NEW RELEASE
Friends and Rivals - Tilly Bagshawe (2012)
Ivan Charles and Jack Messenger are partners in Jester - a successful music management company, but of late their relationship has become strained, particularly over Jack's resentment of Ivan's many post-marital affairs with associates, employees and clients of the firm and all behind the back of his loyal wife, and Jack's long-term friend, Catriona. When Jack comes over from his base in LA for Ivan's 40th birthday only to find him in a compromising situation with one of his young clients, their relationship deteriorates further. As if Jack doesn't have enough to deal with, there's Kendall Bryce, a reality TV show starlet turned singer who is proving to be a handful, despite the best efforts of Jester photographer Lex, who worships Kendall without any reciprocation. But with Kendall moving to London to develop her career, she leaves the watchful gaze of Jack and Lex and falls under the guardianship of Ivan and everything begins to implode. New alliances are formed and loyalties tested. And when new starlet Ava emerges on to the scene, she becomes the centre of old rivalries. Friends and Rivals is a sharply drawn and delightfully told story of the search for fame and its price on families, friendship and love. A page-turning read that gets inside the head of all of its characters; it is a real tour de force. (JC)
Friends & Rivals, by Tilly Bagshawe, focuses on rivalry in the music industry. The summary says: "Kat fears she is past her prime. Her philandering husband, Ivan, who she still loves passionately after 20 years of marriage, leaves her for a younger woman. Devastated, there is only one person left who Kat trusts. Kendall is sure she has it all. But underneath her tough exterior she hides a vulnerability - she is helplessly struggling with an unrequited love. But when Kendall's need for success consumes her, she won't let anyone stand in her way. Ava is an innocent, plucked from obscurity and thrown into the deep-end of the glamorous world of fame. When she is pitted against Kendall, the world watches closely, wondering who will survive. As these three women try to navigate a backstabbing world of infamy, desire and fortune, will they be tempted to betray the people they hold dearest?" Friends and Rivals is out in September.