Scan barcode
mehsi's review against another edition
5.0
This won't be a very long review, I just want to express my thoughts and feelings on this book.
I just adore books about fame, about reality shows, so I was very eager to read this one. Plus it seemed like it had a ton of drama!
The book starts off in the future, then rewinds back to the past. I definitely loved that it started with a bang, something that makes you want to know what happened to get to this event. It made the book even more interesting, as quite a few times you will be wondering when the event happens, and if you will be seeing how it all ends. It is fun to see the story build-up to that moment. I know that at times I went OHHHHH when something happened that may contribute to that event. :P
Our MC is Bentley (though in later parts we also see POV from her mom, her brother, and her sister). She is a pretty great gal, I liked her from the start, and I know that throughout the story I just wanted to hug her. She did some stupid things, some desperate things, some not all too good decisions, but (unlike her family and friends, oh and the world) I could see that she was doing that for her family. To make sure they stick together. To make sure they have a future.
She was so smart, I loved the essay she had to write (though I still think it is a weird thing that one has to write an essay to get a chance at acceptance at an university/college), her essay really portrayed her life, but also showed her character.
Plus I could definitely understand that she wanted out, my word, her family is craycray. Her mom is obsessive about the show, about beauty, about looking the part. Her sister is practically a mini-mom (though she did have her good parts). Her brother is a loose cannon (with his gambling).
I loved the idea of the new season, plus the addition of Whitey. He turned out to be a really interesting character, I was really shipping him with Porsche. You could just see it was love at first sight and that it wasn't an act for either of them.
The book also adds tweets/articles and more about the life of the Royces and I really liked that it was added. It was fun to see the opinion of the world on certain events.
Then we get to the future event (and bits of it before that), and I was just OOOOOHHHHing and OMGing. While I did have my suspicions about several things (like Whitey), the twists and revelations still took me by surprise.
I have to say that after a few pages I skipped the footnotes. They were confusing, annoying, and very distracting. It is a nice idea, but yeah, it didn't work for me in this book.
Also, dear author, I am not sure why you think ducks can't fly, but ducks can most certainly fly. Maybe you were thinking about penguins? Or ostriches? Or chickens? But ducks? Ducks fly.
All in all, this was one book that was AWESOME, though it did take me some time to get through. Sometimes I have that with books, some books you can just fly through, and others take a bit longer.
I would highly recommend this book. Drama, reality shows, love, and much more!
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
I just adore books about fame, about reality shows, so I was very eager to read this one. Plus it seemed like it had a ton of drama!
The book starts off in the future, then rewinds back to the past. I definitely loved that it started with a bang, something that makes you want to know what happened to get to this event. It made the book even more interesting, as quite a few times you will be wondering when the event happens, and if you will be seeing how it all ends. It is fun to see the story build-up to that moment. I know that at times I went OHHHHH when something happened that may contribute to that event. :P
Our MC is Bentley (though in later parts we also see POV from her mom, her brother, and her sister). She is a pretty great gal, I liked her from the start, and I know that throughout the story I just wanted to hug her. She did some stupid things, some desperate things, some not all too good decisions, but (unlike her family and friends, oh and the world) I could see that she was doing that for her family. To make sure they stick together. To make sure they have a future.
She was so smart, I loved the essay she had to write (though I still think it is a weird thing that one has to write an essay to get a chance at acceptance at an university/college), her essay really portrayed her life, but also showed her character.
Plus I could definitely understand that she wanted out, my word, her family is craycray. Her mom is obsessive about the show, about beauty, about looking the part. Her sister is practically a mini-mom (though she did have her good parts). Her brother is a loose cannon (with his gambling).
I loved the idea of the new season, plus the addition of Whitey. He turned out to be a really interesting character, I was really shipping him with Porsche. You could just see it was love at first sight and that it wasn't an act for either of them.
The book also adds tweets/articles and more about the life of the Royces and I really liked that it was added. It was fun to see the opinion of the world on certain events.
Then we get to the future event (and bits of it before that), and I was just OOOOOHHHHing and OMGing. While I did have my suspicions about several things (like Whitey), the twists and revelations still took me by surprise.
I have to say that after a few pages I skipped the footnotes. They were confusing, annoying, and very distracting. It is a nice idea, but yeah, it didn't work for me in this book.
Also, dear author, I am not sure why you think ducks can't fly, but ducks can most certainly fly. Maybe you were thinking about penguins? Or ostriches? Or chickens? But ducks? Ducks fly.
All in all, this was one book that was AWESOME, though it did take me some time to get through. Sometimes I have that with books, some books you can just fly through, and others take a bit longer.
I would highly recommend this book. Drama, reality shows, love, and much more!
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
abbyl819's review against another edition
5.0
Oh. My. Gosh. This book was so much better than I was so much better than I was expecting! I had heard many great things about this book going into it, and was not disappointed. Just the premise alone of this book sounded great. A reality TV show star questioning her fate while avoiding drama within the family was enough to draw me in. The plot change midway turns it briefly into a mystery, and then explains the motives and ideas behind the main character, Bentley Royce. We learn so much more about her true colors from her in those last few chapters of explanation than throughout the whole book, and our view is changed as we are truly able to see that Bad Bentley is really an act for the show. Even though the news article about the crash the day before the season finale is highlighted in the very beginning of the book, by the time I got to that part of the story, I had completely forgotten about it. I was so drawn into the plot as it was, that it was as if I hadn't known the plot twist was about to happen. The characters in this book are so well written, and they are lovable and admirable for their values despite their many flaws. This book was amazing, and does wonders to make you question the truth behind celebrities today, and whether the them we know is just an act, as it was for Bentley.
indigoivee's review against another edition
3.0
This book might have been my longest standing TBR pile book. But I’m glad I read it when I did.
What in the reality TV did I just read? I was completely captured by the first sentence, then the first chapter and then just completely hooked. While I will say it took a great deal of effort to read through it half the time, because of the back and forth footnotes and plot, but when we got to the end I swear I could barely blink because I was afraid I’d miss something, it was that good.
Bentley Royce is that coming of age badass, she realised her privilege and her nonsensical position in life and wanted something different for herself and eventually did something about it. It was crazy, it was confusing and it was totally cool, everything you’d expect from reality TV but still real (or fictional). Either way, I loved the behind the senses input, the family dynamic and the really cute romance that you just didn’t see coming.
Really such an amazing read.
Favourite quote: “Judge me, she thought. Judge me and hate me and watch me and need me. I’m yours for as long as you want me.”
What in the reality TV did I just read? I was completely captured by the first sentence, then the first chapter and then just completely hooked. While I will say it took a great deal of effort to read through it half the time, because of the back and forth footnotes and plot, but when we got to the end I swear I could barely blink because I was afraid I’d miss something, it was that good.
Bentley Royce is that coming of age badass, she realised her privilege and her nonsensical position in life and wanted something different for herself and eventually did something about it. It was crazy, it was confusing and it was totally cool, everything you’d expect from reality TV but still real (or fictional). Either way, I loved the behind the senses input, the family dynamic and the really cute romance that you just didn’t see coming.
Really such an amazing read.
Favourite quote: “Judge me, she thought. Judge me and hate me and watch me and need me. I’m yours for as long as you want me.”
mrshollyanne's review against another edition
5.0
The most refreshing book I've read in a looooong time!! SO. GOOOOOOD.
adeleashley's review against another edition
3.0
I had high hopes for this novel because the premise is pretty great but the execution just wasn't there. Every single character irritated me and I found that they didn't have any redeeming qualities. I also struggled with the fact that I couldn't even bring myself to root for Bentley. There are a lot of "footnotes" in the novel, that didn't really add any value to the story, and I also found the plot extremely hard to follow.
I wanted way more out of this novel, especially since the premise has promise, but I found it just left a lot to be desired.
I wanted way more out of this novel, especially since the premise has promise, but I found it just left a lot to be desired.