Girl before a mirror

My first disappointment by the usually very reliable Liza Palmer. Too much telling, not enough showing. I get it, Anna didn't feel loved by her parents, but at times the book felt more like a self-help tome and less like a novel. I enjoyed the plot about Anna's job at an advertising agency, and her adventures at a Rom-Con as she tries to land a major account. But the plot just stopped dead in its tracks too often for Anna to go into her head and come out of it with an inspirational “women can do anything” and “you have to love yourself before you can love someone else” bon mot.

Speaking of which, the love story was weak as well. Lincoln was 100% perfect, except for alleged commitment issues, which we never saw in action (more telling, not showing). He seemed like a walking cliche of a romance novel hero (which Palmer very nicely skewers through the varying personalities of the male romance novel cover models who are vying for first prize at the Rom-Con).

On the positive side, loved Anna's competence at her job, the growing friendship with her young assistant Sasha, the male models, and the attempt to portray romance novels in a very positive light.