Workhorse, by Caroline Palmer: "Single White Female" Meets "The Devil Wears Prada"

Bit of an odd reading experience here: I didn’t find my favorite part of this book until the last line of the Acknowledgments, which has nothing to do really with the novel itself. Palmer is telling us she didn’t start writing this book until her mid-40s and encourages all writers that whatever it is, it’s never too late. “This has been one of the great joys of my life,” she writes. I love that so much! 

Anyway...honestly, picking up Workhorse, by Caroline Palmer, a soapy novel about the fashion industry and high society in New York City in the early 2000s, was a stretch for me. But I took I chance because a) I like long novels (this is 550 pages!), b) I like any novel set in NYC about 20-somethings making their ways in the world, and c) I like novels about the heydays of the magazine publishing industry.

The result is a bit uneven, frankly. Flawed, but highly readable. If you like novels in which you hate all the characters, this is for you. They’re scheming, petty, conniving, solipsistic, uber-privileged, supercilious, superficial, jealous, cruel, manipulative, and basically just using each other for whatever gains they can. (Whew, it felt good to get all that out — I really did not like these people 😆.)

The plot is this: Early-20s Clodagh Harmon gets herself a job as an assistant to an editor at a prominent and beloved fashion magazine. She is from a middle class background in Philadelphia and is immediately awed by the glamor and glitz all around her -- including her fellow assistant Davis Lawrence, whom everyone loves and who is the daughter of a famous Broadway star and fashion icon. Clo works hard to insinuate herself into Davis's good graces and the life to which she increasing believes she's entitled. But will Clo maintain even a shred of dignity in her ambitious drive upward? How is it fair that she has to work so hard -- a Workhorse -- whereas so many others like Davis -- Showhorses -- have it so easy? And as her quest to befriend Davis becomes more sinister, bordering on obsession, are there any limits to what she'll do to earn Davis's friendship?

It makes for delicious drama, indeed. But some of the major plot hinges stretch credulity and the characters themselves are a bit inconsistent in how they act individually and towards each other. Sure, humans are messy, but when you start saying “It just doesn’t feel like that’s something (this character) would do” pretty often, it’s a problem. 

Still, if you’re up for a “Single White Female” meets “The Devil Wears Prada,” and are good to spend A LONG TIME (again, this is over 550 pages!) with these people, give this a shot!