Another great volume in the growing number of books about Kick Kennedy, one of JFK's sisters. Kick's story is fascinating, and I'm always glad to read anything written about her. This woman lived her life on her own terms. The book is easy to read and highly engaging. Whether you're new to the Kennedy story or a seasoned Kennedy aficionado, you're sure to find exactly the right dose with this book.

Excellent. ( )

A page-turning, thoughtful rendering of a vibrant but less well known member of the Kennedy clan, Kathleen Kennedy (second daughter), whose life was full but cut short by her death in an airplane crash aged 28. She lived much of her life in Britain. ( )

FROM AMAZON: Encouraged to be "winners" from a young age, Rose and Joe Kennedy's children were the embodiment of ambitious, wholesome Americanism. Yet even within this ebullient group of overachievers, the fourth Kennedy child, the irrepressible Kathleen, stood out. Lively, charismatic, extremely clever, and blessed with graceful athleticism and a sunny disposition, the alluring socialite fondly known as Kick was a firecracker who effortlessly made friends and stole hearts.

Moving across the Atlantic when her father was appointed as the ambassador to Great Britain in 1938, Kick - the "nicest Kennedy" - quickly became the family's star. Despite making little effort to fit in to British high society, she charmed everyone from the beau monde to Fleet Street with her unconventional attitude and easygoing humor. Growing increasingly independent, Kick would also shock and alienate her devout family by falling in love and marrying the scion of a virulently anti-Catholic family - William Cavendish, the heir apparent of the Duke of Devonshire and Chatsworth. But the marriage would last only a few months; Billy was killed in combat in 1944, just four years before Kick's own unexpected death in an airplane crash at 28.

I've always thought that Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy was the most interesting of the nine children of Joseph P. and Rose Kennedy. Raised to be a pious Catholic woman like her mother, Kick refused to conform to the mold and instead fell in love with both Britain and its aristocracy while her father was Ambassador to the Court of St. James in the years just before the beginning of World War II Pretty and vivacious, she captivated the British upper classes with her effervescence and her high spirits and quickly had a stable full of beaux from the best families in England. Ultimately, she and the heir to the Duke of Devonshire, Billy Hartington, fell in love and married despite her parents' (and mostly Rose's) vehement objections.

When Billy was killed in 1944, along with her eldest brother, Joe, she was not sure she can go on. However, she was sure that she wanted to stay in England and become part of the political life of that country - maybe even become an MP like her mentor Nancy Astor. What happens, instead, is that she met Peter, the 8th Earl Fitzwilliam, who was as different from Billy as anyone can be - and also married. Peter wds a devil may care playboy who loves to gamble and drink, and whose family owned the largest stately country home in England. Kick was attracted to his animal magnetism and the two embarked on a passionate affair, much to the horror of her friends. For Rose Kennedy this was the last straw and she vowed to cut Kick off from the rest of the family. For Joe, however, Kick was his favorite child and he could not take that drastic a step.

Kick, felt that her father can fix things as he has done so often in the past, made arrangements for Peter and herself to meet Joe in Paris to discuss the situation. However, they never made it. The small plane they are flying in bad weather crashed in the mountains of the Cevennes in France killing everyone on board.

In the end, Kick was as reckless with her life as her favorite brother, Jack, who also lived his life recklessly and met a sad and unexpected end in 1963. ( )

This book was interesting (I'm obsessed with the Kennedys, to my shame) but not particularly well-written. (Sorry, Paula, but you need a better editor - Palm Springs is not synonymous with Palm Beach, for one thing, and I would have liked a carefully researched and explicated example of how Kick and Jack were, indeed, one person rather than repeating it endlessly as fact: repetition does give enlightenment.) If you're obsessed with the Kennedys, though, read on. ( )