As someone who really enjoyed The Fraud Squad I wasn’t sure what to expect in Zhao’s sequel. But I loved it! Talk about a story about feeling the imposter syndrome and also a career pivot! Keep reading this book review for my full thoughts on Valley Verified.
Summary
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” ( small) apartment with two 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.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Valley Verified feels like it scooped out my soul. I loved Zoe! Maybe because this having to re-evaluate your career and be thrown in the deep end to something you don’t know felt shockingly close to me. The imposter syndrome Zoe feels made me feel called out! Valley Verified is about finding our own voices, strength in our talents, and bravery. When we feel like we have to pretend we belong, shrink our own self to fit into boxes others have created. Valley Verified is perfect for everyone who knows the value of marketing, who has ever felt your non-tech career was ever looked down upon.
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Or anyone who can understand how hard it is to be thrown in a different sort of culture or setting. The costs of not knowing the ‘language’ or the right things to say. Or to figure out how a big change can leave behind friendships and relationships. Valley Verified feels like a story that can resonate with many readers. Simultaneously it’s a story that examines power dyanmics in the work place, the ways we get to know new people and cast aside our misconceptions. About wondering how one person, often without power, can make a change in this kind of ecosystem. Find Valley Verified on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, & Blackwells.