Women, are you struggling to find time to take care of your needs? Are you looking for a platform where you can find supportive internet friends, helpful content, and useful products all focused on self care, all in one place? Richual may be just what you’re looking for. At least, that’s what Maren and Devin hope you’ll think.
Maren Gelb is the COO, the intense workaholic who keeps the wheels turning at their feminine friendly start-up. Devin Avery is the CEO, the well-rested face of the company who dedication to self-care shows in her calming presence and her perfectly curated appearance. They met at a conference, Devin drawn to Maren’s adorable desperation, wanting to mentor Maren to take better care of herself. Their friendship developed into entrepreneurship, and Richual was born.
Now Richual is about to go into a second bid for funds from investors, but there may be a handful of glitches going on behind the scenes. Maren posted a tweet she was sure would be funny but inadvertently maybe threatened the daughter of the President. Their primary content editor Khadijah Walker has a secret that will force a major change to their editorial content. And board member and former reality television star Evan Wiley is accused of assaulting women when his ex-girlfriend and others post online about some of his . . . proclivities.
Will the women figure out a way to save their company and their relationships? Will self-care be the way they discover their path to success? Or will all their hard work be undone by the strong female voices that they themselves curated, causing Richual itself to rise like Frankenstein’s monster and threaten to destroy everything they’ve created?
Self Care is the dark satire of the internet as a lifestyle that you didn’t even realize you were looking for. Are you tired of all those “influencers” who are paid thousands per post to show off the latest athleisure leggings or vitamin-infused air that they enjoy in their stylish homes that may as well have neon signs on all the furniture because they’re just as much advertising as the roadside billboards? Are you confused by all the political correctness that twists morality and personal integrity into an Important Movement that is political and social and should be Embrace By All? Are you exhausted just trying to keep up with all the different apps that are fighting for your time, your attention, your energy, your likes, your stories, and your content? I have the answer for that: Self Care. By Leigh Stein. Pour yourself some wine, put your favorite music on, and get lost in a good book.
Seriously, though, I loved this book. I flew through it, relishing every darkly funny page. I highly recommend this for anyone who is in need of a digital detox and some big belly laughs. I can’t think of any better self care than that!
Egalleys for Self Care were provided by Penguin Books through Edelweiss, with many thanks.