This is a light romantic comedy set in the fashion media business of Australia. Henri Higgins, accepts a dare that he can turn his cleaning woman into a social media phenomenon. The cleaning woman is considerably more accomplished than her night job might suggest, and in the process of creating an influencer, the two fall in love.

I don't know much about influencers, and I know less about fashion, but it was fun to spend an afternoon in that world.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Unable to download the arc prior to being archived. Therefore I won't be reviewing

it was a fun read and enjoyed the book. must read. finding love is never the easy.

I feel so conflicted while reviewing this book because although I did enjoy the diverse characters - this is the only book I've ever read with a character who has downs syndrome, and the vibrant, vivid descriptions of clothes and decorations, with the addition of the fresh backdrop, Australia, yay!

However, the plot line was not something new; a bored millionaire takes on a challenge, god knows we've all read a fairly good amount of novels that have that same story, I have, at least. I don't think I would've read this novel if it wasn't for my habit for going into books without knowing a lot because of the 'millionaire' addition. The only thing that made up for this was elizabeta and ree's relationship.
The use of foreign language without making it salient and clear to the reader through the context about what the characters are saying was annoying too, at times I was lost and found myself just reading to finish the book.

Overall, not bad at all and has potential but could do so much better!

It's a contemporary retelling of My Fair Lady set in Australia! And it's super diverse! Features a bi-racial romance! I swoon.

I really loved this book. Elizabeta was so down-to-earth and likeable. And I loved her family, even her ornery mother. Elizabeta is Peruvian, has a daughter with Downs who is an aspiring fashion designer, and the cast of background characters is also refreshingly diverse.

The My Fair Lady/Pygmalion plotline was also executed in a way that didn't feel derivative or stale. Dunk also took the basic bones of the familiar plot and built a super fun story with enough new elements that I forgot this was a retelling at times. It was really well done and delightful.

An associate enters a bet with publishing mogul Henri (Ree) Higgins to see who can take a random person and make them famous within two weeks. At the appointed time, cleaning lady Elizabeta enters Ree’s office and so becomes his fame game project. Elizabeta is actually a single mother and office manager who cleans on the side to learn more about the publishing industry and help launch her daughter Angelina’s fashion design business.
With its nod to Pygmalion, this story isn’t about teaching someone to be a lady; instead it’s about making someone a well-known name, in a society where so many chase their fifteen minutes of fame and where value is measured by social media likes and clicks. Elizabeta is an ambitious character, with a laser-focus drive to support her daughter, who has Down’s syndrome. She embraces Ree’s challenge and films a series of Youtube videos showing how you can spruce up your surroundings with her simple tips. So there is no My Fair Lady makeover as expected but of course Ree does become accustomed to her face in what is a pleasant, light read.

Henri Higgins is bored with his successful life as a high-profile magazine editor, so his friend suggests a challenge: two weeks to turn a protégé into the next big thing. Henry meets Elizabeta, a cleaner at his office – and the rest is history.

I enjoyed this book. It is a low-key love letter to Canberra, dropping names and places all over the place, though not the name of the Prime Minister (I guess they change too quickly for that). The cast is diverse; Elizabeta is Peruvian and she corrects Ree pretty sharply for assuming she is Colombian and can cook, her daughter has Downs and this is a major plot point. I can’t comment on the author’s portrayal of Angie as accurate or not, but I felt she handled it with sensitivity and sympathy. The descriptions of both clothes and decorations are sumptuous, until you feel you can picture everything the characters see and talk about. Best of all, it was a really interesting look at fame – how to achieve it, how to handle it, and what happens afterwards

I did have a few minor quibbles with the book. Some of the pop culture references felt a little forced, and dialogue in other languages (French and Aimara) was not always translated or clear from the context. The title is not terribly accurate either, as the story is more about Elizabeta and her journey to fame, or even about Ree and Elizabeta’s relationship.

The fame competition seemed to overshadow the romance; which was perfectly fine with me, as it was by far the more interesting part of the book for me. In fact, the insta-lust and sudden jolts of desire were sometimes off-putting and pulled me out of the narrative. Ree and Elizabeta also had a big problem with miscommunication, but there was sufficient grovelling to satisfy by the end.

I was pleasantly surprised that this modern Pygmalion variation had such a strong leading woman. Henry Higgins, Ree, was feeling bored with his life when a good friend suggested a bet. They were both wealthy and successful, but for this bet agreed not to use any of their personal contacts. They agree to take the first person they see after 8PM and make that person famous. Re ends up with his office cleaner, Elizabeta. She is a lot more complicated than he bargained for and it is interesting to see how they come to terms. I was given this to read in exchange for a review. It was an enjoyable read.