Finding Famous: A Mashad Family Novel

The Princess Diaries meets reality television in a story about fame (the kind you definitely didn’t ask for), first love (the kind you didn’t even know you wanted), and most importantly, family (the kind you can’t live without).

Ever since her mom died, Josie Lawrence has been content with her safe, predictable life. She hangs out with exactly two people: her best (and only) friend, Louise, and her stepdad, Matt. She has exactly one (unrequited) crush on resident high school himbo, Isaac. And she’s fully prepared to spend the end senior year preparing for Stanford and actively avoiding anything that reminds her of her mother.

But when Josie discovers that her biological father is the recently deceased Ali Mashad--patriarch of America’s original reality TV family, dripping with wealth, fame, and Vogue magazine covers--Josie’s ＂predictable＂ life is gone quicker than you can say ＂you’re doing amazing, sweetie.＂

Being a Mashad means that the entire world is now at Josie’s feet--desperate to dress her, to photograph her, to know her--opening a door to a world that Josie never expected to find: one with a cute guy who just might be her soulmate, three ridiculous but wonderful sisters, and answers to all the questions she wishes she could ask her mom. But the biggest question of all is: If being a Mashad is the chance of a lifetime, will Josie be brave enough to take it?

Candice Jalili is an Iranian American writer based in New York City. Her work has appeared in Cosmopolitan, The Cut, Rolling Stone, Elite Daily, and more. Finding Famous: A Mashad Family Story is her first novel. Candice lives in New York City with her husband, where she has a convenient walk-away from her cousins and her childhood best friend. She grew up in the Bay Area and spends hours of her days FaceTiming her parents there. You can find her on Instagram at @CandiceJalili and online at www.CandiceJalili.com.