Oh! You Pretty Things by Shanna Mahin: Review.

Oh! You Pretty Things

This was the latest review copy to land on the editorial desk at JAQUO HQ and I’m so glad it did.

It’s very funny, it moves along at a hare-brained pace and you’ll love the quirky characters as they stumble through the strange world of Hollywood in present day.

But this is not all glamour and ‘swimming pools, movie stars’ – this is the reality of a third generation Hollywood woman, Jess, who is divorced, employed in a coffee shop and has the most bizarre and wonderful people in her life.

Unlike most people in Hollywood, Jess is not  glamorous girl who wants to make it into movies. She’s a real down-to-earth person who eats ice-cream in her scruffy bed, can’t afford a car (she rides a bike), likes to drink, doesn’t know where she’s headed in life but has a weird wit and zany acquaintances.

Jess isn’t skinny, beautiful and glamorous, but her roommate Megan is. She’s a moderately successful soap actress. You’ll also meet:

• Scout. A big girl – something of a post-punk – who hangs around with bikers and heavy metal bands
• Donna. Jess’ glamorous and elusive mother who irritates the hell out of her but keeps reappearing in her life
• Eva. She really has made it in Hollywood and Jess ends up working as her personal assistant

Working as a personal assistant to a movie star isn’t as glamorous as you might think. It involves Jess retrieving Eva’s car from obscure restaurants when she’s been too drunk to drive home after a date, sourcing exclusively weird foodstuffs, dealing with obsessed soap fans, making protein shakes and explaining to the dry cleaners that the curious stains on the $2000 bedsheets are a mix of menstrual blood and designer chocolate ice cream.

When Eva is considering a vaginal reconstruction (hey, this is Hollywood) Jess has to go to see the plastic surgeon as the ‘stunt vagina’ to see if he and his staff are above revealing all to the press.

This book is a witty, enjoyable saga of female bonding, curious characters and creepy stories. In a way, it’s  gossipy Jacqueline Suzanne brought completely up to date but with a huge injection of humour and down to earth fun.

The book was released on April 14th, 2015. Order Oh! You Pretty Things today.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jackie Jackson, also known online as BritFlorida, is a highly experienced designer and writer. British born and now living in the USA, she specialises in lifestyle issues, design and quirky stories. You can see a wide range of articles here, or visit her website Tastes Magazine. See The Writer’s Door for more information.