My edition: Paperback, to be published on 4 July 2013 by Harper, 402 pages.Description: Tess Brookes has always been a Girl with a Plan. But when her carefully constructed Plan goes belly up, she's forced to reconsider.
After accidently answering her flatmate Vanessa's phone, she decides that since being Tess isn't going so well, why shouldn't she try out being Vanessa? With nothing left to lose, she accepts Vanessa's photography assignment to Hawaii – she used to be an amateur snapper, how hard can it be? Right?
But Tess is soon in big trouble – she isn't a photographer, she isn't Vanessa, and the gorgeous journalist on the shoot with her, who is making it very clear he'd like to get into her pants, is an egotistical monster.
Far from home and in someone else's shoes, Tess must decide whether to fight on through, or 'fess up and run…
Rating:
Tess Brookes is the kind of person who makes sure to arrive at the office before anyone else so she can get in some extra working hours, and she'd usually stay a few hours late on top of that too. In fact, she is so focussed on her career that everything else and everyone else in her life gets neglected in the process. So when the promotion she has been working very hard for instead turns into a completely unexpected redundancy Tess freaks out.
When shortly after losing her job Tess believes she has also ruined things with one of her two best friends, who is the guy she's had a crush on since forever, she for the first time in her life does something completely impulsive and crazy; she answers her flatmate Vanessa's phone, accepts a freelance job as a photographer in Hawaii and straight away jets off with a suitcase of 'borrowed' clothes from said flatmate. Considering the fact that Vanessa is a horrible human being always clad in the latest fashion outfits and Tess is actually nice to people, her wardrobe mainly consists of office outfits and she has zero professional photography experience, she quickly realises that it's not easy to pull off the switch and pretend to be her flatmate.
Even though the shoot is in Hawaii, the beautiful location does little to stop Tess from worrying about the train-wreck her life has turned into to. To make matters worse, the subject of her assignment keeps cancelling on her, she realises she has to work with the most infuriating reporter ever, and her life back home falls even further apart when she gets into a fight with her other best friend as well. But amid these disasters there are fab parties and clothes, wonderful new friends and there is even an unexpected fling on the horizon. All the ingredients for a perfect summer read.
I absolutely adored About a Girl. I'm a big fan of author Lindsey Kelk's I Heart series and I admit I was a bit worried that I couldn't enjoy a new series by her hand quite as much because I am positively biased towards the I Heart characters. I needn't have worried, Lindsey's latest is filled with wonderful new characters that you can't help but fall in love with (or hate with every fibre of your being - Vanessa, I'm looking at you!).
Other than Tess, who despite her flaws I instantly liked and rooted for, the characters that particularly stood out to me were Kekipi, the man who manages the Bennett estate in Hawaii and quickly turns into Tess' GBFF, and Paige, who is in charge of the shoot and indirectly also of Tess getting her act together. And let's not forget Nick, the journalist that Tess is forced to work with on her assignment. He's rude, arrogant and Tess dislikes him from the moment he opens his mouth, yet she also really, REALLY fancies the pants off him, which as you can imagine forms quite a dilemma.
About a Girl is filled with descriptions of fab outfits to covet and such hilarity that the reader cannot help but laugh while reading (even when in a very public place and you're the only one suddenly snorting out loud, trust me, I know). Lindsey's writing is very witty and she uses a lot of pop culture references which make the story not only flow with ease but it will also make you want to be BFFs with her mind because she just sounds that awesome. I mean, she lets Tess use Ryan Gosling in the following exchange with her best friend, I rest my case:
'I am mad,' I confirmed.
'With me?'
'With everyone alive,' I said. 'Except maybe Ryan Gosling.' Who could be mad at Ryan Gosling?
In short: This is a must have for your 2013 summer reading list, so make sure you pre-order your copy now at Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com, Waterstones or your own preferred retailer.
Would you like to know more about author Lindsey Kelk and/or let her know how much you love her books? You can find her online in the following places:
Website: lindseykelk.com
Twitter: @LindseyKelk
Facebook: facebook.com/LindseyKelk
Pinterest: pinterest.com/lindseykelk
Instagram: instagram.com/lindseykelk
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