Why am I passionate about this?

Letā€™s face itā€”we spend a lot of time at work. Work is a big part of our lives, but sometimes itā€™s terrible and feels like there is no winning against institutionalized sexism and capitalism. And you really want to win! I love reading about women who are finding ways to overcome massive obstacles at work no matter what gets in their way, whether itā€™s by destroying an industry with a spreadsheet, breaking a curse, ditching a bad boss, or just finding a way to survive. Because sometimes thatā€™s all you can doā€”survive it. Stories of women working feel endlessly relatable because we have so many shared experiences, and thatā€™s why what happens at work shows up in my reading and my writing.


I wrote

Brooklyn Thomas Isn't Here

By Alli Vail,

Book cover of Brooklyn Thomas Isn't Here

What is my book about?

Brooklyn Thomas is pretty sure sheā€™s mostly dead. She canā€™t feel her heartbeat, and sheā€™s disappearing: her reflection keeps vanishingā€¦

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Hench

Alli Vail Why did I love this book?

This novel caught my eye for one simple reasonā€”the protagonist attempts to destroy her society with a spreadsheet. Although a fantasy in which the modern world (even office life) is divided between heroes and villains, this novel lands on some brutal truthsā€”like the difference between good and evil is mostly marketing and that some people will do anything for the right job. 

Itā€™s a hilarious book that pokes fun at the most absurd bosses, the things we do for work, and the real harm a toxic workplace or system causes everyone. The supervillain/hero context provides food for thought without slowing the story down or causing work-related cold sweats.

By Natalie Zina Walschots,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Hench as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"This book is fast, furious, compelling, and angry as hell." -Seanan McGuire, New York Times bestselling author

The Boys meets My Year of Rest and Relaxation in this smart, imaginative, and evocative novel of love, betrayal, revenge, and redemption, told with razor-sharp wit and affection, in which a young woman discovers the greatest superpower-for good or ill-is a properly executed spreadsheet.

Includes a bonus story for the paperback.

Anna does boring things for terrible people because even criminals need office help and she needs a job. Working for a monster lurking beneath the surface of the world isn't glamorous. Butā€¦


Book cover of Silenced

Alli Vail Why did I love this book?

We all have that one boss that weā€™re pretty sure is cursing our name and our work. In this book, the boss may just be an evil wizard who has actually cursed four women to hide his misdeeds.

What drew me in was the fairy-tale elements of this novel. Again, itā€™s set in a modern context but uses fantasy elements to drive home the absurdity of modern work culture and the horrors that women experience at work, no matter how good they may be at their jobs. Especially if theyā€™re good at their jobs.

Itā€™s also a powerful story about fierce and angry women who find common ground and work together to improve their collective situations. Anytime women work together to destroy an evil villain, Iā€™m in. 

By Ann Claycomb,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Silenced as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A powerful fairy tale of four women each cursed by the same abusive man. Gripping and essential, it will captivate readers of Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo, Heather Walter's Malice and Menna van Praag's The Sisters Grimm.

Four women. Four enchantments. One man. But he is no handsome prince, and this is no sugar-sweet fairy tale. Jo, Abony, Ranjani, and Maia all have something in common: they have each been cursed by the CEO of their workplace after he abused his power to prey on them. He wants them silent and uses his sinister dark magic to keep them quietā€¦


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Book cover of Blood of the White Bear

Blood of the White Bear by Marcia Calhoun Forecki,

Virologist Dr. Rachel Bisette sees visions of a Kachina and remembers the plane crash that killed her parents and the Dine medicine woman who saved her life. Rachel is investigating a new and lethal hantavirus spreading through the Four Corners, and believes the Kachina is calling her to join theā€¦

Book cover of Severance

Alli Vail Why did I love this book?

This book is dystopian and is really about the downfall of capitalism, but it starts in an office.

Candace Chen has her job and not much else. She goes to work and has little personal life outside of it. She barely even notices when a plague sweeps New York, and everyone leaves, and society crumbles. Her work keeps her busy, and she does it until the money sheā€™s promised shows up in her bank account.

What caught my attention is how well the author communicates the idea that humans become completely adaptable to untenable systems at work, and we keep doing our jobs under nearly any circumstance. Even a plague.

This examination of the conditioning we get to put work first no matter what else is happening is a painful eye-opener. Better boundaries next time, I guess. 

By Ling Ma,

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked Severance as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Maybe itā€™s the end of the world, but not for Candace Chen, a millennial, first-generation American and office drone meandering her way into adulthood in Ling Maā€™s offbeat, wryly funny, apocalyptic satire, Severance.

"A stunning, audacious book with a fresh take on both office politics and what the apocalypse might bring." ā€•Michael Schaub, NPR.org

ā€œA satirical spin on the end times-- kind of like The Office meets The Leftovers.ā€ --Estelle Tang, Elle

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY: NPR * The New Yorker ("Books We Loved") * Elle * Marie Claire * Amazon Editors * The Paris Reviewā€¦


Book cover of NSFW

Alli Vail Why did I love this book?

This book is full of petty rivalries and hierarchies that seem high stakes in the moment but, with time and distance, seem absurd. Competition between employees at the LA television station where the novel takes place is cutthroat. Thereā€™s no trust, no downtime, and something as simple as taking a day off with the flu can destroy your standing.

This book is chaotic and challenging and somehow perfectly captures the feel of an office in a fast-paced office that takes itself too seriously. Iā€™ve been there, and I felt every moment of this book. Kaplan finds ways to point out how ridiculous our workplaces are while still honouring the experiences of the women who work there. It is highly relatable and wrenching. 

By Isabel Kaplan,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked NSFW as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The compulsively readable novel about a young woman trying to succeed in Hollywood without selling her soul - perfect for fans of Sweetbitter, My Dark Vanessa and Exciting Times


'Deliciously sharp, ridiculously funny, and surprisingly heartfelt' COCO MELLORS
'A blistering look at the hidden side of Hollywood' GLAMOUR
'Frank, funny and unputdownable' CLAIRE MESSUD
'Glittering. A funny, spiky, compulsive story about toxic workplaces' EVENING STANDARD
'A frank account of leaning in and its inherent filthiness' RAVEN LEILANI
________

You knew Hollywood would be difficult.

So when you land a job in television, you're ready for anything: pulling all-nighters, leaning onā€¦


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Book cover of The Road from Belhaven

The Road from Belhaven by Margot Livesey,

The Road from Belhaven is set in 1880s Scotland. Growing up in the care of her grandparents on Belhaven Farm, Lizzie Craig discovers as a small girl that she can see the future. But she soon realises that she must keep her gift a secret. While she can sometimes glimpseā€¦

Book cover of Complicit

Alli Vail Why did I love this book?

I had to read this when it came out because it felt ripped from the headlines. Sarah Lai has left behind her Hollywood dreams of filmmaking for a quieter, simpler life. But a journalist reaches out and drags her past to the forefront by asking questions about Sarahā€™s experiences working with a celebrated producer. There have beenā€¦ complaints. From women. A lot of women.

Sound familiar? This is a wholly fictional take on past events, but it also forces the reader to examine the ways in which we might be complicit in holding up systems, and what we can do to break bad patterns.

Engaging, timely, and I couldnā€™t put it down. Again, women find their voices and stand up for other women around them. Thatā€™s a narrative I canā€™t miss. 

By Winnie M. Li,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Complicit as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Powerful' Harriet Tyce
'Brave' Liz Nugent
'Compulsive' John Marrs
'Dazzling' Chris Whitaker
'Fearless' Anna Mazzola
'Masterful' Araminta Hall
'Timely' TM Logan

You know what it's like.
A comment here, a closed door there, turning a blind eye to get ahead.

My name is Sarah Lai. You won't have heard of me. A decade ago I was on the cusp of being a big deal. But that was a long time ago.

Now, instead of working in Hollywood, I teach students about it.

And these are the two most important lessons you need to know about the film industry:

1) Thoseā€¦


Explore my book šŸ˜€

Brooklyn Thomas Isn't Here

By Alli Vail,

Book cover of Brooklyn Thomas Isn't Here

What is my book about?

Brooklyn Thomas is pretty sure sheā€™s mostly dead. She canā€™t feel her heartbeat, and sheā€™s disappearing: her reflection keeps vanishing from mirrors. No one else seems to notice. Not her coworkers at the artisanal doughnut shop she works at after failing at her high-paying marketing job. Not her crush, whom she keeps humiliating herself in front of. Not her parents, whose basement suite sheā€™s stuck living in now that she canā€™t afford rent anymore.

As her past collides with her present in painful and unexpected ways, Brooklyn must decide if sheā€™s strong enough to confront what haunts her and get a second chance at a real lifeā€”before mostly dead turns into actually dead.

Book cover of Hench
Book cover of Silenced
Book cover of Severance

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