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    Girl Before a Mirror: A Novel
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    Girl Before a Mirror: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Girl Before a Mirror: A Novel
    Ebook385 pages5 hours

    Girl Before a Mirror: A Novel

    By Liza Palmer

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    The author of Conversations with a Fat Girl—optioned for HBO—returns with the hilarious and heartfelt story of a woman who must learn how to be the heroine of her own life—a journey that will teach her priceless lessons about love, friendship, family, work, and her own heart.

    An account executive in a Mad Men world, Anna Wyatt is at a crossroads. Recently divorced, she’s done a lot of emotional housecleaning, including a self-imposed dating sabbatical. But now that she’s turned forty, she’s struggling to figure out what her life needs. Brainstorming to win over an important new client, she discovers a self-help book—Be the Heroine, Find Your Hero—that offers her unexpected insights and leads her to a most unlikely place: a romance writers’ conference. If she can sign the Romance Cover Model of the Year Pageant winner for her campaign—and meet the author who has inspired her to take control of her life—she’ll win the account.

    For Anna, taking control means taking chances, including getting to know Sasha, her pretty young colleague on the project, and indulging in a steamy elevator ride with Lincoln Mallory, a dashing financial consultant she meets in the hotel. When the conference ends, Anna and Lincoln must decide if their intense connection is strong enough to survive outside the romantic fantasy they’ve created. Yet Lincoln is only one of Anna’s dilemmas. Now that her campaign is off the ground, others in the office want to steal her success, and her alcoholic brother, Ferdie, is spiraling out of control.

    To have the life she wants—to be happy without guilt, to be accepted for herself, to love and to be loved, to just be—she has to put herself first, accept her imperfections, embrace her passions, and finally be the heroine of her own story.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateJan 27, 2015
    ISBN9780062297259
    Unavailable
    Girl Before a Mirror: A Novel
    Author

    Liza Palmer

    Liza Palmer is the internationally bestselling author of Conversations with the Fat Girl, Seeing Me Naked, A Field Guide to Burying Your Parents, More Like Her, and Nowhere but Home. An Emmy-nominated writer, she lives in Los Angeles, and is hard at work on her next novel and several film and television projects.

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    Reviews for Girl Before a Mirror

    3.5/5

    27 ratings13 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Sometimes, the universe sends messages in strange & mysterious ways. I seem to get quite a few messages via books that are thrust into my TBR pile in not so normal ways. This book, for example, looks like your basic 'chick lit' book, and to be completely honest, it IS chick lit. But after reading this book, I think a few things have been pulled into focus for me and I believe that almost every woman who reads this book will also take something very valuable away with her. Now, what that valuable lesson might be...it's gonna be different for each woman who reads it. The story itself really doesn't get going until the main character (Anna Wyatt) gets to Phoenix and her time there, at a romance novel convention, is incredibly cathartic. Her story resonated deeply with me and I'm pretty sure that every other woman will be able to relate to some part of Anna. Now, there is definitely a lot of 'suspension of disbelief' that has to occur here but remember, this is FICTION so many of the things that happen, while I can't see them actually happening that way in real life, are at least not so far out of the realm of possibility as to make them laughable. Plus, it's always nice to think, well maybe that could happen...right? Anyway, this being my first foray into a Liza Palmer world, I can only say that I absolutely adored this book and I'm looking forward to checking out her other novels - just to see if this was a 'one night stand' kinda thing for me or if the universe has more to say to me by way of this amazing (new-to-me) author!I received this book from the publisher and the Early Reviewers Program on Library Thing. No compensation for my review was given.
    • 5/5
      Girl Before a Mirror, by Liza Palmer, is funny, witty and sensitive- all at the same time. Anna Wyatt, an advertising executive, finds herself immersed in the world of romance novels and the men who grace their covers. At the same time she struggles with family issues and with trying to find the life she wants for herself. The author has crafted a memorable story with a great cast of characters. This novel is an absolute pleasure to read!!! Highly recommended.I received this book for free through LibraryThing and the opinions expressed are my own.
    • 4/5
      won this book awhile back on another site, but cant seem to post a review there! so I will do it here. I really loved this book! it made me laugh and cry. it was something different from what I normally read. its about stepping out of your comfort zone. don't want to give away the plot, but I think it is a must read!
    • 4/5
      I really liked this book. The title intrigued me and the plot was well structured and played out. Ann Wyatt, a young woman, comes to a place in her life where she must make a decision for fit into her Mad Men advertising world, or venture out on her own in a new direction to learn who she really wants to be.
    • 4/5
      You'd think in this day and age that women and their contributions would no longer be undervalued. But this is not the case. Just look at the Sony leak that disclosed salary gaps between female and male executives, female and male actors. Closer to home (for me), look at the imbalance in publishing. Jonathan Franzen accused Jennifer Weiner of "freeloading on the legitimate problem of gender bias." Even in female targeted publications and sites, Franzen is always characterized as a serious, literary novelist while Weiner is inevitably described as a popular (read lesser and certainly not to be taken seriously) novelist who writes chick lit in this ongoing exchange. Look at the demeaning obituary for Colleen McCullough as compared to any recently deceased male authors. Look at the numbers collected by VIDA Count every year about the gender imbalance of reviews in major literary publications. This undervaluing still happens and it happens across the board, not just in the industries currently in the news. Liza Palmer's newest novel, Girl Before a Mirror not only tackles this reality but it does it ironically enough, in a book with the girliest of covers and from firmly within the chick lit/women's fiction category, perhaps in hopes of inspiring its very audience to recognize and rise above the marginalization and to force change. Anna Wyatt is 40, divorced, and works in advertising. Leaving her birthday party, she heads over the a strip club to ambush her boss into letting her make a pitch for a shower gel. Lumineux shower gel was the product that originally launched Quincy Pharmaceuticals and Anna sees winning the bid for it as her shoe in the door to the rest of Quincy, an account her current company does not own. What her boss doesn't know is that Lumineux is not asking for pitches, that Anna has just brazened her way into a meeting. But it works and she just might win the campaign, which she and her art director, Sasha, have created around a best-selling book and the romance industry. Before the people in charge make a final decision though, they want Anna and Sasha to attend RomanceCon to help get the Romance Cover Model of the Year on board with Anna and Sasha's vision. It is while Anna is at the convention that she realizes the true value and power of women and what they want. She has to deal with Sasha's insecurity because although amazingly talented and intelligent, Sasha is gorgeous and has no confidence in anything but her universally acknowledged sex appeal. Anna's younger brother Ferdie, the only person to show her unconditional love, is arrested at home and she is too far away to bail him out. Audrey, the daughter of the ad agency's boss, is all of a sudden horning in on a campaign she hasn't designed and doesn't know, stepping on Anna and Sasha in the process. Anna has met the most incredible man ever and can't think what's going to happen when she heads home. And all of this swirls around as Anna tries to land the biggest, most important account of her life. RomanceCon is just about the most confusing week ever for Anna. Palmer has taken the bones of a traditional chick lit and used them to full advantage to write a story that really celebrates women. Anna as a character comes to understand that her dismissal of a women's product because it is seen as less than hurts her, devalues her own strengths, and has larger repercussions for all women. Palmer has more than one type of business woman present in the novel, the kind who will step on others in order to advance and the kind who appreciates the idea of mentoring other women to empower an entire gender, and it is always clear which is the type to which successful women should aspire. Lincoln Mallory, Anna's love interest is perhaps a bit too perfect and understanding but the idea that Anna must focus on finding her own happiness without regard to Lincoln, helps ease this unrealistic characterization some. The additional story lines of Ferdie's addiction, Anna's childhood striving for love she was never granted, and the look into the world of romance novels and their fans combine to round out Anna's life, making her realistic and sympathetic. An enjoyable book about a woman finding love for herself, and finding the strength and confidence to realize her own self-worth, this was incredibly topical and I hope it inspires other women to stop worrying about marginalization but to make the formerly marginalized products, books, and so forth a force to be reckoned with.
    • 4/5
      I've read three of Liza Palmer's previous books and loved them all, especially her characters. I was eager to see what her latest book, Girl Before a Mirror, would be about and who the protagonist would be!Anna Wyatt is has just turned forty years old. She's fairly successful in her career, but not so lucky in love. After a year's self imposed celibacy, she's hopeful and ready to dip her toes in the pool. An opportunity out of left field offers her the chance to succeed professionally - and presents the most unexpected opportunity for a romantic encounter - at a romance writer's convention.I loved Anna. Palmer had me sold when Anna used "Marpling' as a verb in the first few pages."If people don't perceive you as a threat, how will they see you coming? They won't."I liked that she was an older character. The supporting cast of characters is just as engaging - and you're either going to like them - or not. There's no doubt as to who the 'villains' in the book are. The reader can't help but become involved in the story and the outcome.Those looking for a chick lit novel will find a bit more in Girl Before a Mirror. The romance is there, we have a plucky heroine, a great sidekick and there are many comedic moments. The romance writer's convention is priceless - from the cover models to the theme nights and some of the better lines from one of the books....But Palmer's plots always include a more serious note. Anna's search for her own strength, direction and desires was really well written."Somewhere along the line - I stopped believing I was the hero of my own story. Or that my story was worthy of a hero at all. I settled because that's all I thought I deserved."Family relations and addiction also figure into the story. Palmer does a really great job of marrying light and serious into an easy read that was a pleasure from start to finish.
    • 3/5
      Not a fan of romance novels, but once the cute meet is done, and the spokesperson for the shower gel is selected, Anna's dealings with her boss and his children, who are also trying to get noticed by their father, makes it a bit more interesting. Faced with forever pitching 'girl products'. Anna feels her talent isn't appreciated by the ad agency or anyone else. As the book progresses, she learns much about the reasons why she holds everyone at a distance and doesn't stand up for herself. Even her brother finds out why he sabotages everything in is life and almost kills himself in the process.I liked the writing, but almost gave up during the RomCom convention portion of the book. Will try some of her other books now.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. It has just the right mix of humor and reality to make it exactly like something that could happen in real life. The juxtaposition of the RomanceCon convention with the life of Anna is perfect. For anyone over 40 who has questioned their life and where it is going, this book is exactly what you need. Ms. Palmer does a great job of describing things in such a way that not only can you envision what she is seeing, you can laugh about how accurate the description really is. I would definitely recommend this book.
    • 5/5
      I have loved Liza Palmer's work since her first book. Her writing is incredibly real and speaks to the heart of being a human in our messy, confusing, emotional world. Too much "chick lit" portrays women in unattainable ways- too perfect, too fairy tale-ish, too much a caricature instead of someone to relate to. Palmer continues to focus on who a woman is, not what she looks like. Anna works for an ad agency and she is working according to plan- work her way up, make partner, maybe find love again. She married the "right" guy, but that didn't make for love, unfortunately. She takes a risk- pitches an ad campaign to a company that isn't looking for it for one of their oldest products, Lumineux shower gel- and they accept, launching her and a brand new hire from the art department into their new venture, which includes a trip to RomanceCon, a convention for romance novels and their fans. Anna is faced with reconsidering herself, her life, her perceptions and her approach to her future.
    • 3/5
      Girl Before a Mirror by Liza Palmer left me wanting more from the author. The author puts the focus on Ann Wyatt, an account executive who wants more from life. She wants to be a success, she is glad to be divorced from a man that she never loved and she is almost forty years old. Ann develops a friendship with a coworker, Sasha and tried to understand Sasha’s love for romance books and outlook on life. She is won over by one of Sasha’s self-help books, Be the Heroine, Find Your Hero. The insight that she got from the book becomes the focal point of the ad campaign for Luminex Shower Gel. Bumping up against male bias and crassness in the company that makes the product, Ann and Sasha partner strive to sell their ad campaign. But reading the book about Ann’s new start in life and the ad campaign starts to seem chewed over too much and I lost interest. I think the book could have been shortened and it would have been improved.On the more positive side, the character of Lincoln Mallory was very enticing and intriguing and I wanted more of him in the book. Also the part about her brother, Ferdie was excellent. So, if I had a magic wand, I would have expanded the emphasis on them.So it was a bumpy ride for me when reading this book, I started to doze when Ann thought and talked to her friend about how she wanted to change her life and on the other hand, I wanted so much more of Ferdie and Lincoln. That leaves me sitting on a fence. I gave this book three stars.
    • 3/5
      Part metamorphosis, introspection, coming of age, and empowerment of not just Anna but other characters as well.Palmer skillfully inserts wry humor to offset the weight of varying characters issues otherwise the narrative and players would have been in excess.I enjoyed all the characters with their assorted issues but after a while I felt as if they were a dog chasing its tail – droning on and on about their challenges, taking two steps forward yet returning hastily to the starting point. Discovering deep seeded problems with really no resolve, I wanted more ‘show’ along with farsightedness action. I appreciate the severity of the premise, however, monotony quickly ruled.Enterprising effort on Palmer’s part with overabundance of matters each character struggles with, with no real verdict.
    • 3/5
      Having received Girl Before a Mirror as a Goodreads First Reads novel, I was expecting the story to be in the spirit of a Sophie Kinsella tale, in which a mixed up divorcee of 40 finds the man of her dreams and becomes the heroine in her life by winning him over into a happy ever after resolution with a lot of laughs along the way. What I didn’t expect was to discover that Anna Wyatt and her brother, Ferdie, come from dysfunctional, non-loving parents, and until she meets the man of her dreams, Lincoln Mallory, and confronts the issues impeding her happiness, she is really an unhappy soul. This novel is sort of a coming of age story in which the major characters are all slightly flawed and trying to find their way in life. Anna is always making safe choices rather than following her heart, while her brother Ferdie is drinking and becoming a drug addict. Her beautiful assistant, Sasha, attracts men who want to have sex with her without realizing her real worth and abilities. And then, Lincoln, Anna’s new love interest, has been severely disfigured in the Afghanistan war, and he maintains a detached attitude towards relationships. It’s an interesting story, with each person trying to find his/her way in life. But somehow the story seems to falter in some chapters, where brevity might have enticed me, the reader, to remain more involved. Being the romantic that I am, I felt that the pace of the story really accelerated when Anna met Lincoln, and I was so engaged in following their relationship. The author, Liza Palmer, did portray Anna in some quirky ways, but I think she could have gone further to humanize Anna to make her seem more vulnerable, but not needy. Overall, I thought this was an ambitious story, in which the author tried to find resolution to the personal issues that plagued the main characters’ lives.
    • 3/5
      Not a fan of romance novels, but once the cute meet is done, and the spokesperson for the shower gel is selected, Anna's dealings with her boss and his children, who are also trying to get noticed by their father, makes it a bit more interesting. Faced with forever pitching 'girl products'. Anna feels her talent isn't appreciated by the ad agency or anyone else. As the book progresses, she learns much about the reasons why she holds everyone at a distance and doesn't stand up for herself. Even her brother finds out why he sabotages everything in is life and almost kills himself in the process.I liked the writing, but almost gave up during the RomCom convention portion of the book. Will try some of her other books now.