Lauren Mechling

2010

My Darklyng

Cowritten with Laura Moser
Read on: Slate

Natalie Pollock is a normal-enough 10th-grade girl who happens to be obsessed with a certain vampire series. From the moment Natalie tries out to be the next cover model for one of the Dark Shadows books, her fantasy turns into a nightmare replete with solicitous NYC models, dead squirrels, a psych ward, and little orange pills. Katie Roiphe wrote in the New York Times: "I have a feeling that if Andy Warhol were alive he would be spending the summer writing a novel that takes place in real time on Facebook. In that spirit, Lauren Mechling and Laura Moser have been writing a clever serialized novel on Slate called My Darklyng."

2009

Dream Life

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Picking up where Dream Girl (2008) left off, Claire is learning to command her ability to see into the future through her dreams. In addition to figuring out how to decipher her psychic gift, Claire is secretly dating her best friend Becca’s brother. Turns out that Becca belongs to a secret society of do-good teen philanthropists whose mission is to spruce up the city anonymously—but someone is out to expose the group, and it’s up to Claire to thwart the plot. "An engrossing mystery novel-cum-cheeky comedy of manners" -- Teen Vogue.

2008

Dream Girl

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Claire Voyante has been having strange visions ever since she can remember. But the similarity between her name and her talents is purely coincidental. The name is French, and unlike the psychics on TV, she can’t solve crimes or talk to the dead. Whenever Claire follows her hunches, she comes up empty—or ends up in pretty awkward situations. But that all changes on Claire’s 15th birthday, when her grandmother, Kiki—former socialite, fashion icon, and permanent fixture at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel—gives her something a little more extraordinary than one of her old cocktail dresses: a strange black-and-white onyx cameo on a gold chain. "Charm galore" -- Kirkus Reviews

2007

Foreign Exposure

Cowritten with Laura Moser
Purchase from: Amazon | Local book store

After two glorious (though somewhat hectic) semesters with her dad in New York City, Mimi must make good on her promise to her parents: summer break with her mom. But it seems going back to her cozy old life in Houston isn’t in the cards. Instead, she’s dragged off to Berlin, where her mother’s been offered a fellowship. After a few weeks of a nightmare nanny job, it becomes clear that Mimi’s European vacation isn’t much of a vacation after all. On the verge of a nervous breakdown, she receives a call from Lily Morton, her friend from New York, who invites her to London, where an internship at a family friend’s magazine awaits. Soon Mimi is at it again—living it up with glamorous friends, pursuing a new crush, and chasing down celebrities at her very entertaining job. For a while, Mimi’s convinced she has it made. Never before has fitting in been so easy. If only it could stay that way. Mimi may have gotten a handle on the Empire State—but that’s nothing compared to the state of the empire! "Mimi's adventures in Europe are entertaining, and, as usual, left me wanting more from the brilliant duo of Lauren Mechling and Laura Moser!" -- TeensReadToo

2006

All Q, No A: More Tales of a 10th-Grade Social Climber

Cowritten with Laura Moser
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After a tumultuous first semester, Mimi Schulman thinks she’s ready to give social climbing a rest and settle into the groove of New York’s wacky Baldwin School. She’s eager to start over with her friends, reconnect with her dad, and make headway with Max Roth—the hottest guy in tenth grade.

But when an assignment for the school paper turns scandalous and spirals out of control, Mimi finds little time to enjoy her new and improved existence. Instead, she embarks on a roller coaster ride through the underbelly of the New York art world, from the VIP lounge of a shady nightclub to a private Caribbean island populated with washed-up TV stars and fifteen-second celebrities. As answers keep slipping through her fingers, Mimi begins to wonder if she’ll ever manage to pin down the story and get on with her life. And if so, will her life still be there?

"All Q, No A has...depth...with a compelling plot that makes the reader, along with Mimi, question what will happen next."-Kliatt Journal

2005

The Rise and Fall of a 10th Grade Social Climber

Cowritten with Laura Moser
Purchase from: Amazon | Local book store

After her parents separate, Mimi Shulman, a former New Yorker transplanted to Texas, returns to the Big Apple to live with her sweet, clueless dad. Enrolled at the exclusive, trendy Baldwin School, she makes a bet with a longtime friend that she will get the coolest girls in tenth grade to accept her. Much to everyone's surprise, the Coolies take Mimi in, and she records their secrets and her true feelings for them in a diary. Over time, she begins to grow fond of them, and so when the diary (which contains unflattering pictures) is leaked on the Internet, she suffers not only the humiliation of being exposed but also genuine regret for her actions.