Campaign Ruby

Ruby #1

by Jessica Rudd

Meet Ruby late-twenties, workaholic investment banker, Notting Hill fashionista. But that was yesterday. Today Ruby is retrenched, hungover, £2000 poorer â holding a same-day, non-refundable ticket to Melbourne. Arriving in the middle of a heatwave, she meets the Leader of the Opposition at a party and is drafted to work on his election campaign.

Out of her depth, and dealing with a breakneck schedule, a hot (off-limits) journalist, imminent deportation and a malfunctioning wardrobe, Ruby must do her best to win the election and find love.

'From the first pageâ ¦you know you are in for a fabulous time. It's a roller-coaster, high-heeled adventureâ ¦Extremely enjoyable.' Woman's Day

Genres: Chick Lit, Fiction, Australia, Politics, Humor, Book Club, Romance

336 pages, Paperback

First published August 4, 2010

Reviews

[Project · Rating 3 out of 5]

One has to wonder if this "novel" (it's more an autobiography) would have been published had it been written by someone other than the daughter of the then Prime Minister of Australia.[return]It's not a badly written book. It's just not glimmering with the sort of talent that you seem to need these days to get published. You or i could probably have written something as clever, given the time and the background.[return]And it is the background that makes this novel stand out. You get the occasional glimpses of her observations of her own father, and the processes that brought him to power. Jessica Rudd was, after all, operating in some capacity similar to Ruby in her father's campaign.[return]The text is notable for the knockabout plot structure, the way that Ruby gets all dolled up in the right shoes, the right dress, the right handbag, and then ends up covered in food, or head down in a toilet. It's these moments of lowgrade cringe that seem to be the powerhouse of the narrative: how will Roo mess this up?[return]The fashion fetishes and embarrassments aside, Rudd also tries (and fails, in the eyes of this reader) to inspire us with the powerful rhetoric of her political characters. You can see the place where the powerful rhetoric is supposed to be, could even underline the sentences if you had to, but it just never works.[return]Call me cynical, but politicians who are too good to be true are just, well, too good to be true. If she was trying to apotheosise her father in this novel, it didn't work out for her, or him.[return]There are, however, some well realised characters in here, Clem being foremost among these. And there's a villain to boo, a hero or two to cheer, a moral crisis or three, and plenty of shoe porn.[return]Will Rudd write the follow-up novel, where Roo helps the new government to overcome the hurdles of changing Australia into a place run by people of vision and principle? I'm not sure she has any background to base such an excursion on, so maybe not.

[Sam Still Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

Australians probably would have heard about this book recently as it’s scarily prophetic. Shafted prime minister’s daughter writes a book about an Australian prime minister being ousted from office by his female colleague who then calls a snap election- it all reflects our recent political climate. But is Jessica Rudd cashing in on her father’s name and fate?

No! Even though I am an ardent Kevin Rudd fan (geeks and academics can be prime minister…hope for us all, but that’s another story for another blog) Jessica Rudd has done a wonderful job in producing a truly funny chick lit where politics is anything but boring.

Campaign Ruby centres around Ruby Stanhope, an investment banker who is sacked as part of the credit crunch. She goes home, gets blind drunk and books herself a ticket to Melbourne. (Why Ruby has a Qantas Frequent Flyer number even though she’s never been to Australia is never explained). It’s too expensive to get out of the ticket, so luckily she flies in to a stinking hot summer where she is met by her aunt. By luck, she meets the Leader of the Opposition (leader of political party not in power) and is offered a job on the election campaign. Here Ruby makes the most of her Englishness and lack of knowledge regarding Australian slang, leading to some awkward (and funny) moments. Will the Leader of the Opposition win? Will Ruby realise which of the team has her best interests at heart in time?

Ruby is a very likeable character (even though she has a better knowledge of Australian fashion labels than most Australians) and the supporting cast (particularly the aunts and her niece Clementine) are skillfully written and unique.

Jessica doesn’t have the literary verbosity of her father (phew, I hear most of you say) but she does have an incredible talent for humout- I don’t think I’ve ever giggled my way through a chick lit as much.

It was interesting to read this in the wake of the recent Australian federal election, when we didn’t know what was going to happen in regards to who would form government- I was hoping that Jessica would predict the result!

[Susan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not my kind of thing. I should have known, when any politician starts talking my brain shuts off. Didn't like the British/Australian cross over... I felt the character Ruby was written like she was trying way too hard to be British and the Australian characters were way too Aussie. Don't want to be offensive to anyone and this is meant to be a light hearted jab but I think Jessica is very much like her father... His australianisms are out dated and over the top and don't suit him. "Fair shake of the sauce bottle" I gave up fairly early on cause I have a big pile of books I want to read. Don't take too much notice of my review if you liked this book. Each to their own.. I'm sure some of the books I've liked you world find appaling!

[Jet Silver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable romp of a read. I've been a political junkie in a past life, so a got a lot of giggles out of Ruby's campaign trail shenanigans.

Ruby Stanhope is likable, sympathetic and horrifying in the same vein as Bridget Jones - a walking disaster whose competence and courage carry her through her frequent bouts of impulse and embarrassment.

The cast of characters were great fun; from Ruby's aunts the foul-mouthed lawyer and the elegant baker to Oscar the morally bankrupt but hot journalist.

I enjoyed the book a great deal, though it was predictable and contrived in places.

[Annelise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting take, putting the behind the scenes stuff of a political campaign into chick-lit but the book was so full of cliches and stereotypes. An accident-prone heroine, the designer label name-dropping, the manic/insane obsession with shoes, the good guy and the bad boy, etc. As for impressing the difference between British English and Australian English, enough already, stop trying so hard.

Also, I find it incredibly hard to swallow that an English investment banker could swan into a role as an advisor for an Australian political party, despite stating several times she had no idea about any of it.

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was disappointing. I am a big fan of chick lit, and there was a lot of hype around this. The story line was OK, but I thought I was re-reading a Sophie Kinsella with Australian overtones. I found much of the prose grating, too many "Australianisms" which were out dated or highly unlikely to have been used. Apart from the fact the the main character didn't really do or say anything spectacular to justify getting the job, or getting high praise. Sorry, won't be rushing out for the second.

[CJ | A Well-Read Tart · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't really have much of an idea of what this book was about when I started reading it, and it completely surprised and delighted me with how enchanting it is. I normally stay away from anything regarding politics, so when I found out that the main character, on a whim, joins an Australian political campaign, I was tempted to stop reading; I'm so glad I continued. This book is exceptionally witty, funny, interesting, and sweet. While the politics pervade every moment after the character lands in Australia, the author easily balances the strong politics with the equally strong charm, personality, and adventure brought in by Ruby and the other characters. And, admittedly, it was pretty cool to learn more about what goes on behind the scenes during a campaign, as well as the Australian government and all the different areas of the country (since all I pretty much know about Australia is from watching Finding Nemo and Crocodile Dundee). Plus, Ruby is just fantastic -- she's a bit of the strong, capable, female protagonist from any late-90s/early 200os Jane Green novel mixed with just the right amount of mishap-prone Becky Bloomwood from the Shopaholic series. Her wry sense of humor keeps the book moving. Sure, there are obvious disconnects (how does a financial banker just walk into a major political campaign? how does she get a job on vacation in another country?). But, unlike other similarly-told stories, the author actually addresses the absurdity of such scenarios and pokes fun at the more contrived elements of the plotline. Overall, if you'll pardon the pun, Campaign Ruby is the dark horse for one of my favorite books this year -- and it definitely wins the election for most delightful surprise in the "Let's Randomly Pick Up A Book To Read" category!

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

'Campaign Ruby' by Jessica Rudd is okay if you suspend disbelief. A young girl is made redundant from her London job of investment banker and in a drunken stupor books a flight to Australia. A day or so later and she is asked to join the the Leader of the Opposition's campaign to be elected as the next Prime Minister of Australia (after the current PM has been knifed in the back and Australia has a new woman PM). As I said, suspend disbelief, although the plot has some very scary similarities with real life!!!! . It's written by the daughter of a former prime minister so I guess there's a bit of inside information here. The writing seemed to be a bit too forced for me. I am not a fan of situations that are supposed to be 'screwball comedy', and there were many such instances in this book as Ruby muddles through.

[Clare B · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars; a funny, light holiday read. Some of the secondary characters were the highlight (especially Clementine!). The overall premise was a bit far-fetched, but nonetheless it was a fun and interesting insight into the thrills and spills of a campaign trail!

[Karyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

could not put this book down. very different view of a spill and what it means to the global stage. lots of smiles and laughter.

[Nicola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice romp....

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting to like this (figured it just got published because of who the author's father is) but found myself smiling as I was reading.

[Karen Trenorden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok it was a little bit formulaic and cliched but I enjoyed it. Romance, wine and a likeable heroine are always appreciated 😉

[Lauren Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a fun read. I'm a huge politics fan and I loved Ruby.

[Joanne Drinnan · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a great book, I laughed, and cringed for Ruby, as she navigated Australian idiosyncrasies with aplomb!

[Bree T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ruby is an investment banker in London. When she gets an email from HR during the latest round of ‘corporate restructuring’ that advises her that her position has been made redundant and can she please return all work items on her way out thank you, she doesn’t take the news lying down. She types out a return email that goes viral in hours, goes home and gets tanked on a couple of bottles of the finest Australian pinot noir.

When she wakes up the next morning, Ruby discovers that she’s managed to book herself a trip to Australia that’s going to cost her an arm and a leg to get out of. Luckily her aunt happens to live in Victoria, Australia so that’s some accommodation sorted. Her aunt Daphne and her aunt’s live in partner Debs beg off a local event at a nearby winery and send Ruby in their place. There she meets Luke, terrible taste in suits and ties and Chief of Staff to the Leader of the Opposition. Despite assuming that Luke and the Leader were at first, gay lovers, Ruby manages to score herself a job working for the LOO (Leader of the Opposition) as a spill topples the current Prime Minister and an election is called. Ruby finds herself travelling the length and breadth of Australia in mere days on a publicity trail, working her butt off to get the public to vote for the LOO.

Despite knowing nothing about politics, particularly the Australian variety, Ruby is thrust in at the deep end, fulfilling a number of roles. It’s all about votes and candidates and making their party seem like the strongest option available in a myriad of airports, hotels, publicity events, interviews and scandals. And then there’s that ridiculously good-looking political journalist who’s appearing everywhere with his charisma….

Despite falling into this job with no experience whatsoever and decidedly not looking for work, Ruby discovers that she loves the frantic pace and variety of challenges that working in high level politics brings. She never knows what she will be doing from one day to the next it could be meeting with ill kids or visiting a local member with a blog about alien sightings.

And then Ruby and the rest of their team have done all they can – it’s election day and out of their hands now.

There’s something really special about a book that can make you forget yourself and laugh out loud. Not just a little snort, but a full on proper laugh. And Campaign Ruby was that sort of book for me. Ruby is hilarious, from the time the novel opens and she’s reading the email that is basically telling her thanks very much, but you’re fired now. There are so many moments in this book that had me in hysterics on the couch.

Jessica Rudd clearly knows her politics (and she would, given she’s the daughter of Kevin Rudd – a former Opposition Leader, a former Australian Prime Minister and the current Minister for Foreign Affairs). And although the whole novel revolves around politics, given Ruby slots into her new role working for the Leader of the Opposition very early on in the book, Rudd somehow manages to make it both enjoyable and fascinating as well as humorous and warm. Politics is a subject often lauded as boring (I have a degree in political studies and international relations so I don’t always agree, but I can see why people think that) but by making politics merely the way in which Ruby gets a job and continues well, being Ruby, a lot of the tediousness is removed. We get to see mostly the interesting side, with exhaustive publicity tours, tricky interviews and awkward situations with local members of parliament and given Ruby is English she knows almost nothing about Australian politics herself, so we’re not treated to any long-winded internal dialogues on the rights and wrongs of the system or the intricacies of it. It’s the perfect use of less is more.

The characters are the really strong point in this novel – Ruby is funny and likable and despite a love of high fashion, very down to Earth and not afraid to jump in feet first and get dirty. The cast of supporting characters are just as well done, ranging from Ruby’s highly precocious niece (Clementine Genevieve Gardner-Stanhope) to the various colourful characters taking part in the campaign to the lovely Luke with the disastrous fashion sense. Even the LOO himself is more than just a cardboard cutout with a lovely wife and typically bored and embarrassed-by-her-dad teenage daughter.

If I had to describe Campaign Ruby in one word it would be fun. One of those books that you snatch up, settle down somewhere and let a couple hours pass in a blur of laughter. I read this from my local library but it’s pretty cheap for Kindle so I’m buying it in order to have my own copy. I love books that I can see myself re-reading in the future and I think this is definitely one of these.

[Fiona Caldarevic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been wanting to read this for a couple of years and *finally* got hold of a copy, only to devour it in all of two days.

Ruby lost her banking job in London, drunkenly booked herself on a flight to Australia, found herself at a cocktail do which turned out to be a political party fundraiser, and she impressed all the right people to land herself a role in the party's election campaign.

Forgetting that this was written by the daughter of the prime minister, who managed to write about the female treasurer ousting the prime minister in a leadership spill, thus becoming the first female prime minister of Australia.... all this she might have written BEFORE it actually happened in reality (happened in June 2010, book got published August 2010.. )... ok so forgetting this book is written by Ms Rudd daughter of Kevin, it really was a quite up-to-standard chick-lit and thoroughly enjoyable. I've read much much worse.

The only thing that grated on me was Ruby's clumsiness, which too many chick-lit protagonists seem to have as a "quirky" character trait (Bridget Jones being the most famous). But her love of shoes, good wine and to-do lists were endearing nonetheless.

I really loved the whole scene of the election campaign. I loved the madness of it all, of hopping on planes going from one random location to another every day, of combatting bad-news stories and thinking of election-spin for anything that goes wrong, of those 4am tele-conferences and grabbing meals on the go (burgers and nuggets at Macca's, hilarious!), all with a massive election-day deadline and trying to win the country's vote, much less trying to keep up with personal dilemmas (mostly not being in the same place as her clothes) and family issues. How Ruby managed to recover from her rhinosinusitis with hardly any sleep I'll never know. And on top of that Ruby's a Pom in Australia and in need of translation most of the time (the Australian-isms were probably a little *too* strong I think).

(Does the Leader of the Opposition really get called the "LOO"??)

My favourite secondary character was little Clem, Ruby's niece, though I've never met a five-year-old so interested in other people. The dialogue where Ruby was explaining to Clem that she "tripped and fell over a journalist" was bloody funny.

Oh yeah, speaking of which, there IS romance, kinda the whole point in chick-lit novels. How she fit it into her hectic hectic life I don't know. But it works.

So.. I loved the book, not sure I want to read the next one as this one's enough. Thank you Ms Rudd.

[Jennifer (JC-S) · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘Before I lost my job, got pickled on peanut noise, switched hemispheres ..’

‘.. and joined this travelling circus my life was a relatively straightforward one.’

Ruby Stanhope, 28 year old English investment banker, is fired by eMail. Using the same medium to respond, Ruby protests about her treatment in an eMail addressed to the bank’s board.

The next day, Ruby awakens with a hangover to discover that not only has her impromptu reply to the board gone viral and been published on both facebook and in the Financial Times, she has also managed to book a non-refundable same-day ticket to Melbourne, Australia. Ruby plans to stay with her Aunt in the Yarra Valley (she has time for a holiday now that she is unemployed), but things just don’t work out that way.

Ruby attends a fund-raiser at a local winery and receives an unexpected job offer as the financial policy adviser to the federal Leader of the Opposition (LOO), Max Masters. Ruby heads off to Melbourne the next morning to have coffee with the LOO’s Chief of Staff – and finds herself in the middle of Deputy Prime Minister Gabrielle Brennan’s overthrow of the Prime Minister, and the announcement of an early election.

Ruby, nicknamed ‘Roo’ by her colleagues, is thrown into the campaign and spends the next four weeks travelling around Australia discovering the realities of both the 24 hour news cycle and the gruelling campaign trail. Ruby is nothing if not resilient and she manages to negotiate wardrobe malfunctions, media mishaps and possible deportation.

Those familiar with Australian politics earlier this year will recognise an uncanny resemblance between fact (Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is Jessica’s father) and fiction. And, I must confess, it was this connection that initially prompted me to read the novel. But once I started reading, it was Ruby’s story that engaged and amused me. The novel contains some delightful laugh out loud moments, and a realistic peek into the world of political campaigning. Ruby herself is likeable, has an obsession with making lists and has a passion for shoes (and good wine) that many women will relate to.

A good, fun ‘chick lit’ read.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think like a lot of people I was prompted to read Campaign Ruby given it was written by the former Prime Minister's daughter and spookily foreshadowed his downfall and the subsequent appointment of Australia's first female Prime Minister. This for me, I'm sorry to say, was the only thing that really interested me in the book.

Although I loved the opening chapter in which English shoe-lover and investment banker Ruby is notified by her redundancy via email and so responds with a terrific reply that quickly goes viral, I found it a struggle to get through the rest of the book. Perhaps I just really don't like chick-lit and perhaps I'm really just not that interested in politics but there were some things that annoyed me throughout the book.

While I do love a locally-set story I found the Australian voices a bit too cliched... Everyone adresses each other as 'mate', even women who don't know each other in formal settings which seemed strange to me. Also kind of predictable references to Minties, Fantales and Anzac biscuits...

I also couldn't quite understand how on practically the same day Ruby arrives in Melbourne she is suddenly welcomed into the inter sanctum of the opposition leader's staff as a policy advisor without a working Visa, any experience in politics or even knowing who the Australian Prime Minister is (or was). Given Campaign Ruby provides such a great glimpse into what goes on behind-the-scenes during an election campaign I was distracted by constantly wondering whether such responsabilities would really be given to someone with no political experience who hadn't even handed over a CV!

That said I really liked Jessica Rudd's writing style. She doesn't bog down the story with details or by outlining intineraries and so we jump from city to city before we know it and the narrative races along nicely reflecting the frantic pace on the campaign trail.

So although I didn't enjoy this one quite so much I'm intested to see what Jessica Rudd writes in the future.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is written by a young Australian author who also happens to be the daughter of our previous Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. It was probably quite controversial when this book was published at the height of the political fireworks we were faced with all across Australia when our Parliament shifted with Kevin Rudd going out and our first female Prime Minister going in.

Above all when reading this book I found it was important to see Jessica the author as her own person and writer and not a parliamentarian's daughter. She really does stand out on her own with her writing skills and I found her to be very talented, engaging and above all funny!

Campaign Ruby was like a Bridget Jones story meets politics with the story beginning in England with the main character Roo being fired from her job at a bank, so she puts herself on a plane to Australia and somehow ends up on a political trail travelling around Australia.

This book was funny the whole way through and whilst I know nothing about politics or have any interest in it, this book had me curious as to the way that politics and journalism works and I found it really interesting. Reading about a topic you know nothing about can be boring but I wasn't bored in the least because the writing style, humour and characters kept me engaged the whole way through.

I really liked Roo and the other characters in the story and I liked the references to the Australian towns visited and the Aussie slang used here and there.

I would recommend this book to Bridget Jones fans, anyone with an interest in the light side of politics, or anyone that likes chick lit humour!

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

You don’t have to be an election tragic to enjoy Jessica Rudd’s new book. It may be set in the drama of elections in Canberra, but it’s chick lit. Chick-lit for career women; for those with an interest in current affairs; and for anyone interested in what goes on behind the scenes, behind the 10-second news grab and behind the polished performances we see in the media. As the blurb tells us, it’s Bridget Jones on the campaign trail, and it’s as funny as Bridget Jones’s Diary is said to be.

I haven’t read Helen Fielding’s book, but I saw the hilarious film starring Renée Zellweger instead. Campaign Ruby is actually the first chick-lit I’ve ever read – and will probably be the last - but I enjoyed it. It is so well-written that it manages to transcend the silliness of the genre to become an entertaining insight into modern politics in Australia.

To read the rest of my review, please visit http://anzlitlovers.wordpress.com/201...

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced, the novel covers a political campaign. The obstacles/issues come one after another, which luckily stopped me from questioning some of the premises too much (like: who would employ someone for an important campaign role with no checking, and a foreigner at that?). Our main character nails most aspects of her new job, but messes up lesser things. This is to provide humour and so she doesn't seem too perfect, so she's "relateable". As a fan of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, I feel it's been done before.
I don't relate to the fascination with name brand shoes which seems to be in so much chic lit. The worked in explanations of Australian words were probably necessary to sell the books in other countries, but it was a little irritating.
Is the message that capable women need to show their weaknesses to get their man?
A quick read, I got thru it in 24 hours.
Light but enjoyable read from someone who's been close to campaigns.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

This debut novel by former PM Kevin Rudd's daughter wasn't bad, really, although was certainly slightly creepy at how much of the 2010 spill made it in here. I don't know why she made Ruby English - her Englishness was quite annoying, actually, and all the Australians were so painfully ocker. There was an excessive use of the word "mate" by characters who didn't seem the type to use it. What was interesting was its political ambiguity; you get the sense that Ruby is working for ersatz Labor but can never quite be certain. There are also a few good digs at current immigration policy and gay marriage. In the end, I couldn't help but constantly compare it to Sammy's Hill and Sammy's House by Kirstin Gore - Al's daughter and former Futurama writer - and I'm afraid that those books are such jolly good fun (and actually deal with real policy issues) that this just doesn't measure up.

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm usually first to put my hand up and declare my nil interest in politics so when I found myself wanting to pick up Campaign Ruby I thought I was unwell. I soon realised that I was happy to take the risk for Australian chick-lit, a genre I hadn't explored since reading Gemma Crisp's Be Careful What You Wish For (to a poor review). I was so curious about how well a former PM's daughter could write. Oh em gee. Jessica Rudd is hilarious. I'll admit I found the most part of the plot a bit painful and dull (because politicians), but there were moments where her wit and humour completely out shone that. Although it will never be a book I'll rave about, I'm keen to pick up the sequel.

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Felt really run-of-the-mill. It's competently written but most of the plot threads don't offer any real surprises or excitement. If you're into Australian federal politics it's worth a read as there are characters which are very clearly written as parallels of major political figures (most notably, Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard), and the election campaign alluded to in the title plays out intriguingly like an alternate history, but the politics are really just a background to an unconvincing romance plot. For a book that's only about 300 pages there are a lot of characters that have an impact on the plot, and unfortunately they don't have much depth to them, love interests included. It's not an unpleasant read, just not particularly memorable.

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jessica Rudd's debut novel is somewhat lightweight chick lit set against the backdrop of Australian politics. I identified with the sense of humour injected into Ruby and the other characters. Whilst it was an easy read, I found it to be charming and enjoyable fun.

I did, however, have done qualms with the book. I felt that Ruby was too ditsy; I kept waiting for her to come good, but there weren't enough moments where she used her brain rather than her Louboutins to get out of a fix. Also, I felt like the Australian-ness was overwrought and a bit cliched and obvious.

All in all, I had a great time reading this book and started hoeing into the sequel straight after finishing it. Here's hoping to a follow-up that builds on the potential on display in the first book.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of Ruby who loses her job, uses her email to make her feelings about this known and via a large amount of wine ends up with a ticket to Australia.

You can tell Jessica Rudd is from a family involved with politics as the details about the campaign are realistic although you do have get past the part which has a political party employing someone without checking out their background.

This book doesn't pretend to be anything other then Chick Lit and in this regard it is a good read. The characters are well written and there are a large amount of laughs along the way.

This is a good first novel from Jessica Rudd and I look forward to reading her next book.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Look, I didn't hate it. I knew exactly what I was getting in for when I bought this novel for 50c at an op shop. It served its purpose well- and is now a bit worse for wear with sand in the spine and chlorinated water stains on its pages.
If I'd paid RRP for it, I'd use this space to warn future readers that this novel reads a lot like fan fiction- the type of too-good-to-be-true, straight from the material fantasies and minimal life experiences of the author type novel that is frustratingly lacking in a decent thorough fact-checking.
Take it on face value and you get an easy, quick holiday read that won't weigh you down with any deep questions or content.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. I admit I picked up this book because of who Jessica Rudd but when I actually started reading I was instantly addicted to it. From the first chapter I just couldn't put the book down.

It was well written and you could quite easily feel the emotions that the main characters are going through. Also the political side of the story gives an interesting look into the Australian political scene.

My favourite part was Ruby's response to her termination. Loved it, dealt with beautifully I think.

[ChingyPingy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most chick lit focuses on romance first - career is a distant second, if it features at all. This book bucked that trend, instead focusing on the protagonist's high powered job working on a hard fought prime ministerial campaign in Australia.

On the whole really enjoyable! The constant references to fashion labels were mildly irritating, but the story was gripping and the intricacies of the relationships between politicians, the media and the voting public were fascinating. Very nearly a 4 star book, definitely a 3.5 star!