Christie Brinkley 'Didn't Sugarcoat Anything' About Her Turbulent Relationship With Peter Cook in New Memoir

Christie Brinkley reflected on her turbulent love life in her new memoir, Uptown Girl, offering readers a liberating and cathartic glimpse into the emotions she's carried for years.

After the memoir, Brinkley felt empowered to finally share her truth and let go of long-held angst and resentment.

"Her book has been very well received by not only fans but also the people in her life. She had no pushback from Billy, they are still great friends, so of course, she let him read it in advance," the insider told a news outlet about Brinkley's ex-husband, Billy Joel.

"He gave her the go-ahead to tell her story; it's water under the bridge for him, and he's man enough to admit to the ways he messed up. Christie was very fair to him and to everyone she writes about," the source continued.

The iconic supermodel, 71, and Grammy-winning musician, 76, married in March 1985 but parted ways in August 1994. They share daughter Alexa Ray Joel, 39.

Brinkley also delves into her fourth marriage with architect Peter Cook. The couple tied the knot in September 1996 and divorced in October 2008 after Brinkley discovered he was allegedly cheating with an 18-year-old.

"Her mantra through the writing process was that she wanted total honesty. She didn't sugarcoat anything, so it was quite scary to put it all out there, but also very cathartic. It's all out in the open now, including her feelings about Peter and how truly terribly he treated her," the insider explained.

A pivotal moment remained etched in her memory: "That moment, where she found out he was cheating with a girl in high school while giving a speech at the school, will be forever burned in her brain. It felt good to be able to put it all on the page. Of course, Peter will have hated it, but she doesn't care. It's the truth, and she doesn't care if he thinks she's being vengeful; she has the right to tell her story," the insider added.

Brinkley and Cook, 65, share daughter Sailor Brinkley Cook, 26, and Peter also adopted Christie's son, Jack Brinkley Cook, 30, from her brief marriage to Ricky Taubman in 1994.

In Uptown Girl, Christie recounted a shocking encounter while delivering a graduation speech at a local high school in the Hamptons in 2006. "Excuse me," she wrote. "I need to tell you that your arrogant husband has been having an affair with my teenage daughter.

"I was so stunned that I froze," Christie recalled, describing the moment of realization as she scanned the audience to find Peter sitting with Jack.

"As soon as I saw him, Peter's eyes were already trained on my face, as he began shaking his head, 'No.' When your whole world falls apart and you realize in a heartbeat you've suddenly become the cliché middle-aged woman whose husband is having an affair with a much (much) younger woman, what do you do?" she asked in the book.

"There were many times when I wondered if I would ever recover," Christie reflected, crediting her children for providing the strength to heal. "Whenever I felt this, I stopped, looked inward and counted my blessings, which was a long list that always started with Alexa Ray, Jack and Sailor."