The Agency

323 Pages·2009·2.23 MB·English

by  Ally O'Brien

23.39 CMYK + GLOSS LAM
‘… the literary equivalent of a dry martini: salty,
Meet Tess Drake.
intoxicating and curiously delicious.’ New York Daily News t
h
She’s earned everything she has.
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Sexy super-agent Tess Drake has worked hard to make a name
A Now it’s time to get
for herself in the glamorous yet cut-throat entertainment
what she deserves …
industry. Tess works at an international literary agency, where she
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skilfully manages some of the world’s biggest egos—the company,
Bardwright Agency, operates in the thrilling, fast-paced worlds
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of Rights, wrongs and revenge. Tess has been an agent there for
longer than she cares to remember and now she’s in trouble.
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Real trouble. After the mysterious death of the agency’s senior
partner, Lowell Bardwright, Tess’s sworn enemy, Cosima Tate, has
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taken over and would do anything to send Tess’s career down in
flames. And Cosima is only one of the rogues' gallery of agents in Y
London and New York who want Tess to take a fall.
Tess has another little complication, too. She’s sleeping with men
on both sides of the Atlantic who are in bed with the women
who are trying to sink her.
Can Tess jump ship without losing her clients and breaking her
heart? Or will she lose everything before finding out if she really
has what it takes to do what she’s always wanted?
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This wickedly funny novel turns the world of agenting inside out L
and lays bare all the ambition, sex, adrenaline, bad luck and good L
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luck at the centre of one young woman’s success.

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‘A delicious read! … The Agency is one hot, exciting, and sexy book, Gt he Y
with a seductive plot that makes those pages fly.’ ’
Publishers Weekly B C
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‘Entertaining ... witty ... a delight.’ People magazine
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ALLEN&UNWIN
Front cover quote:
Publishers Weekly
A L L Y O ’ B R I E N
Cover design: Emily O’Neill
Cover image: Getty Images
www.allenandunwin.com ‘... more entertaining than Sex and the City and Lipstick Jungle
FICTION
... don’t miss this exquisite jewel!’
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Praise for The Agency

‘With an insider’s take on the book biz, and an appealingly foul-mouthed
heroine, this debut is fast, funny and a bit nasty—not unlike Tess. A naughty,
catty good time.’ Kirkus

‘The duo writing as O’Brien proves there’s nothing like teamwork. The book
combines genres effectively, melding into one fantastic novel … Cleverness
abounds, especially in the dialogue and plot twists.’ Romantic Times (4 stars)

‘One of the most fun books I have read in awhile. A mixture of racy chick lit,
mystery, and adventure, you will find it hard to put this book down once you
get started.’ BellaOnline.com

‘A surprisingly single-minded page-turner, packed with a colorful assortment
of egomaniacs and more plot twists than Lindsay Lohan’s love life … the
literary equivalent of a dry martini: salty, intoxicating and curiously delicious.’
New York Daily News
‘The gossipy and glitzy world of book publishing provides the perfectly
irresistible setting for O’Brien’s sexy and acerbic story of a tough-talking,
determined heroine.’ Chicago Tribune
‘A funny and salacious tale … it’s easy to get caught up in Tess’ glamorous,
fast-paced world of lovers, parties and deals, wondering just what is going to
happen next.’ Minneapolis Star Tribune
‘The Agency’s got bite—it sucks you in and leaves teeth marks.’ Amanda
Goldberg and Ruthanna Hopper, coauthors of the New York Times bestselling
Celebutantes
‘The Agency is brash, cheeky, and cuttingly smart. Move over Bridget Jones,
there’s a new girl in town!’ Joan Johnston, author of the New York Times
bestselling novel A Stranger’s Game
‘Sex, drugs, and literature … ’ Sarah Ivens, editor-in-chief of OK! Magazine
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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations,
and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the
author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
First published in Australia by Allen & Unwin in 2010
First published in the US by St. Martin’s Press in 2009
Copyright © 2009 by Brian Freeman and Ali Gunn
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording
or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in
writing from the publisher. The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (the Act) allows a
maximum of one chapter or 10 per cent of this book, whichever is the greater, to be
photocopied by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that
the educational institution (or body that administers it) has given a remuneration
notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act.
Allen & Unwin
83 Alexander Street
Crows Nest NSW 2065
Australia
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.allenandunwin.com
National Library of Australia
Cataloguing-in-Publication entry:
O’Brien, Ally.
The agency / Ally O’Brien.
ISBN: 978 174237 229 7
A cataloguing in publication record can be found at the
National Library of Australia
Printed and bound in Australia by McPherson’s Printing Group
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my life.
Eight thirty- seven in the morning, en route from Putney Heath
to Piccadilly, first crisis of the day. People push the crisis button in
my business like a lab rat pushes a lever to get pellets of food, but
this is a big one. Lowell Bardwright was just found hanged by his
Hermès tie, his fingers clenched in a death grip around his dick.
Lowell is my boss. Well, not anymore.
“Was it erotic asphyxia?” I asked my assistant.
“Erotic what?”
“Was this some kind of sex game?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Emma replied. “I assumed it was suicide.”
Not bloody likely.
“No, I’m sure it was an accident,” I said.
When you are the managing partner of a successful entertain-
ment agency, you don’t kill yourself. Lowell made millions of
pounds on the ability of people like me to attract scribblers, foot-
ballers, Soho chefs, and other celebs who can be hocked to the
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