Literary Treats

Treat yourself to good books!

Review | The Knockoff, Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza

Posted on 4 May 2015 by Jaclyn

How could I not love this book? The Knockoff is Devil Wears Prada, All About Eve and The Social Network all in one hilarious, entertaining, utterly engrossing read perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon. The fashion editor protagonist lacks Meryl Streep’s charisma and the conniving upstart lacks Anne Baxter’s subtlety and charm, but the story itself certainly gets right to the heart of today’s digital obsession. If Miranda Priestly is the iconic boss from hell of the early 2000s, Eve Morton is the boss from hell of the immediate present.

When Glossy magazine editor in chief Imogen Tate returns to work after a six month hiatus, she finds her former assistant Eve Morton as the new editorial director, in charge of re-inventing the magazine as a digital app. Eve is a caricature of a millennial — completely addicted to social media, she interrupts her own wedding to update her Facebook status. (“It’s not official until it’s Facebook official!”) A Harvard MBA graduate, she has some great ideas for Glossy — Buzzfeed type lists and Buy It Now buttons that are guaranteed to boost traffic and improve conversion rate — but lacks the creative flair to take her vision beyond increasing ROI. Worse, she’s completely sociopathic and genuinely has no clue how clueless she really is.

In contrast, Imogen has no idea what a hashtag is, nor what a conversion rate means. She may have Alexander Wang on speed dial, but lacks the social media savvy and business background to understand the changes Eve is making to Glossy. In today’s world, does she still have a fighting chance, or is she, as Eve says, truly a “dinosaur”?

I had so much fun reading this book! I did expect a bit more about the real-life fashion world — Knockoff lacked the industry insider feel of Prada, and felt more like a story about office politics than fashion. There’s a subplot about Imogen’s daughter being bullied online, which Imogen compares to her own experience of bullying at work, and indeed, if you’ve ever had a school bully or a toxic co-worker, you realize how some people just never grow up. It’s a compelling tale, and seeing it from the perspective of a woman afraid of becoming irrelevant gives it an added emotional punch.

I also like how accurate the story felt in terms of how much of an asset tech skills are in today’s world, no matter what your industry is. When Imogen goes out for drinks with some of her new, younger co-workers, she learns that in their life beyond the office, many of them want to start their own web-based companies. A tech entrepreneur Imogen meets at a conference comments that many of today’s big businesses — Air BnB, Uber — are successful because someone identified a gap in a system, a need that isn’t being met, and simply capitalized on that. With websites and social media, almost anyone can raise capital and set something up.

What I loved about Knockoff is that the book doesn’t set up the conflict as a dichotomy between technology and heart, between digital app and print glossy. There are many tech savvy, digitally minded characters who are just as creative and talented as Imogen, and Imogen herself doesn’t waste time complaining about how much better things were “in her day.”

It’s a quick, entertaining read, with a deeply satisfying ending. The Glossy app didn’t quite strike me as particularly innovative, but a secondary character had an idea for a vintage fashion/thrift shop type app that I would love to see happen in real life. Someone tweet me if it does.

Thanks to Random House Canada for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review | Someone is Watching, Joy Fielding

Posted on 23 March 2015 by Jaclyn

Private investigator Bailey Carpenter is attacked while working on a case, and her entire world falls apart. From being a confident, independent woman, she finds herself afraid to ride an elevator with a man and unable to sleep without having nightmares. Worse, she sees her attacker in almost every man she encounters — an obnoxious flirt at the gym, a man walking past her in the street, a narcissistic man in the apartment building across from hers. They all fit the frustratingly generic description of Bailey’s attacker: white male between the ages of 20 to 40 years old, average height, average build, wearing black Nikes.

I often find books involving sexual assault difficult to read — for example, Elizabeth Haynes’ Into the Darkest Corner kept me feeling claustrophobic, almost physically trapped, throughout. Fielding’s writing is a bit more detached that Haynes’, and while she did a good job of portraying Bailey’s fear and sense of paralysis after the attack, Someone is Watching felt more like an action-packed thriller than a psychological one.

Part of the reason may be that despite the attack that began the whole story, there were so many other things going on in Bailey’s life. A major subplot is the Bailey’s dysfunctional family — her father had had many children by different women, and left his vast fortune only to Bailey and her brother Heath. Bailey and Heath’s half siblings, led by high powered district attorney Gene, are suing for their share of the inheritance. This adds a touch of intrigue to the motives of Bailey’s half sister Claire, who stays over at Bailey’s apartment for days after the attack. Is Claire sincere in wanting to help Bailey heal or is Heath right and Claire is only after Bailey’s money? This is further complicated by Heath having issues of his own — a struggling actor who is perennially stoned, Heath also happens to be best friends with Bailey’s ex-boyfriend, who still wants Bailey back and who also happens to fit the description of her attacker. Then there is Bailey’s current boyfriend, a married man with children whose identity is glaringly obvious from the beginning and yet whom Fielding for some reason coyly refuses to name until Claire’s daughter susses it out. Finally, there is the man Bailey, Claire and Jade call Narcissus, the vain neighbour who parades naked in front of his open window and appears to know that Bailey is watching him.

There’s a lot going on, and while it’s easy enough to keep the characters straight, it can also be somewhat frustrating to see so many potential red herrings in the mystery. That’s actually a credit to Fielding’s writing, as it mirrors the frustration Bailey and other attack victims must feel themselves, where fear can take many forms, even among those familiar to you. That being said, there appears to be enough drama without adding so many subplots to the mix.

There’s a great moment near the end where Bailey realizes she may never know who her attacker is, and that she would just have to make her peace with that. I love that, because it shows an unfortunate reality of some victims, and it also takes the story back to Bailey’s psychological state rather than the physical investigation of potential attackers.

The ending as a whole felt overly convoluted. The first big reveal in particular seemed complicated, and while I admit it could have happened, the soap operatic nature of this twist detracted from the very real drama of dealing with an attack. The second reveal then felt anticlimactic, almost unnecessary after the dramatic impact of the first. That being said, I may be biased because I wasn’t happy to learn who the villains were, mostly because I had grown to like these characters earlier on. And that too is a testament to Fielding’s writing.

Someone is Watching is Joy Fielding’s 25th thriller, which is pretty awesome. If you’re a fan of her books, or of thrillers in general, this is definitely one to pick up. An entertaining read overall.

Thanks to Random House Canada for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Event Recap | Random House Canada Spring 2015 Blogger Preview

Posted on 6 March 2015 by Jaclyn

I was thrilled to receive the invitation from Random House Canada for their Spring 2015 blogger preview. I haven’t attended a blogger event in a while, and I was looking forward to seeing some fellow book bloggers and learning all about the titles to look forward to this Spring.

It wouldn’t be a blogger event without some treats, and true to form, Random House Canada treated us to pizza, pop and bowls of jelly beans. We were also given some book catalogue pages in a folder, which were very handy when it came to noting down titles I wanted to read (most of them!) and I’m sure they’ll come in handy as well when it comes time to write the reviews for my blog. I especially love the Penguin Random House tote that declared “Changing the world, one book at a time.” Great for carrying books home after the event, but also an awesome saying overall, for book lovers.

The Random House team took us through some of the exciting titles in their Spring 2015 catalogue. Below are some of my personal highlights:

China Rich Girlfriend by Kevin Kwan

I absolutely loved Kevin Kwan’s Crazy Rich Asians, and I was thrilled to discover there will be a sequel out this June. I was fortunate enough to grab an ARC from the blogger preview, which I devoured in less than a week. Watch for my glowing review this June, and definitely check this book out for yourself!

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume

Judy Blume always takes me back to childhood. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret is one of my favourite books of all time. So I squee’d in delight at the news of a new novel by her, coming this June. In the Unlikely Event is about three generations of families, friends and strangers whose lives are affected by a series of passenger plane crashes in Elizabeth, NJ in the 1950s. ARCs for this title are not available (understandably so!), but Random House Canada generously provided us with copies of Blume’s earlier novel Summer Sisters. Read my review here.

Someone is Watching by Joy Fielding

A private investigator’s life is turned upside down when she is sexually assaulted on the job, in Joy Fielding’s 25th thriller Someone is Watching. It’s described as a fast-paced, intense psychological thriller reminiscent of Rear Window meets The Silent Wife, and indeed this one’s a page turner. Quite a few too many subplots, in my opinion, but it’s a great way to spend a weekend. Watch for my review later this month.

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

I’m a huge Kazuo Ishiguro fan, so I was thrilled to see he’d written a new novel. The Buried Giant follows the tale of elderly couple Axl and Beatrice whose set off to find their son, across lands where a mist has removed the memories of all who live there. It’s a story about the power of remembering, and the consequences of memories we may regret recovering. A tale with the air of an Arthurian legend, The Buried Giant enchanted me without quite transporting me as much as I’d hoped, but it’s still definitely a must read for Ishiguro fans. On sale now; watch for my review later this month.

Boo by Neil Smith

According to one Random House staffer, if Lord of the Flies and The Lovely Bones had a baby, it would be Neil Smith’s Boo. When 13 year old Boo Dalrymple is killed, he finds himself in “Town,” an afterlife exclusively for thirteen year olds. As he adjusts to his afterlife, another boy from his hometown, Johnny, appears, also killed by the same school shooter. I’m fascinated by the character of Boo, and by Smith’s depiction of the afterlife. The mention of a school shooter adds a dark touch to what appears to be a pretty awesome version of heaven, and I can’t wait to see how it all ties together.

Free Days with George by Colin Campbell

Free Days with George is touted as a heartwarming true story about a rescue dog who helps his new owner rediscover love and happiness, Marley and Me meets Tuesdays with Morrie and The Art of Racing in the Rain. A fellow blogger asked the question I immediately thought but was too afraid to ask, and fellow dog lovers can relax: the dog does not die. Instead, George the Newfoundland Landseer learns how to surf! I’m really excited about this one, and am keeping my fingers crossed for a book launch event where the dog will be here in Toronto. On-sale this May.

A Robot in the Garden by Deborah Install

On Deborah Install’s charming A Robot in the Garden, a Random House staffer said, “Everything good in the world is in this book.” She said it had a Pixar vibe, and a blogger quipped, “It’s like if Up and Wall-E had a baby.” Indeed there’s a very whimsical feel to this novel, about a 34 year old man who finds a robot in his garden and embarks on a trip around the world to find out where it came from and return it home. On-sale this August.

Deceptions (Cainsville Series #3) by Kelley Armstrong

I loved the first book in Kelley Armstrong’s Cainsville Series, and while I have yet to check out the second, I am also eagerly awaiting the continuation of the series with Book 3 this August. Heads up to the many Kelley Armstrong fans out there, as well keep an eye out for new YA standalone novel The Masked Truth, coming this October.

Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella

Finally, I loved Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic series, and am eagerly anticipating her first YA novel Finding Audrey, about a fourteen year old girl with anxiety disorder who finds connection with her brother’s gaming teammate.

The Fangirl’s Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Girl Geeks by Sam Maggs

While Random House Canada didn’t specifically cover this title in the preview, they included some copies of it on the cart of books after the event, which they invited us bloggers to help ourselves to some of the titles. I saw this and immediately dove for a copy, because my sister had been fangirling about it for months, and I knew she really, really wanted to read it. So on behalf of my sister, thank you, Random House Canada! This will be on sale in May; watch for my review closer to publication date.

Even More to Come…

As if that weren’t enough bookish goodness, Random House Canada also presented a sneak preview of their Fall 2015 titles. I’m personally super geekily excited about the new Margaret Atwood novel The Heart Goes Last!

Thanks to Random House Canada for the invitation to this event!