SILK FOR THE FEED DOGS

A delightful debut from Ireland - for readers of The Devil Wears Prada

Some will do anything to see her fall Kat Connelly, innovative designer and introspective daughter of an Irish farmer, is disappointed with her first job in fashion. She copies catwalk looks for a London garmento who is reliant on two things to survive: self-medication and cheap Chinese production. Kat feels the lure of a higher aesthetic beckoning and escapes to Milan. As Italy's imminent smoking ban looms darkly over the land, Kat's personal world lights up: design and beauty are all around, dazzling and seducing, not to mention the overwhelming Italian male libido. She has claimed her slice of the bella vita and with it a sense of belonging she has yearned for since childhood. Of course, the bella vita comes at a price. When Kat is invited into the impenetrable House of Adriani to design their high-profile collection, she throws a cast-iron hierarchy into turmoil.