Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - How to Fake it in Hollywood

Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

How to Fake it in Hollywood by Ava Wilder

11 reviews

lindsaymck's review

emotional lighthearted tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book was good, but I wanted it to be great. Grey Brooks was a captivating enough FMC, but deserved more from Ethan Atkins as the MMC.

I liked the backdrop of Hollywood setting the scene for the fake relationship as a PR stunt and mutually beneficial career boost, but there was such a heaviness with the leaked explicit photos and alcoholism/addiction. I wish their relationship had been developed a bit more beyond the attraction/lust based in wanting something you think you can’t have and her consistently dealing with his insecurities and lack of self-worth.

I got real Ben Affleck vibes from Ethan and it made me realize why I always liked Matt Damon more. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s creative partnership seemed to be the inspiration for Ethan and Sam’s.

I think my favorite character might’ve been Ethan’s ex-wife, Nora. She was so emotionally and professionally supportive of Grey, reminding her not to get sucked into Ethan’s downward spiral, and then being there for her when that spiral brought him to rock bottom. Then she used her production studio to help Grey bring her film project to life. Nora did right by her ex’s new partner, supported her ex in getting help at rehab, and parented their daughters with stability and grace. A co-parenting queen and a true girl’s girl!

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kerrythefire's review

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challenging emotional medium-paced

3.5

I picked this up because I love a good fake dating story. But I didn't expect this to be quite as heavy as it turned out to be, so I think that threw me a little bit. I was expecting a romantic comedy and this was more of a comedic drama. The characters' trauma

and addiction and substance abuse and mental health issues

and the toxicity of Hollywood was believable and heartbreaking, it was just a lot. Especially the one major conflict scene at the end in the car after the interview. Oof.

The plot and pace was pretty good. And it was nice to see Grey being soft and giving to Ethan, but standing her ground and holding her boundaries too.

I may have rated this higher if I went in intentionally expecting a drama, but... I wasn't.

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lindsayerin's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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duckyreads's review

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emotional funny tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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lea's review

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dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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libraryinthecountry's review

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emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

WHAT!?! A TOP READ OF THE YEAR RIGHT HERE. MY HEART FOR THIS BOOK. 😭😍

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decklededgess's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Trigger warnings: alcohol and drug addiction, depression, negligent parents, death of a friend (mentioned), divorce, injury, sexual harassment, sexual content

BROOOOOOO You ever read a book that beats you to a pulp and all you wanna do it give it a comforting kiss...yeah. Emotional damage isn't even the half of this book. It's just all pain. Ethan is so broken from the get go that you're just waiting for the ember that sets him ablaze in a glorious fire of self destruction. Silly sad sad man. Grey is an absolute bad bitch and I could not stop cackling at the fact that her acting accolades cover that of Lindsay Lohan, Miley Cyrus, and Nina Dobrev...like she's actually an icon I cannot believe she's fictional.

Anyways get ready for some PAIN but also don't be surprised if you're obsessed with this book by like 10%.

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kayaks's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“But they still wanted each other. They would still choose each other over anyone else on earth. And in a way, that was even better.”

How to Fake it in Hollywood is ever bit as glamorous and enchanting as the blurb leads us to believe. Although it’s promoted as a romcom and certainly delivered on that front, it is much more than that. I signed up for a fluffy/spicy trope filled blast but received something…deeper. It was angsty and difficult at times to read but I was okay with being duped. The first half was hilarious, adorable, and steamy but toward the second half things started to get angsty. The angst that’s in this book isn’t just there because the author couldn’t think of anything better to do. It serves a purpose. And it was so heartwarming to see these characters truly grow and become better versions of themselves.

Grey Brooks is at bit of a standstill in her career after ending her six year stint on Poison Paradise, which is a teen soap opera (think Riverdale). Ethan Atkins is an A-Lister whose life went off the rails a few years back after the death of his best friend. He’s spent the better part of those years in a drunken haze—which is why, when his publicist suggests that he fake dates one of his clients (Grey) to, he begrudgingly agrees, if only to satisfy his publicist. He wants to make a comeback and show the word that he is Okay (including his ex-wife and children). Grey is hopeful that by agreeing to this plan she will finally get Hollywood to take her seriously. Or at least for them to even notice her, truly notice her. Plus, it doesn’t help that the man she has to fake date is her celebrity crush when she was younger. We all know how fake dating schemes though…it always ends up real.

The amount of emotions this book made me go through is insane. Laughing, crying, swooning, annoyance, you name it. I was immediately connected to Ethan and Grey as characters despite the fact that they were messy. I think it was because they were a mess that I found it so easy to love them (even when I really wanted to hate them). Full disclosure despite the sugary sweet cover and blurb How to Fake it in Hollywood is a heavy hitter. It deals heavily with grief, alcoholism, and mental health. Even when things were fluffy between Ethan and Grey there was always this looming sense of dread in the background. The audience knew what was coming and so did our characters which made it bittersweet.

I am really astounded by how well these topics were handled. There was none of that “I can fix him/she can fix me” going on. There was but ultimately at the end of the day the characters had to come to a realization that it’s not a healthy to thrust that responsibly on someone else. They had to accept the help in the first place for it to even more. There was no sugar coating going on: it doesn’t matter how much you love someone, you can’t magically “cure” someone of alcoholism or depression. Obviously I don’t want to go into spoilers but I felt like it was necessary to be upfront because I feel like the cover/blurb is a tad misleading.

The romance between Grey and Ethan was so overwhelming. Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes because I eat up the tension, the slowburn, the whole “there is no way ___ will ever truly love me.” Sometimes I just sit there like a Disney villain and cackle because come on. Come on!. They are always so delusional and idiotic but we still love it anyways. Surprisingly, the author didn’t drag out the whole delusional part that long which is refreshing because some of these books takes like 80% just to get to that point. I was so emotionally connected and invested to these characters that they had me legit crying over dumb stuff (waffles…iykyk). The spice was…Yeah. It was for sure spicy but it was also super tender and had me all up in my feels. And the side characters were wonderful too! They were fleshed out better than I would have initially thought. Nora (Ethan’s ex-wife) really said No Thanks to being the vindictive ex-wife. She was such a sweetheart and a total badass—I love that she genuinely was one of Ethan and Grey’s biggest supporters. Kamilah was also delightful along with Audrey, Lucas, and Renata. I just have so much love for these characters.

Read this if you like:
❄️ fake dating
❄️ age gaps (between consenting adults & won’t make you feel icky or weird)
❄️ hollywood/pop culture
❄️ well rounded characters
❄️ fluff w/ a heavy dose of angst
❄️ if you hate the “love interest cures all trauma” trope
❄️ the sunshine/grumpy trope

✨4.5 out of 5 stars✨

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dianaschmidty's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

“Five days, four nights. One bed.” Perfect recipe for a romcom book!

This book is basically an ode to the crazy-obsessed fans of 2000s teen dramas like me! I loved the idea of a love story told from the perspective of the actresses I grew up idolizing. Grey was the perfect heroine for this story, famous and successful, but also felt so real. A lot of books don’t have truly believable dialogue. I never thought that for this book, especially with Grey.

In short, this book was really well written.

I also thought that Ethan was a great complex character. I’ve never see a perspective like his in a book before, which definitely humanized him and the story at large.

Grey and Ethan had great chemistry that didn’t downplay their issues, especially his. The book does a great job at showing how problematic relationships can become if problems are ignored.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dell, and Ava Wilder for providing me access to this book.

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stacyroth's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Grey Brooks is struggling to find work since the teen soap opera she starred in has ended. Ethan Atkins just wants to get drunk and have everyone to leave him alone since his creative partner/best friend died and his wife divorced him. However, if he wants to make the last movie he and his partner were working on, Ethan needs to get back into the spotlight. Their mutual publicist suggests they fake a relationship for a few months to get their names out there and help their careers. For their own reasons, each agrees.

I expected a romcom from the cover, and it delivered on the romance, but there were heavier topics covered too, such as addiction. I’m a sucker for a fake relationship trope, and this one did not disappoint! I was shocked to learn after finishing the book that this is the author’s debut novel. I will definitely be checking out her future books!

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book.

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