The Creatives

by Lindsay Lewis

Like all cubical-bound underlings at Stranton Advertising, Lissy Swanson is desperate to become a Creative. Her impossibly chic superiors enjoy liquid lunches at hip restaurants where intricate bits of sushi are served on bare midsections of androgynous models while she buries herself in dreaded data entry. When her dreams of Creativedom are finally realized, Lissy is thrilled to work on her first real account - a new drug that scorches fat, bronzes skin and fires up dormant libidos: the Barbie Pill. She plans the perfect campaign, targeting new mothers dying to shed baby weight and rekindle their more adult desires. When Lissy discovers the beauty pill's ugly secret, she must choose between a promising new love interest and succeeding in the glossy world of Los Angeles advertising.

298 pages, Paperback

First published November 10, 2014

Reviews

[Sherri Bryant · Rating 4 out of 5]

With The Creatives by new to me author Lindsay Lewis, we are given a very good story about a woman who suddenly finds herself achieving her dreams of success and acceptance but realizing those dreams come with a heavy price. As one of the invisible peons at Stranton Advertising, Lissy Swanson wants nothing more than to be recognized for her contributions to the agency and move up the ladder and become a Creative, a group of ad execs who enjoy the perks and bennies of being one of the elite. An employer who takes their employees on a week-long trip to Hawaii to “recharge” their creative genius is a very nice aspect of Lissy’s job and one of the many reasons why the underling Muskrats claw and clamor for a shot at becoming a Creative. Lissy is finally given her chance when she wins a spot on the Creative team and her agency takes on a pharmaceutical company producing a miracle pill. Despite her doubts about the pill, Lissy moves forward and pitches the perfect campaign. One of the things I found quite interesting about this story is it isn’t all frothy silliness. The author does a brilliant job of adding a side story with very dark undertones that creates some monumental changes in Lissy’s life.

I quite enjoyed this story. I found Lissy to be a breath of fresh air. She has grown up in her younger sister, Cat’s shadow and I felt deep empathy for her when I learned how her sister contributed to her lack of self-esteem as teenagers. I didn’t care for Cat. I thought she was spoiled and selfish who uses Lissy repeatedly and I got frustrated more than once that Lissy allowed herself to be treated that way. On the other hand, Lissy’s best friend, Amir, was a great character. He describes himself as a “gay Muslim who knows everything about inhibitions and orgasms.” His antics and observations provided quite a bit of comic relief. Additional supporting characters such as Lissy’s mother, boss, Brendan Brody and love interest, Oliver add an interesting dynamic to the story.

My Final Verdict: Overall, this was a very good book that pulled on all my emotions. The plot was entertaining and kept me engaged throughout the entire story. The author does a very good job of describing the scenes with such clarity that I felt like I was there with Lissy and Amir, especially during the Hawaii trips. I highly recommend this book to readers who like complex characters and storylines that resonate with the reader long after the last chapter is read.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of The Creatives from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Kathryn Laceby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally reviewed at Novel Escapes

There was something about Lissy that drew me in from the very first pages and I was interested in reading about her rise through the ad agency. Lissy’s personal characteristics were well thought out and supported by the relationships she had with her sister and her mother. They gave me the background needed to understand why she was the person she was today.

I was disappointed though that her sister was so irresponsible and that Lissy seemed to bail her out repeatedly without any kind of repercussions. I know that Lissy felt like the “lesser” sister but there was no reason to allow herself to be completely walked all over. That she (twice) exchanged a first class flight into two coach tickets so her sister could go with her made me cringe. At some point there has to be a line drawn and Lissy should have been allowed to enjoy her success.

I’ve read about such companies that take their staff on first class holidays to recharge. I’ve never worked for one myself but it sounds pretty fantastic. What a great way to have a holiday that doesn’t count as holiday! I was hoping we’d be given more of Lissy’s obvious skills in the advertising department. I could have used more action in that area before the very end of the novel. She went from administrative clerk to a top creative position with a tiny one-line ad. I would have liked to have some back-story of her abilities to add credibility to her rise in position. The pinnacle of the novel comes towards the end and I did read quickly to find out what happened with "the barbie pill".

I’d be happy to read another novel by Lindsay Lewis because I liked aspects of The Creatives and would be interested to see what she writes next!


Thank you to the author for our review copy. All opinions are our own.