From the book jacket:

Everywhere Katie Brenner looks, someone else is living the life she longs for, particularly her boss, Demeter Farlowe. Demeter is brilliant and creative, lives with her perfect family in a posh townhouse, and wears the coolest clothes. Katie’s life, meanwhile, is a daily struggle–from her dismal rental to her oddball flatmates to the tense office politics she’s trying to negotiate. No wonder Katie takes refuge in not-quite-true Instagram posts, especially as she’s desperate to make her dad proud.

Then, just as she’s finding her feet–not to mention a possible new romance–the worst happens. Demeter fires Katie. Shattered but determined to stay positive, Katie retreats to her family’s farm in Somerset to help them set up a vacation business. London has never seemed so far away–until Demeter unexpectedly turns up as a guest. Secrets are spilled and relationships rejiggered, and as the stakes for Katie’s future get higher, she must question her own assumptions about what makes for a truly meaningful life.

My review:

I have a pile of heavy/emotional books lined up, so I figured this Sophie Kinsella book would a great little read in between. While I finishing it, it was only because I was curious to see if it could get any more ridiculous. (Spoiler: It does.)

The plot vaguely reminded me of The Devil Wears Prada in that Katie/Cat/Kath/Whatever hates her boss and she’s trying to make it in her industry. But something tells me that Kinsella tried just a little too hard to write a ridiculous movie script instead of a light-hearted novel. The whole scene when Demeter is at the farm is just over the top and too much.

I get that the main idea of the story is to get readers to remember that despite the fact that someone’s life may seem picture-perfect in life, there’s always so much more that is untold. Heck, even I remind myself that despite of annoying perfect someone may seem to be, they still have big, stinky poos. No one has their shit together 100% of the time – ever – and don’t forget that.

So, while the message of the book is indeed an important one, it really could have been tackled in a less-than-absurd way.

My rating: ★★/5