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In Review

21 November 2008 23:20 BST

The Flirt by Kathleen Tessaro

Published by Harper Books, paperback, 457 pages, £6.99.

In a nutshell

Charming, funny, stylish and impossible to resist.

What's it all about?

Hughie Venables-Smythe is an impoverished out-of-work actor who cruises through life in London on his charm and good looks alone. He is casually seeing the beautiful but cynical Leticia Vane, who runs a bespoke lingerie shop and makes Hughie abide by 'the rules' in order to protect her from getting hurt. One day Hughie answers an advert in the Stage for a "morally flexible" young man. After successfully completing a bewildering interview, he finds that he has been accepted to work for a flirt agency – a business that profits from the skills of handsome young men to massage women's egos. Flirts are hired for a myriad of reasons, from papering over cracks in marriages to boosting self-esteem, and all the flirts are rigorously trained in their profession by the dandyish Valentine Charles, who runs the agency. Hughie excels in his new-found calling, but since being single is imperative to being a successful flirt, will Leticia jeopardise his prospects?

Who's it by?

The Flirt is the third novel from Kathleen Tessaro. Her previous two novels, Elegance and Innocence, gained widespread popularity. Her debut Elegance reached number two in the Sunday Times bestseller list. Born in Pittsburgh, Tessaro studied acting before emigrating to London, where she worked for several years as an actress in films, television and theatre. During this time she began to write short stories in her lunch hour and soon became a regular member of the Wimpole Street Writers Workshop - a group of female authors who meet every week. Tessaro now lives in London with her husband and son.

As an example

"A successful flirt is an entirely different experience than scoring with women. We don't collect phone numbers or chalk up sexual conquests. In fact, it's not about you at all. It's far more subtle. And the real art of flirting is dependant on an unselfconsciousness with women that allows you to put them at the centre of your attention. You have that quality, Hughie. You're a natural. And I can tell you from many years' experience, it's extremely rare." – Valentine to Hughie.

Likelihood of becoming a Hollywood blockbuster

The Flirt would probably make an excellent chick flick along the same lines as Bridget Jones and The Devil Wears Prada. It contains enough humour, interweaving storylines and colourful characters to make a smooth transition from the page to the big screen.

What the others say

Praise for Tessaro's debut novel Elegance:

"Ultra-smart and classily edgy, this is the glitz novel brought up to date." – Sunday Times.

"Tessaro is a witty and confident writer." – The Independent.

So is it any good?

Taken at face value, The Flirt is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Yes, it is predictable and yes, everything works out a lot more conveniently than in real life, but Tessaro has included all the right ingredients for a novel of her genre. The only flaw is that there are too many characters. We are given an insight into the psyche, romantic history and emotional stability of those who should merely function as peripheral characters. This tendency can at times have the effect of acting as a digression from the main characters and makes it seem as though Tessaro is merely giving us these irrelevant insights in order to flesh out her book. Each (very short) chapter relates to a different person and it is sometimes irritating to keep flicking between them. It is also curious that Tessaro appears at times not to have done her research into everyday London life – for example she still thinks a bus conductor comes round to collect tickets and that a cup of tea in a bog standard cafe costs a fiver. However, these details aside, Tessaro's novel is intriguing, compelling and entertaining - in short, it is everything a good flirt should be.

7/10

Natasha Hegde