A well written and interesting #metoo novel, with fresh and intriguing characters . I really liked how these four young women grew throughout the book.

This was a great book. Solid story about female empowerment and friendship. Would highly recommend.

Was pretty good. Enjoyed it. Would recommend. Great book club title. Or a great one to read on vacation. Great job.

This is not at all what I was expecting, as I thought it was a thriller, but instead it was more of a women’s fiction, but I enjoyed it! Gave me a much needed break from my normal demented genre! The characters were done in a perfect, flawless manner, which really connected me to the story! It was funny, emotional, and realistic! Would absolutely recommend to those looking for a powerful women story, which will keep you completely riveted, laughing, and much more!

Will buzz around platforms and use top Amazon reviewer on release!

This book was an interesting take on office drama and the power dynamics between bosses and assistants. At times, I thought the pace was a bit slow but I still enjoyed this book. It seems like it would be the perfect beach/summer read!

Awesome book about female empowerment. A group of friends who are all assistants to powerful people come together to try and enact change. Depressing, but ultimately uplifting, this book is about a group of women who are all treated horribly in their jobs and have to do something about it. Excellent book!

This story is about 4 millennials working together as assistants to some Very Important People. The beginning was cool and it had a strong ending, but I felt like the middle dragged and I had to force myself to keep reading. I liked the concept of the story. but the characters all seemed similar and very unlikable.

‘Smile and Look Pretty’ dives into the world of the personal assistant. Our four heroines deal with outrageous demands, sexual harassment, and toxic work environments while they watch their male counterparts climb the ladder. Something’s got to give and the four launch a website to anonymously post their horror stories. The popularity of the website grows and each woman must deal with the professional and/or personal fallout of the success of their creation.

Set in the hustle and bustle of New York this book is fun and modern. The issues faced by the PA’s are timely. This book is about friendship, solidarity, and finding the courage to stand up for oneself against “office” culture.
An entertaining read that will resonate with working women in any industry.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this ARC.

What a spectacular debut this is! The toxic environment of a workplace leads a few you g women to set up a blog describing the injustices they face. This seemingly harmless move leads to way more serious circumstances than any of them envisioned.

The Aggressive One.
The Bitchy One.
The Emotional One.
The Bossy One.

Each of these pseudonyms allows four under paid, over worked, (and oftentimes sexually harassed) assistants to some of the most powerful men in their collective industries to vent about their bosses on an anonymous blog they created called “Twentysomething”.

The real women behind the blog - Cate, Olivia, Lauren and Max - dreamed this blog into fruition after their Thursday night margaritas and venting sessions (aptly called “The Shit List”). Soon, the site goes viral and <i>everyone</i> is submitting anonymous stories and <b>everyone</b> wants to know who started this movement.

This novel is gripping, witty and moving. At the start, it seemed to be just another novel, but at mid-point, it turned into so much more. It’s about friendships, female empowerment, blatant sexual harassment in the workplace, and what happens when women come together to take on the establishment.

Smile and Look Pretty had such a strong plot that made me think about my life and my loved ones experience with discrimination in the workplace. Empowering, and inspirational.

Absolutely gripping from the beginning.

Smile and Look Pretty is an accurate depiction of what we assistants face on a day-to-day basic. We are included on every email to our boss, often knowing the happenings in the company before even they do. The gossip hunters come by our desk with coffees, homemade treats, compliments galore, and way too many questions that will go unanswered. We know everything, but a good assistant never tells. Amanda Pellegrino captured this with such accuracy.

There were parts of this book that had me laughing so hard I thought I might choke or spit out whatever I was eating or drinking. Lines that brought back memories of my old job. Things that happened, that looking back on, just made me think, “how f*cking ridiculous!” I thought of all the things I gave up, all the times I ghosted friends for silly things like filling an employee's car up with gas, or picking up a special banana bread for a guest who had just flown into town, leaving a visiting friend of my own to find her way around the city.

The prose was playful, straightforward, and witty. The book easy to read over a weekend, and even more enjoyable with a margarita in one hand, Kobo in the other, body submerged in a hot bubble bath. For us assistants who don’t have much time, I recommend sneaking this one into the office bathroom and reading a few pages to keep your sanity in check, while at the same time allowing yourself a much-needed giggle.

I may not have been able to laugh then, but reading about Lauren, Cate, Max, and Olivia, and what they go through with their bosses, it really lightened the load and added a whole new level of humour. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at my job in the same way again.

I’ll be picking this book up for a few of my fellow assistants when it hits the shelves.

Four friends fed up with the monotony of their jobs and the sexist expectations associated with them "plot for revenge' by designing a blog. A good premise, but for me none of the characters were well-developed or interesting. The dialogue was simple. DNF.

Hell yeah! I enjoy girl power books so much! This one is also about the discrimination, mannerism, inequality at workplace. 9 to 5 meets Devil wears Prada and Horrible Bosses vibes help us enjoy our journey!

We’re introduced four best friends Cate, Lauren, Olivia, Max who are meeting each Friday to compare their notes and their weekly updates about their horrible bosses and their last torturous misdemeanors. They’re working as assistants, doing their best to please their bosses but it seems like their main life purpose is turning their assistants’ lives into hell. But these powerful women are trying too hard to be patient and getting the promotions they highly deserve, planning to save money to pursue their dream jobs including book publisher, actress, reporter, TV writer.

One day they decide enough is enough and start sharing their worst experiences about their jobs on blog which goes viral and this is when things are getting out of control!

They accidentally inspire so many colleagues who suffer from same daily issues and they help the people realize to stand for themselves.

Overall: this was easy to read, empowering, smart, entertaining, riveting book. It started like chic lit fictions but the second half of the book, the tone got more provocative and girl power messages were inspirational. You cannot help yourself so you raise fist and scream “atta girl” several times!

So I’m rounding up 3.5 stars to 4 equality at workplace, feminism, friendship, powerful women stars!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin/ Park Row for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

Oh, I liked this!

I didn’t at first. Completely honest here – I had regrets because it started out like old school chick lit from 20 years ago. I mean…I read chick lit. Too much of it. And I wasn’t really ready to return to books where the most important thing is whether or not you’re wearing the right couture pumps while being denigrated by a mean boss.

But this does get modern and relevant pretty quickly. Honestly, I only counted one designer shoe reference (if there were more I didn’t notice) and this was about women sticking up for each other – not mean girls getting ahead. There’s kind of a fantasy aspect to it because, much as I want it to be this easy – women sticking together to make a permanent change – I still don’t believe it. I liked reading it, though.

Yes, there are got guys and crushes. There’s truly horrendous bad boss behavior. But it’s also a book about empowerment and sticking together for what’s right.

Good book!

*ARC Provided via Net Galley

I laughed (and cringed) at some of the stories. After the great idea of doing the blog in the beginning and a strong ending, I think I wanted a little bit more "meat" in the middle. The characters didn't seem too deep, but I guess it makes sense as the focus was more on the story they were bringing to the table.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Girl power! This book is about women who have no power or respect in their jobs, so they take it back. It had vibes of "The Devil Wears Prada": in that the bosses were terrible and rude, and , the book had a fun vibe (in a dark way). However, I thought the girls were a little too much alike - they could almost be interchanged. I didn't get a separate voice, which can be difficult with alternating points of view.

This book was a fun, easy read and great for a mental escape. However, I felt like it had so much potential, and it didn't quite get there. It was almost as if most of the people were stereotypes or caracatures (similar to DWP). I personally prefer people that draw you in, and you feel an emotional connection with.

The book was well written, fun and most people will really enjoy it. It just wasn't my personal cup of tea. I do want to thank the author, the publisher and #netgalley for providing me with an ARC - this obviously did not impact my review.

Oh my goodness, this is a perfect culture climate for this book to be released. This book is exactly what most female administrative assistants feel. Men can be condescending, treat the male co-workers better, and be downright disrespectful. This book is the perfect amounts of women power and hilarious humor with added dramas in the middle. I definitely recommend this book as a funny read to add to your beach vacation or just relaxing to read. If you've ever wished to "get back" at a bad boss, this book is for you!

Smile and Look Pretty by Amanda Pellegrino is a modern take on 9 to 5. It tells the story of 4 ambitious millenials working as assistants to Very Important People in the fast paced world of New York City .

Cate, Max, Lauren and Olivia are best friends who meet each Friday to compare what awful things their bosses had them do that week. Getting cupcakes for a child's school party, seeing their boss naked, yet again, dealing with lecherous stares. They decide they've had enough and start an anonymous blog, Twentysomething to air their grievances.

When the blog takes off, they each have to deal with the fallout in their own way.

I enjoyed it although I felt as though the characters needed a little more of a back story to explain how they got to be where they are.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Park Row for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

4+stars

I thoroughly enjoyed Smile and Look Pretty. It was a modern mash up between the Devil Wore Prada and the Me Too movement.

Cate, Lauren, Olivia and Max are young women working hard as assistants in NYC working for difficult and hard to please bosses. They are all trying to put in their time to get promotions so they can start actually doing their dream jobs--tv writer, book publisher, actress and reporter. The four friends meet weekly to vent and see who had the worst experience at work. From this they start an anonymous blog about how they are treated and the blog goes viral.

The four young woman found their voices and helped thousands of other people do so too. I found the book empowering and hope it helps other stand up too. Society needs to stop protecting abusive people just because they are in power.