Project Paris

PROJECT PARIS (The Fashion-Forward Adventures of Imogene) LISA BARHAM Rating: 4 Enchantments Imogene is back. This time she gets to spend the summer in Paris, working again as an intern at HAUTELAW and covering the much anticipated Couture Week. Well that is, until the models go on strike and all the fashion shows are cancelled. Imogene panics, knowing if there's nothing to cover, there's nothing to keep her in Paris - that is, until she stumbles upon a hidden stash of designs. She and Evie concoct a scheme to keep Imogene in Paris, covering the hot, new and not to mention elusive designer, Monsieur X. The only problem, Imogene's not sure Monsieur X really even still exists and now her whole summer depends on that little piece of info not being found out. I have to say I loved this book. It picks up a year after A GIRL LIKE MOI left off and Imogene is a little more mature and a little more experienced. Finally her dream of spending the summer in France is coming true. But when her dream summer is threatened, she'll do anything she can to convince Spring Sommer to keep her in Paris, overseeing the Parisian operation of HAUTELAW - which at the moment, doesn't amount to much more then checking in on the renovation of the houseboat that will serve as their offices. Add in the appearance of Brooke and the rest of her Wolfe pack and Imogene's summer has the potential for disaster. Lisa Enchanting Reviews December 2007

That's right, with more madcap adventure and couture challenges set against the backdrop (and romance) of the Eiffel Tower, Imogene, Evie, Caprice, Paolo...and Toy, of course, are poised to bring fashion back to the people when a super-model strike threatens to cancel couture week, the whole reason Imogene is in Paris in the first place. What I most love about these books are Imogene's relentlessly positive approach to people, the world, and her own unique gifts. This book is as delightful as A Girl Like Moi, as laugh-outloud funny, and as heartwarming. Can't wait for L.A. and the next installment.

Over the past year, seventeen-year-old Imogene has snagged a life-changing position as an Intern at mega-fashion-forecasting agency Hautelaw; caught the eye of Italian stallion, Paolo; defeated the treacherous Brooke, and her Wolfe Pack; befriended uber-model, Caprice; and designed her own fashion software known as Imogenius. Unfortunately, just as she is about to board a plane for Paris, where she'll be spending the summer seeking out new trends, and basically living it up with her BFF Evie, tragedy strikes when she and Paolo call it quits, leaving Imogene with a huge case of the gloomies. Imogene is convinced that nothing will remove her from her Paolo Pangs. That is, until she learns that every high-fashion model has gone on strike, canceling Paris' Fashion Week. Before Imogene can even say petit fours, she learns that, with fashion week gone, she must immediately vacate Paris, and head back to Hautelaw's New York office, to spend her summer slaving away in a sticky, sweltering city, sans her best friend. Unless, of course, she's able to locate the next big thing in forty-eight hours. With socialites, designers, models, and the like fleeing Paris left and right, Imogene knows that the task is impossible, but enlists the help of super model, Caprice, and BFF Evie; along with her fashion-forward pooch, Toy, to find the next big thing. The clock is ticking, and just as Imogene believes that her time is up, and it's time to admit defeat, she discovers a collection of sketches by an unnamed designer, whose mystery identity, and amazing fashion sense, may just possess the power to lure the fashion-world back to Paris. Unfortunately, even releasing the designs to the public, and titling the mystery designer Monsieur X fails to bait the ingenue out of hiding, and leaves Imogene in a bind to locate the designer, someway, somehow, before her Hautelaw boss, Spring Sommer, and the fashion world, in general, send a mob after her. Grabbing Caprice to accompany her, the two fashion mavens set out on a search high and low for the illustrious man of the hour, only to come up short. However, in the midst of their investigation, they manage to find themselves mixed-up in a police investigation, involving counterfeit bags - that are tres cute - and find themselves at the receiving end of bad news from various bizarre characters, including a circus troupe, and fashion-crazed socialites looking for the chance to see Monsieur X up-close-and-personal, before he is introduced to the world. As if all this weren't bad enough, Imogene must contend with her still-strong feelings for the very-European Paolo, and her growing feelings for newcomer Dax - who happens to be an expert with a hammer, and his lips; along with glitches in the Imogenius SoftWear program back home; while at the same time manage to squeeze in a little shopping, some one-on-one time with her BFF, and a little rest and relaxation accompanied by croissants, petit fours, cremes, and, perhaps, if she's lu

Imogene is back, after her introduction in A Girl Like Moi: The Fashion-Forward Adventures of Imogene. She is fabulous, as usual, and spending her summer in Paris with her best friend, Evie, and is accompanied by her cute little dog, Toy. Don't think her summer is all fun and games -- she has her work cut out for her, by running Hautelaw Paris for spring. During her stay in Paris, her job is in danger when the models for fashion week go on strike and fashion week is canceled. But then Imogene and Evie discover ''Monsieur X," an unknown fashion designer, get stuck in the middle of a counterfeit bag deal, and life gets even more hectic. Read how Imogene gets tangled up in her own web of lies. Read how she saves fashion week, dresses to kill, and manages boys and lipgloss. Also, after she and Paolo are over, maybe there will even be a new summer love? Will Imogene remain composed, or absolutely lose it? Find out in PROJECT PARIS. Reviewed by: Cho