Apps, social media, computer coding. As new ideas quickly become reality, the tech industry is taking quantum leaps. Check out these fabulous reads embracing the innovative startup culture.
How to Hack a Heartbreak By Kristin Rockaway
It’s been four years since Mel Strickland graduated from college and started working the IT help desk at Hatch, a startup incubator. But Mel is tired of assisting these spoiled frat boys who give a great pitch but still can’t manage to undo a paper jam. This coder girl has just about given up in this male-driven tech world. She can barely pay the rent, repeatedly meets Mr. Wrong and yearns to leave this job that was supposed to be only a stepping stone after college into the real world of coding. Crushed but sadly not surprised when her Fluttr date is a no-show, Mel uses her smarts and codes the ultimate revenge, an app called JerkAlert (as a joke), and is shocked when it quickly goes viral. With the help of her incredibly resourceful girlfriends, Mel finds her way to both success and her true love match in this absolutely hilarious, very contemporary peek at our outrageous startup phenomena, girl-power coding and bizarre lifestyle of online dating.
Startup By Doree Shafrir
Mack McAllister may be the next Facebook guy. Always searching for that one in a million, the tech scene in New York is flooded with ideas, venture capitalists with loads of cash and young millennials who possess an unimaginable amount of confidence and self worth. Mack, an industrious 28-year-old, finds himself and his company on the brink of stardom. Gramercy is preparing to finance his Series A funding which could skyrocket his app Takeoff to the stratosphere. But the rumblings in his office life, hence love life, begin to implode. Isabel, his beautiful, longtime assistant, has begun to reject his flirtatious sexts and has been snapchatting her newfound romance with Andrew. Sabrina, the ancient woman in the office (36 and married!) keeps to herself while tweeting the company’s branding and hiding her shopaholic debt from her editor husband, who happens to be following a story about her boss. This hilarious cast of characters spotlights the startup world and the lingo this generation has mastered. Laugh-out-loud from the first page dedication: For my grandparents, who never went online.
The Startup Wife by Tahmima Anam
Asha grew up as the nerdy computer geek throughout high school. Way out of her league, she assumed cool, sexy-cute Cyrus Jones didn’t know she was alive. Years later, the two unexpectedly cross paths. Now Asha is a superstar in her MIT doctorate program, ready to conquer the world of AI. Cyrus is brilliant and more handsome than ever, a nomad who hasn’t decided what he wants to be when he grows up. Cyrus and Asha marry and along with best friend Jules they join Utopia — a workshop incubator for new ideas. The trio creates a social platform called WAI (pronounced Why), for “We Are Infinite.” With charming Cyrus as the face and Asha coding her heart out, their app explodes, taking over social media and the internet. Swiftly attaining both success and fortune, millions flock to obtain guidance from the man called the new Messiah. As Cyrus’ popularity soars, Asha feels disconnected and their romance withers. Running the company behind the scenes, Asha is aware of the crisis they face. She doesn’t know if she can save both the company and her marriage.
