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The Intern

(The Intern #1)

Gabrielle Tozer (Goodreads Author)

3.64 · Rating details · 1,143 ratings · 205 reviews

Funny, insightful and written with warmth and understanding, THE INTERN is for everyone who has had and survived the job from hell! Ages: 12+ Josie Browning dreams of having it all. A stellar academic record, an amazing career in journalism - and for her current crush to realise she actually exists. The only problem? Josie can't get through twenty-four hours without embarr ...more

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Kindle Edition, 336 pages

Published October 14th 2014 by HarperCollins (first published January 1st 2014)

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Dec 10, 2013 Melanie rated it liked it

Shelves: gifted-traded, romance, young-adult, aussie, could-have-been-so-much-better, inky-awards-2015, me-likes-you, contemporary, books-i-own

Just a few thoughts: Josie's voice was incredibly quirky and fun. However, I feel that the plot side of things could have had some more work because I didn't feel like THAT much was going on. But in general, a cute and light read! ...more

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Apr 23, 2014 Jeann (Happy Indulgence) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: love-oz-ya, ya-contemporary, own, young-adult

Check out Happy Indulgence Books for more reviews!

For a refreshing, hilarious take on the glamourous life of magazine publishing, The Intern is fun, fresh and filled with laughs as Josie starts her internship at Sash. All she wants is to complete her internship and sail into the career of her dreams, but instead, she finds a test of her life and wits, as she encounters a rollercoaster of challenges and drama.

Reading about the magazine life at Sash was so much fun! From endless beauty products, Check out Happy Indulgence Books for more reviews!

For a refreshing, hilarious take on the glamourous life of magazine publishing, The Intern is fun, fresh and filled with laughs as Josie starts her internship at Sash. All she wants is to complete her internship and sail into the career of her dreams, but instead, she finds a test of her life and wits, as she encounters a rollercoaster of challenges and drama.

Reading about the magazine life at Sash was so much fun! From endless beauty products, to bakery and cupcakes, to photo shoots with celebrities and dealing with the fearsome editor, I really enjoyed the glamour of it all. It was filled with outlandish drama and lots of antics, especially when it came to a certain celebrity who was obsessed with Josie, which added to her problems.

There aren't enough books that explore the corporate life for teenagers, which is what I loved about The Intern. Josie's drive to start the career of her dreams, but also her naivety when it came to the challenges she would face, was actually something I confronted myself after finishing uni. Good grades, hard work and determination aren't enough to help you succeed which Josie learns throughout the book.

As someone who isn't afraid to embarrass herself, Josie is an awkward character who is also completely hilarious. I could see why everyone ended up endearing themselves to her, because what you see is what you get and she doesn't hide herself from the world. While she spends a lot of time questioning what she's doing, almost giving up at times, it was great to see her develop grit by the end of the book.

I did find her pining over her crush to be quite annoying though, especially when she finds out he has a girlfriend, but she decides that they have a "connection" with each other. I was relieved when her other problems kind of took over from the relationship woes. Everything also comes to Josie a little too easily.

The book tends to keep to the lighter side, veering away from the more serious underlying issues when it came to bullying, bulimia, work life/balance and affairs. I thought the bulimia was handled with a light hand and could have been explored a bit further.

Overall, The Intern is a hilarious, refreshing and fun-filled read on starting out a career in the glamourous magazine publishing industry. While it does tend to veer on the lighter side of things, with lots of drama going on, I enjoyed Josie's journey throughout the book. ...more

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Jan 29, 2014 Tien rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, contemporary, australia, australian-author, kindle, own, signed-by-author

Aaaah… you know that feeling… that wonderful, warm, cuddly feeling at the end of the novel when you found a big silly smile on your face? Yeah, that’s the one! That’s what The Intern has left me with and I can’t seem to get rid of it.

The story kicks off by talking about boobs and… exposing yourself (accidentally, of course!). What a great start and totally funny. I like the name Josie Browning; it's just so down to earth and unassuming and that’s just what Josie is. She’s charmingly clumsy, lova ...more

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Nov 01, 2014 Kelly (Diva Booknerd) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: loveozya

http://www.divabooknerd.com/2014/12/m...
The Intern is simply fabulous and Josie is one of the most realistic and charismatic characters I've ever had the pleasure of reading. She's the shy girl, intelligent but lacks life experience which will endear her to readers.

My life was an ongoing series of humiliating incidents wrapped in a box of shame and tied with a bow of awkwardness.

She's passionate about Journalism, so when her course placement sees her at Sash magazine, Josie is under no illus ...more

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Dec 11, 2013 Jaz rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-uni, contemporary, review-copy, cover-lust, standalone, aussie

Firstly, thanks to HarperCollins Australia for this review copy.

Review originally posted at Fiction in Fiction in Fiction

Simply put, if you love The Devil Wears Prada (the movie that is, I haven’t read the book) then you’ll love The Intern. I could draw so many parallels while reading The Intern, but despite the similarities, I could still enjoy The Intern as its own work of art.

University student Josie Browning dreams of being a newspaper journalist but instead gets landed working at high prof Firstly, thanks to HarperCollins Australia for this review copy.

Review originally posted at Fiction in Fiction in Fiction

Simply put, if you love The Devil Wears Prada (the movie that is, I haven’t read the book) then you’ll love The Intern. I could draw so many parallels while reading The Intern, but despite the similarities, I could still enjoy The Intern as its own work of art.

University student Josie Browning dreams of being a newspaper journalist but instead gets landed working at high profile fashion magazine Sash. The poor girl is an absolute walking disaster – I’m actually not sure it’s possible for someone in real life to be this clumsy? I couldn’t relate to all her embarrassing situations as a result of this, I mean I consider myself a klutz but Josie was a different story. That didn’t stop my face from heating up in humiliation on behalf of Josie while reading. I think, in part, some of her clumsiness could be attributed to her unease and lack of self-confidence at the beginning of the book. She makes SO many mistakes throughout, but my high school maths teacher once said “I make mistakes every day, but I never make the same mistake twice”. I loved that about Josie – despite all the shit she managed to get herself into, she would always pick herself up and get on with life and make the most out of things.

I loved the insight into life working at a fashion magazine. I know Tozer’s worked at a few magazines herself so I could tell a lot of this stuff was legit. A lot of it seemed ridiculous to be honest – making interns do menial tasks, fetch coffee and be the errand girl (I guess someone’s got to do it, but really does it have to be the person in university who’s meant to be getting real hands on experience that’s meant to contribute to their degree?). As someone who’s done 3 internships, I’ve been told if I wasn’t given real work after a certain point I should speak up so Josie’s situation really made me flinch. But this is a different type of industry, one that admittedly has some shallow people but also required Josie to prove her worth. It was interesting to see the range of tasks she was faced with and how she tackled them.

There’s a pretty juicy scandal in the midst of this and I cringed at how the poor target got dragged through the mud throughout it all. This was my favourite part of the book – the way it was handled, the aftermath and what Josie and others took from this horrid situation. There was no sugar-coating the ordeal, only to get through it, learn and move on. And don’t make the same mistake twice.

Let’s not forget the really sweet romance in this. There’s an absolutely swoon-worthy boy and a bunch of really icky ones. Shant talk much more about this because you should read and find out.

My biggest issue with The Intern was the writing style. I felt that it was a bit over the top and because of that, it made the situations seem unrealistic so I couldn’t relate to some of the things that went on (aforementioned clumsiness). Don’t get me wrong, Tozer’s style is engaging and it’s definitely got the essence of someone who writes articles to draw the audience in but at times I would just pause in my scepticism.

Overall, I felt that Josie really matured by the end of the book and I can’t wait to see where Faking It takes her. This was a light read that’s very fun, swoony and I loved the fashion aspect. ...more

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Aug 15, 2017 Calzean rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: culture-australia, woman-author, young-adult, author-australia

Whilst still at Uni Josie Browning has to attend an internship - a one day a week assignment which in her case is at a glossy mag aimed at the teens. She wants to be a serious journalist so sees no real link to her career goals and only sees plenty of stress as she is not one of the reader's target audience.
But by day two she has interviewed a current boy band hunk, seen her article go viral and suddenly her writing is in demand.
This is a fun, light read. A real YA where Josie turns 18, experien ...more

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Mar 12, 2015 oliviasbooks rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: fans of Meg Cabot

Shelves: e-version, young-adult-fiction, ya-contemporary, read-2015, the-mother-daughter-thing, love-story-romance, chick-lit, laugh-a-little, yabc-quarterly-challenge, author-from-down-under

So far, eighteen wasn't feeling too different from seventeen: my clothes were a little more stained, boy dramas were a little more complicated and my mind was just that little bit fuzzier.
At present - right after reading - I grant Gabrielle Tozer's "The Intern" four stars although the heroine, journalism student and magazine intern Josie Browning, had a painful chunk of growing up to do (in the beginning she is insecure, depends on the advice and decisions of her unpredictability moody, bossy y ...more

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Mar 02, 2014 Jasprit rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary, out-2014, ya, dnf, read-in-2016

DNF

The Intern was a book which I found myself eager to read after reading the blurb (it reminded me a lot of The Devil wears Prada, a book I enjoyed and loved the setting of) and seeing it pop up a lot of Aussie YA reader’s blogs. I was also in the mood for something light and fun and the fun aspect was totally there, I liked how Josie and the other two interns had to compete at the well known Sash magazine, especially as there was a cash prize up for grabs too. I was all behind Josie from the b DNF

The Intern was a book which I found myself eager to read after reading the blurb (it reminded me a lot of The Devil wears Prada, a book I enjoyed and loved the setting of) and seeing it pop up a lot of Aussie YA reader’s blogs. I was also in the mood for something light and fun and the fun aspect was totally there, I liked how Josie and the other two interns had to compete at the well known Sash magazine, especially as there was a cash prize up for grabs too. I was all behind Josie from the beginning to be successful, especially as her mum had to work so hard in order to provide for her and her sister. Also Josie was more down to earth that some of the staff at Sash, also in comparison to intern Ava, Josie was genuinely talented in her writing ability and also genuinely a nice person. Of course the comparisons to The Devil Wears Prada can be made, as Josie was a nobody before coming to Sash, she had no real sense of style in comparison to the other girls and of course she had a bitchy boss to deal with who had deadlines that needed to be met straight away and of course Josie was pushed to carry out tedious tasks initially. Like the Devil Wears Prada I was looking forward to Josie getting her moment to shine and show that she was a talented individual. So I’m glad when that moment came, because after with the hard slogging and running back and forth to Sash magazine, Josie deserved it.

However one of the reasons I had to DNF this book in the end was because Josie’s character was too young for my liking. Before going into The Intern I didn’t know that our MC would be 17 years old, yes I’ve read so many books with 17 year old MC’s in the past and not had a issue with them before, but being in Josie’s head just became really difficult at times, it’s not that she’s a whiny individual, but I just couldn’t bring myself to care about the things she was thinking about. Yes I was super curious to find out who would win the grand prize, and whether the massive doozy Josie found herself in would be revealed and whether she and James would finally get together. But that lack of connection with Josie and just the youngness of her character really made it difficult for me to continue with this story, which is a real shame, as I really had high hopes for this book.

This review can be found on: The Readers Den ...more

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Jan 01, 2015 Rebecca rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2015, loveozya, genre-contemporary, young-adult

Josie is a hardworking 17 year old. With dreams of becoming a world renowned newspaper journalist, she has worked hard in school and university to reach her dreams. But when she is allocated an internship to Sash, a fashion magazine, instead of at a newspaper, she is understandable lost.

Floundering through her first days, she makes the best out of an odd situation. Making friends and enemies, she strives to achieve the best grade she can - and possibly even win the coveted cool $5k that the bes ...more

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Nov 04, 2015 Rachael rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

You know when you get the perfect book at the perfect time? This was The Intern for me. I was in a real slump, feeling low, pms, total crash in my creative confidence, sad sack, retreat and curl up and feel sorry for myself mode. What a soothing balm for a sorry soul was our Josie Browning. I loved getting swept up in her heartfelt and hilarious mis/adventures. I also loved the peek into behind the scenes at fancy magazines. I could totally imagine this as a television series or rom/com movie wi ...more

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Aug 04, 2015 Mary H rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Didn't love it. Josie, yes, is a teen, but her personality was off-putting. I am so tired of the super clumsy thing, and she was woefully oblivious on several occasions. I thought some parts were fun, but the story was honestly pretty trite. So many of the characters were seemingly flat (clumsy and weirdly attractive mc; pretty girl who is mean for no reason; beautiful and free spirit new bestie; jealous old bestie; hot guy with bitchy and jealous girlfriend; calm adult figure; disconnected pare ...more

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Aug 02, 2014 Larissa rated it really liked it

See this review also at YA Midnight Reads:

I was so happy to be able to get a ARC of this, as it’s already released in Australia and I’ve heard great things. I also love the Devil Wears Prada a whole bunch, so the comparison in the summary had me intrigued. I think this is one of the few circumstances where the comparison does this book justice. I was overjoyed to find myself whipping through the pages of The Intern. I would certainly put it in a compulsive reading category.

The thing I enjoyed t See this review also at YA Midnight Reads:

I was so happy to be able to get a ARC of this, as it’s already released in Australia and I’ve heard great things. I also love the Devil Wears Prada a whole bunch, so the comparison in the summary had me intrigued. I think this is one of the few circumstances where the comparison does this book justice. I was overjoyed to find myself whipping through the pages of The Intern. I would certainly put it in a compulsive reading category.

The thing I enjoyed the most about The Intern is how even though I’ve never had a internship, I couldn’t help but relate and laugh/smile at the adventures of our main character. It felt organic and through the writing came across as realistic, even though landing a fashion internship at 17 isn’t something I’d generally find realistic. Josie Browning however accomplishes this and through her endearing and humorous narration I found myself totally invested in the story.

Josie Browning is the main character of the story, and I found myself easily connecting to her and her passion of writing. With Josie’s missteps at the internship (especially on the first day) I felt her characterization was honest. You also do see Josie grow more confident in her skills and it was I felt like cheering for this character on more than occasion. We see equal moments success and failure which is nice. There were moments where I did however want to shake Josie, she was being naive at several points. However I find myself excusing her naivety just because it comes off as actually charming and we do see character growth. What I also enjoyed with Josie was even though she was inexperienced in the cutthroat world of fashion, she stuck to her own values and beliefs. She didn’t fall prey to clear manipulation or took the easy way out. It really did make her a surprisingly admirable character. I feel like Josie is a character that readers can not only relate to but even look up to her. There was one moment that really stood out to me, where another character essentially back stabs the main character. I adore the way the character handles this. Josie doesn’t go on some crazy revenge tangent, but rather allows herself to cool down. This gives her thought over the situation and gives enough time for Josie to understand what’s really going on.

The Intern was a lot more than just a story of a internship. Sure, you do get to see some of the going ons in a fashion magazine, but you also get so much more. There’s real depth to The Intern in terms of familial relationships. Josie’s father left the family when she was young, and you could really see how this effected not only Josie but also her sister and her mother. You really do see the emotional and physical struggles the mother goes through in this story, whether it be not having enough money to support herself and the daughters to crying over lost memories. I feel like these more serious undertones balanced out the story more, making it more than a fluffy romp.

There’s also the side character of Ava. She may seem to be nothing more than your typical mean girl who is Josie’s competition, but I loved that the author developed her more. Ava was fleshed out quite a lot and you really begin to sympathize with her when you find about her own dark secrets. I won’t for spoiler reasons tell you Ava’s secret, but wow. I feel like her secret really is something that’s such a issue in today’s society with the media perpetuating negative body images and such. It’s also something that’s definitely deep rooted in the fashion industry, so I was glad to see it involved in the story and given the serious attention it deserves. I also believe this issue was done in a way where it wasn’t glorifying it, but sending a positive message about the issue to the readers while informing them of the dangers. There was also another character, a famous singer. He was definitely more of a sad character, reading about his struggles really showcased the effects that fame can have on a person.

What really resonated with me is the relationship between Josie and her best friend Angel. They had been friends for quite some time, but now they just seemed to be growing apart. They really did have a lot of differences after all. I think a lot of people have been in circumstances like this, where they simply drift away from people they were once so close to. This was handled in a way that felt very true to life and honestly.

There was a bit of romance in this one and I quite enjoyed it. The romance element was prevalent throughout the course of the story, but I found it to be balanced out well and not to overbearing. I think insta love wouldn’t be involved, but more of a insta attraction. Considering the main character is seventeen, I definitely see this as realistic. I’m personally seventeen, and I shamelessly admit to day dreaming about boys. Josie doing this definitely made me laugh and allowed me to connect with her character. I also really enjoyed the love interest himself, James. There was a really nice “meet cute” scene straight out of the movies which I couldn’t help but love. James only grew on me throughout the novel, he was simply funny and adorable. It was a nice change from the brooding YA bad boy. I feel that overall Josie’s and James’ relationship development was a bit fast, but it made sense considering their interactions. Apparently there’s going to be a sequel, which is something I really don’t find necessary as I found the story ended quite conclusively. However I still think it’d be interesting to see how this relationship developed and changed.

Overall I would recommend The Intern for those who look for fun and humorous reads which also have a bit of depth to them.

~Thank you HarperCollins for the review copy~

...more

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Mar 19, 2017 Karina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017-books

Cute and hilarious!! It has a Confessions of a Shopaholic vibe without the super annoying protagonist.

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Jan 10, 2014 Eugenia (Genie In A Book) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2014-release, arc, australian, favourites, life-books

*This review also appears on the blog Chasm of Books*

You can check out my Author Interview with Gabrielle Tozer on the blog too!

Thank you to HarperCollins Australia for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

You can usually tell a book is good if you were so addicted that you finished it in one day. This is exactly what happened with me when I read The Intern. I loved the witty writing style with some great fun moments and the insight the novel offered into what it mi *This review also appears on the blog Chasm of Books*

You can check out my Author Interview with Gabrielle Tozer on the blog too!

Thank you to HarperCollins Australia for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

You can usually tell a book is good if you were so addicted that you finished it in one day. This is exactly what happened with me when I read The Intern. I loved the witty writing style with some great fun moments and the insight the novel offered into what it might be like to work in one of the top women's magazines. Apart from that though, there were some more serious moments, showcasing that this book has some real heart and substance at its centre.

From the very first pages of this book, I could tell that it was going to be a fun read. I wasn't disappointed. Gabrielle Tozer has written a novel that will make you laugh-out-loud and put a cheesy grin on your face. It is definitely reminiscent of 'The Devil Wears Prada', but portrays the story as something more relatable to an Australian audience and something that teens will enjoy. I loved the magazine internship aspect, and it illustrates just how cut-throat the industry can be. As with any job, there are both friendly and mean colleagues, and your boss might be really tough too. Navigating the career world isn't easy, and the author managed to capture that in a fun way.

Apart from this aspect, there were also many sub-plots relating to Josie's family life and her relationship with her best friend Angel. It's good to see that there was more to this story, and all these other things going on in Jolie's life made the book really interesting to read. It is shown that there may be more to a situation that you may at first think. Even at a glossy magazine it's not all fun and games. It was great to see the other side of working in the media industry and the lengths that people working at magazines have to go through to get an issue produced on time that has some top stories.

I also really liked how Josie developed as a character. At the beginning she was a shy, slightly nerdy girl who wasn't totally confident in what she could achieve. As the story progressed however, she gained more life experience and gave the novel its 'coming of age' element. By the end she knew what she wanted, and realised the talent that she had. Even after going through the highs and lows of working in such a stressful environment she never lost her integrity. There was even some romance at the end of the tunnel, and even greater avenues to pursue. Gabrielle Tozer also invested in the other side characters and their perks, such as Josie's sister Kate and her best friend Angela.

*CONCLUSION*

The Intern was fun to read, with laugh-out-loud moments and a different perspective on what it's really like to be an intern at a magazine. I loved this and will be recommending it to my friends! ...more

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Nov 19, 2014 Sam rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: cbca

This book was loads of fun! It kind of reminded me of one of my favourite movies "Suddenly 30", but only because the story is mainly based at a fashion magazine HQ. I could imagine this as a rom-com movie that I could watch over and over again.

I really liked the easy flow of the writing. I was sucked straight into the story from the opening sentence, which is hilarious!

'Melons. The girls. Gazongas. I could rattle off every nickname in the world for my boobs - oops, nearly forgot jubblies - but ...more

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Jul 22, 2015 Natalie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: anyone who likes Devil Wears Prada-esq books

3.5 STARS

REVIEW TO FOLLOW

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Feb 12, 2014 Joy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, contemporary, 2014-goodreads-challenge

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

The Intern follows Josie Browning, a 17-about-to-turn-18 year old who has just landed herself an internship at the coveted fashion magazine, Sash. She’s depicted as a clumsy girl that cannot seem to go a day without embarrassing herself and everyone around her with her supposedly crazy antics that’s isolated her and her best friend Angel from the rest of their grade. Currently in her first year of university, her lecturer has managed to land her a once in a lifetime opportuni Rating: 2.5 out of 5

The Intern follows Josie Browning, a 17-about-to-turn-18 year old who has just landed herself an internship at the coveted fashion magazine, Sash. She’s depicted as a clumsy girl that cannot seem to go a day without embarrassing herself and everyone around her with her supposedly crazy antics that’s isolated her and her best friend Angel from the rest of their grade. Currently in her first year of university, her lecturer has managed to land her a once in a lifetime opportunity at Sash. The novel follows Josie as she navigates around the glitz and glamour of Sash and through her first romance.

Don’t get me wrong, The Intern was definitely a very enjoyable read. I found myself devouring the book on my train trips to and from work. And I can definitely relate to a few of the situations Josie went through. Unfortunately, the book overall was not as wonderful as I’d hoped it to be. As a current media student, I can definitely relate to this whole internship business. The media industry is definitely pretty cut-throat, and it’s all about experience. Which is why reading about Josie landing a coveted position at a famous magazine with close to no actual experience at all was quite a slap in the face. Not to mention that her lecturer helped all her classmates to obtain internships. This didn’t really faze me in the long run, but I still find it hard to believe that being such a good student, Josie was not placed in her first choice of internship. She was made to choose between Sash and Cats Quarterly while her less academically driven classmates were handed the spots she had wanted.

However, I really enjoyed reading about Josie’s time at Sash. It was fun getting a behind the scenes glimpse behind the fashion magazine industry – and everything sounds so glamorous! Just from the scenes, you can tell that the author is definitely an industry insider who’s experienced all the ups and downs of magazine publishing.

But, I didn’t enjoy Josie as a character. A lot of her embarrassing stories were thrown at the reader to make her seem more quirky than she really is. I am glad to see her grow as she experienced the real world, but if I’m honest, every plot point seemed to have been handed to her on a silver platter. While she’s interning, Josie stays with her cousin Tim, who has a hot, smart and nice roommate that Josie falls for. The catch? He has a perfect girlfriend already. Josie whines and pines after him, even though he’s taken (understandable), but what annoyed me was how fast she decided to swoop in as soon as she learns he’s single again. She has no remorse or guilt for indirectly breaking up a couple. I honestly cannot relate to a character that acts like that…because come on Josie, what’s James’ last name?

Her time at Sash seems to go from crap to awesome in one week. On the first day, she’s stuck washing bikinis and the next, she’s filling in for a sick features writer instead of you know…the other paid writers working for the magazine. I know I’m being a harsh reviewer, but it’s because I was expecting more Devil Wears Prada than Ugly Betty. The Intern feels like an incorporation of both. Unfortunately, the characters were not as rounded out as I’d hoped they’d be. There was barely any background information pertaining to any of the characters (why did her dad leave them anyway?), so overall they all felt quite flat.

I know a lot of readers have loved this book, but it’s clearly not for me. That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it though, because I honestly did. It was a fun read, but overall, it didn’t meet my expectations. Do give The Intern a go if you think it’s the right book for you though!

- - - -

  This book review also appears on Thoughts By J! For more reviews, visit my blog.

...more

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Dec 19, 2014 Cassandra Page rated it really liked it

Shelves: australian, reviews, aww2015, young-adult, funny, new-adult, contemporary

The Intern was an enjoyable book by an Aussie writer who you can tell has worked in the fashion magazine industry before -- she had all those little details right. Or at least she was able to fake it. I can't exactly claim to be an expert, as I don't actually read them.

I think it was my lack of interest in fashion and gossip magazines that meant I found the story a little hard to get into at first. But then Josie won me over, with her wonderful, quirky personality. She was nerdy, naive and clums The Intern was an enjoyable book by an Aussie writer who you can tell has worked in the fashion magazine industry before -- she had all those little details right. Or at least she was able to fake it. I can't exactly claim to be an expert, as I don't actually read them.

I think it was my lack of interest in fashion and gossip magazines that meant I found the story a little hard to get into at first. But then Josie won me over, with her wonderful, quirky personality. She was nerdy, naive and clumsy -- but not in a Bella Swan, not-really-clumsy-except-very-rarely kind of way. Josie was really clumsy (as someone with poor vision I can relate to that), and it often got her in trouble. She also had exactly no verbal filter, meaning that the first time she meets a cute boy she tells him all sorts of embarrassing stories, including about how that one time she pooed her pants...

Yeah, I cringed a little too.

Still, I loved her passion for writing and her desire to be a journalist. During the course of the story, she learns that she can actually find stories and write about things she cares about, even if she's working for a "light" magazine like Sash. I really liked that about her -- that she made the best of a less-than-ideal situation. (I guess by then she'd had a lot of practice!)

I loved some of the other characters, including her fellow intern, Steph; sister, Kat; and of course the cute boy in question, James (he was genuinely a nice guy, which is so great to see!). I was less sold on Josie's best friend, Angel -- she seemed to be rather selfish, to be honest, and I don't think she was in the story enough to redeem herself or really win me over. Still, since one of the elements of the story was Josie and Angel (who were high school best friends) struggling to maintain their friendship after graduation, it did fit.

There aren't any really "bad" characters in The Intern, except for a few bit characters who just pass through. Everyone who is looked at in any depth at all is revealed to just be a regular person, with good and bad aspects, including the stereotypical "cold boss", Rae, and the "mean girl" intern, Ava. I kind of liked that, actually; it gave the book more of a happy vibe, when it could've been really catty and enraging.

I felt really awful for Josie's mother, who is struggling after the recent failure of her marriage to the girls' father. I hope that in the sequel we get to see her thrive. (If she reunites with her ex I will throw things through the wall.)

The Intern is a fun read that touches on some serious subjects but still manages to retain its lighter tone. Given Josie's age you could consider it new adult, but it doesn't have any of the traditional new adult subject matter (raunchy sex or drug use) and would be suitable for younger teens. ...more

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Jan 23, 2014 Emily Mead rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary, five-stars

I adore this book. The main character, Josie, is relatable right from the start – her little sister is helping her pick an outfit for the start of an internship the next day, which reminds me of me and MY sister. Josie is awkward and funny and completely clueless about clothes, which just made me love her more. And her mum is just as hilarious. You catch glimpses of her in quotes like this:

Walking out of the toilet cubicle was more embarrassing than the time Mum made Kat and me wear Stackhat bi I adore this book. The main character, Josie, is relatable right from the start – her little sister is helping her pick an outfit for the start of an internship the next day, which reminds me of me and MY sister. Josie is awkward and funny and completely clueless about clothes, which just made me love her more. And her mum is just as hilarious. You catch glimpses of her in quotes like this:

Walking out of the toilet cubicle was more embarrassing than the time Mum made Kat and me wear Stackhat bike helmets in the car after watching a disturbing news item on road fatalities.

It was just so real and funny and honest. Josie reminds me of me, and while it may be narcissistic to enjoy reading about someone similar to me, I enjoyed making comparisons. For instance, when I did work experience last year, I was on the wrong train platform until a minute before my train was due to leave. I ran up the stairs to get to the next platform, dropping one of my shoes on the way. On that same day, I also got off at the wrong bus stop.

The start of the internship doesn’t go well for Josie. She has to do all sorts of menial jobs (I won’t spoil them because they’re hilarious) and meets a few awful people. Her successes and failures along the way are fantastic to read about – in between YA and NA, in my opinion, the story is perfect for older teens and twenty-somethings, as well as the “real adults.”

The Intern has a couple more fantastic quotes that I just have to share:

A Guy Who Brings Me Yummy Food was number six on my ideal-boyfriend wish list, followed closely by A Guy Who Makes Me Laugh Until I Cry Or Snort at number seven.
“Slutty the bush skankeroo”
“I like eating Nutella straight from the jar while watching musicals.”

The first and third ones just make me love Josie even more, while the second one made me laugh out loud.

There’s a bit of romance in this book, too. While it didn’t seem HUGELY important, James and Josie had a great relationship from the start (in that she thought he was a burglar).

I liked the themes of never giving up, and pursuing your dream, and helping your family. It was realistic about the media industry as well as hopeful. Basically, a warm, happy, lovely read, and I’m glad it sits on my bookshelf rather than having to go back to the library.
...more

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Dec 16, 2014 Shanti rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2016, yes, contemporary, made-me-think, write-faster-author, light, fangirl-worthy, book-is-better-than-beautiful-cover, short-and-sweet, lovey-dovey

2017: I reread this because...I don't know why I reread this. I needed it, I guess. It was quick, and it was funny. But it wasn't more than that. A couple of notes:
-the writing simply isn't very sophisticated. that's okay, but it maybe could be polished some more? It's simply adequate.
-the details, e.g. washing bikini's seemed really realistic. You can tell that Tozer has a grounding in real magazine journalism.
-Josie is an endearing heroine. She's also totally naive.
-The Billy debacle and th ...more

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Jan 22, 2014 Sunny (A Sunny Spot) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

4.5 Stars to The Intern by Gabrielle Tozer. It was such a awesome read and before I knew it I was turning the pages like lighting. It was so fun and heart-warming. It was like a breath of fresh air and I enjoyed every moment of it. There were so many times I wanted to hug Josie and I loved that she was so relatable and down to earth. She stayed true to herself and always tried to do what was best. I loved the characters in this book, from James (such a sweetheart) to Tim and Steph. I was really ...more

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Jun 28, 2014 Starseeker rated it liked it · review of another edition

This was such a fun read.
The Intern is one of those books that makes you laugh out loud and cringe with embarrassment because you've experienced the same awkwardness the characters have.
It was full of scandal, drama, romance and the author delivered these elements with hilarity and awesomeness.
The main character was so relatable and the things that happened to her were so funny and unbelievable.
Sure, some of the things in the novel were a bit too unbelievable but honestly, that's what made it s ...more

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Oct 20, 2014 Jess rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book had an interesting and exciting insight to the world of journalism and 'real' city life. I loved every part, especially James and Josie <3 The quick pass over serious issues is also great and inspiring. I hope to one day go where Josie has been (only in the good parts, like James *wink wink*) ...more

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Oct 18, 2018 Kyra Davies rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Loved this 😍

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Jul 09, 2020 Alicia rated it did not like it · review of another edition

A bit of an easy trashy read. Good to get through on a night I couldn’t fall asleep, but somewhat predictable.

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Mar 30, 2017 Cathal Reynolds rated it really liked it

Shelves: aus-authors, read-in-2017

Cute and fun and basically exactly what I felt like reading. I'm a sucker for things about unfashionable people being thrown unceremoniously into the fashion world ...more

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Oct 13, 2014 Kat rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: YA NA and those who want a light hearted coming of age story

Shelves: books-read, books-reviewed, lol-books

**I received a copy of this book from the publisher, HarperCollins Australia in exchange for an honest review**
4.5 Stars

I enjoyed this YA novel, I have read a devil wears Prada, and the book is in a similar vein but its got a much younger feel about it, the main character also reminded me of Josie Geller from 'Never been Kissed' not only having the same first name, but also their similar characteristics, Nerd, no style but underneath the makings of a confident beautiful young woman.

The story st **I received a copy of this book from the publisher, HarperCollins Australia in exchange for an honest review**
4.5 Stars

I enjoyed this YA novel, I have read a devil wears Prada, and the book is in a similar vein but its got a much younger feel about it, the main character also reminded me of Josie Geller from 'Never been Kissed' not only having the same first name, but also their similar characteristics, Nerd, no style but underneath the makings of a confident beautiful young woman.

The story starts on a humerous note and it keeps that vibe all the way through, and you can tell that there is a wealth of past experience used in the book as the Author, Gabrielle Tozer who has worked as a journalist and editor, having written for numerous titles, such as Cosmopolitan, DOLLY, Girlfriend, Bride To Be, TV WEEK, news.com.au and The Canberra Times.

Josie Browning has been an A+ student, shes in Uni and needs to do an internship to pass the course, shes in the top of her class but unfortunately Josie can’t get through twenty-four hours without embarrassing her sister Kat or her best friend Angel, let alone herself. Some of the scenes in the book had me laughing out loud, and some also reminding me of my awkward youth and work experience, and this is what I think for me was a strong point of why I really got into the story (I finished this book at 4.30am this morning - oh boy am I shattered now)

Josie’s internship is at a glossy fashion magazine called Sash. But start of the internship doesn't go well for Josie, as in most internships, there are lots of menial jobs (I don't do spoiler reviews so I won't say what they are) and of course there has to be the usual nasty girls (Fashion and Bitchiness go hand in hand - and YES this is from personal experience - remember me saying I could relate to Josie).

This book will appeal to the YA, NA and the readers like me who can read these with hindsight to how we were at that age. There is a romantic element in the book and I really thought the scene when they met was one of my favourites in the book (Yep I related to that too... having had an embarrassing first encounter with my OH)

I have given this book 4.5 stars, and I will be checking out Gabrielle Tozer's next book as this book was a great light and entertaining read.

...more

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Nov 02, 2014 Readingee rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Honestly, I was really reluctant to read this book with the tag line "If you loved the Devil Wears Prada, you'll dive right into The Intern", I assured myself that I would be reading a carbon copy of The Devil Wears Prada all over again - but I really wasn't. There were a few aspects that were similar, but the twist this novel had was astonishingly beautiful.

I don't know where to start with the book in this review, diving into the world of a magazine I felt would be a really typical experience Honestly, I was really reluctant to read this book with the tag line "If you loved the Devil Wears Prada, you'll dive right into The Intern", I assured myself that I would be reading a carbon copy of The Devil Wears Prada all over again - but I really wasn't. There were a few aspects that were similar, but the twist this novel had was astonishingly beautiful.

I don't know where to start with the book in this review, diving into the world of a magazine I felt would be a really typical experience - perfectly made up girls, busy scenes and having an intimidating boss to work for. Nonetheless, this novel took it to a whole new level, usually the person starting at the bottom would hate the reality of what they do, and quit straight away and a typical novel would've seen the character delve into different careers and still not find something in the end - and then perhaps have a sequel following to see how the character's life moves on. But this is no typical novel, it took me on a journey each time I opened the pages and I honestly struggled to put it down even if I was reading it into the early hours of the morning!

With the announcement of the $5000 prize up for grabs, I thought for sure that Josie would take home the prize and fix everything at home and have a really standard ending, but the fact that she got fired from her internship was really surprising to me, I would've never thought, especially with her close relationship with Liani.

Again, I like the set up of a really typical novel where there is a really cute guy the protagonist practically drools over, but the way their relationship developed was really quite different. I knew for sure they would end up together as soon as he was mentioned. The way the pair began their relationship wasn't cringe worthy at all, it was suitable for the situation and really cute!

I have to say Ava was a really classic character, I mean every book needs their villain, I have to say this particular character really reminded me of Emily from "Devil Wears Prada", the jealous girl, who tries to inflict pain on others to achieve their own personal goals.

I was really, really pleased with the ending, it really tied the novel up nicely and didn't leave any loose ends as such. Gabrielle Tozer, has a really bright future ahead of her, this was a fantastic debut novel! ...more

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Jan 18, 2014 Francoise rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

*I received this for review from Harper Collins AU, in no way does this effect my review*

Review - No Spoilers

To be honest I didn't think I would enjoy this novel as much as I did. I didn't think much when I requested it and I grew wary thinking that it would be yet another review book collecting dust on my bookshelf. But I delved into it straight away and I was hooked from line one! And can I just say, how gorgeous is the cover? It's so different from everything else and it is certainly an eye c ...more

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Aug 14, 2014 Terri rated it really liked it

Shelves: edelweiss

Review also found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.ca/2...

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher HarperCollins via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. The publication date is October 14th 2014.

This was a really entertaining read targeted to the YA audience. I found myself really enjoying it as I read through it and I am not sure if I will be able to express it in my thoughts here.

This was a really cute story about a girl who was trying to find her way in life. A ...more

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About Gabrielle Tozer

Gabrielle Tozer

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Gabrielle Tozer is the award-winning and internationally published author of young adult novels The Intern, Faking It and Remind Me How This Ends. She is a contributor to HarperCollins’ Begin, End, Begin: A #LoveOzYA Anthology, and her debut picture book, Peas and Quiet (illustrated by Sue deGennaro), is out now. Gabrielle's first middle-grade novel Melody Trumpet hits stores in 2019. Based in Syd ...more

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The Intern (2 books)

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Quotes from The Intern

“One troll called me ‘Slutty the bush skankaroo’.” — 2 likes

“Melons. The girls. Gazongas. I could rattle off every nickname in the world for my boobs – oops nearly forgot jubblies – but it didn’t change the fact they were small.” — 1 likes

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