Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

Netgalley is spoiling me with its selection of entertaining chick-lit at the moment. This is another fun read, inept posh girl learns how to be a proper adult and finds love would sum it up in a few words. Okay so I need to write a slightly longer review than that. I just reviewed the Little Lady Agency, and I feel this book is in a somewhat similar vein. Playing on the high society types, though with a hint of destitution, and a healthy smack of 'life isn't fair'. Magenta starts out as a little over-dramatic and annoying, but quickly becomes much more readable, as she begins to figure out life and find herself. Love interest Anthony is made out to be a bit of a bumbling fool at first, and I felt rather sorry for him, but he too seems to find himself somewhat by the end of the book, thankfully. A charming bit of escapism.

A good little book that allowed me to escape from reality and enter the world of filthy rich Magenta who HAS to get a job and stick with it for 365 days in order to inherit £250,000 from her grandmother.

Although it felt far fetched, the romance aspects were sweet and created interest with the will they/won’t they aspects of both potential relationships.

Whilst not the most challenging of reading material, it made a change from the grisly thrillers...

3* as a little far fetched but enjoyed this nonetheless

Stayed up all night to read this book.The writing and story line just pulls you along. I loved the main character Magenta, she was a whiny spoilt brat at the beginning but she quickly turned into a smart young woman bursting with ideas and I wondered why she didnt like working before. She made a great P.A and she knows hows to throw a party. I also loved the friendship between her and Anya, one of the reasons I didnt want to put the book down. But i was disappointed with the love triangle and the ending, i feel a lot more can be done with such a great main character. Still its a fun read and I would love to read Rosa Temple's next work.

I am a fan of chick lit novels and this one was warm and funny. I really liked Magenta and Anya and how the author describes different parts of London. I enjoyed it but I found Magenta's relationship with Anthony and Hugo a bit unrealistic. All in all, it was a funny and easy read that made me smile!

Really wanted to like this book, the blurb sounded really good but i just didn't like the main character Magenta.

Really sorry

This book was okay. I thought it would have been better. It would have been nice if the book was not as predictable, a bit more story would be nice.

Magenta has to stay in a job for twelve months, if she wants to marry Anthony. She finds it hard because Magenta can't keep a job, she does not have to work. Really she is spoilt and the story centers around that.

An okay book.

I was internally debating whether I should give it a 3 or 3.5. I guess 2 stars won !!

I'll tell you why though. Everything seemed so bland and one dimensional. The characters and the plot just didn't feel right. Everything felt too good to happen, you know ! I mean, it all just perfectly fell into place.

So, Magenta is a smart but lazy girl. Oh but the cliche doesn't end there. Her family including grandma, parents, her 3 elder sisters are all filthy rich. Oh yeah, her best friend is a top-shot model (Russian heritage with that vot iis thiiiss accent) who gets a Ferrari for her shoots and wait for it !! She gifts it to Magenta.. why you ask..

I didn't spend a penny. Vell, only shipping costs. I drove it in an advertisement and the company said I should keep it. Who am I to argue ? Especially ven I have a best friend whose dying ambition is to drive a red flashy sports car.

Best friend's words, not mine !! Where can I get such a best friend ?? Please sign me up, PRONTO !!

Now, Madge's grandma's will states that she has to work for her inheritance. By work, she has to work in the same office for a year and then she can get her rich inheritance. And now Madge is all upset.. because she has to work.. for an entire year...because otherwise she would have lived her entire life without ever working.. DUH !! Welcome to reality !!



But the list of cliches doesn't end there.. Her sister's neighbor is retiring from his business and his son is taking it up. So, Madge is given the job of being the PA for this supposedly naive and inexperienced boss. And so the drama begins.. Of course he is cute, and she is salivating as soon as she seems him..And of course he is engaged.. And of course Madge has an ex who wants to be back in her life..And there is a part where she has to stick to this job for a year.. and of course she is brilliant in this job discovering her hidden talent.. saving the business from obvious bankruptcy.. possible love triangle.. blah blah blah..

Can you see the single dimension I am talking about ? I understand that books can take us away from our reality, give us a reprieve from our hectic lives.. But that doesn't mean that the plot can be so far fetched !! I wish the plot had a touch of reality to it, something to which the readers can relate.

Magenta is a 28-year-old woman, who hasn’t held a job longer than a few months. Her parents and sisters have helped her and she didn’t find anything wrong in that situation. It all changed, when her grandmother passed away and left money for all her granddaughters, but Magenta was the only one, who didn’t get the money that easily, she gets the money when she has had the same job for a year or when she turns 45. Magenta finds the situation unfair, but she needs the money and therefore has to find a job. That’s when her sister comes to the rescue and got Magenta a job interview. The job is absolutely perfect for her, as the boss is new to the job as well. Anthony took over the business after his father, even though he had other career choices in his mind. Magenta and Anthony start working together to build up the firm, because it wasn’t in a good place. Magenta and Anthony have a great work relationship, but they both feel attracted to each other as well, although there’s one problem-Anthony is engaged! Can Anthony and Magenta save the firm and will they eventually learn that they are meant to be together?

It was a funny and well written book that keep you turning the pages. I have to admit I didn’t really like the main character Magenta very much at the beginning, but she grew so much throughout the book that I ended up liking her a lot. All in all it was a lighthearted and fun book that keeps you entertained.

This was a good and enjoyable read.

I've loved to see our heroine growth as a person and as a worker.
Magenta's journey from wild animal party to smart and dedicated PR kept my attention throughout the whole book...I won't unveil too much of the plot to not risk to ruin it to you all.

Rosa Temple made an excellent work,mixing up funny and thought provoking scenes,delivering an entertaining story.

great read and easy to follow story line. look forward to reading more from this author.

Great mix of fun, giggle inducing writing and with two potential love interests that kept me guessing until really close to the end.

Magenta's life really starts to change when she is informed about her inheritance, or more specifically the conditions attached to it. So long as she can stay in continuous employment at the same company for a whole year, she will inherit, otherwise its a long wait until she is in her 40s to be eligible.

For Magenta has never held a job for longer than 2 months at a time, and it appears on the surface at least she is the outsider in her high flying family who all seem to have far more determination to succeed than she does.

She gets a job purely as one of her sisters pulls in a favour, but the CEO, Anthony Shearman is actually more clueless at business than she is, so its fantastic to see them pull together and learn a lot about themselves and each other, and just what they are capable of.

There are two potential men in her life, and I enjoyed seeing her agonise over ways to distract herself and her heart from either of them for the majority of the story. She was reasonably determined to stay single, at whatever cost to her happiness.

I loved Magenta's family, there is just something about their dynamics that was great to see, and the party that was given to celebrate Magenta first getting the job is hilarious. Magenta's best friend was also great character, even if her accent could get slightly annoying at times.

Playing By The Rules is just generally a light hearted, entertaining story that doesn't take itself too seriously, but is a coming of age story of sorts for Magenta.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and HQ Digital for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

This book has the most appalling and pointlessly theatrical start, but it does get a little better. The idea that a woman is left money in her grandmothers will, but only if she works for a year is very 80s Hollywood b list. It further delves into unrealistic depths when she is able to land a job the same day through her rich family connections and then seamlessly is able to slot into essentially managing and marketing a failing company, with no previous experience, having not worked properly in her life. The story also has a love triangle thrown in for good measure, artlessly and clumsily woven around the story. Not even a good story in an ironic sense.

Playing by the Rules by Rosa Temple follows the story of rather unlikable Magenta, a melodramatic, wealthy socialite who is left money as part of an inheritance on the proviso that she holds down one job for 365 days.
Her sister helps her find a job and on accepting Magenta realises her true potential and finds that she is more then capable of having a successful career and love.
Throughout the story Magenta's character becomes rather likable despite her character flaws (i.e being spoilt) and you can't help but hope that she gets the happily ever after that everyone deserves.Definitely a story of learning to grow up, become independant and stand on your own two feet!

I really liked the cover of this book and found it to an entertaining read with a fair few funny moments. It definitely grew on me as the story progressed.

Thankyou to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review which I have been more then happy to give.

When I started this book i was not a big fan of Magenta so because of that I didn't get in to the book as much as i should have. I found her to be very unrelatable. In saying that this is a good story and quite enjoyable and as the story progressed i realised there was a bit more to the main character than I anticipated. So if your looking for a nice fun read with a bit of a life lesson then give this one a go!

Playing By The Rules offers nothing really new or surprising as far as chick-lit goes, but it is still an enjoyable read. This book follows Magenta, a wealthy socialite who is forced to get and hold a job for 365 days as a term of her inheritance. In the course of accepting and working at a job, Magenta finds her true potential (and, obviously, love). Despite Magenta's spoiled ways, she is still a likable and surprisingly easy to relate to main character. Reading this book, you will find yourself really rooting for her at work and in love

Playing By The Rules offers nothing really new or surprising as far as chick-lit goes, but it is still an enjoyable read. This book follows Magenta, a wealthy socialite who is forced to get and hold a job for 365 days as a term of her inheritance. In the course of accepting and working at a job, Magenta finds her true potential (and, obviously, love). Despite Magenta's spoiled ways, she is still a likable and surprisingly easy to relate to main character. Reading this book, you will find yourself really rooting for her at work and in love.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

On first introduction, Magenta was more than a bit spoiled, immature, aimless and wallowing in all of the things she ‘wasn’t’: wasn’t in a relationship, wasn’t as clever as her sisters, wasn’t as driven and, perhaps the biggest one, wasn’t getting the substantial inheritance from her beloved Grandmother’s death without strings. At 28, I actually found her to be more of the ‘stuck at 18’ sort of woman, but her sense of humor, the struggles with her own perceptions of herself, and the more than dramatic air that she cultivates around her were intriguing. I really wondered if she would be able to change, grow, and make me care about her successes and empathize with her failures.

But, the caveat for her inheritance: find a job, any job, and work at it for a year seemed to be her own personal Everest, from someone who wouldn’t walk to the corner shop if she had to. And then, her younger sister made a phone call and set a meeting, and we are off.

Anthony has been brought out of his happy place painting in Italy to run the family leather goods company: one focused on high end products for men of a certain age and income, and he’s got zero idea of where to start. He’s mourning the loss of a life he wanted, while completely clueless as to where to begin. Magenta is still mourning her Nan’s bequest, and even worse – still mopey over a 2 week insta-love relationship that ended ten years ago. Two people, reasonably clueless, tasked with saving a company on a downward slide, neither really wanting to be there.

And then, something happens. All of Magenta’s posh party girl moments, her best friend the supermodel, her contacts and a desire to have her inheritance, combined with a new perspective and approach start to turn things around. She’s marvelous at organizing parties and events, she’s got an eye for fashion and sisters in marketing who are willing to answer her many questions. And then, there’s a crush on Anthony (who seems to return it) and the unexpected return of the one who got away years ago. And drama – plenty of drama and perseveration, most of Magenta’s doing.

Light and breezy, this story contains surprising depth as Magenta actually finds her footing in a potential career – if only her love life (and her incessant meddling in her divorced parents’ lives) would turn around. Temple brought her character to life and offered us plenty of twists, turns and more than a few surprises to keep the story moving forward, always entertaining and amusing. Magenta went from ugh to ok – there is a charming, if occasionally awkward woman here- one that many can relate to on many levels. A wonderful read, perfect to lose yourself for an afternoon.

I received an eArc copy from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Playing by the Rules just didn't do it for me. The characters were static and predictable. The writing was unpolished and read like fan fiction. I wanted to like Magenta, but her whining and superficial lifestyle turned me off. She acted like an teenager, but was in her late 20s. I had expected a lively British comedy reminiscent of a Sophie Kinsella novel, instead I only found mediocrity.

Quick read about a woman growing up. Magenta is not an appealing character (selfish, childish, etc) at the start but you might enjoy watching her realize that you enjoy life a lot more when you have a purpose. I liked Temple's writing style- its breezy and perfect for this genre. THanks to netgalley for the ARC.