Upgrading

If you've got it, flaunt it...

Young, ambitious, and pretty damn good-looking, Andrew Collins knows that the workaday world is not enough for him. He wants more than a boring job and a mediocre life. Mostly, though, he wants more money. So when he answers an ad for male escorts, Andrew figures he's just found the perfect way to make a buck -- with a "Sugar Mama." But he soon finds that his older paramour, along with her bizarre and somewhat sinister friends, may be taking him for what looks to be a very bumpy ride with no brakes on board.

Just try not to lose it.

But now that he's finally got the green, Andrew finds himself drawn to the plainest of Janes. She's a no-nonsense, deep-thinking shop assistant who's saddened to see the real Andrew being suffocated under a pile of fancy clothes and flashy frills -- not his type at all. So why can't he stop thinking about her? Maybe because life in the lap of luxury isn't what it seems -- or even what he truly wants? Caught between cold cash and a warm heart, Andrew must figure out what matters most: his love of money, his love of himself, or love, period....

Simon Brooke was born in Yorkshire, England, but now lives in West London. His checkered employment history includes a stint as a male model and work as a political spin-doctor. Eschewing the possibility of getting a proper job, he now writes for The Times, The Sunday Times, and The Telegraph. His first novel, Upgrading, is also available from Downtown Press.