Valley Verified - Softcover

Zhao, Kyla

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0593546156 ISBN 13: 9780593546154

Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group, 2024

Inhaltsangabe

When a fashion writer dives headfirst into the cutthroat Silicon Valley tech world, her future threatens to unravel in this addictive novel by Kyla Zhao, author of The Fraud Squad.

On paper, Zoe Zeng has made it in New York’s fashion world. After a string of unpaid internships, she’s now a fashion columnist at Chic, lives in a quaint apartment in Manhattan, and gets invited to exclusive industry events.

But life in New York City isn’t as chic as Zoe imagined. Her editor wants her to censor her opinions to please the big brands; she shares her “quaint” (read: small) apartment with three roommates who never let her store kimchi in the fridge; and how is she supposed to afford the designer clothes expected for those parties on her meager salary?

Then one day, Zoe receives a job offer at FitPick, an app startup based in Silicon Valley. The tech salary and office perks are sweet, but moving across the country and switching to a totally new industry? Not so much. However, with her current career at a dead end, Zoe accepts the offer and swaps high fashion for high tech, haute couture for HTML. But she soon realizes that in an industry claiming to change the world for the better, not everyone’s intentions are pure. With an eight-figure investment on the line, Zoe must find a way to revamp FitPick's image despite Silicon Valley’s elitism and her icy colleagues. Or the company’s future will go up in smoke—and hers with it.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Kyla Zhao had her first women's magazine byline at the age of sixteen. Since then, she has also written for the Singapore editions of Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, and Tatler. A native Singaporean, Kyla now works in Silicon Valley after graduating from Stanford University in 2021. She’s still trying to understand why Californians adore hiking and Patagonia fleeces so much.

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

chapter 1

Zoe Zeng was having an absolute blast.

It was a balmy summer evening-the kind that showed Manhattan at its best. A slight breeze whipped around the rooftop terrace, but her braided updo didn't budge an inch thanks to extra-strong Alterna hair spray. In her Paco Rabanne dress and Charlotte Olympia wedges, she fit right in with the other guests at this party-a launch event for a.I.r, the hottest sustainable fashion brand as of late whose claim to fame was turning mushrooms into leather.

The thumping electronic music-played by a DJ who was apparently "the next Diplo"-and the party chatter faded as Zoe walked closer to the railing and gazed out at the city. New York City was always prettiest at night, its blemishes disguised by the bright lights and flashing billboards. She took a deep breath of the calm evening air, her spirits lifting further as some other guest's sparkling perfume hit her nostrils. It was a welcome change from the rubbish stench that she still hadn't gotten used to after moving into an apartment right next to an alley with a nice selection of dumpsters.

A microphone-amplified voice boomed out. "Everyone, please join me at the front to welcome a.I.r's founder and CEO, Vladimir Trotsky!"

It wasn't clear to Zoe exactly where the front of the rooftop was, but somehow everyone else seemed to know. She followed them toward a patch of empty space right next to the refreshments table, but found herself squeezed toward the back, only just able to glimpse Vladimir Trotsky's beaming face over the crowd. A statuesque woman-probably a model-jostled past her, the pointy heel of her stiletto landing right on Zoe's right foot.

"Ouch!" But her pained exclamation was drowned out by Vladimir Trotsky's voice.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, a broad smile on his tanned face. "Thank you for joining me at the preview launch for a.I.r's second collection. My debut collection, Evoke, released last fall to great acclaim, and I am delighted to announce that we have taken everything people loved about Evoke and made it even better. This collection, Birth, celebrates the greatest creator of all, Mother Nature, for aren't we all birthed from her loving embrace?"

As he continued, Zoe could feel her concentration waning. Vladimir Trotsky was quoting a.I.r's press release word for word. She shifted from one foot to the other as twinges of pain shot through her ankle-these heels were the biggest she could find in Chic's photo shoot closet, but still small for her size nine, extra-wide feet. Could she duck out now while it was still somewhat early enough that she could take the subway home alone without fearing for her life?

"Hey." A warm puff of air skated across Zoe's left cheek. "What did I miss?"

Zoe turned toward the source of the whispered question. A man was pressed close to her, squeezed on his other side by someone else. Instinctively, she took a step back and crossed her arms as she studied this stranger.

He wasn't very tall-about the same height as she was in her four-inch heels. His stocky build, like that of a former gymnast or wrestler, was rather incongruous with his young-looking face, as though someone had transplanted a toddler's head onto a grown man's body, clad in a tuxedo.

"I just got here and didn't catch the first part of his speech," he explained, catching Zoe's slightly startled expression. "What does a.I.r stand for?"

Something about his boyish looks made Zoe relax slightly and put down her arms. "Aspire, Inspire, Respire," she whispered.

He pulled a face. "Seriously? They sell clothes, not life coaching."

A snort escaped from Zoe's mouth. She winced apologetically as a blonde woman in front shot her a glare. "I think it's part of their whole we love the earth story," Zoe said, dropping her voice even further. "a.I.r uses sustainable materials and production methods to reduce carbon emissions. It's all in the press kit." She couldn't resist adding, "Guess someone hasn't done their homework, huh?"

The man chuckled under his breath. "Busted. So, why is only the I capitalized?"

Zoe shrugged. "Probably just to make themselves seem quirky and special. Could also be a symbolic middle finger to unsustainable fashion. Who knows?"

Now, it was the man's turn to laugh out loud. The woman in front whipped around again, but her annoyed expression quickly smoothed out into a coquettish smile when her eyes landed on his face. Zoe resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

She snapped back to attention as everyone around them started clapping and cheering. Great, she had just missed Vladimir Trotsky's speech. Not that she had really missed much if he was just repeating everything in the press kit.

"And now," the emcee said. "Vladimir will be taking questions. Who's first?" Zoe's arm shot up along with a dozen others. The emcee's eyes scanned the crowd. "Yes, that Asian woman in the back."

It wasn't until the mysterious man nudged her that Zoe realized she was the "Asian woman" in question. Ugh. Someone shoved a microphone in front of her face.

"I have a question about your sizing," Zoe said carefully, all too aware of everyone's eyes on her. "The clothes are one-size-fits-all-why's that the case?"

Vladimir Trotsky raised one perfectly plucked brow. "Well, mycelium is very expensive to make, and we'll have to use a lot of mycelium if the wearer has more . . . body real estate." He gave a small smirk as laughter rolled through the crowd. "And we don't want to make our clothes very expensive because we don't want sustainable fashion to be available only for the rich!" The crowd burst into another round of applause-even louder this time.

"But don't you think that only offering one size for all your pieces means your brand is available only to those of a certain size?" Zoe pressed.

"Miss . . ."

"Zeng," she supplied. "Zoe Zeng."

"Miss Zoe Zeng," Vladimir repeated, his smile turning earnest. "Please, help me understand. Is your question coming from, uh, personal experience?"

Heat rushed to Zoe's face. Her hand tightened around the microphone as a hush fell over the crowd, their deafening silence only heightening her humiliation. In that moment, she would have given anything for a hole to open beneath her and swallow her, hiding her from everyone's stares.

Thankfully, the emcee came to her rescue. "We're running out of time so let's move along now. Who's next?"


The moment the question-and-answer session ended, Zoe made a move to leave, but the man beside her touched her shoulder lightly. “Hey, you okay?”

His kind tone made Zoe's chest tighten but she plastered on a big smile. "Of course," she chirped. "Why wouldn't I be?"

But he must have caught the overly bright note in her voice. The man leaned closer and said firmly, "Vladimir Trotsky is an asshole. Don't pay any attention to what he says. He's just jealous that you look far better in your outfit now than anyone can look in those raggedy designs of his."

Zoe couldn't help but smile. "Thank you." As she took in his warm expression, she was swept up by a sudden urge to confide in him. "Actually, this dress that I'm wearing-it's not even mine. I took it secretly from my magazine's wardrobe, which is full of clothes that we loaned from brands for photo shoots. I have to put this back tomorrow."

The moment the words left her mouth, Zoe wanted to smack herself. He seemed nice enough, but the fashion world was full of wolves in designer clothing, ready to pounce at the first sign of insecurity.

She braced herself for his judgment but to her surprise, his eyes lit up. "You work at a magazine? That's cool! Is it Vogue?"

Zoe held back a sigh. "Uh, no. It's a magazine called Chic; you probably haven't heard of it. We're pretty small." She bit her lip....

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2024
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0593546156
• ISBN 13: 9780593546154
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 384
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: gpsr@libri.de; gpsr@libri.de; ; Friedensallee 273; Hamburg; 22763; Deutschland