Hot Desk, Laura Dickerman
Hot Desk, Laura Dickerman
List: $26.99 | Sale: $18.89
Club: $13.49

Hot Desk

Author: Laura Dickerman

Narrator: Corey Brill, Cassandra Campbell, Renata Friedman

Unabridged: 11 hr 4 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/02/2025


Synopsis

Younger meets Writers & Lovers in this rollicking, sparkling, and funny novel that spans decades and generations of a family in the publishing industry.

In the post-pandemic publishing industry, two rival editors are forced to share a “hot desk” on different days of the week, much to their chagrin. Having never set eyes on each other, Rebecca Blume and Ben Heath begin leaving passive-aggressive Post-it notes on the pot of their shared cactus. But when revered literary legend Edward David Adams (known as “the Lion”) dies, leaving his estate up for grabs, their banter escalates as both work feverishly to land this career-making opportunity. Their fierce rivalry ultimately forces each to decide how far they’ll go to get ahead, what role they want to play in the Lion’s legacy, and what they mean to each other.

As their battle for the estate gets more heated, Rebecca learns of a connection between her mother, Jane, and the Lion. The story travels back four decades earlier to when Jane arrives in Manhattan and meets Rose, soon her best friend. Jane and Rose are two strong, talented young women trying to make their mark in the publishing world at a time when art, the written word, and creative expression were at their height. But one fateful day during the April blizzard of 1982 will change the course of Jane’s life, and of their friendship, forever...

About Laura Dickerman

Laura Dickerman has an MA in fiction from NYU and an MA in English from Middlebury College’s Bread Loaf School of English. She has taught high school English at the Hopkins School, the Collegiate School, and Germantown Friends. She was an intern at The Paris Review many, many years ago. At her lowest point, she spent a month temping for her youngest brother who was critical of her photocopying skills. She’s been a book club leader, tutor, and recipient of an NEH grant. She lives in Atlanta with her husband. They have two grown daughters. Hot Desk is her first novel.


Reviews

Goodreads review by jenny reads a lot on October 02, 2025

Much lighter on the romance than I was hoping for and I didn't laugh at all. Perhaps the humor just wasn't my style. It does pick up towards the end but for me the pay off wasn't quite worth the journey. Definitely more litfic with a small romantic subplot. 3⭐️| IG |......more

Goodreads review by Amy on August 28, 2025

This book couldn’t decide what it wanted to be: romance? historical fiction? insider publishing drama? Instead, it ended up being a jumble of all three…without the fun of any of them. The “humor” never landed, the behind the scenes publishing peek was snoozy, and the main characters don’t even meet......more

Goodreads review by Angie on June 18, 2025

Friends, this one was not for me. I loved the idea of two co-workers sharing a desk and not knowing each other. Enemies to lovers. I also appreciate the Manhattan setting and a contemporary format and the publishing industry. But when they don’t even meet face to face until page 237 and don’t connec......more

Goodreads review by Robyn on September 03, 2025

I *think* there's a good plot buried in here somewhere, but 'Hot Desk' would benefit from Coco Chanel's classic advice: “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.” Because there are three POVs, there are 3x too many of everything: side-characters (quirky grandmas, aspiri......more

Goodreads review by Lucy on May 11, 2025

couldn’t put it down!! such a comforting, sweet world of vivid, hilarious characters and delicious drama — had me constantly laughing aloud, and pricked tears… i never wanted it to end! especially drawn to the beautifully rendered decadence and thrill of 80s nyc literary world, and the equally beaut......more


Quotes

"The ensemble narration of Corey Brill, Cassandra Campbell, and Renata Friedman renders this audio production a real delight. At a publishing house, unseasoned editors Rebecca Blume and Ben Heath are forced to share a desk on different days of the week. A rivalry ensues, which heats up when a literary giant known as the Lion dies and his literary estate becomes fair game. As the novel progresses, the narrators move the listener back in time to reveal a previous relationship that Rebecca’s own mother had with the Lion. Brill, Campbell, and Friedman master the voices of the main characters with a lot of flair."