Ava Wilder- How To Fake It In Hollywood
4.5 ⭐
Genre: Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Fake Dating
Pages: 356
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Headline Eternal
Date Published: 14th June 2022
Huge thank you to Headline Eternal for a copy of the book to read and review!
Book Blurb:
A talented Hollywood starlet and a reclusive A-lister enter into a fake relationship . . . and discover that their feelings might be more than a PR stunt in this sexy debut for fans of Beach Read and The Unhoneymooners.
Grey Brooks is on a mission to keep her career afloat now that the end of her long-running teen soap has her (unsuccessfully) pounding the pavement again. With a life-changing role on the line, she’s finally desperate enough to agree to her publicist’s scheme . . . faking a love affair with a disgraced Hollywood heartthrob who needs the publicity but for very different reasons.
Ethan Atkins just wants to be left alone. Between his high-profile divorce, his struggles with drinking, and his grief over the death of his longtime creative partner and best friend, he’s slowly let himself fade into the background. But if he ever wants to produce the last movie he and his partner wrote together, Ethan needs to clean up his reputation and step back into the spotlight. A gossip-inducing affair with a gorgeous actress might be just the ticket, even if it’s the last thing he wants to do.
Though their juicy public relationship is less than perfect behind the scenes, it doesn’t take long before Grey and Ethan’s sizzling chemistry starts to feel like more than just an act. But after decades in a ruthless industry that requires bulletproof emotional armour to survive, are they too used to faking it to open themselves up to the real thing?
My Review:
I love a Fake Dating Trope. I mean
my favourite romance is The Love Hypothesis and that’s like a manual of fake
dating trope. How to Fake it in Hollywood…wow…I loved it a lot! It is such a great
(and spicy at parts) summer romance. It has Hollywood as a perfect backdrop,
two Hollywood stars, glamour and of course that spark and tension that makes
you want to read more to know if they end up together or not. I loved the atmosphere
and I loved the characters, and it was nice to read a romance set in a
different, and quite a ruthless environment of Hollywood once in a while.
The story follows actress Grey
Brooks who was a successful lead character in a TV show called Poison
Paradise for the last 5 or so years. However, it’s been a year since the
show ended and no one wants to hire Grey. She has no acting jobs, no auditions
and wonders if her career will just end in this disappointing way, but her agent
has a different plan on how to boost her career and get her the roles in high-paid
blockbusters…The plan is a PR relationship with an A-Lister Ethan Atkins. Ethan
is not only the most famous actor in the whole Hollywood but also is a
childhood crush of Grey's. From the very
first meeting, there is an instant attraction between the two but they also
want to be professional as this PR relationship suppose to get Ethan back to
the highs of Hollywood. As the tensions and friendship grow between Grey and Ethan,
they also have to face Ethan’s past demons, his addiction, loss, grief and instability.
Will Grey’s growing feelings for Ethan will be enough to stay and help him or
will it push Grey away?
I loved how this romance also
explored topics such as addition, childhood fame, grief, fat-shamming and lack
of privacy when you are a famous celebrity in Hollywood. All of this made How to
Fake it in Hollywood not just another average cliche rom-com, but a story that
could happen to anyone famous. Ethan’s addiction and what caused it is also
discussed quite openly, which I liked as it added that realness to his and Grey's
relationship, where both had to make some hard decisions because of that
addiction.
I also liked how Ethan and Grey
became friends first and then lovers, even though they had that attraction
towards each other from the very beginning. The writing of this book was so
good, it was so easy to read and the dialogue felt real and not forced at all. It
was also very interesting to read how the media and Hollywood saw Grey and Ethan's
relationship versus how their relationship was in their real life. It shows how
media, especially social media, sensationalise everything and take it out of
proportion or even speculate to cause drama in turn at times harming those
celebrities.
Overall: Loved the writing, love
the fake dating trope, love the Hollywood spin on the book, loved the characters.
It was not a straightforward rom-com at points, especially as each character
had their demons and issues to work through, but it made the book much more
interesting and fun. If you love a fake dating trope, then this book is a must!
Same if you love a good summer romance that is not over the top with lovey-dovey
things nor is cliché but touches on some important real-life topics yet still contains
a big love story.
I just wish the book was longer and the characters explored in even more depth, as I wanted to read more of Grey’s and
Ethan’s romance. Amazing debut by Ava Wilder and can’t wait to read her next
book, whatever it may be.
About the Author:
Ava Wilder is a professional video editor with a degree in media studies and cultural criticism. She currently lives in Oklahoma City with her fiancé and their toothless cat.
https://www.ava-wilder.com/
