FLIRT: Write Here, Right Now
Written by Nicole Clarke
224 pages
What attracted me to this novel was it's vividly colored cover art, which is fashioned after a magazine's front page, and it's subtitle 'Write Here'. Being a writer, I enjoy reading the trials and triumphs of other writers, even if they are fictional, to give me inspiration to continue on in my career.
The book is about teenage writer Melanie Henderson and her experience as an intern for the renown fashion magazine, FLIRT. Holding one of the prestigious spots of working under Josephine Bishop, editor and chief of the publication, she travels to New York City where she meets her quirky counterparts from Britain, Japan, and Argentine. Mel makes every possible mistake from poor professionalism in dress, to continuous tardiness for meetings and assignments. She falls head over heels for their house mother's son, Nick, but is crushed when she later discovers he has a girlfriend. She nearly ruins the magazine's relationship with a major contributor by trying to expose them for product testing on animals, but redeems herself with a creative article on the DIY makeup craze around the city.
Overall, I liked the book. The idea of independence in a dynamic and artistic city like New York is any teenager's fantasy, and I appreciate Clarke's incorporation of diversity in her characters. There were a few instances of lack of originality, like when Mel gets a makeover in the fashion department (So Devil Wears Prada) or the fact that Nick had a girlfriend (so saw that coming). I also didn't like that the book opens up with the heroine getting drunk on her flight to NYC. It's like it glorified drinking to the readers. But I did love the photo shoot montage when creating her redemption piece about a DIY beauty blog on homemade make-up.
This novel helped me realize the importance of setting. If any parents are reading this, I think it would be an okay work for young girls who aren't easily persuaded to try alcohol.
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