The Assistants
A Novel
Book - 2016
Tina Fontana is the hapless but brazen thirty-year-old executive assistant to Robert Barlow, the all-powerful and commanding CEO of Titan Corp., a multinational media conglomerate. She's excellent at her job and beloved by her famous boss--but after six years of making his reservations for restaurants she'd never get into on her own and pouring his drinks from bottles that cost more than her rent, she's bored, broke, and just a bit over it all. When a technical error with Robert's travel-and-expenses report presents Tina with the opportunity to pay off the entire balance of her student loan debt with what would essentially be pocket change for her boss, she struggles with the decision: She's always played by the rules. But it's such a relatively small amount of money for the Titan Corporation--and for her it would be a life-changer...
Publisher:
New York : G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2016.
ISBN:
9780399172540
Branch Call Number:
FIC Perri
Characteristics:
282 pages ; 24 cm.


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Add a CommentIf it's possible for a fun, light read to make you question your own integrity, this book nails it. The pace of the story kept me hooked and I couldn't help but wonder what I would do if I were in the shoes of protagonist Tina Fontanta as she navigates a huge moral dilemma at work. This is one that I'd love to see turned into a movie, with all the office antics and witty dialogue.
A fun book!
I loved every crazy page...it truly is 9 to 5 meets the student loan generation. I understand the book has been sold for a future movie script. Who do you think might play Tina and the rest of the cast?
Absolutely hilarious page turner. Read it in one day because I just couldn't put it down. I loved the twisty plot, witty banter and relateable lead character. Highly recommend if you're looking for a light, comedic read.
The story line is pretty unbelievable, but Tina is easy to relate to, and I found myself rooting for her despite her poor judgement. As Tina's plan to pay off her student loans rapidly spins out of control, the humour of the sticky situations she finds herself in kept me flipping the pages. Recommended for fans of The Devil Wears Prada.
Tina Fontana is an assistant......an assistant to a very important man....a man with connections.....a media giant who can crush your reputation with a single word. Yes, he takes her for granted but Tina really does care about him.....but will this keep her from stealing from him? Maybe? or Maybe not!!
Snappy dialogue and a smart plot makes this a breeze to read. Perfect read for a summer evening
Loved the protagonist, Tina Fontana. The humor is wonderful. The plot is implausible, but that is easy to overlook.
What is most interesting about the book to me is the struggle of this 30-year-old and her peers have to make a decent living. Admittedly, Tina lives in New York City, which is obscenely expensive. However, she came of age during The Great Recession. The prospects for her generation are very different than they were for Boomers. Most of us were able to pay off college debt quickly, and housing took a relatively small percentage of our income. There were ups and downs in the economy for us, but there has been no large upswing for those in their late 20s and early 30s. This book ends on a happy note--a bit unbelievable, but fun.
A very fun read with a breezy tone and snappy dialogue. It's part of the genre formerly called chick-lit, which is to say it's lively and clever and focused on the lives of young professional women. The night after I finished this novel, I found myself sad that I wouldn't get to hang out with the characters again.