Last year I read the first book about 16 year old Harriet Manner's adventures as she finds herself suddenly launched into the life of a model despite being the biggest geek in her school and I wasn't overly impressed. The book was good and light-hearted but it just didn't have the appeal to make me feel like I wanted to invest in the rest of the series. But on Christmas morning when I opened up the second instalment to her crazy life, I was actually quite happy.
Since Harriet's modelling career started she has found out that it won't suddenly make her popular. Without the glitz and glam on-shoot, she's just a normal geek, so when her carefully scheduled summer plans are ruined when her best friend is carted off to France and her step-mother is pregnant with a new sibling, all Harriet wants is to get away. Somehow the gods of fashion whisk her off to Tokyo – somewhere she has always wanted to visit and the summer is looking good again, until she bumps into a certain Lion boy she was hoping to miss and the summer just doesn't go to plan.
Model Misfit was an enjoyable book; I found myself reading a lot of heavy, dark novels over Christmas and it was the perfect book to lift me up and swing me right into the new year with a laugh and a smile. Similarly to the first book, I didn't love the book and it's not the type of book that I'd instantly recommend to a friend, but when you're in need of something light and cheery to pick you up from a slump or sad time then this is perfect. It's quick, easy to read and full of laughs and although I find it a little young, it's still enjoyable and perfect if you are new to reading and don't want to commit to something too lengthy or heavy.
• Buy this book at the Guardian Bookshop.
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