Brilliant. This was a well written book that I greatly enjoyed and already plan to recommend. Believable characters and an inticing setting. Some parts were perhaps a little lengthy, but maybe because I was impatient to reach the novels conclusion! Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was.... interesting. I was invested in the premise but was ultimately let down by a crappy main character and plots that felt pulled straight from The Devil Wears Prada. This book shows the murky world of fashion and all its occupants, much like Sweetbitter did to the hospitality industry. I came out of this book feeling like I had a yucky hangover - but that in itself is a testament to the strength of Ozbek's writing.

The High Moments was such a great read, thank you for gifting it to me i would highly recommend it to anyone who asked me!

A really interesting insight into the tumultuous world of modelling- something I knew little to nothing about. I was hooked and desperate for Scarlett to find her place.

I loved this book, there is something just so refreshing about watching a main character turning her life into an absolute train wreck!

Once she finally gets a job in London, its starts her onto a year of her life where she spirals out of control, with sex, alcohol and a cacophony of drugs, while instagramming to show of her fabulous new life and trying to make friends with the models she is working with.

It's a look at the fashion industry from a model agent's point of view, of a inexperienced not overly worldly at times it appears impressions, and at times I hated Scarlett and others I really felt for her.

But regardless I had to keep reading to see if she was ever going to realise what a hot mess she has become.

There was so much that I loved about this book, I felt as though I was a fly on the wall at Pure Models, and the various parties. I found myself hoping that Scarlett wouldn't make the next really cringey decisions after another. It's definitely a look at the seedier side of the industry away from all of the gloss and glamour.

A really polished debut novel and I'm curious to see what the author will come up with next.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

This was my favourite book of the year so far- a story set within the modelling industry in London, a young woman desperate for validation, glamour and success. As someone who has worked for some of the brands mentioned in the story, it conveyed such a realistic presentation of this world and the people in it, it made me cringe and verge on PTSD several times! The details such as the models wages, measurements, living arrangements etc are accurate and so I devoured this novel in 24 hours. Sometimes stories touch on the fashion world in a cliched way, and you can tell the author has no idea, but not here. It was gripping and gritty and honest, and I have so many people I know need to read and enjoy this story!

This sounded great to me, but it didn't deliver exactly what I wanted. It follows Scarlett, a wannabe fashion designer who moves to London on a whim after an argument with her mum and chances on a job as an assistant agent at a model agency. What follows is a drug-fest full of shallow models, a coke-addicted lothario and a lot of self-obsession. It's an alright read, probably not one I'll read again. and will forget about within a few weeks, but it's an alright past-time.

Even if it''s quite fun at moments I couldn't relate and like the MC and the story fell flat.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Comparing this book to Fleabag and The Devil Wears Prada is the first mistake it made, giving me high hopes that I would love it. The only thing similar to Fleabag is the lack of filter, and as for The Devil Wears Prada... the storyline and characters are far too similar that it honestly just feels like fanfiction.

I usually love the hard-to-like characters, but I had no love for the main character here, Scarlett. She's not a nice person and the more I read the more I disliked her. The other characters were very one-dimensional, and I sometimes couldn't remember which one was which as they were unfortunately all so bland.

It should be noted that this book features <i>heavily</i> on drugs, which isn't made obvious before reading. I think a lot of people have gone into this expecting it to be a millennial-humoured finding-yourself story, as it is marketed as one, but it's not. If it was advertised differently and found the right audience I believe it would be enjoyed much more. It just wasn't for me.

The High Moments was a story that reminds you to not lose sight of your dreams, friends, family and your own morals. I think we have been there whilst growing up you get a bit carried away at times. I did enjoy the book and thought it did remind slightly of 'The Devil wears Prada' from a model agency angle.

Was a good and easy read.

Thank you to NetGalley & publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for a honest review.

When I saw the blurb for this, with the short extract of diary entries and promise a Devil Wears Pravda vibe, I thought it looked promising. There is nothing inherently wrong with the book’s content - it just isn’t the book being sold to readers. There was a distinctly Bridget Jones feel to those quoted diary entries, but that’s where the comparison ends. Both the referenced novels are sharp, witty but ultimately uplifting because our heroine learns something. Both Bridget and Andi become more confident, self-aware and sure of who they are. They learn about what fulfils them in a career and personal sense. Bridget moves into television, she moves away from sleazy men like Daniel Cleaver and phoney relationship goals. Andi is slightly more problematic in that her career success, turns her into someone she isn’t and she needs to recognise that she’s been seduced by the glamour and the devilish Miranda. However, there are points where I think the boyfriend is a bit needy and begrudges her success. The heroine of this book, Scarlett, needs to learn who she is, but instead of the career environment staying light-hearted and comical, this is a much darker downward spiral.

Scarlett strikes me as a good literary example of a woman with a personality disorder.. This means she has no personal boundaries, changes who she is in order to be liked, and lets other people define who she is. She’s very young when she secures a job at a modelling agency that specialises in models for haute couture runway shows. However, instead of learning about who she is and what this opportunity means to her, she falls victim to the wrong crowd. She becomes seduced by the wrong part of the job. I was hoping for her to find her feet in the industrY and work hard, in order to learn whether this is a career she wants to pursue. However, she falls for the fake, shallow aspects of the fashion world -partying hard and taking drugs. I kept waiting for an older, wiser, career woman to come along and mentor Scarlett in her role, but it never happens.

The shallow, hard partying set that she becomes friends with are not very likeable, but neither are the ,men Scarlett is attracted to. This is probably down to youth and a misguided idea that she could be the one person who will change that bad boy. We tend to learn at an early age that this type of man is either acting a bad boy role, or is genuinely bad news and nothing will change him. Scarlett seems to end up in these relationships because of self-hatred and the feeling that she doesn’t deserve any better. This lack of self-esteem is the driver to all her self-destructive behaviour. I was hoping that the point of the book was her eventual realisation she’s worth more than this. Yet, change didn’t occur till right near the end and I wasn’t invested enough in the character to really enjoy the realisation. I think it needed to be marketed more as a gritty drama about the realities of the modelling world. Then readers would have more idea about what they were going to be reading. It’s not a bad book, just a misrepresented one.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for asking me to read and review.
This story was a wonderful read.
It is well written with some great characters and as a reader you feel you are right there with them. The plot draws you in and keeps you turning those pages.
A brilliant debut novel.

SUCH an annoying main character,I couldn't keep on reading. Very sorry about it because I thought it sounded interesting,but I just couldn't go on with her childish thoughts and actions so I had to DNF it.

Don't you really hate when a book gets misrepresented on the blurb? [book:The High Moments|49128124] is described as "a filthier more sordid Devil wears Prada". Filthier? Yeah. More sordid? For sure. "The Devil wears Prada"? You wish. I just lost count how many times I thought about DNFing it while reading this, but as it was an ARC I forced myself to reach the end.

Scarlett is not a likable character at all so I couldn't care less about what happened to her. At the beginning she behaves like an ungrateful brat acting as if the world owed her something. Girl, if you want a career work for it cause it's not falling from the sky! She was selfish and pretentious and had a need for validation from others, constantly debasing herself to achieve it, that was so ackward to read about.

All her relationships with her "friends" couldn't be more fake and don't get me started on her relationship with Zack. Toxic much? I might understand she would accept it at the beginning due to her infatuation with him, but after everything he did to her? Are you crazy? How could she love herself so little? Even when she bottomed out I couldn't feel an ounce of sympathy for her.

And the drugs! OMG! If I'd had to read another scene of people doing cocaine, ketamine or whatever I would have thrown my kindle out the window! Now I understand that title, cause she spends half the book on drugs, drinking or with a hangover.

Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster UK for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Imagine if Bridgit Jones was a svelte model instead of a hot mess. It was an interesting read but the main character wasn't that compelling or sympathetic.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

An edgy, dark and extremely relevant read full of emotion, that takes the reader on a murky journey in to the world of modelling through the eyes of an intern at a fashion agency who craves to be someone. It charts the highs and lows of one woman's desire to leave her mark and be known.

I thought this book was ok, it was an easy read, which is suitable as distraction. The storyline did not grab me like other books have. The characters were ok, but the main character acted like she was owed something, which I disliked.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Throughly enjoyed this book. Gives you a birds eye view of modelling. Thank you to both NetGalley and publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review

From Topsham to London in a hope that things will improve. What does improve mean? Becoming somebody you think other people want you to be - mother, work colleague, friend. Realising that you are becoming a not very nice person and how to rectify this.

The blurb for this book does it few favours. It's nothing like The Devil Wears Prada or Bridget Jones Diary and anyone expecting that will probably walk away disappointed and not liking the book. Yes there are similarities but this is not light comedy and Scarlett is not a sweet character that you're rooting for. She's selfish, self-absorbed, and generally pretty unlikable. But ...

She's also young, unsure and desperate to be liked and accepted, unfortunately she seeks validation with the worst people unable to see how shallow and vacuous most of them are. She is used by them and she uses them to validate her self-esteem. Safe to say that doesn't really work out for her.

I found that when I stepped back and remembered just how difficult it can be to be that young and frankly, that messed up I could feel for her and hope that she could step back from the people, the drugs, the alcohol, and the sex that she craves but leaves her ashamed but wanting more.

This book is far from perfect but I kept wanting to know what would happen next, would she completely destroy herself or could she turn her life around.

If you read this expecting light humour chances are you won't enjoy it, if you read it accepting the darkness and wondering if redemption is possible you'll get more from it. Eventually, I did.