    These are essays written for Vanity Fair. Had I known Dunne was a regular contributor to V Fair, I would have picked up the magazine, and not for the fashion pix! If you like hard-boiled mysteries and if you like biographies, you will truly appreciate Dunne as a fly-on-the-wall writer. Reading these pieces, you become, like Dunne, an observer and a participant of the jet set, hobnobbing through the past couple of decades with royalty and celebs, but with a jaundice eye. Funny how Dunne did not begin such writing until his later years. Makes one appreciate the art of good storytelling when it's done by someone with a fluid command of language, respect for well-placed manners, and a taste for the absurdity of social class castes.
    15 people found this helpful
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  • avid reader U.S.
    4.0 out of 5 stars Most interesting truthful stories
    Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    I always tried to watch the late Mr. Dunne on TV and enjoyed the stories he commented on. This book is much the same and truthful and not sensational like many writers like to portray people - that is why I enjoy Mr. Dunne - he had a good moral barometer. The only reason I gave this book a 4 is that the stories are all dated and it would have been helpful to readers for new info in the postscripts to have been written by someone about the person in that chapter and what was the latest info on them.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Rosie Walker
    3.0 out of 5 stars Till his race was run: Dominick Dunne
    Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    Fans of the late Dominick Dunne will already be familiar with these tales, and the book is not substantial enough to become a "keeper" in one's library. If, however, you are NOT already familiar with Dominick's work (or saw him on TV but never read his prose), here is a good place to start.

    To this reviewer, the value of FATAL CHARMS lies in its being a sampler of excellent personality-profile journalism. That, dear reader, is easier said than accomplished. Of course, let us not forget that Dominick Dunne emerged as a writer from the fiery furnace of tragedy (murdered daughter), and also that he had access to the rich and famous, most of whom liked and trusted him. Good place to have started a new career late in life. He took that opportunity and ran with it until his race was run.
    28 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fatal Charms delivers!
    Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    I liked the content of the book, stories of people in high society and the entanglements and situations they find themselves in.
    One person found this helpful
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  • SharonL
    5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome book.
    Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    I throughly enjoyed the compilations of stories. I read read all of Mr. Dunne's books. Of course, particularly sad was the story about Mr. Dunne's daughter's death. Judge Katz should have been recused from the case somehow. He was clearly biased, in my opinion. Oh, and I hear he has written a book, which I have no interest in reading. Especially, if he writes like he presides over a murder trial.
    8 people found this helpful
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  • vhrules
    4.0 out of 5 stars Not my favorite book by Dominick Dunne
    Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    All of his other books were very enjoyable. This one not so much. I had no idea whom some of the people in the book were. I like his writing style though so gave it 4 stars.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Becky , not last name, please
    5.0 out of 5 stars great reading.
    Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Love Dominick as a author and a person, not a reader on a regular basis, voice is so captivating, rich, famous read into their lives.
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  • Laura Hack
    3.0 out of 5 stars Not what I expected
    Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    I love Dominick Dunne s work . He is an excellent writter and extremely knowledgeable about his subjects. It was a great book ,I would have preferred a more in-depth information.
    2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • M. Pfeiffer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 24, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    Another one from this author which keeps you entertained and amused. He has a marvellous sense of humour and great english.
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  • Amazon Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Little Damaged
    Reviewed in Japan on August 11, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Damaged due to second hand but will read
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  • eclectic
    4.0 out of 5 stars A well-written account of life in the rich lane!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 11, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    I bought this because I had seen the late Dominick Dunne on TV and liked his style. Also because this book contained an account of the murder of his daughter and the trial of her killer which ended with the murderer being given what seemed like an unfairly short sentence. It made very interesting reading and was written extremely well by Dunne.
    As for the rest of the book, it tells stories about rich and famous people whom Dunne got to know over the years. He gives well-written accounts, but the people he writes about do not seem to be very interesting in themselves (not Dunne's fault) except for the fact that they are rich and famous. It is an interesting insight into the enormously cynical world which they inhabit.
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  • danusiaf
    4.0 out of 5 stars like it but after a few chapters put it down ...
    Reviewed in Canada on September 16, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    like it but after a few chapters put it down as it gets a bit boring, will get back to it later
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  • Ian Gilchrist
    3.0 out of 5 stars Hits & Misses
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 5, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Dunne's true crime pieces are far more interesting than his writings about the wealthy members of the very upper social echelons - rich people are pretty damn boring unless than commit crimes or are wildly eccentric.
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