Sophie Kinsella has a way of making this story so fun and intriguing. Kinsella hits the nail on the head with the affect social media has on today's society. We follow Katie who is so involved in keeping up her image that she momentarily forgets what really matters most. I gave this book a five out of five stars.

From the Publisher: Part love story, part workplace drama, this sharply observed novel is a witty critique of the false judgments we make in a social-media-obsessed world. New York Times bestselling author Sophie Kinsella has written her most timely novel yet.

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.

Sophie Kinsella is celebrated for her vibrant, relatable characters and her great storytelling gifts. Now she returns with all of the wit, warmth, and wisdom that are the hallmarks of her bestsellers to spin this fresh, modern story about presenting the perfect life when the reality is far from the truth.

Source: Electronic Advance Copy in exchange for an honest review.

That moment when you are reading on the treadmill at the gym and start laughing uncontrollably at the standard Sophie Kinsella madness? Yep. That's me. The woman on the treadmill laughing. And for good reason. If you've read a Sophie Kinsella book, then you know her trademark hilarity in awkwardness. If you've not read Sophie Kinsella - what the heck are you waiting for?

My all time favorite Sophie Kinsella book is Can You Keep a Secret? Holy crap that book is funny. My next favorite is Undomestic Goddess. It makes me smile just thinking about it. My third favorite is now My Not So Perfect Life, because Katie-Cat's life is sooo not perfect. It's day-to-day drudgery - that kind when you have a crap job, a crap apartment, and no money to do anything fun. But, she works in a field she loves, lives in a city she loves, and well, pretends everything is great.

My Not So Perfect Life is all kinds of fun! I won't give any spoilers, but there are twists and turns here that are unexpected and entertaining. Revenge plots and "sunbathing" and a Dad who is a little bit crazy - it all comes together to bring you hours of fun and laughs. Kinsella's writing is, as always, quick, witty, and hilarious. Sometimes, you even get a good message out of the laughs, like the grass is always greener and don't believe everything you see on Instagram.

My Not So Perfect Life is the perfect addition to your TBR. For more information, visit Sophie Kinsella's website.

A cheeky, heartfelt return to form for longtime favorite and prolific author Sophie Kinsella! Her newest novel, My (Not So) Perfect Life, is an engaging, occasionally laugh-out-loud funny adult contemporary/romance novel that balances humor with themes like perception vs. reality, career, love, ambition, and family. With her signature keen wit, relate-able self-deprecation, and agile sense of humor, Kinsella once again crafts a multilayered story that hits on all emotions and genuinely entertains while doing so.

The main character is that of a up-and-coming career-driven young woman trying (and pretending) to live her dream London life. Katie/Cat Brenner is lively, familiar, and easily readable. She's funny and self-deprecating but she's also driven, smart, and aware of her own value. Katie has a strong voice and her narration is fresh, unique from the start; like a lot of Kinsella's heroines she's imminently engaging while being totally original. Katie's a strong character on her own but her easy but obvious chemistry with her love interest, Alex, is what really kicks the story into motion. The nature of their relationship is not predictable from the outset, and nor is it the only important relationship Katie makes in the course of My (Not So) Perfect Life.

Perception versus reality is a big focus in how Katie's personal and and professional life unwind early on in the book. Through her often hilarious and/or embarrassing ups and downs, she is constantly learning: about how she views herself, but also about those she admires and dislikes. Sophie Kinsella excels at developing her characters and even the secondary ones, from Katie's father and stepmom to Demeter her frustrating boss, benefit from adept characterization. My (Not So) Perfect Life is a fun contemporary book that has more than a few relevant points to make about modern life. The romance packs some heat, the characters are lively and individuals, and the story is full of entertainment and heart -- easily recommended for past, present and future Kinsella fans.

My Not So Perfect Life is a story that everyone will identify with and nod their heads with how relatable it is. Kate shows off the perfect life on social media (while keeping the messy details off of her Instagram feed). When Kate loses her job in London, she is forced to move back to the country to live with her father. What follows is a fun and witty story with some depth as we see Kate begin to realize that some things aren't as perfect as they are when they're perfectly projected on social media.

Since Kate struggles with her identity in a culture that is obsessed with looking perfect on social media and because she is humbled by returning "home" after a downfall, I found her character to be completely relatable. She's also hilarious.

What I love about this story is that you think you're going to read something surface-level and sparkly (and it is very solid escapist women's fiction), but lurking beneath that surface is a deeper story about the complexities of identity, family and relationships.

The dialogue is on-point and witty, the characters are well-developed (I loved seeing the evolution of Kate) and the story is charming. If you need a good book to escape into, this is it.

Many thanks to Random House and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of those stories where you know where it's heading and yet it's HOW you get there that has you turning the pages as quickly as you can.

26 year old Katie (or Cat in London) had me hooked in from the beginning. Wanting to emulate Demeter's poise and grooming, wanting to fit in with the office politics and seeming like it's never going to happen had my heart breaking a little. She's the odd one out, trying so hard but not fitting into the lifestyle. During the conflicting scenes, I loved that she speaks her mind despite being a mass of nerves. Such a fabulous character - she's brought me much laughter alongside the angst. I thought she was in her element back on the farm in Somerset and wasn't sure what she would do ...A fearless and loyal heroine - would love to have her on my side!

There are lots of scenes that had me laughing - Kate's commute to work, on the roof with Alex, items glampers leave behind and bespoke packages (still belly laughing as I type) and more. There is also lots of conflict and drama that had me shouting at my Kindle.

My Not So Perfect Life isn't only about Katie and her dreams. Characters with their own hang ups and miscommunications leads to feeling the whole spectrum of emotions. Sophie Kinsella knows how to entertain her readers :) I would love to see this as a movie.

Highly recommended.

I LOVED this book! I've read most of Sophie Kinsella's books, as this is exactly what I expected: light, funny, engaging, yet serious at times. I deeply related to Katie as a young professional navigating the waters of adulthood and the pressures put on us by society to seem put together and perfect at all times. I think any twenty-something female would relate to her struggles. Her journey was exciting to follow and I found myself cheering, cringing, and laughing throughout the book. My Not So Perfect Life was a tad more serious than the Shopaholic series, but still had all the fun, awkward, and laughable moments that are present in Kinsella's books. It was a joy to read and I can't wait for more Kinsella books in the future!

This was my first book by Kinsella and it was a fun, palate cleansing, kind of read. I was hoping for a bit more of the commentary or satire on the Instagram culture – obsessively spending hours making your life look perfect online, comparing your feed to friends and co-workers accounts - that’s hinted at in the summary. It is the catalyst for the story but isn’t really the driving force or mentioned more than a few times. There is quite a bit about product branding and how consumers are fooled into buying things based on trends and key but vague words like *authentic* and *hand crafted* and I loved the little pokes at Gweneth Paltrow and her Goop culture.
My (Not So) Perfect Life is a little bit Bridget Jones Diary (the London setting/quirky girl trying to fit in) and The Devil Wears Prada (demanding/demeaning female boss).

Katie was such a relatable girl and really interesting in that she’s extremely shy and lacks confidence so she’s mostly passed over at work or made fun of - yet when an opportunity presents itself, she jumps right in and goes for it trying to always look a the positive side of things. You can't help but root for her.

After being fired from her job at a prestigious product branding company in London, Katie returns home with her tail tucked between her legs to her dad and step mom’s farm to help launch their glamping business, and she’s really good at it, but she still yearns to go back to London and live her dream.

Katie’s worlds collide when her former boss, Demeter, shows up for a weekend a the farm and she realizes that Demeter’s impeccable public persona isn't as perfect as it appears and Katie starts to feel sympathetic towards her. When Demeter is in danger of losing her own job, Katie steps in to help the woman who has made her life so miserable.

Can Katie save her boss, get her job back, help her family and get the guy?

This is chick-lit so expect a comedy of errors, misunderstandings, over the top catastrophes and a touch of romance.

Light, funny, with well developed characters that you can’t help but root for, My (Not So) Perfect Life should cover all your bases for a feel good read with heart.

This novel is well written and characters are alive on the page. The only reason I gave it 2 stars is because I couldn't identify with any aspect of the story so I wasn't drawn in

Another winner from Ms. Kinsella. I loved how Katie grew up by the end of the novel and realized that life is what you make of it.

Thank you to the publisher and the author with gratitude for the opportunity to read the advance reading copy. The following review is my own .
Sofia Kinsella has written a delightful book that will be embraced by all women that traverse the career world with less then stellar results. . Poor Katie Brenner is finding life as a London career woman less then appealing. She is flat broke, hates her job and is low on the seniority list. She resents her boss and all her coworkers are snippy rude and mean to her. Her daily commute is as boring as her life . We have all been here ! Ms. Kinsella describes office politics here perfectly. From the witch co workers to the narcissistic boss The reader is immediately sympathetic and feeling all her pain as her story is well told here with the right amount of despair among humor. . Things escalate and Katie is fired . To make her humiliation complete her exit does not go well .
Katie retreats to her home farm away from London to help her Father develop a new business, glamping for the rich. Katie returns to who she was before , a simple farm life centered around work, family and routine. She is just beginning to thrive again when her ex boss shows up to book a trip. She no longer recognizes her in her farm environment . Katie discovers that people are not always who they present themselves to be at work. She begins to reevaluate how she has been looking at her former life and learns a lot about herself along the way. She meets a love interest and has comic experiences that made me laugh out loud..This is great fun, great humor and classic Kinsella !
This is highly enjoyable reading experience. I laughed, throughout as always with Ms. Kinsella's books. She creates complex characters in situations we can all relate to . I absolutely loved it and could not put it down. . its the perfect reading experience . Thank you for the advance reading copy.

this is my first Sophie Kinsella book and it was just what I expected....funny and a light read. I just wanted to jump right in the story and be part of it.

Sophie Kinsella never disappoints! She has been a one-click author for me since the first Shopaholic book came out in 2000. And although I love Becky, I love Kinsella's standalone even more. Two of my favorites are Can You Keep a Secret? and The Undomestic Goddess. Love love love these! So I was super-excited for a new standalone.

I enjoyed My Not So Perfect Life so much! So relevant to today's culture of social media and it being important to so many people to portray that perfection. Filled with Kinsella's trademark humor with a side of romance, this book was a delight that is a must-read for any fan of chic lit.

Catherine (Cat) Brenner lives in London and battles the tube travel commute every day which take her well over an hour one way. Her boss, Demeter, complains about her 25-minute commute, which makes Cat roll her eyes. Cat works at a branding and strategy agency called Cooper Clemmow. Demeter is married with two children, makes an enormous salary, and lives in a stunning house. Cat, on the other hand, lives in a tiny room and barely makes enough to get by.

Demeter is juggling lots of contracts and depends on her assistant to help her. Unfortunately, Demeter is not liked by many in the office because they feel as though they were passed over for her job.

Cat is trying hard to make friends at work and to try and get noticed by her boss. One day, a handsome man named Alex asks Cat to help him look over some items to decide if they would be worth supporting/branding them. She soon finds out that he is Demeter’s boss. She dreams about how wonderful it would be to date him. She gets embarrassed when her drunken co-worker tells Alex at the office Christmas party that Cat has a crush on him. Mortified, Cat cannot face him.

Cat’s name is actually Katie and she grew up on a farm in the countryside. Her mother passed away when Katie was little and it was her father who raised her. Katie heads home for the Christmas break. Her Dad has always had a lot of get-rich schemes that never paned out. Katie suggests that he offer a country vacation spot complete with yurts, great good, and lots of games and exercise. She even does up a fabulous brochure and after working it through, it becomes a reality. This is a good thing because as soon as Cat gets back to work after Christmas break, Demeter fires her. Totally shocked, she heads back home and tells her Dad she is on sabbatical from her job. So, she delves in and works to make the vacation spot a success.

They get many people coming and enjoying themselves. When Demeter and her family show up, Katie disguises herself and does all she can to get back at Demeter under the guise of healthy exercise. But when Alex arrives to see Demeter, things get really rough.

This is a terrific story that only Sophie Kinsella can write. I have loved all of her books and this one did not disappoint. Grab a copy of this book and come join the fun. I’m betting you will love the story.

Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I can always count on Sophie Kinsella to give me several laugh out loud moments when reading her books. My Not So Perfect Life did that and so much more!

Katie Brenner is desperately trying to get her career off the ground and live the glamorous London life. She changed her name to Cat and posted all the right photos to social media making her life sound grand, when the reality is she still feels like Katie, her commute is horrendous and her living conditions are less than ideal. Just when things seemed to be turning her way, Katie is dealt a devastating blow at work. She finds herself returning home, but what's in store for Katie may not be exactly what she had in mind.

My Not So Perfect Life combines humor along with a love story and workplace plotline, yet it also provides a look into social media and the reality of our lives. I very much enjoyed this latest Sophie Kinsella novel.

I received this book courtesy of The Dial Press, Random House Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was solid chick lit, which Kinsella is a master at.

The first half of this was interesting and engaging enough, but it was really long and feels like so much of it didn't really end up going anywhere (her flatmates, for instance, were just bizarre comic relief). I really think that the first 200 pages could have been edited differently and more condensed, with the important backstory highlighted more.

Katie going to work on her dad's farm was good... until she started to get her revenge on Demeter. From the beginning, Demeter never actually seemed that bad, so Katie treating her like absolute crap while risking her dad's glamping business was really just incredibly petty and didn't do much in the way of making me like her as a character.

Until the second half. Things definitely took a turn for the better in Part Two, as Katie finally gets a bit more character growth and matures considerably. The message of "Don't Believe Everything is as it Appears" was really well threaded throughout and the theme very solidly represented in the second half, so that was something I liked.

This wasn't much in the romance department, though what WAS there did have a lot of potential. It just left me wanting MORE. Everything other aspect of this got SO MUCH detail that the lack of detail with Alex, the love interest (who really only pops up a handful of times), was not quite enough for me.

Overall, this was a fun, lighthearted read that fits in well with the genre.

This is a light and entertaining book about a single girl in London who is trying to get by and be independent. Her sense of humor is great.

I have a tendency to read a lot of historical fiction, but sometimes I like to jump outside my box and read something set in the present. Bonus points if there is a great love story! There was so much to love about this book. Katie is relatable. I think all of us at some point in our adulthood have come to the conclusion that we are not exactly what we thought we would be or that other people's lives are better. Sometimes that can open doors we didn't even know we wanted to step through. I enjoyed both the parts in the office with Katie and her office mates and Katie in the country with her dad and step mom and all of the parts with Demeter, who was an interesting character to get to know.
If you are looking for a book equal parts funny and romantic, My (not so) Perfect Life is the book for you.

When was the first moment that I fell for the charm of this novel? Near the beginning, Katie aka “Cat” as she wants to be called in London, has just finished dyeing Demeter’s roots in the office when Demeter panics that Alex is coming for a meeting and that Cat/Katie has to make him come back in 30 minutes or email. Katie doesn’t know who Alex is but follows him to the roof where he starts unpacking Chinese boxes that contain “adult toys.” Not THOSE adult toys, but toys for adults to play with (still not sex!). One happens to be a drone. The magic in those moments between Katie and Alex is almost palpable. This is chemistry that’s maintained between them throughout the novel. This is the stuff that all of us who want to write romances wishes very fervently that we could pull off. And Sophie Kinsella makes it looks so, so easy.

My Not So Perfect Life is a not easily categorized novel. While the romance between Katie and Alex is fun as well as sweet and has that grand gesture at the end that makes a person’s heart melt and it has funny and romantic and lusty scenes, this is also a novel about workplace relationships (not romantic) in which people don’t express the reasons for their behavior as well the seemingly perfect lives we depict on social media, the only showing the good or the beautiful and not the other stuff that makes us human and ultimately relatable.

It’s also about how we perceive the people around us and how we frequently misjudge. It’s about not wanting to make decisions that hurt the ones we love and how they do the same thing so that so much is held in that threatens to hurt just by not wanting to hurt.

My Not So Perfect Life will make you laugh and smile and feel good, and sometimes feel just a smidgen of sadness. And some of that sadness might just be because you can’t spend more hours with the down-to-earth Katie, the adorable Alex, the ditzy but creative Demeter, the wonderful Mick, and the loving Biddy. Hopefully it will be a movie so that I can be there all over again.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

NOTE: I received a free copy of the book through NetGalley. Below is my honest review.

If you're looking for something fun and fluffy - perhaps for the beach or your next plane ride - this is a good choice. It's is another one from Sophie Kinsella ( a stand alone, not part of the Shopaholic series) who loves to use the fish-out-of-water/mistaken identity/misunderstanding tropes to set up an entertaining, if not somewhat unrealistic, read.

In this case, Katie, whose boss has the perfect job, perfect style, perfect family and whose best friend is making it big in NYC (or so she thinks!), uses Intagram to convince friends and family how awesome her London life is, despite the truth that she is barely making ends meet at her low level ad agency job, lives in a crappy apartment on the outskirts of town and has no social life to speak of. What will happen when Katie crushes on the cute agency guru? When she hits rock bottom professionally? When she visits her dad and stepmom at the family farm? Will she be able to keep up the facade or will the truth finally come out?

I trend to get a bit frustrated with heroines who keep secrets for ego reasons only rather than just tell their friends and family the truth but in this case my frustration dissipated pretty early on and I felt myself rooting for Katie, as well as for many of the supporting characters who also aren't necessarily as perfect as Katie seems to think they are. In the era of social media, when people can so easily present life as they wish it to be, this book is a reminder that most (all?) of us live as not so perfect life

My Not So Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella was just released, and I just finished an ARC copy which was graciously shared with me via Netgalley and Random House for an honest review. I always look forward to a new release by London author Sophie Kinsella because her books are some of the most well written "loose yourself in a book" fiction novels out there today. I also appreciate the sense of humor that always makes her books fun as well as the gift she has for making her characters come alive and touch your heart. This book was no exception! Get ready for a fun Cinderella like story that whisks you away. Katie Brenner, 26, who has grown up on a farm in Somerset, has always dreamed of making a successful life in London, and she thinks she is well on the way when she lands a job at a company famous for branding ( promoting ) some highly successful brands under a famous boss for who seems to have a perfect life--Demeter Farlowe. Demeter has had brilliant successes in her field of work in the past as well as appearing to have a perfect husband and children and home, etc. Sophie is disappointed ,however, when Demeter can't seem to remember her name correctly, won't listen to her ideas, and appears to treat those who work under her pretty abysmally. Sophie also has to contend with office politics, a stressful commute, and living in poverty in a shared flat with some less than ideal flat mates. This isn't the view of her life she shares with her family and friends through Instagram posts, however, which picture her living a successful perfect life. Things seem to be looking up at work when a spark appears between Sophie and one of the owners of the firm Alex, Astalis, who has lived a silver spoon life but seems to be a modern day Prince Charming. But, then Katie is fired and she ends up back on the farm in Somerset where she helps her father ( who raised her alone ) and stepmother open up a "glamping" venture where the elite can sleep in yurts on 400 count sheets and feel like they are "roughing it" without ever giving up creature comforts or wi-fi. Katie's path crosses Demeter and Alex's again, this time in Somerset, for a fun resolution to this book. The plot sounds a bit zany and corny, but was so much pure fun to read that I read it fairly quickly because I did not want to put it down. Kinsella is a master at that. If you have never read Kinsella before, there are some occurances of occasional profanity and not very blatant sex scenes. There are bullies and bad guys, but also good guys with beautiful hearts. I always feel happy when I finish one of her books and recommend this newest one as another happy read!