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The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke
From New York Times bestselling author Jane Green comes her most poignant and timely novel yet—the story of a tech titan’s daughter, who, in the face of family crisis, must step into her own power to redefine a legacy
Missy Cooke’s parents divorced when she was young. While her mother did her best to make ends meet, her father devoted his life to work—and his new family. Missy only knew him from afar. He was distant and aloof. But when he came to visit, his light shone bright. He was Silicon Valley tech titan Marty Cooke.
Now an adult, with tech world aspirations of her own, Missy’s life is a constant negotiation between her own desires and the towering expectations of her father. But when a devastating diagnosis forces Marty to step down from his tech empire, ipryy, he doesn't choose a seasoned executive to take his place. He chooses Missy.
Thrust into a world of high-stakes board meetings and cutthroat corporate politics, Missy is completely out of her depth. As interim CEO, she must navigate the immense pressure of her father's legacy while wrestling with a strained relationship with her boyfriend, the reappearance of a childhood crush, and the constant scrutiny of a world that sees her as nothing more than a privileged heiress, an image totally at odds with her modest upbringing.
From the glittering galas of the French Riviera to the hidden realities of ipryy's global operations, Missy's journey of self-discovery becomes a battle for the soul of the company. When she uncovers a dark secret that threatens to destroy everything her father built, Missy must decide what kind of leader she will become. Can she forge her own path and prove her worth, or will she crumble under the weight of her father’s shadow?
Propulsive, timely, and emotionally resonant, The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke is an unforgettable family novel by a beloved author at the height of her literary power.
Missy Cooke’s parents divorced when she was young. While her mother did her best to make ends meet, her father devoted his life to work—and his new family. Missy only knew him from afar. He was distant and aloof. But when he came to visit, his light shone bright. He was Silicon Valley tech titan Marty Cooke.
Now an adult, with tech world aspirations of her own, Missy’s life is a constant negotiation between her own desires and the towering expectations of her father. But when a devastating diagnosis forces Marty to step down from his tech empire, ipryy, he doesn't choose a seasoned executive to take his place. He chooses Missy.
Thrust into a world of high-stakes board meetings and cutthroat corporate politics, Missy is completely out of her depth. As interim CEO, she must navigate the immense pressure of her father's legacy while wrestling with a strained relationship with her boyfriend, the reappearance of a childhood crush, and the constant scrutiny of a world that sees her as nothing more than a privileged heiress, an image totally at odds with her modest upbringing.
From the glittering galas of the French Riviera to the hidden realities of ipryy's global operations, Missy's journey of self-discovery becomes a battle for the soul of the company. When she uncovers a dark secret that threatens to destroy everything her father built, Missy must decide what kind of leader she will become. Can she forge her own path and prove her worth, or will she crumble under the weight of her father’s shadow?
Propulsive, timely, and emotionally resonant, The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke is an unforgettable family novel by a beloved author at the height of her literary power.
- GenresFictionAdult Fiction
336 pages, Hardcover
Published September 29, 2026
About the author
Jane Green
87 books8,932 followersJane Green is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-one novels, and one cookbook. With over 10 million books in print in over 25 languages, she is credited as being one of the founders of the ‘chick lit’ genre.
Jane is also the author of the weekly Dear Jane column in the Daily Mail. She lives between London and Marrakech, where she holds writing and rewilding retreats, and tries not to rescue every stray kitten she comes across.
Connect with Jane:
www.janegreen.com
Find out about her retreats:
www.kitabamarrakech.com
Jane is also the author of the weekly Dear Jane column in the Daily Mail. She lives between London and Marrakech, where she holds writing and rewilding retreats, and tries not to rescue every stray kitten she comes across.
Connect with Jane:
www.janegreen.com
Find out about her retreats:
www.kitabamarrakech.com
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Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Unashamedly begged my friends at HTP for an early galley of the new novel from my beloved Jane Green, THE MANY PRIVATE LIVES OF MISSY COOKE… and in my opinion, Jane ALWAYS delivers!
Her newest novel is an intricate dive into the complicated relationship between a father and daughter, with the father being a character a la Steve Jobs— a remarkable tech titan known around the world. Missy has spent much of her life longing for her father’s attention and approval, so when she unexpectedly finds herself stepping into his world and taking on a major role in his tech empire, she’s forced to navigate corporate politics, family expectations, and the question of who she really wants to be.
Missy will be one of Jane’s most memorable character creations. The journey she goes on from the beginning of the novel to the remarkably emotional climax is stunning, and I found myself racing to turn the pages as Missy grows, finds her voice, and fully comes into her own.
It’s such a timely novel, and I loved the way Jane blends the fascinating world of modern tech and corporate power with the messiness of family dynamics, complicated relationships, and the lifelong desire to be seen and accepted by the people we love.
Another winner from one of my all time favorites! ❤️
HTP Books releases THE MANY PRIVATE LIVES OF MISSY COOKE on September 29th, so PREORDER NOW!
Her newest novel is an intricate dive into the complicated relationship between a father and daughter, with the father being a character a la Steve Jobs— a remarkable tech titan known around the world. Missy has spent much of her life longing for her father’s attention and approval, so when she unexpectedly finds herself stepping into his world and taking on a major role in his tech empire, she’s forced to navigate corporate politics, family expectations, and the question of who she really wants to be.
Missy will be one of Jane’s most memorable character creations. The journey she goes on from the beginning of the novel to the remarkably emotional climax is stunning, and I found myself racing to turn the pages as Missy grows, finds her voice, and fully comes into her own.
It’s such a timely novel, and I loved the way Jane blends the fascinating world of modern tech and corporate power with the messiness of family dynamics, complicated relationships, and the lifelong desire to be seen and accepted by the people we love.
Another winner from one of my all time favorites! ❤️
HTP Books releases THE MANY PRIVATE LIVES OF MISSY COOKE on September 29th, so PREORDER NOW!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Missy Cooke has spent her entire life chasing exactly twelve seconds of approval from her father. Marty Cooke is one of those tech billionaire legends who somehow had enough time to build an empire but not enough time to consistently parent the kid he already had. Every time he showed up, he was charming enough that little Missy thought, "This is it. This is the visit where we're finally going to be a family." Reader... it was almost never that visit.
Then Marty gets sick, steps away from his company, and instead of promoting literally anyone with actual CEO experience, he hands the keys to Missy. Not because she's spent twenty years preparing to run a global tech company. Because apparently this family communicates exclusively through impossible assignments. Nothing says "I believe in you" quite like throwing someone into a boardroom full of people who would rather eat a glass coffee table than report to the boss's daughter.
And these executives? Oh, they are exhausting. Every meeting felt like watching a pack of sharks smell one drop of blood from three zip codes away. Half of them are smiling while actively plotting. The other half are explaining things to Missy with that deeply irritating confidence only mediocre men seem to possess. You know the look. The one that says, "I'm about to explain your own job to you." I needed her to start flipping conference tables.
The thing that kept getting me, though, is that Missy has spent so many years believing she's never enough that she starts doing half of her critics' work for them. Girl. Please. You do not need to reject yourself before they get the chance. It became this constant cycle where I'd be rooting for her, she'd finally stand up for herself, and then five pages later she'd be apologizing for existing in a meeting she literally runs. I wanted to climb into the book and confiscate her self-doubt.
Marty is honestly the most fascinating person here because he manages to be both incredibly generous and incredibly selfish at the exact same time. You can tell he loves Missy. I never questioned that. But loving someone and showing up for them are not actually the same hobby. He spent years making decisions that left her feeling like the guest star in her own family, and now she's expected to carry the legacy of a man she barely got to have. That's brutal.
Then the company starts unraveling in ways that make you realize billion-dollar businesses are basically giant family secrets with shareholders. Every shiny gala, every glossy presentation, every speech about innovation starts hiding something uglier underneath. I actually found myself way more interested once Missy stopped worrying about whether people respected her and started asking whether this company deserved protecting in the first place.
There are also romantic complications because apparently the universe looked at Missy's schedule and decided, "You know what this woman running a global corporation needs? Emotional confusion." Her current boyfriend is one thing. Then an old crush wanders back in because timing is apparently a myth. Meanwhile I'm sitting here like, "Respectfully... maybe nobody date anyone until after the international corporate crisis."
The emotional part that landed for me wasn't the boardroom drama. It was realizing that no promotion, no title, no spectacular success can ever turn you back into the little kid who just wanted her dad to pick her first. That hurt. Because there comes a point where you realize you've spent years trying to earn something that should've been given freely. You don't heal that by becoming CEO.
I do wish parts of the story had trusted themselves a little more. A few twists walked into the room wearing giant neon name tags, and there were moments where I wanted everyone to stop having almost-conversations and just say the thing out loud. But honestly? I was still invested because I wanted Missy to stop living her life as a supporting character in Marty Cooke's story and finally become the main character in her own.
This ended up being a solid 3 stars for me. It's dramatic, emotional, occasionally a little soap-operatic, and full of people who desperately needed either therapy or one brutally honest family dinner about fifteen years earlier.
Huge thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. I came for billionaire family drama and somehow ended up attending the world's most emotionally expensive succession planning meeting.
Then Marty gets sick, steps away from his company, and instead of promoting literally anyone with actual CEO experience, he hands the keys to Missy. Not because she's spent twenty years preparing to run a global tech company. Because apparently this family communicates exclusively through impossible assignments. Nothing says "I believe in you" quite like throwing someone into a boardroom full of people who would rather eat a glass coffee table than report to the boss's daughter.
And these executives? Oh, they are exhausting. Every meeting felt like watching a pack of sharks smell one drop of blood from three zip codes away. Half of them are smiling while actively plotting. The other half are explaining things to Missy with that deeply irritating confidence only mediocre men seem to possess. You know the look. The one that says, "I'm about to explain your own job to you." I needed her to start flipping conference tables.
The thing that kept getting me, though, is that Missy has spent so many years believing she's never enough that she starts doing half of her critics' work for them. Girl. Please. You do not need to reject yourself before they get the chance. It became this constant cycle where I'd be rooting for her, she'd finally stand up for herself, and then five pages later she'd be apologizing for existing in a meeting she literally runs. I wanted to climb into the book and confiscate her self-doubt.
Marty is honestly the most fascinating person here because he manages to be both incredibly generous and incredibly selfish at the exact same time. You can tell he loves Missy. I never questioned that. But loving someone and showing up for them are not actually the same hobby. He spent years making decisions that left her feeling like the guest star in her own family, and now she's expected to carry the legacy of a man she barely got to have. That's brutal.
Then the company starts unraveling in ways that make you realize billion-dollar businesses are basically giant family secrets with shareholders. Every shiny gala, every glossy presentation, every speech about innovation starts hiding something uglier underneath. I actually found myself way more interested once Missy stopped worrying about whether people respected her and started asking whether this company deserved protecting in the first place.
There are also romantic complications because apparently the universe looked at Missy's schedule and decided, "You know what this woman running a global corporation needs? Emotional confusion." Her current boyfriend is one thing. Then an old crush wanders back in because timing is apparently a myth. Meanwhile I'm sitting here like, "Respectfully... maybe nobody date anyone until after the international corporate crisis."
The emotional part that landed for me wasn't the boardroom drama. It was realizing that no promotion, no title, no spectacular success can ever turn you back into the little kid who just wanted her dad to pick her first. That hurt. Because there comes a point where you realize you've spent years trying to earn something that should've been given freely. You don't heal that by becoming CEO.
I do wish parts of the story had trusted themselves a little more. A few twists walked into the room wearing giant neon name tags, and there were moments where I wanted everyone to stop having almost-conversations and just say the thing out loud. But honestly? I was still invested because I wanted Missy to stop living her life as a supporting character in Marty Cooke's story and finally become the main character in her own.
This ended up being a solid 3 stars for me. It's dramatic, emotional, occasionally a little soap-operatic, and full of people who desperately needed either therapy or one brutally honest family dinner about fifteen years earlier.
Huge thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. I came for billionaire family drama and somehow ended up attending the world's most emotionally expensive succession planning meeting.
Review of advance copy received from Publishers Weekly
Missy wants nothing more than to spend time with her father, to be recognized by him, to make him proud of her. Her childhood was sparse, even tho’ her father, Marty, is extremely wealthy and owns one of the most successful tech companies in the world. Her parents divorced when she was young. Missy lived with her mother and yearned for attention from her father, who withheld money, being vindictive towards his ex-wife. Somehow, he failed to see that his daughter was being penalized by his actions. Marty had a new, gorgeous wife, not too much older than Missy. They have two young children to take up the little time he does devote to family.
Everyone at his company, the tech world and community love Marty. He’s an excellent boss and generous to others. He values education for children over and above most causes. Missy works for him, trying to establish herself and spend time with him. When Marty becomes seriously ill, he appoints Missy as temporary CEO because he’s certain he can trust her to maintain the company as he would.
From this point forward, the story becomes heavily focused on corporate issues. Things don’t go well for Missy. Not everyone has her best interests at heart. She is supported by a long suffering boy friend, who happens to be CEO of the company, her BFF/roommate, the BFF’s brother who was her first love and an extremely important new client.
Preeti, the new client, was my my favorite character among a cast of mostly enjoyable folks. Author, Jane Green, created a group of nicely developed characters you might find in a Lifetime light soap opera. I can easily see this book adapted for a steaming series. Dialogue is also strong. Interaction between characters rings true with just the right balance of fond feelings, angst and humor. These characters live, learn and grow, as the story progresses; satisfying for readers.
My biggest complaint with this story is the amount of foul language. Green uses the entire universe of expletives, including divine epithets. On the positive side, sexual encounters are minimal and closed door.
Recommended for readers who enjoy character forward stories, coming of age themes, corporate espionage elements and family relationship stories📚
I received a copy for review purposes. All opinions are honest and mine alone.
Read & Reviewed from a NetGalley eARC via Kindle with thanks to Publisher’s Weekly, the publisher and author.
Everyone at his company, the tech world and community love Marty. He’s an excellent boss and generous to others. He values education for children over and above most causes. Missy works for him, trying to establish herself and spend time with him. When Marty becomes seriously ill, he appoints Missy as temporary CEO because he’s certain he can trust her to maintain the company as he would.
From this point forward, the story becomes heavily focused on corporate issues. Things don’t go well for Missy. Not everyone has her best interests at heart. She is supported by a long suffering boy friend, who happens to be CEO of the company, her BFF/roommate, the BFF’s brother who was her first love and an extremely important new client.
Preeti, the new client, was my my favorite character among a cast of mostly enjoyable folks. Author, Jane Green, created a group of nicely developed characters you might find in a Lifetime light soap opera. I can easily see this book adapted for a steaming series. Dialogue is also strong. Interaction between characters rings true with just the right balance of fond feelings, angst and humor. These characters live, learn and grow, as the story progresses; satisfying for readers.
My biggest complaint with this story is the amount of foul language. Green uses the entire universe of expletives, including divine epithets. On the positive side, sexual encounters are minimal and closed door.
Recommended for readers who enjoy character forward stories, coming of age themes, corporate espionage elements and family relationship stories📚
I received a copy for review purposes. All opinions are honest and mine alone.
Read & Reviewed from a NetGalley eARC via Kindle with thanks to Publisher’s Weekly, the publisher and author.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
I did finish this book, and while most of my previous review still stands, the final parts made up for the frustrations of the first part. As a matter of fact, the final parts had me eager to finish. Missy finally showed some growth, although she had to depend on a lot of people to get there. The book did not really give her a HEA as far as romance goes, but then again, this was not a romance novel. So if you can manage to get through the first third of this novel you will have a fairly satisfying ending.
I am almost 60% done with this book, and if it weren't on my Kindle, I would throw it across the room and hit the wall with it. The rest of this review will come when (if) I finish this "growth" novel, since so many people seemed to have loved it; I must be missing something.
This book is written in three parts. In the first part, you will meet Missy Cooke, daughter of tech billionaire Marty Cooke. Marty and her Mother are divorced. So in this first part, we will explore how horrible Missy's life is with and without her father. We will explore every nuance of their relationship. Marty does treat Missy (at times) like crap. Missy has no backbone, and it is horribly obvious. I wanted to yell at her to speak up for herself, grow a spine, pull up her big-girl panties and just TALK to her father about the way he treats her. At the end of this section I was ready to DNF it, but being an ARC I felt I should give it a little longer to see if it redeemed itself.
Part two is about how Marty develops a horrible cancer and must go to Switzerland for months of treatment, leaving his daughter Missy as interim CEO. She is in her element and doing well at this new job. Still naive, but with her brains, she is perfect for the job. Sounds good, right? She is finally in her element, right? Well, no, because what is obvious to me is that someone is sabotaging her and has done so to the point that the stockholders have asked her to step down for a month or so, putting someone else at the helm.
If you are reading this book at this point, you will notice that (if you are smart and I know you are!) there appear to be two obvious people who might want to stab her in the back. My money is on a particular person, but I've been wrong before!!!
I have seen no growth on Missy's part, and I, as I said, am 60% done with this book. I'm frustrated, pissed, bored, and cranky.
*ARC supplied by the publisher Hanover Square Press/Harlequin, the author, and ATTL/Edelweiss.
I am almost 60% done with this book, and if it weren't on my Kindle, I would throw it across the room and hit the wall with it. The rest of this review will come when (if) I finish this "growth" novel, since so many people seemed to have loved it; I must be missing something.
This book is written in three parts. In the first part, you will meet Missy Cooke, daughter of tech billionaire Marty Cooke. Marty and her Mother are divorced. So in this first part, we will explore how horrible Missy's life is with and without her father. We will explore every nuance of their relationship. Marty does treat Missy (at times) like crap. Missy has no backbone, and it is horribly obvious. I wanted to yell at her to speak up for herself, grow a spine, pull up her big-girl panties and just TALK to her father about the way he treats her. At the end of this section I was ready to DNF it, but being an ARC I felt I should give it a little longer to see if it redeemed itself.
Part two is about how Marty develops a horrible cancer and must go to Switzerland for months of treatment, leaving his daughter Missy as interim CEO. She is in her element and doing well at this new job. Still naive, but with her brains, she is perfect for the job. Sounds good, right? She is finally in her element, right? Well, no, because what is obvious to me is that someone is sabotaging her and has done so to the point that the stockholders have asked her to step down for a month or so, putting someone else at the helm.
If you are reading this book at this point, you will notice that (if you are smart and I know you are!) there appear to be two obvious people who might want to stab her in the back. My money is on a particular person, but I've been wrong before!!!
I have seen no growth on Missy's part, and I, as I said, am 60% done with this book. I'm frustrated, pissed, bored, and cranky.
*ARC supplied by the publisher Hanover Square Press/Harlequin, the author, and ATTL/Edelweiss.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Missy Cooke is the daughter of tech mogul Marty Cooke. He wasn't a constant presence in her life growing up, but Missy idolized her dad and wanted so desperately to feel loved by him. The book alternates between now and memories Missy has of her childhood.
Missy works for her dad at his tech conglomerate. She finds out he is sick and taking a leave of absence and he leaves her in charge. Missy has to step up and find her voice and place and she does just that.
I hated how Marty spoke to Missy in the book and how he was so harsh on her. However, I thought it came full circle by the end when Missy finally realized how very much her dad loved her. I loved that in the last couple chapters.
Overall I enjoyed this book as something different! I also love a story that empowers women and this did just that! Thank you Jane Green, Net Galley & Harlequin Trade Publishing for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion!
Missy works for her dad at his tech conglomerate. She finds out he is sick and taking a leave of absence and he leaves her in charge. Missy has to step up and find her voice and place and she does just that.
I hated how Marty spoke to Missy in the book and how he was so harsh on her. However, I thought it came full circle by the end when Missy finally realized how very much her dad loved her. I loved that in the last couple chapters.
Overall I enjoyed this book as something different! I also love a story that empowers women and this did just that! Thank you Jane Green, Net Galley & Harlequin Trade Publishing for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion!
June 26, 2026
I used love Jane Green but her last few books did not work for me. Sadly, this is kind of same. About the daughter of a tech icon who takes over the business, I could not connect to the main character at all. The story felt all over the place and then never really went anywhere.
September 29, 2026
I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I ended up really enjoying this book! It blends several genres, but ultimately I’d say this falls under lit fic, with some slight romance and mystery themes woven in.
But really, this story focuses around Missy’s complicated relationship with her father. I was fascinated by their dynamic and all of the angles of it explored in this book. There is definitely growth and progression, but by the end I did want Missy to start standing up for herself specifically to her father. She really grows a backbone towards others, but never quite gets to the point where she seems to recognize her unhealthy dependence and almost obsession with her dad—and I was hoping to see that.
Nonetheless, watching her be a boss lady was very satisfying and watching her reclaim her power at the end also gave me lots of satisfaction. I’m big on romance in any story, so while I wanted more at the end, I do understand that it was not the focus of Missy’s story.
I especially loved Missy’s friendship with Preeti. Seeing it blossom and how these girls supported each other was so wholesome and the peak of female friendship. When Missy travels overseas, watching her reconnect with her old friend and explore new places (and come to some big realizations) was another favorite part for me!
And yes, even though it was toxic, I couldn’t help but be drawn in by the ups and downs Missy has with her father. It was messy and, honestly, heartbreaking at times, but seeing flashbacks of her childhood was to me critical in seeing how these interactions shaped her as an adult.
Overall, I liked this one and would recommend it for a quick read!
🎧Mia Hutchinson-Shaw absolutely rocked this audiobook! She is a perfect Missy and nailed other voices, specifically several with accents. Highly recommend the audio for this one!
But really, this story focuses around Missy’s complicated relationship with her father. I was fascinated by their dynamic and all of the angles of it explored in this book. There is definitely growth and progression, but by the end I did want Missy to start standing up for herself specifically to her father. She really grows a backbone towards others, but never quite gets to the point where she seems to recognize her unhealthy dependence and almost obsession with her dad—and I was hoping to see that.
Nonetheless, watching her be a boss lady was very satisfying and watching her reclaim her power at the end also gave me lots of satisfaction. I’m big on romance in any story, so while I wanted more at the end, I do understand that it was not the focus of Missy’s story.
I especially loved Missy’s friendship with Preeti. Seeing it blossom and how these girls supported each other was so wholesome and the peak of female friendship. When Missy travels overseas, watching her reconnect with her old friend and explore new places (and come to some big realizations) was another favorite part for me!
And yes, even though it was toxic, I couldn’t help but be drawn in by the ups and downs Missy has with her father. It was messy and, honestly, heartbreaking at times, but seeing flashbacks of her childhood was to me critical in seeing how these interactions shaped her as an adult.
Overall, I liked this one and would recommend it for a quick read!
🎧Mia Hutchinson-Shaw absolutely rocked this audiobook! She is a perfect Missy and nailed other voices, specifically several with accents. Highly recommend the audio for this one!
October 5, 2026
When I found out Jane Green was publishing a new book, I was SO excited. Her last novel came out in 2022, and I've had this one on hold at the library for MONTHS. It finally came in this week and… I flew through it.
Jane Green was one of the very first authors I fell in love with when I started reading regularly in college. I loved her “chick lit,” looked forward to every new release, and eventually read my way through her entire backlist. I've even been lucky enough to meet her TWICE!
One of those times is a story I still love. I was working at a publishing company where Jane had a book, and she came in for an employee book talk and signing. Somehow, I got to spend the day being her “assistant.” It was such a fun experience and definitely one of those bookish memories I'll never forget.
So yes… I have a soft spot for Jane Green.
And her newest book reminded me exactly why.
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke follows Missy, a woman who has spent much of her life putting everyone else first. As she looks back on the different versions of herself and the people she's loved along the way and she begins to question whether the life she's living is really the life she wants.
It's a story about friendship, family, love, aging, regret, second chances and, perhaps most importantly, figuring out who you are when you stop living entirely for everyone else.
There was something so comforting about reading Jane Green again. It felt a little like reconnecting with an old friend and I think that's why I enjoyed this one so much.
Sometimes a book isn't just about the story. Sometimes it's about when you found an author, what they meant to you during a certain chapter of your life, and the feeling you get when they remind you why you loved reading them in the first place.
Jane Green was one of the very first authors I fell in love with when I started reading regularly in college. I loved her “chick lit,” looked forward to every new release, and eventually read my way through her entire backlist. I've even been lucky enough to meet her TWICE!
One of those times is a story I still love. I was working at a publishing company where Jane had a book, and she came in for an employee book talk and signing. Somehow, I got to spend the day being her “assistant.” It was such a fun experience and definitely one of those bookish memories I'll never forget.
So yes… I have a soft spot for Jane Green.
And her newest book reminded me exactly why.
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke follows Missy, a woman who has spent much of her life putting everyone else first. As she looks back on the different versions of herself and the people she's loved along the way and she begins to question whether the life she's living is really the life she wants.
It's a story about friendship, family, love, aging, regret, second chances and, perhaps most importantly, figuring out who you are when you stop living entirely for everyone else.
There was something so comforting about reading Jane Green again. It felt a little like reconnecting with an old friend and I think that's why I enjoyed this one so much.
Sometimes a book isn't just about the story. Sometimes it's about when you found an author, what they meant to you during a certain chapter of your life, and the feeling you get when they remind you why you loved reading them in the first place.
October 4, 2026
Missy Cooke had a tough childhood. Living with a depressed divorced mother who hates the father she adores. Her father is a brilliant tech giant, loved by all but feared for his loud, rude outbursts. Missy lives her whole life craving her father’s approval and love. Now a Harvard Graduate, Missy is working for her father, still seeking his approval. She suddenly finds herself leading the company after her father faces a health emergency. Forced into the world of board meetings, office politics and hidden agendas, she quickly learns that not everyone has her father’s company’s or her best interest at heart.
I haven’t read a book by this author in a little while, so I was looking forward to it. This started out slow as a family drama which seemed to take up the first half. Once it became current with the corporate issues, I became more invested. The author made the characters so unlikable that I had a hard time warming up to them. I was happy to see Missy finally find her voice and her passion. I really enjoyed Missy’s friendship and deep connection with Lucy and Preeti.
Thanks to Hanover Square Press and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC. This is my honest opinion.
I haven’t read a book by this author in a little while, so I was looking forward to it. This started out slow as a family drama which seemed to take up the first half. Once it became current with the corporate issues, I became more invested. The author made the characters so unlikable that I had a hard time warming up to them. I was happy to see Missy finally find her voice and her passion. I really enjoyed Missy’s friendship and deep connection with Lucy and Preeti.
Thanks to Hanover Square Press and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC. This is my honest opinion.
October 7, 2026
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cook was not what I expected based on the title. It was really just about Missy as an adult making her way at her dad's company. I was expecting so much more of a character transformation story so I was left extremely disappointed.
The book did have flashbacks to her childhood, but those didn't really get to the heart of who she was.
The book did have flashbacks to her childhood, but those didn't really get to the heart of who she was.
September 4, 2026
This book was highly anticipated by me, and it did not disappoint.
Jane Green has a way with words that makes it impossible not to get lost in the story. Reading this felt like an experience I just didn’t want to end.
Captivating, beautifully written, and unforgettable, I completely fell in love with Missy’s character. Her journey is about family, belonging, expectations, finding your own voice, and figuring out who you really are when you’ve spent so much of your life trying to live up to someone else’s expectations.
Missy’s story stayed with me, and I know she’s going to be one of those characters I won’t forget anytime soon.
Jane Green has a way with words that makes it impossible not to get lost in the story. Reading this felt like an experience I just didn’t want to end.
Captivating, beautifully written, and unforgettable, I completely fell in love with Missy’s character. Her journey is about family, belonging, expectations, finding your own voice, and figuring out who you really are when you’ve spent so much of your life trying to live up to someone else’s expectations.
Missy’s story stayed with me, and I know she’s going to be one of those characters I won’t forget anytime soon.
October 1, 2026
Missy Cooke is fourteen when her father agrees to furnish her bedroom. She has kept a catalogue in a drawer for months. She chooses the loft bed with the steps, the furry chair, the pink rug and the dressing table with the oval mirror, and a colleague takes her shopping because her father has a meeting. When he gets home he stands in the doorway and says the room looks like a giant cupcake. Within a second she is seeing it through his eyes, hating all of it, wishing she had chosen black. The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green is full of small scenes like that, and they are the reason to read it.
How The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke Is Built
The novel runs on two strands wired together. The present strand is first person, present tense: Missy at twenty-nine, four years into a job at her father's company, drinking a bit too much at parties her best friend throws. The childhood strand is past tense, and never arrives as a flashback for its own sake. It arrives because something has just happened.
Her father orders sushi without asking, knowing she does not eat it, and the memory that follows is of him bagging up a pizza slice she had barely breathed on and driving her home because she had a sore throat. He calls her a fucking idiot in a burger restaurant, and the memory is of her mother screaming down a phone he calmly unplugs. The mechanism is simple and used with discipline: the slight would read as minor alone; the childhood scene makes it land as hard as it lands on her.
It is also why the book's central lesson works. Her father tells her, on a bench outside an ice cream shop, that most people treat you as badly as you allow them to. Two hundred pages later her mother says the same thing at the worst moment of her life, and it does not feel like a bow being tied, because we have watched both of them live it from opposite ends.
The Portrait at the Centre
Marty Cooke is the reason this novel is better than its plot. He arrives in a Mustang when you are five, tells you scars are cool so you stop hiding yours, buys the convertible you have been saving for and pretends the keys were left in the ignition, then tosses you his own keys and tells you to drive faster past a parked police car. He also withholds child support to punish your mother, cannot be surprised by a gift, and puts out a family Christmas card with his wife, his baby and the cat on it, without noticing you are not.
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green refuses to reconcile those two men, which is the correct decision. His rages are short, and because they are short he refuses to believe anyone was frightened. His daughter cannot tell whether he knows what he does to people, and the book leaves it there.
The result is a narrator with a precise kind of damage. She is not weak: she wins the company's biggest deal by throwing out the prepared figures and talking instead about educating girls. She simply cannot hold on to having done it. Two pages later a photographer makes her ashamed of eating a strawberry.
Missy Cooke, Jane Green, and the Boardroom Half
The diagnosis arrives at the end of Part I of The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green. Stage 4 lung cancer, in the bones, terminal, an experimental clinic in Switzerland as the one option, and Missy installed as interim CEO because, her father says, she is the person he trusts most.
Part II changes genre, and gets weaker. Her father's first employee sets about undermining her, and the campaign is competently built: an email address mistyped by one letter so she misses her own meetings, senior discussions held without her, a borrowed outfit pressed on her for a photoshoot that becomes the evidence against her in print. The hatchet job is well done, down to the invented manicure and the colleague quoted anonymously on her clothes.
But the antagonist is a device, not a person. Her motive is never stated, and her turn is signalled cosmetically: new highlights, new cheekbones, shorter hems, a darker perfume the narrator points out. Signalling corruption with a makeover is beneath a novelist this good at small humiliations.
Where The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke Gives Ground
Four things hold The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green back.
The corporate machinery will not survive a reader who knows any. Thirty-three per cent is a blocking stake, and she is introduced from the stage as the majority shareholder. A vote called from the floor does not install a chief executive. The decisive evidence comes out of a rival's inbox, and the narrator says outright that she does not know how.
A number changes. The projected profit on the new product is $806 million for most of the book and $906 million in the final speech.
The romance is deferred almost entirely. The childhood crush reappears, is written with real charge, gets one scene at the least defensible moment available, and leaves. The book closes on an unsent text message.
The ending is one slideshow. Everything withheld for three hundred pages comes out in one meeting, and the room turns on cue.
Read It If, Skip It If
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green suits a particular reader.
Read it if:
You want a father-daughter portrait with specific cruelty in it, not a monster and not a teddy bear.
You like a narrator who is competent in public and demolished in private, and want the childhood that explains the gap.
You have enjoyed this author before. The voice is warm, the pages turn, and the food and houses are described with pleasure.
Skip it if:
Boardroom plotting that does not hold up will spoil a book for you.
You want the romance the cover copy implies; it is barely there.
You would rather not read a dying parent in intensive care.
Content Notes
A parent's terminal cancer, sepsis and death, with sustained scenes in intensive care. A mother's bipolar illness, long depressive episodes, and medication she abandons. Child labour in mining, and a seven-year-old's death in a shaft collapse. A sedative used heavily for grief, and a sexual encounter the narrator cannot clearly recall. Infidelity. Recreational drug use. A controlling partner. Press intrusion. Frequent profanity, including a misogynistic slur used repeatedly between friends.
What Stays With You
The bequest tells you what The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green is really doing. Of an estate that includes houses and a yacht, the daughter gets a motorcycle, a third of the stock and an old steel watch. It is a Rolex Daytona of the kind Paul Newman made famous, given to her father by Newman after a donation to his camp for seriously ill children, and it is the watch he used to throw into the deep end so she could dive for it. She is left the thing she once swam to the bottom for, because retrieving it was how she got him to keep looking at her.
And then the photograph. The image everyone associates with her father shows him throwing a ball, his gaze slightly off camera. The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green has that picture enlarged in front of two thousand people, and standing at the edge of the uncropped frame, in the same jeans and striped T-shirt, arms out for the ball, is his toddler daughter. He was looking at her the whole time. It is the best thing in the novel, and it very nearly carries the plot around it.
How The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke Is Built
The novel runs on two strands wired together. The present strand is first person, present tense: Missy at twenty-nine, four years into a job at her father's company, drinking a bit too much at parties her best friend throws. The childhood strand is past tense, and never arrives as a flashback for its own sake. It arrives because something has just happened.
Her father orders sushi without asking, knowing she does not eat it, and the memory that follows is of him bagging up a pizza slice she had barely breathed on and driving her home because she had a sore throat. He calls her a fucking idiot in a burger restaurant, and the memory is of her mother screaming down a phone he calmly unplugs. The mechanism is simple and used with discipline: the slight would read as minor alone; the childhood scene makes it land as hard as it lands on her.
It is also why the book's central lesson works. Her father tells her, on a bench outside an ice cream shop, that most people treat you as badly as you allow them to. Two hundred pages later her mother says the same thing at the worst moment of her life, and it does not feel like a bow being tied, because we have watched both of them live it from opposite ends.
The Portrait at the Centre
Marty Cooke is the reason this novel is better than its plot. He arrives in a Mustang when you are five, tells you scars are cool so you stop hiding yours, buys the convertible you have been saving for and pretends the keys were left in the ignition, then tosses you his own keys and tells you to drive faster past a parked police car. He also withholds child support to punish your mother, cannot be surprised by a gift, and puts out a family Christmas card with his wife, his baby and the cat on it, without noticing you are not.
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green refuses to reconcile those two men, which is the correct decision. His rages are short, and because they are short he refuses to believe anyone was frightened. His daughter cannot tell whether he knows what he does to people, and the book leaves it there.
The result is a narrator with a precise kind of damage. She is not weak: she wins the company's biggest deal by throwing out the prepared figures and talking instead about educating girls. She simply cannot hold on to having done it. Two pages later a photographer makes her ashamed of eating a strawberry.
Missy Cooke, Jane Green, and the Boardroom Half
The diagnosis arrives at the end of Part I of The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green. Stage 4 lung cancer, in the bones, terminal, an experimental clinic in Switzerland as the one option, and Missy installed as interim CEO because, her father says, she is the person he trusts most.
Part II changes genre, and gets weaker. Her father's first employee sets about undermining her, and the campaign is competently built: an email address mistyped by one letter so she misses her own meetings, senior discussions held without her, a borrowed outfit pressed on her for a photoshoot that becomes the evidence against her in print. The hatchet job is well done, down to the invented manicure and the colleague quoted anonymously on her clothes.
But the antagonist is a device, not a person. Her motive is never stated, and her turn is signalled cosmetically: new highlights, new cheekbones, shorter hems, a darker perfume the narrator points out. Signalling corruption with a makeover is beneath a novelist this good at small humiliations.
Where The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke Gives Ground
Four things hold The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green back.
The corporate machinery will not survive a reader who knows any. Thirty-three per cent is a blocking stake, and she is introduced from the stage as the majority shareholder. A vote called from the floor does not install a chief executive. The decisive evidence comes out of a rival's inbox, and the narrator says outright that she does not know how.
A number changes. The projected profit on the new product is $806 million for most of the book and $906 million in the final speech.
The romance is deferred almost entirely. The childhood crush reappears, is written with real charge, gets one scene at the least defensible moment available, and leaves. The book closes on an unsent text message.
The ending is one slideshow. Everything withheld for three hundred pages comes out in one meeting, and the room turns on cue.
Read It If, Skip It If
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green suits a particular reader.
Read it if:
You want a father-daughter portrait with specific cruelty in it, not a monster and not a teddy bear.
You like a narrator who is competent in public and demolished in private, and want the childhood that explains the gap.
You have enjoyed this author before. The voice is warm, the pages turn, and the food and houses are described with pleasure.
Skip it if:
Boardroom plotting that does not hold up will spoil a book for you.
You want the romance the cover copy implies; it is barely there.
You would rather not read a dying parent in intensive care.
Content Notes
A parent's terminal cancer, sepsis and death, with sustained scenes in intensive care. A mother's bipolar illness, long depressive episodes, and medication she abandons. Child labour in mining, and a seven-year-old's death in a shaft collapse. A sedative used heavily for grief, and a sexual encounter the narrator cannot clearly recall. Infidelity. Recreational drug use. A controlling partner. Press intrusion. Frequent profanity, including a misogynistic slur used repeatedly between friends.
What Stays With You
The bequest tells you what The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green is really doing. Of an estate that includes houses and a yacht, the daughter gets a motorcycle, a third of the stock and an old steel watch. It is a Rolex Daytona of the kind Paul Newman made famous, given to her father by Newman after a donation to his camp for seriously ill children, and it is the watch he used to throw into the deep end so she could dive for it. She is left the thing she once swam to the bottom for, because retrieving it was how she got him to keep looking at her.
And then the photograph. The image everyone associates with her father shows him throwing a ball, his gaze slightly off camera. The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green has that picture enlarged in front of two thousand people, and standing at the edge of the uncropped frame, in the same jeans and striped T-shirt, arms out for the ball, is his toddler daughter. He was looking at her the whole time. It is the best thing in the novel, and it very nearly carries the plot around it.
September 1, 2026
I wish to thank the publisher and author for providing me with an eARC of this book.
"The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke" is the first book I’ve read by Jane Green. I thought the premise sounded interesting: take the child of a tech titan, pull her out of the shadow of her parent, and have her forge her own path. The beginning felt a lot like a nod to the stories about Steve Jobs’s relationship with his daughter Lisa. (Side note: I do have "Small Fry" on my TBR. Maybe I’ll punt it up a bit.)
For roughly the first 40% of the book, Green is setting up Missy’s life: she has a Harvard degree (although what she actually studied is never stated), her best friend is fantastic and always there for her, her mother is great when she's there, and she becomes involved with her father’s company. Then the actual plot kicks in. There’s a crisis, her father becomes seriously ill, and Missy is suddenly made interim CEO of his company at his suggestion.
A bit of a stretch? Sure. But possibly plausible ... maybe.
And honestly, the book did become more interesting at that point because now there was some forward movement. Is Dad going to be okay? What’s going to happen with the business? Missy's boyfriend is okay, but Lucy's brother's back in the picture - new romance? What is actually going on inside the company?
Unfortunately, this is also where the book began to fall apart for me.
The second half starts reading less like a family drama and more like a tech/corporate thriller, complete with secrets, villains, financial irregularities, and twists I could see coming from a mile away. That wasn’t necessarily bad. The problem was that once the corporate material became central to the plot, I kept getting bogged down in details that felt so off they pulled me out of the story.
The Wall Street Journal interview, for example: what the what? The supposedly damaging article inventories Missy’s designer clothes, compares her to Kim Kardashian, comments on her body, and sneers at her office décor. That did not read like a WSJ business profile to me. Maybe WSJ Magazine. Maybe Vogue. Maybe a tabloid hit piece. But the Journal? Nope.
Then there are the financial irregularities Missy discovers largely by herself—no auditors, no accounting department, no controller, apparently nobody helping the brand-new interim CEO interpret the company’s finances. At one point, the explanation for a jump in projected revenue is that manufacturing costs will be lower after production moves to another country. But revenue is sales. Lower production costs affect expenses and potentially profits, not revenue itself. That is pretty basic Business 101.
The novel also seems to think shareholders have more direct power than they actually do. Shareholders become this vague all-purpose corporate authority whenever the plot needs one. They’re suddenly meeting with executives because the stock price falls, and later they vocally nominate Missy to remain CEO. Meanwhile, I kept wondering: where is the board? If Missy’s father wants her installed as interim CEO, doesn’t the board need to approve that? And why wouldn’t one of Missy’s first meetings be with them?
None of those things would have bothered me much if the company were just background scenery. But accounting, corporate governance, global manufacturing, and company ethics become major parts of the plot, so the details started to matter. Instead of being swept up in the story, I kept stopping to wonder whether this was actually how any of it would work.
I also had a smaller issue with the book’s time jumps. At one point Missy is thinking about a past experience, but the memory goes on for so long that I forgot it wasn’t happening in the present. When the narrative suddenly returned to the current timeline, it felt like a bit of whiplash.
For me, "The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke" had an interesting premise and actually became more readable once the plot started moving, but the corporate-thriller portion needed a stronger grounding in how a large public company actually works. The ending should have felt great—the plucky underestimated person gets the job done, the bad person is ousted, and all ends well—but by then I had gotten too distracted by the details that didn’t ring true to fully enjoy the payoff.
The reason I'm giving it two stars is because, for me, the first 40% of the book dragged a bit, it picked up around then but then I became bogged down in minor things that it remained at 3 stars for a while ... and then, well, I realized that overall this book was literally "okay." Not great, but okay. I think others will enjoy it, it has a lot of potential, but for me, getting those little details right matter ... and I'm not a business person at all, but those need some fixing, if possible.
"The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke" is the first book I’ve read by Jane Green. I thought the premise sounded interesting: take the child of a tech titan, pull her out of the shadow of her parent, and have her forge her own path. The beginning felt a lot like a nod to the stories about Steve Jobs’s relationship with his daughter Lisa. (Side note: I do have "Small Fry" on my TBR. Maybe I’ll punt it up a bit.)
For roughly the first 40% of the book, Green is setting up Missy’s life: she has a Harvard degree (although what she actually studied is never stated), her best friend is fantastic and always there for her, her mother is great when she's there, and she becomes involved with her father’s company. Then the actual plot kicks in. There’s a crisis, her father becomes seriously ill, and Missy is suddenly made interim CEO of his company at his suggestion.
A bit of a stretch? Sure. But possibly plausible ... maybe.
And honestly, the book did become more interesting at that point because now there was some forward movement. Is Dad going to be okay? What’s going to happen with the business? Missy's boyfriend is okay, but Lucy's brother's back in the picture - new romance? What is actually going on inside the company?
Unfortunately, this is also where the book began to fall apart for me.
The second half starts reading less like a family drama and more like a tech/corporate thriller, complete with secrets, villains, financial irregularities, and twists I could see coming from a mile away. That wasn’t necessarily bad. The problem was that once the corporate material became central to the plot, I kept getting bogged down in details that felt so off they pulled me out of the story.
The Wall Street Journal interview, for example: what the what? The supposedly damaging article inventories Missy’s designer clothes, compares her to Kim Kardashian, comments on her body, and sneers at her office décor. That did not read like a WSJ business profile to me. Maybe WSJ Magazine. Maybe Vogue. Maybe a tabloid hit piece. But the Journal? Nope.
Then there are the financial irregularities Missy discovers largely by herself—no auditors, no accounting department, no controller, apparently nobody helping the brand-new interim CEO interpret the company’s finances. At one point, the explanation for a jump in projected revenue is that manufacturing costs will be lower after production moves to another country. But revenue is sales. Lower production costs affect expenses and potentially profits, not revenue itself. That is pretty basic Business 101.
The novel also seems to think shareholders have more direct power than they actually do. Shareholders become this vague all-purpose corporate authority whenever the plot needs one. They’re suddenly meeting with executives because the stock price falls, and later they vocally nominate Missy to remain CEO. Meanwhile, I kept wondering: where is the board? If Missy’s father wants her installed as interim CEO, doesn’t the board need to approve that? And why wouldn’t one of Missy’s first meetings be with them?
None of those things would have bothered me much if the company were just background scenery. But accounting, corporate governance, global manufacturing, and company ethics become major parts of the plot, so the details started to matter. Instead of being swept up in the story, I kept stopping to wonder whether this was actually how any of it would work.
I also had a smaller issue with the book’s time jumps. At one point Missy is thinking about a past experience, but the memory goes on for so long that I forgot it wasn’t happening in the present. When the narrative suddenly returned to the current timeline, it felt like a bit of whiplash.
For me, "The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke" had an interesting premise and actually became more readable once the plot started moving, but the corporate-thriller portion needed a stronger grounding in how a large public company actually works. The ending should have felt great—the plucky underestimated person gets the job done, the bad person is ousted, and all ends well—but by then I had gotten too distracted by the details that didn’t ring true to fully enjoy the payoff.
The reason I'm giving it two stars is because, for me, the first 40% of the book dragged a bit, it picked up around then but then I became bogged down in minor things that it remained at 3 stars for a while ... and then, well, I realized that overall this book was literally "okay." Not great, but okay. I think others will enjoy it, it has a lot of potential, but for me, getting those little details right matter ... and I'm not a business person at all, but those need some fixing, if possible.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I’ve read a few of Jane Green’s books in the past and have enjoyed them. I was excited to see a new book being published since it’s been a few years that I’ve read anything from her. I must say I was engaged from the first chapter. This is the story of Missy who was raised by her Mom after her Father left them. Missy has been trying her whole life to gain the love of her Dad. He happens to be a fabulously wealthy founder of a successful tech company. Missy’s journey to adulthood and her eventual career at her Dad’s firm was both heartbreaking and triumphant. How she navigates the perils of both her personal and professional life kept me invested. An excellent page turner for sure. Many thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
‘The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke’ is about identity, family expectations, grief, and learning to step into your own life. As a longtime reader of Jane Green's work, I was particularly interested in this novel, and while I appreciated its themes and found it an enjoyable read overall, I struggled to connect with the story in the way I have with some of Green's earlier novels.
The novel centers on Missy Cooke, the daughter of a wealthy technology executive who has spent much of her life navigating a complicated relationship with her father and the expectations that come with his legacy. When her father becomes seriously ill and unexpectedly asks Missy to step into his role as interim CEO, she is forced into a world for which she feels completely unprepared. As she navigates corporate politics, family relationships, romantic complications, and questions surrounding her father's company, Missy must ultimately determine what kind of life (and leader) she wants to become.
The strongest aspect of the novel for me was its exploration of Missy's personal growth. Her struggle to separate her own identity and ambitions from her father's expectations is relatable, and I appreciated watching her gradually become more confident in making decisions for herself. The novel also touches on several larger issues, including privilege, corporate responsibility, and child labor, which gave the story an opportunity to explore questions beyond Missy's immediate circumstances.
However, I often felt that the novel introduced more ideas than it fully developed. The story moves between family drama, corporate fiction, romance, social issues, and a coming-of-age narrative, and I sometimes found myself unsure which direction the story ultimately wanted to prioritize. Several potentially impactful storylines were introduced but handled fairly lightly, leaving me wanting more depth and development.
The pacing was also a challenge for me. The beginning felt quite slow, and I struggled to become invested in Missy's life and circumstances. Around the 30% mark, however, the story began to gain momentum, and I found the second half much easier to engage with. The introduction of the childhood friend and romantic storyline added another layer to Missy's journey, although I appreciated that romance remained secondary to her personal development.
I found the title somewhat misleading. The phrase "private lives" initially suggested that Missy was living multiple secret lives or concealing significant parts of herself from those around her. The story is more about the different roles and environments that make up her life: family, work, friendships, travel, and personal relationships; rather than separate lives that she keeps hidden.
While I wouldn't consider this one of Jane Green's strongest novels, I still found it to be a pleasant read. Green's earlier novels, including Jemima J, Bookends, and Mr. Maybe, helped establish many of the themes and styles that have become staples of contemporary women's fiction and romance, and I continue to have a great deal of appreciation for her body of work.
For longtime Jane Green readers, I think this will be a worthwhile addition to her catalog, particularly for those interested in stories about self-discovery, complicated family relationships, and finding the confidence to define your own life. It may not have had the emotional or literary impact I was hoping for, but it was ultimately an enjoyable, thought-provoking, and easy read.
‘The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke’ is about identity, family expectations, grief, and learning to step into your own life. As a longtime reader of Jane Green's work, I was particularly interested in this novel, and while I appreciated its themes and found it an enjoyable read overall, I struggled to connect with the story in the way I have with some of Green's earlier novels.
The novel centers on Missy Cooke, the daughter of a wealthy technology executive who has spent much of her life navigating a complicated relationship with her father and the expectations that come with his legacy. When her father becomes seriously ill and unexpectedly asks Missy to step into his role as interim CEO, she is forced into a world for which she feels completely unprepared. As she navigates corporate politics, family relationships, romantic complications, and questions surrounding her father's company, Missy must ultimately determine what kind of life (and leader) she wants to become.
The strongest aspect of the novel for me was its exploration of Missy's personal growth. Her struggle to separate her own identity and ambitions from her father's expectations is relatable, and I appreciated watching her gradually become more confident in making decisions for herself. The novel also touches on several larger issues, including privilege, corporate responsibility, and child labor, which gave the story an opportunity to explore questions beyond Missy's immediate circumstances.
However, I often felt that the novel introduced more ideas than it fully developed. The story moves between family drama, corporate fiction, romance, social issues, and a coming-of-age narrative, and I sometimes found myself unsure which direction the story ultimately wanted to prioritize. Several potentially impactful storylines were introduced but handled fairly lightly, leaving me wanting more depth and development.
The pacing was also a challenge for me. The beginning felt quite slow, and I struggled to become invested in Missy's life and circumstances. Around the 30% mark, however, the story began to gain momentum, and I found the second half much easier to engage with. The introduction of the childhood friend and romantic storyline added another layer to Missy's journey, although I appreciated that romance remained secondary to her personal development.
I found the title somewhat misleading. The phrase "private lives" initially suggested that Missy was living multiple secret lives or concealing significant parts of herself from those around her. The story is more about the different roles and environments that make up her life: family, work, friendships, travel, and personal relationships; rather than separate lives that she keeps hidden.
While I wouldn't consider this one of Jane Green's strongest novels, I still found it to be a pleasant read. Green's earlier novels, including Jemima J, Bookends, and Mr. Maybe, helped establish many of the themes and styles that have become staples of contemporary women's fiction and romance, and I continue to have a great deal of appreciation for her body of work.
For longtime Jane Green readers, I think this will be a worthwhile addition to her catalog, particularly for those interested in stories about self-discovery, complicated family relationships, and finding the confidence to define your own life. It may not have had the emotional or literary impact I was hoping for, but it was ultimately an enjoyable, thought-provoking, and easy read.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
There was a lot of food for thought for me in Jane Green’s latest, The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke.
Missy is the daughter of tech superstar Marty Cooke, founder of ipryy. Though brilliant, Marty is also self absorbed, has a legendary temper, petty, and doesn’t like having to deal with problems that don’t interest him, which is why Missy primarily lives with her mother on a shoestring budget and only sees her father when it’s convenient for him.
Without the child support he can easily afford to pay and doesn’t, Missy lives a life of limited means while idolizing her father and jumping at any chance to spend time with him. And as an adult she’s much the same way, subject to his temper, eager to please, and rarely willing to speak up when he makes decisions for her.
Then to Missy’s surprise, Marty tells her that he has to step away from running the company and that he’s appointing her CEO in his place, and it leaves Missy not only thinking about her relationship with her father, but having to look with a fresh set of eyes at her mentor Clara and her boyfriend Jerome, who both serve in leadership roles at the company.
Green puts Missy in the interesting position of having a famous, rich father people fall all over themselves to have the approval of, but yet she is mostly raised in a completely different environment and would be the last example you could think of for nepotism.
This also sets her up to seek his approval so desperately that she always does what he wants and tucks away the parts of herself he doesn’t want to see, even though she could provide a more thoughtful and considered approach to running the company.
What happens when he steps away will probably not be surprising to most people, as Missy gets a chance to see life from Marty’s point of view and deals with the repercussions of the power vacuum that is created when his controlling personality is no longer present.
Unlike her father, Missy is a genuinely good person who not only gets satisfaction from what ipryy can offer people, but sees it as an opportunity to give back as well. Also unlike her dad, she’s more than a bit naive, isn’t concerned about her image, and doesn’t expect people to grovel to her.
Between her naïveté and her desperate need to be liked and wanted by her dad, I didn’t always like Missy in the first part of the book, but she grew on me as she became a little more world wise and was willing to express herself and stand up for the things she believed in.
Some of the supporting characters are one of the more enjoyable parts of the book. I loved Nasreen and Preeti, and after finding Jerome to be dull and spineless for most of the book, I was pleasantly surprised with his development by the end of the story. Most people will probably get a kick out of Missy’s best friend and roommate Lucy, who is an extroverted, outspoken influencer, but the concept of people making a career out of social media posts and appearances at parties is wearing rather thin for me and I tend to stay away from books where it is a major plot line.
Missy’s relationship with her father, the special treatment he had people like him receive, and what happens to Missy after she takes the helm help elevate this book beyond the basic daddy issues storyline, and would be great discussion topics for a book club.
A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Missy is the daughter of tech superstar Marty Cooke, founder of ipryy. Though brilliant, Marty is also self absorbed, has a legendary temper, petty, and doesn’t like having to deal with problems that don’t interest him, which is why Missy primarily lives with her mother on a shoestring budget and only sees her father when it’s convenient for him.
Without the child support he can easily afford to pay and doesn’t, Missy lives a life of limited means while idolizing her father and jumping at any chance to spend time with him. And as an adult she’s much the same way, subject to his temper, eager to please, and rarely willing to speak up when he makes decisions for her.
Then to Missy’s surprise, Marty tells her that he has to step away from running the company and that he’s appointing her CEO in his place, and it leaves Missy not only thinking about her relationship with her father, but having to look with a fresh set of eyes at her mentor Clara and her boyfriend Jerome, who both serve in leadership roles at the company.
Green puts Missy in the interesting position of having a famous, rich father people fall all over themselves to have the approval of, but yet she is mostly raised in a completely different environment and would be the last example you could think of for nepotism.
This also sets her up to seek his approval so desperately that she always does what he wants and tucks away the parts of herself he doesn’t want to see, even though she could provide a more thoughtful and considered approach to running the company.
What happens when he steps away will probably not be surprising to most people, as Missy gets a chance to see life from Marty’s point of view and deals with the repercussions of the power vacuum that is created when his controlling personality is no longer present.
Unlike her father, Missy is a genuinely good person who not only gets satisfaction from what ipryy can offer people, but sees it as an opportunity to give back as well. Also unlike her dad, she’s more than a bit naive, isn’t concerned about her image, and doesn’t expect people to grovel to her.
Between her naïveté and her desperate need to be liked and wanted by her dad, I didn’t always like Missy in the first part of the book, but she grew on me as she became a little more world wise and was willing to express herself and stand up for the things she believed in.
Some of the supporting characters are one of the more enjoyable parts of the book. I loved Nasreen and Preeti, and after finding Jerome to be dull and spineless for most of the book, I was pleasantly surprised with his development by the end of the story. Most people will probably get a kick out of Missy’s best friend and roommate Lucy, who is an extroverted, outspoken influencer, but the concept of people making a career out of social media posts and appearances at parties is wearing rather thin for me and I tend to stay away from books where it is a major plot line.
Missy’s relationship with her father, the special treatment he had people like him receive, and what happens to Missy after she takes the helm help elevate this book beyond the basic daddy issues storyline, and would be great discussion topics for a book club.
A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I have been a fan of Jane Green since Jemima J. Some of her books have really struck a chord and stayed with me through the years, others didn't hit for me. Unfortunately, this is one of the ones that is just not my taste. Missy Cooke has a tech dad (think Steve Jobs or Elon Musk) who was only interested in her mom because she played hard to get. He lives by strict rules that are ever changing, but not in a neurodivergent way- just in a rich douche way. Missy constantly work for his approval- contorting herself to be what she needs. She also gets mad at others when they are interested in her dad and feels used quite quickly. She has an amazing best friend and a shitty lacky boyfriend. She is immature and unlikeable. I understand that the author wanted her to grow- but give us something to start with.
This whole book sounds like her publishing house pitched her to write a book that speaks to Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow combined with Daisy Jones and the Six vibes, meets a Laura Dave suspense novel (eg. The Night We Lost Him), but for Gen Z (but not authentic Gen Z- them through the lens of Gen X). The tone of this book was off. The pacing was all over the place. The first 1/3 is just her telling stories. "Show don't tell" was one of the first things I learned in creative writing class in college. The first person POV doesn't work when the main character doesn't want to see inside of herself. This could have been helped with a third person omniscient narrator- scenes could have unfolded, rather than be told to the reader. I am also uncertain of the genre of this book. Is it literary fiction or corporate suspense? It just wasn't for me. I am all for authors trying new genres. This book just needed a stronger editing hand, or a stronger concept. I will still pick up Jane Green books, but this one wasn't a favorite. Read any of the aforementioned books instead. 2 stars. Thanks to Net Galley and Hanover Square Press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
This whole book sounds like her publishing house pitched her to write a book that speaks to Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow combined with Daisy Jones and the Six vibes, meets a Laura Dave suspense novel (eg. The Night We Lost Him), but for Gen Z (but not authentic Gen Z- them through the lens of Gen X). The tone of this book was off. The pacing was all over the place. The first 1/3 is just her telling stories. "Show don't tell" was one of the first things I learned in creative writing class in college. The first person POV doesn't work when the main character doesn't want to see inside of herself. This could have been helped with a third person omniscient narrator- scenes could have unfolded, rather than be told to the reader. I am also uncertain of the genre of this book. Is it literary fiction or corporate suspense? It just wasn't for me. I am all for authors trying new genres. This book just needed a stronger editing hand, or a stronger concept. I will still pick up Jane Green books, but this one wasn't a favorite. Read any of the aforementioned books instead. 2 stars. Thanks to Net Galley and Hanover Square Press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to Harlequin Audio and Hanover Square Press for the gifted physical ARC and gifted ALC.
Overall I will say I enjoyed this read. I think if you have a complicated relationship with a parent, especially a father, this might resonate with you. The audio for this was really nicely done as well, I loved the tone and inflections that Mia Hutchinson-Shaw brought to the characters. They all seemed to have their own vibes and I loved that, I listened to this at 2x speed and it was perfect, I would absolutely recommend this audiobook. I was fortunate to receive a physical copy of this as well and I did an immersive read and the audio did really enhance it in a fun way. I would give this a 3.5 star rating, rounding up to 4 stars for Goodreads.
This is a story about a young woman who just desperately wants approval and love from her father who wasn't fully present with her growing up. She is just so hyper fixated on doing things that he would be proud of and give her praise for. It's almost her whole identity in the beginning. She does evolve a bit through the story, but her relationship with her father just made me so frustrated. With her and with her father. Yes, he is not the most present or loving parent but there were points where I just wanted to shake Missy and tell her to be okay with who she is as a person and stop seeking his validation. But there is growth through the book, it isn't just one note of the same emotions. I did predict what was going to happen pretty early on, the foreshadowing is incredibly strong, but it didn't detract from the book. Sometimes a predictable read is comforting and is a nice "I knew it!" moment. I would recommend it for sure, it was a nice shorter read. This releases September 29th!
*This ARC was given by Hanover Square Press and the ALC was given by Harlequin Audio through NetGalley, all opinions are my own.*
Overall I will say I enjoyed this read. I think if you have a complicated relationship with a parent, especially a father, this might resonate with you. The audio for this was really nicely done as well, I loved the tone and inflections that Mia Hutchinson-Shaw brought to the characters. They all seemed to have their own vibes and I loved that, I listened to this at 2x speed and it was perfect, I would absolutely recommend this audiobook. I was fortunate to receive a physical copy of this as well and I did an immersive read and the audio did really enhance it in a fun way. I would give this a 3.5 star rating, rounding up to 4 stars for Goodreads.
This is a story about a young woman who just desperately wants approval and love from her father who wasn't fully present with her growing up. She is just so hyper fixated on doing things that he would be proud of and give her praise for. It's almost her whole identity in the beginning. She does evolve a bit through the story, but her relationship with her father just made me so frustrated. With her and with her father. Yes, he is not the most present or loving parent but there were points where I just wanted to shake Missy and tell her to be okay with who she is as a person and stop seeking his validation. But there is growth through the book, it isn't just one note of the same emotions. I did predict what was going to happen pretty early on, the foreshadowing is incredibly strong, but it didn't detract from the book. Sometimes a predictable read is comforting and is a nice "I knew it!" moment. I would recommend it for sure, it was a nice shorter read. This releases September 29th!
*This ARC was given by Hanover Square Press and the ALC was given by Harlequin Audio through NetGalley, all opinions are my own.*
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I've been a fan of Jane Green ever since I read Jemima J years ago, so I'm always excited to pick up one of her books. The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke was an enjoyable read, even if the overall plot felt a little familiar at times.
Missy is very much the naïve younger adult who suddenly finds herself taking over the family business without realizing just how many people are intentionally putting obstacles in her path. It was frustrating watching her trust the wrong people for so long, especially considering just how much of a complete slime her mentor turned out to be (her boyfriend was a bit of a spineless weasel as well).
One of my favorite parts of the book was the friendship Missy developed with the owners of the company her business was partnering with. Those relationships felt genuine and supportive, and I found myself looking forward to those scenes. On the other hand, I thought the side plot involving Noah was a bit underdeveloped. There was enough there to make me interested, but I would have loved to see it explored in greater depth.
Missy's lack of self-confidence, rooted in her upbringing and plenty of daddy issues, made her an easy character to empathize with, even when I wanted to shake some sense into her. Watching her gradually find her voice and develop a bit of a spine by the end was satisfying and made her character growth feel earned.
Overall, while this wasn't my favorite Jane Green novel, it was still an engaging story with likable characters, frustrating villains, and a heroine whose journey toward believing in herself made the book worth the read.
Missy is very much the naïve younger adult who suddenly finds herself taking over the family business without realizing just how many people are intentionally putting obstacles in her path. It was frustrating watching her trust the wrong people for so long, especially considering just how much of a complete slime her mentor turned out to be (her boyfriend was a bit of a spineless weasel as well).
One of my favorite parts of the book was the friendship Missy developed with the owners of the company her business was partnering with. Those relationships felt genuine and supportive, and I found myself looking forward to those scenes. On the other hand, I thought the side plot involving Noah was a bit underdeveloped. There was enough there to make me interested, but I would have loved to see it explored in greater depth.
Missy's lack of self-confidence, rooted in her upbringing and plenty of daddy issues, made her an easy character to empathize with, even when I wanted to shake some sense into her. Watching her gradually find her voice and develop a bit of a spine by the end was satisfying and made her character growth feel earned.
Overall, while this wasn't my favorite Jane Green novel, it was still an engaging story with likable characters, frustrating villains, and a heroine whose journey toward believing in herself made the book worth the read.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Jane Green was one of the pioneers of the chick lit genre in the late 1990s and early 2000s, which laid the groundwork for the contemporary women’s fiction that is so popular today. I haven’t read one of her books in about 20 years so I was excited to get this ARC and see how her writing has evolved. Unfortunately this book didn’t do it for me.
The “many lives” in the title implies a repeated remaking or redefining of the character. But she really only has one life - the one in which she’s desperate for the attention, affection, and respect of her demigod tech founder father Marty Cooke, a Steve Jobs type. She gets her opportunity when he develops cancer and names her interim CEO of his global tech privacy juggernaut at just age 29.
This book spends a lot of time in the past. Perhaps it’s necessary to establish Missy’s daddy issues and baggage from her upbringing but it really slows down the momentum of the story. The author establishes pretty quickly why Missy craves her father’s approval and I don’t think all the flashbacks add to the story.
There are some strong female friendships supporting Missy as she fights to step out of her father’s shadow and come into her own power as a leader, and the emotional arc of the story is genuinely warm. But the corporate scenes and storyline seem like a caricature of real life corporate drama. I really wanted to root for Missy but I wish her story had been set in a more believable corporate setting. Readers who have spent less time in tech company conference rooms than me may not take issue with this though.
Thanks to Hanover Square Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.fogfiction.com or www.instagram.com/fogfiction.
The “many lives” in the title implies a repeated remaking or redefining of the character. But she really only has one life - the one in which she’s desperate for the attention, affection, and respect of her demigod tech founder father Marty Cooke, a Steve Jobs type. She gets her opportunity when he develops cancer and names her interim CEO of his global tech privacy juggernaut at just age 29.
This book spends a lot of time in the past. Perhaps it’s necessary to establish Missy’s daddy issues and baggage from her upbringing but it really slows down the momentum of the story. The author establishes pretty quickly why Missy craves her father’s approval and I don’t think all the flashbacks add to the story.
There are some strong female friendships supporting Missy as she fights to step out of her father’s shadow and come into her own power as a leader, and the emotional arc of the story is genuinely warm. But the corporate scenes and storyline seem like a caricature of real life corporate drama. I really wanted to root for Missy but I wish her story had been set in a more believable corporate setting. Readers who have spent less time in tech company conference rooms than me may not take issue with this though.
Thanks to Hanover Square Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.fogfiction.com or www.instagram.com/fogfiction.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
A propulsive and emotionally poignant novel of self-discovery and resilience.
Missy Cooke is the daughter of the wealthy founder and CEO of ipryy, a tech company. Raised by her mother though, she’s rarely seen her father, Marty Cooke, who’s dedicated his life to his new family and his business. When he finally comes to visit she learns he’s a big star in Silicon Valley. Missy grows up with tech world aspirations that are suddenly thrust on her when her father is taken ill and makes her CEO. Not only must she juggle this new world her personal life gets complicated. Missy takes on her new role and travels to its many locations where she uncovers a devastating secret she must rectify. I will stop here because I don’t want to spoil with summary. Suffice it to say you won’t be disappointed to find out what happens next.
I love Jane Green’s pace, writing and suspense in this novel. I was immediately engaged in Missy’s story. That could be because she’s a great character and Green developed her carefully. Green also made this book very relevant with a topic that should concern all humans - again you have to read the book to appreciate. When Missy emerges from her journey across glittering and dismal settings alike she’s fully realized and at first thwarted quickly becomes reengaged to do business again. Loved that ending - maybe a bit formulaic but oh so good.
I gave this book five stars because of its writing and storytelling, for highlighting a topic that should be and because I do thoroughly enjoyed this read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for granting me access to this fine ARC.
Missy Cooke is the daughter of the wealthy founder and CEO of ipryy, a tech company. Raised by her mother though, she’s rarely seen her father, Marty Cooke, who’s dedicated his life to his new family and his business. When he finally comes to visit she learns he’s a big star in Silicon Valley. Missy grows up with tech world aspirations that are suddenly thrust on her when her father is taken ill and makes her CEO. Not only must she juggle this new world her personal life gets complicated. Missy takes on her new role and travels to its many locations where she uncovers a devastating secret she must rectify. I will stop here because I don’t want to spoil with summary. Suffice it to say you won’t be disappointed to find out what happens next.
I love Jane Green’s pace, writing and suspense in this novel. I was immediately engaged in Missy’s story. That could be because she’s a great character and Green developed her carefully. Green also made this book very relevant with a topic that should concern all humans - again you have to read the book to appreciate. When Missy emerges from her journey across glittering and dismal settings alike she’s fully realized and at first thwarted quickly becomes reengaged to do business again. Loved that ending - maybe a bit formulaic but oh so good.
I gave this book five stars because of its writing and storytelling, for highlighting a topic that should be and because I do thoroughly enjoyed this read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for granting me access to this fine ARC.
September 29, 2026
Missy Cooke is the daughter of the 𝒻𝒶𝓂𝑜𝓊𝓈𝓁𝓎 known tech industry figure Marty Cooke. However, growing up, you would have never known she had a wealthy parent. Growing up in a single-parent home with her mother, Missy didn't live the lavish life her father did, except when he decided to spend time with her. Her mother struggled to make ends meet, and Marty didn't often pay child support.
Now, as an adult, Missy will do whatever she can to impress her father as she works for his company. But when Marty receives an upsetting diagnosis, Missy finds herself as the interim CEO of her father's company. Now, she must prove her worth to those who doubt her, as well as to herself, and embark on her own path to become the leader she knows she is capable of being.
࣪ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪
I'm not usually a reader of lit fic, but something about this cover immediately caught my eye, and I knew I had to give it a try. I switched back and forth between the audiobook and physical copy, and I was surprised by how much this story held my attention. 🎧📖
At times, the story felt a little all over the place, but I was still invested in Missy's journey and wanted to see what kind of leader she would ultimately become.
ᴵ ʰᵃᵗᵉᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ʷᵃʸ ᴹᵃʳᵗʸ ᵗᵃˡᵏᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ᵃⁿᵈ ᵗʳᵉᵃᵗᵉᵈ ᴹⁱˢˢʸ. ᴬᵗ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵃᵐᵉ ᵗⁱᵐᵉ, ᴵ ᶠᵒᵘⁿᵈ ᵐʸˢᵉˡᶠ ʳᵉˡᵃᵗⁱⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᴹⁱˢˢʸ ᵃⁿᵈ ʰᵉʳ ᵈᵉˢᵖᵉʳᵃᵗᵉ ᵈᵉˢⁱʳᵉ ᶠᵒʳ ʰᵉʳ ᶠᵃᵗʰᵉʳ'ˢ ᵃᵖᵖʳᵒᵛᵃˡ. ᴵ ᵈᵒⁿ'ᵗ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵃ ʳᵉˡᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿˢʰⁱᵖ ʷⁱᵗʰ ᵐʸ ᵈᵃᵈ, ᵇᵘᵗ ᴵ ᶜᵃⁿ ʰᵒⁿᵉˢᵗˡʸ ˢᵃʸ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ⁱᶠ ʰᵉ ʰᵃᵈ ᵗʳⁱᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ᵇᵉ ᵃ ᵖᵃʳᵗ ᵒᶠ ᵐʸ ˡⁱᶠᵉ, ᴵ ᵖʳᵒᵇᵃᵇˡʸ ʷᵒᵘˡᵈ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵇᵉᵉⁿ ᵃ ˡᵒᵗ ˡⁱᵏᵉ ᴹⁱˢˢʸ ᵐʸˢᵉˡᶠ.
𝘖𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐'𝘮 𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘥 𝘐 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦! 💕📖
Now, as an adult, Missy will do whatever she can to impress her father as she works for his company. But when Marty receives an upsetting diagnosis, Missy finds herself as the interim CEO of her father's company. Now, she must prove her worth to those who doubt her, as well as to herself, and embark on her own path to become the leader she knows she is capable of being.
࣪ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪ ˖ ⊹ ࣪ ˖⊹ ࣪
I'm not usually a reader of lit fic, but something about this cover immediately caught my eye, and I knew I had to give it a try. I switched back and forth between the audiobook and physical copy, and I was surprised by how much this story held my attention. 🎧📖
At times, the story felt a little all over the place, but I was still invested in Missy's journey and wanted to see what kind of leader she would ultimately become.
ᴵ ʰᵃᵗᵉᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ʷᵃʸ ᴹᵃʳᵗʸ ᵗᵃˡᵏᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ᵃⁿᵈ ᵗʳᵉᵃᵗᵉᵈ ᴹⁱˢˢʸ. ᴬᵗ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵃᵐᵉ ᵗⁱᵐᵉ, ᴵ ᶠᵒᵘⁿᵈ ᵐʸˢᵉˡᶠ ʳᵉˡᵃᵗⁱⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᴹⁱˢˢʸ ᵃⁿᵈ ʰᵉʳ ᵈᵉˢᵖᵉʳᵃᵗᵉ ᵈᵉˢⁱʳᵉ ᶠᵒʳ ʰᵉʳ ᶠᵃᵗʰᵉʳ'ˢ ᵃᵖᵖʳᵒᵛᵃˡ. ᴵ ᵈᵒⁿ'ᵗ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵃ ʳᵉˡᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿˢʰⁱᵖ ʷⁱᵗʰ ᵐʸ ᵈᵃᵈ, ᵇᵘᵗ ᴵ ᶜᵃⁿ ʰᵒⁿᵉˢᵗˡʸ ˢᵃʸ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ⁱᶠ ʰᵉ ʰᵃᵈ ᵗʳⁱᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ᵇᵉ ᵃ ᵖᵃʳᵗ ᵒᶠ ᵐʸ ˡⁱᶠᵉ, ᴵ ᵖʳᵒᵇᵃᵇˡʸ ʷᵒᵘˡᵈ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵇᵉᵉⁿ ᵃ ˡᵒᵗ ˡⁱᵏᵉ ᴹⁱˢˢʸ ᵐʸˢᵉˡᶠ.
𝘖𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐'𝘮 𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘥 𝘐 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦! 💕📖
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Missy Cooke lives under her father’s oppressive shadow- as a tech giant he has created one of the largest, most viable companies in the world. Think of a story along the lines of Steve Jobs and his daughter. However, Missy has been in the media represented as a party girl and a failure- also a nepo-baby. When Missy’s dad learns of a significant illness and he must step back, Missy is given the reins to the company as a symbol of trust by her dad. Her allies and closest friends know that this is a huge challenge that Missy wants to meet head on and prove she’s got both smarts and the brains to handle. Missy ‘reforms’ the way she dresses and acts to create a public image befitting of an upcoming tech scion- so when the media starts pounding her for that, she becomes suspicious. Is someone deliberately trying to sabotage her success and set her up for failure?
Jane Green writes complicated family relationships with grace and talent- she gives us the messy truths we see in the mirror, the ones we don’t and the ones foisted upon us. She’s the best at writing interpersonal relationships- which Missy seems to have a lot of “Lives”, but which is the real Missy? Is Missy simply another nepo-hire who will fail because she’s shallow and incapable or will the real Missy find herself and her strength?
This book should be at the top of your fall reading list- like in 1st place. Thank you to Jane Green and Harlequin Trade/ Hanover Press for allowing me the incredible opportunity to read this free ARC in advance in exchange for an honest review.
#janegreen #libraryninja
Jane Green writes complicated family relationships with grace and talent- she gives us the messy truths we see in the mirror, the ones we don’t and the ones foisted upon us. She’s the best at writing interpersonal relationships- which Missy seems to have a lot of “Lives”, but which is the real Missy? Is Missy simply another nepo-hire who will fail because she’s shallow and incapable or will the real Missy find herself and her strength?
This book should be at the top of your fall reading list- like in 1st place. Thank you to Jane Green and Harlequin Trade/ Hanover Press for allowing me the incredible opportunity to read this free ARC in advance in exchange for an honest review.
#janegreen #libraryninja
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Missy Cooke reads exactly like the first Iron Man movie. If Tony Stark were a woman who never built a suit of armor in a cave. So not exactly, but you get my point. After spending her formative years seeking validation from her rude, disdainful tech-titan father, Marty Cooke, Missy gets named interim CEO when he falls ill. It immediately becomes clear that Marty prepared absolutely no one for this transition, including Missy, triggering a wave of corporate backstabbing, mansplaining, and "they're trying to destroy me, Happy!" melodrama.
While I appreciate the author placing a capable woman in a high-stakes tech power position, I wanted more proof of why she was qualified beyond a vague "Harvard degree". Maybe the shareholders and her colleagues were right to be distrustful. Establishing a specific technical or engineering background, or giving her an MIT degree at the very least, would have grounded her authority much better. Instead, the first half is a rough go for Missy as she lets people track mud all over her before she finally stands up for herself.
The story eventually gets there, and things wrap up reasonably well in the end. It isn’t a neat bow, but it’ll do. Not every female protagonist can be a Pepper Potts, after all.
Thanks to Hanover Square Press, Jane Green (author), and Edelweiss for the digital review copy of The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke. Their generosity did not influence my review.
While I appreciate the author placing a capable woman in a high-stakes tech power position, I wanted more proof of why she was qualified beyond a vague "Harvard degree". Maybe the shareholders and her colleagues were right to be distrustful. Establishing a specific technical or engineering background, or giving her an MIT degree at the very least, would have grounded her authority much better. Instead, the first half is a rough go for Missy as she lets people track mud all over her before she finally stands up for herself.
The story eventually gets there, and things wrap up reasonably well in the end. It isn’t a neat bow, but it’ll do. Not every female protagonist can be a Pepper Potts, after all.
Thanks to Hanover Square Press, Jane Green (author), and Edelweiss for the digital review copy of The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke. Their generosity did not influence my review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
***I received an ARC from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review
Missy Cooke's parent divorced when she was young, and she didn't get to see much of her father, Silicon Valley tech titan Marty Cooke. He was always on the road, so she treasured the time she did get to spend with him. Now, Missy is an adult with aspirations to join the same tech circles as her father. When Marty has to step down from his tech empire, he chooses Missy to take his place. It isn't all that she imagined howeve. There are landmines everywhere that she has to navigate - the constant scrutiny of the media who sees her as nothing more than a privileged heiress, her boyfriend is jealous & it is putting a strain on their relationship, which is then further complicated when a childhood crush reappears. When Missy uncovers a dark secret that threatens to destroy her father's legacy, she will have to decide whether she has the mettle to forge her own path or is she going to let this discovery break her.
This is a dual-timeline book, with the past being told as memories from Missy's childhood within each chapter. I loved seeing the back and forth, from where she came from to where she is today. It was also interesting to see the two sides of Missy's relationship with her father, because according to her mother, he was basically a deadbeat dad. This is a book about choices - ones we make, ones that were made that we are feeling the effects from, and choices that were made for us.
Missy Cooke's parent divorced when she was young, and she didn't get to see much of her father, Silicon Valley tech titan Marty Cooke. He was always on the road, so she treasured the time she did get to spend with him. Now, Missy is an adult with aspirations to join the same tech circles as her father. When Marty has to step down from his tech empire, he chooses Missy to take his place. It isn't all that she imagined howeve. There are landmines everywhere that she has to navigate - the constant scrutiny of the media who sees her as nothing more than a privileged heiress, her boyfriend is jealous & it is putting a strain on their relationship, which is then further complicated when a childhood crush reappears. When Missy uncovers a dark secret that threatens to destroy her father's legacy, she will have to decide whether she has the mettle to forge her own path or is she going to let this discovery break her.
This is a dual-timeline book, with the past being told as memories from Missy's childhood within each chapter. I loved seeing the back and forth, from where she came from to where she is today. It was also interesting to see the two sides of Missy's relationship with her father, because according to her mother, he was basically a deadbeat dad. This is a book about choices - ones we make, ones that were made that we are feeling the effects from, and choices that were made for us.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I've loved Jane Green for twenty years, and what keeps me coming back is her ability to write women who actually change. The Many Lives of Missy Cooke proves she hasn't lost that gift, even when the setting shifts to Silicon Valley boardrooms and billion-dollar tech empires.
Missy grew up with a distant father and a mother who scraped by. Now she's an adult chasing her own tech dreams while perpetually measuring herself against Marty's shadow. When his illness forces him to hand her the reins of his company, Missy finds herself unprepared for the pressure, the politics, and the constant scrutiny of people who see her as nothing but a privileged kid coasting on her father's name.
What's remarkable about this book is that the tech world backdrop never overshadows what the story is actually about: a woman figuring out who she is when everyone else has already decided.
Green shines at showing growth that feels earned rather than convenient. Missy doesn't suddenly find confidence or become a brilliant CEO through some magical transformation. She stumbles, learns, makes mistakes, and gradually builds self-awareness. That process is messy and real and deeply satisfying.
Disclaimer: I received an advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Missy grew up with a distant father and a mother who scraped by. Now she's an adult chasing her own tech dreams while perpetually measuring herself against Marty's shadow. When his illness forces him to hand her the reins of his company, Missy finds herself unprepared for the pressure, the politics, and the constant scrutiny of people who see her as nothing but a privileged kid coasting on her father's name.
What's remarkable about this book is that the tech world backdrop never overshadows what the story is actually about: a woman figuring out who she is when everyone else has already decided.
Green shines at showing growth that feels earned rather than convenient. Missy doesn't suddenly find confidence or become a brilliant CEO through some magical transformation. She stumbles, learns, makes mistakes, and gradually builds self-awareness. That process is messy and real and deeply satisfying.
Disclaimer: I received an advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you, NetGalley, for this ARC of 'The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke' by Jane Green - expected release date of 09/29/2026
ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I've read so many of Green's books and up until recently, I've really enjoyed them. This book is different than her usual chick-lit style, it's more general fiction/women's fiction, kinda domestic drama and it was definitely a slow burn. It started with a lot of back story info, developing the FMC Missy's character and explaining her history. It picked up a little before halfway but while the storyline sounded interesting, it didn't end up really doing much for me. As things progressed and played out, it was predictable to put together who was doing what and why. I enjoyed it enough to keep going though and see how it ended. A few things bothered me though...1) The constant mention of Missy's Harvard degree yet never saying what it was for. 2) The lack of explanation of what her actual role was as an employee before she took over for him as interim CEO. 3) Where The Heck did the title come from!? "Many Private Lives" makes it sound like Missy was exciting, or hiding something, or living a double life, or I don't know what but I could not for the life of me determine why Green chose this title.
ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I've read so many of Green's books and up until recently, I've really enjoyed them. This book is different than her usual chick-lit style, it's more general fiction/women's fiction, kinda domestic drama and it was definitely a slow burn. It started with a lot of back story info, developing the FMC Missy's character and explaining her history. It picked up a little before halfway but while the storyline sounded interesting, it didn't end up really doing much for me. As things progressed and played out, it was predictable to put together who was doing what and why. I enjoyed it enough to keep going though and see how it ended. A few things bothered me though...1) The constant mention of Missy's Harvard degree yet never saying what it was for. 2) The lack of explanation of what her actual role was as an employee before she took over for him as interim CEO. 3) Where The Heck did the title come from!? "Many Private Lives" makes it sound like Missy was exciting, or hiding something, or living a double life, or I don't know what but I could not for the life of me determine why Green chose this title.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
3.5⭐
This book is about the titular character, Missy Cooke, a sheltered daughter of an absent father tech titan, who must learn to come into her own while striving for her distant father's approval.
Talk about daddy issues. Missy's father may be a Silicon Valley scion, but he's also the aloof man who sometimes chose to be in Missy's life as she was growing up. As a result of lacking her father in her childhood, Missy is eager to please, and there is no one she wants to please more than papa. As a result, Missy makes herself much smaller rather than exploring her own worth and value outside of being his daughter.
I do like a good family drama, but I greatly disliked Missy's father and how blindly and ridiculously devoted Missy was to him given his past treatment of her. It felt a little Stockholm Syndrome-esque in how Missy revered this man who only gave her crumbs until the end of his life. In that way I felt very frustrated with Missy, I wanted her to grow up and come into her own and she did, and when she did in the back half of the book was when the story really started to pick up for me.
If you like stories about complex family dynamics, father-daughter struggles, legacy, self-discovery and corporate conspiracies, this could be a good book for you. While well written, this just wasn't a book that wowed me.
This book is about the titular character, Missy Cooke, a sheltered daughter of an absent father tech titan, who must learn to come into her own while striving for her distant father's approval.
Talk about daddy issues. Missy's father may be a Silicon Valley scion, but he's also the aloof man who sometimes chose to be in Missy's life as she was growing up. As a result of lacking her father in her childhood, Missy is eager to please, and there is no one she wants to please more than papa. As a result, Missy makes herself much smaller rather than exploring her own worth and value outside of being his daughter.
I do like a good family drama, but I greatly disliked Missy's father and how blindly and ridiculously devoted Missy was to him given his past treatment of her. It felt a little Stockholm Syndrome-esque in how Missy revered this man who only gave her crumbs until the end of his life. In that way I felt very frustrated with Missy, I wanted her to grow up and come into her own and she did, and when she did in the back half of the book was when the story really started to pick up for me.
If you like stories about complex family dynamics, father-daughter struggles, legacy, self-discovery and corporate conspiracies, this could be a good book for you. While well written, this just wasn't a book that wowed me.
October 9, 2026
The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke by Jane Green
Missy Cooke has grown up in the shadow of her famous, successful father, Marty, always trying to earn his approval while figuring out who she really wants to be. Between family complications, friendships, relationships, and the pressures of working in her father's company, Missy has a lot to work through.
I liked Missy because she feels relatable in her insecurities and her need to be accepted, even when she doesn't always make the best choices. Her relationship with Marty is especially interesting. He's charming and successful, but also controlling and difficult to please. Her friendship with Lucy brings a fun, lighter side to the story, while also showing how different their personalities are.
Jane Green's writing is easy to follow, with a conversational style that makes it simple to get into Missy's world. The story kept me interested because of the complicated family dynamics and Missy's struggle to find her own identity. Some parts felt a little drawn out, and I would have liked a bit more depth in certain relationships, but overall, it was an engaging read about family, expectations, and learning to stand on your own.
A good choice if you enjoy character-driven stories with messy relationships and plenty of family drama.
Missy Cooke has grown up in the shadow of her famous, successful father, Marty, always trying to earn his approval while figuring out who she really wants to be. Between family complications, friendships, relationships, and the pressures of working in her father's company, Missy has a lot to work through.
I liked Missy because she feels relatable in her insecurities and her need to be accepted, even when she doesn't always make the best choices. Her relationship with Marty is especially interesting. He's charming and successful, but also controlling and difficult to please. Her friendship with Lucy brings a fun, lighter side to the story, while also showing how different their personalities are.
Jane Green's writing is easy to follow, with a conversational style that makes it simple to get into Missy's world. The story kept me interested because of the complicated family dynamics and Missy's struggle to find her own identity. Some parts felt a little drawn out, and I would have liked a bit more depth in certain relationships, but overall, it was an engaging read about family, expectations, and learning to stand on your own.
A good choice if you enjoy character-driven stories with messy relationships and plenty of family drama.
July 27, 2026
Jane Green has done it again! The Many Private Lives of Missy Cooke is a heartfelt, engaging, and thoroughly entertaining novel about family, identity, and finding your voice.
Missy has spent her entire life trying to earn the approval of her tech titan father, who has always seemed more devoted to his career and second family than to her. At 29, she's torn between becoming the person she thinks her father wants her to be and embracing the fun-loving woman she truly is. When she's unexpectedly named interim CEO after her father falls ill, Missy is forced to step outside her comfort zone. With the unwavering support of her friends, Lucy and Preeti, she learns to trust herself, speak up, and grow into the confident leader she was always capable of becoming.
The friendships in this novel are one of its greatest strengths. Missy, Lucy, and Preeti are all wonderfully developed characters whose bond feels genuine, supportive, and inspiring. I found myself wishing I could be part of their circle.
This story completely pulled me in—I finished it in a single day because I simply couldn't put it down. Jane Green once again delivers a compelling, emotionally satisfying read that I highly recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for the advance reader copy.
Missy has spent her entire life trying to earn the approval of her tech titan father, who has always seemed more devoted to his career and second family than to her. At 29, she's torn between becoming the person she thinks her father wants her to be and embracing the fun-loving woman she truly is. When she's unexpectedly named interim CEO after her father falls ill, Missy is forced to step outside her comfort zone. With the unwavering support of her friends, Lucy and Preeti, she learns to trust herself, speak up, and grow into the confident leader she was always capable of becoming.
The friendships in this novel are one of its greatest strengths. Missy, Lucy, and Preeti are all wonderfully developed characters whose bond feels genuine, supportive, and inspiring. I found myself wishing I could be part of their circle.
This story completely pulled me in—I finished it in a single day because I simply couldn't put it down. Jane Green once again delivers a compelling, emotionally satisfying read that I highly recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for the advance reader copy.
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