Climbing in Heels by Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas had the premise that was so great in theory: pre- Weinstein, where men could slap a woman in the behind at work and it would be acceptable. Women in Hollywood would be taken advantage of (still happens!) thinking that they would be promoted in the rankings at their jobs, often didn’t happen and sometimes they were fired after they made accusations. This reminded me of one of my favorite 80s movies Working Girl with Melanie Griffith. I am an 80s girl through and through so when the initial premise of this book came out, I was excited to hear all of the names and faces, of this semi-autobiographical book by Goldsmith-Thomas, who is a seasoned Hollywood producer herself.

While I loved Beanie - the main character , she worked hard, found holes where she could snake her way in to specific positions, I felt the characters and plotting was rushed. It was as if it lacked heart, and instead things just “happened”, because we need to see how the next scenes were going to play out. No true character development, no day to day job descriptions, no real connection with the audience and these people we are all supposed to root for.

The beginning starts out with three different characters, all whom have grown up in different lifestyles who want to work for a talent agency. I found there was no rhyme or reason for any of them, that there was so much going on, I ended up being bored. I didn’t care about any of their characters or their reasonings as to why they want to work in this difficult industry. Things just happened, well just because!

By midway through, I slogged through it to get to the end.

I'll be very honest: I don't think I am the right audience for this book. I thought the synopisis was fun and it got me intrigued. But the book turned out to be something different from what I expected, and that's alright. I'm sure this book will please other readers.
Fun note: I think this story could be more fun as a movie. :)

A very entertaining story about women in Hollywood in the 1980s! An exciting setting and interesting characters we get to know so well through the author's well-written novel. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was a great read of three women wanting to be more than secretaries in the 1980s. I liked all three Beanie, Mercedes, and Ella. They were not always the nicest but they wanted power and they got what they wanted. I liked the 1980s too.

I really liked this book! I like the things that are called out that women have to go through. I had liked reading this and I could relate to so many of these instances. I found it entertaining!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

This book is everything! I loved the plot and the characters, and would absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a book that accurately paints a timeframe in history and its impact on women.