If I thank him for his congratulations and leave it at that, am I demonstrating complicity, failing to practice what I preach? This month, when my book was published in the US, he sent me a congratulatory message, saying how thrilled he was for my success. I do not miss any of the above, but I did appreciate the reminder and the confirmation that it happens to most of us. You know, the kind of uncle who spends a little too much time with the young women and gives goodbye kisses that land too close to the mouth.

It is now, perversely, easier to handle and respond to a boss who grabs your ass than one who has never laid a hand on you or done anything That Bad but just continuously undervalues you and forces you to pretzel yourself into a very specific socially acceptable shape and gradually over time you find yourself full of self-loathing and despair and the most confusing part about it is you don’t think you have the right to feel this bad or complain because no single thing that happened to you was So Terrible and haven’t you heard, there are starving kids in Africa and actresses whose lives were destroyed by Harvey Weinstein? But certain gendered instincts – people pleasing, playing peacemaker, considering another person’s comfort a precondition for my own – served me well. Ambition bites back in Isabel Kaplan's Not Safe For Work, a novel that hits close to a few recent news events .

From my perch outside my boss’s office, I saw how little my personal opinion mattered, how interchangeable and dispensable I was. I was complimented for having “good energy”, and my “niches” were identified as “women” and “books”. She gets a job in an agency through family connections – her mother is a well known, ball-bustin’ lawyer. Please get in touch and we will do our best to source your book, no matter how unusual or specialist.

I get the impression it was supposed to be more hard hitting than it was, and it didn’t really say more than we already know. Everyone likes to speak loudly and frequently about how committed they are to diversity and inclusion in the workplace and on screen. Though I’m passed that in my life now, this book brought back all the feelings of realising that the world is hard, you have no idea what you’re doing and you question everything you thought you knew about the people in your life. Throwing items in the office, and particularly in the direction of your employees, is now off limits.A book that leaves you pondering and gives great social commentary on the glass ceiling that very much still exists between women and equality in both the workplace and life, is always an excellent read. I remember being 23, anxiously navigating halls where executives didn’t look me in the eye, holding the muted phone to my ear, thinking: if I have the opportunity to speak, I hope I make the most of it. When rumours of an assault start to circle the office, and your close friend confesses her own disturbing experience, you know there is plenty to gain from staying silent. When someone senior tells you how pretty you look, you smile and thank him - and make a mental note never to wear that dress alone with him again.

I ran open-armed into a burning building hoping if I moved quickly enough, I’d be spared the flames. We have come up with a way to discuss and punish the most violent forms of harassment and assault, but not the experiences and dynamics that live in the vast grey space where most discrimination takes place, much more subtly and insidiously, perpetrated by men and women alike.I’m not sure if asking them out loud is useful, but it’s a start, and it feels more productive than silence. Otherwise, too many people will remain silent because they will decide it’s not worth the discomfort and emotional fallout of making a fuss about a minor comment.

It’s a high-wire balancing act of mixed messaging – no easy feat, but I have so many years of practice. Quickly becoming embroiled in the day to day discussions, power struggles and gossip in her office, she meets a pretty astonishing array of dreadful people, classic LA/Hollywood characters. This summarises the theme of the book pretty well, as a Hollywood wannabe climbs the slippery slope to greatness. Recommended if you’re looking for something like Devil Wears Prada, not too deep but a nice entry into further reading. In fact, it pulled me right in through its mix of exploring serious topics such as sexual harassment and abuse, but told from the POV of a woman who is smart, sassy and not afraid of seeing the irony in a situation.Rumours start to circulate around the office that there are sexual predators working amongst them and the realisation sets in that there is a lot to lose by speaking out and plenty to gain by staying quiet.