I feel like Sophie Kinsella is growing and maturing and her writing just keeps getting better. Although "chick-lit" has seen its day, she continues to delight her readers with fresh and enjoyable stories and characters.
How many people have a dream that just won't seem to pan out no matter how hard they work? Sometimes talent, hard work, sacrifice, and ambition are just not enough despite what all of the inspirational posters and self-help webinars tell us. Katie (Cat) Brenner's dream is to live in London, far away from her Somerset roots, and to have a successful career in advertising. She is in on the ground floor at a prestigious agency, but living in near poverty and commuting for hours a day because she can't afford to live near her inadequately-paying job. She records all of the elements of her perfect life (except that it's not actually the life she LIVES) on Instagram and has managed to convince her father and stepmother that she is living the dream. Katie's boss, Demeter, is both a nightmare and a dream, a successful, talented phenomenon who focuses solely on getting things done, no matter who she has to trample in the process. Unfortunately, Katie, or Cat, as she is known in London, is one of the people on whose life Demeter tramples, but somehow the table end up turning and everything will turn out as it should.
As is usual with Kinsella's heroines, Katie is intelligent, resourceful, and extremely capable, just needing someone to recognize the talent behind the disorganization and give her a chance. I like these heroines who can create incredible things out of impossible situations, whose vulnerability and generosity make them irresistibly appealing. Katie Fforde and Jenny Colgan come to mind as creating similar characters in their novels. Hmm. I wonder why these authors are all favorites of mine?
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