The First Assistant by Clare Naylor and Mimi Hare Pan, HK$96 The joy of chick-lit comes to the fore when you read a book like The First Assistant. This sequel to The Second Assistant stuffs parcels of romance, friendship, gender rivalry and career qualms into a large shopping bag procured from Hollywood. Which means it also offers glamour, movie-star removal from reality and delightful airhead asides. Lizzie Miller is our LA-style Bridget Jones who's promoted from La La Land's bottom-feeder rung to that of first assistant. She wants to climb the career ladder on her own, but is thwarted by the scheming new second assistant, Amber, who's naturally a Brit and snotty to boot. On the love front, Lizzie has been dating producer Luke Lloyd for a year, although she still baulks at using his credit card to keep up with her 'friends' in style. She's also facing competition from actress Emanuelle Saix, Luke's ex, who's still in love with him. Co-written by Clare Naylor and Mimi Hare, who was director of development on Jerry Maguire and As Good as It Gets, the novel has an authenticity that adds weight to the unabashed fluffiness. And unlike many other volumes in the genre, the writing is solid, satirical and fun.
