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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
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:
Complicated
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I found the effort to place the book in a specific time to me a bit much at times. I found the way the author almost villainizes small children and mothers to be really off putting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Outing
Moderate: Mental illness
Minor: Rape, Death of parent
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Ali, our grieving anxious hypochondriac lesbian MC, lost her partner a year ago in an accident and has been having a hard time coping. It doesn't help that she sort of fell into her job as a celebrity publicist who spends a lot of her career encouraging her clients to stay in the closet. But her newest client, Cara, isn't like the others - being a lesbian is a core part of her identity, and while she wants to be a star and do what Ali says - she's going to upend Ali's life in all the best ways in the process.
This is a book that tackles a lot of topics - mental health, grief, forced closeting, to name a few sexual assault - so don't go into this thinking you're getting a fluffy celebrity romcom - you're getting a story about 2 people finding love in each other but navigating a lot of hurt along the way. Cara and Ali's relationship was so beautifully built, Cara's gentle battering ram to Ali's self inflicted seclusion really made me root for them both. I found Ali's experience of grief really honest - the way it would sneak up on her at unexpected times - and Cara's care for Ali in those moments was really tender and effective for me as a reader to see the feelings she has for Ali.
I found it interesting to learn in the authors note that this was originally written as a modern story but they could only sell it once she set it in 2005 because 'closeting doesn't happen anymore.' And like obviously it does, because as Laskey says in her authors note - that math isn't mathing. and i would be so interested in reading that original version because my main criticism of the book was how hard it felt like it was trying to convince me we were in 2005, it became distracting at times. i'm also not convinced i loved the XXXXXXX stand in for presumably actual celebrity names, as opposed to just further developing the world with more fake celebrities?
overall this is a great read for anyone looking for a sapphic celebrity romance with a lot of depth and reflection on the role of celebrity and the ways in which enforcing invisibility harms the queer community.
Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the earc in exchange for this honest review
This is a book that tackles a lot of topics - mental health, grief, forced closeting, to name a few sexual assault - so don't go into this thinking you're getting a fluffy celebrity romcom - you're getting a story about 2 people finding love in each other but navigating a lot of hurt along the way. Cara and Ali's relationship was so beautifully built, Cara's gentle battering ram to Ali's self inflicted seclusion really made me root for them both. I found Ali's experience of grief really honest - the way it would sneak up on her at unexpected times - and Cara's care for Ali in those moments was really tender and effective for me as a reader to see the feelings she has for Ali.
I found it interesting to learn in the authors note that this was originally written as a modern story but they could only sell it once she set it in 2005 because 'closeting doesn't happen anymore.' And like obviously it does, because as Laskey says in her authors note - that math isn't mathing. and i would be so interested in reading that original version because my main criticism of the book was how hard it felt like it was trying to convince me we were in 2005, it became distracting at times. i'm also not convinced i loved the XXXXXXX stand in for presumably actual celebrity names, as opposed to just further developing the world with more fake celebrities?
overall this is a great read for anyone looking for a sapphic celebrity romance with a lot of depth and reflection on the role of celebrity and the ways in which enforcing invisibility harms the queer community.
Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the earc in exchange for this honest review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
tense
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
This book was a roller coaster that took on so many issues including death of a long-term partner, death of a parent, mental illness within self, mental illness within a parent, repressed childhood trauma and anger, chronic illness, forced queer identity closeting, witnessed pet being mauled (survived), rape, eating disorders, homophobia, and I’m probably even missing some. I kept thinking to myself that the book was biting off more than it could chew, but none of these topics felt forced - meaning I didn’t feel like any of them were in the book just for the sake of being able to discuss them or include them. They all made sense within the plot and story and were not shortchanged in the narrative. It was just a lot to process, as the reader, to one second be on a really heavy, awful subject, and then all of the sudden we flip the page and there’s a sweet happy moment that turns into a steamy sex scene. I would just say it was a lot. However I really liked the story, I loved the characters (flaws and all), and I enjoyed the plot and journey they took!
Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest rating and review.
emotional
medium-paced
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved Ali, the anxious, deeply neurotic, hypochondriac, grieving widow with the soul of a writer but the day job of a publicist to narcissistic Hollywood stars. A year after her wife's sudden death, Ali is dealing with the idea of mortality in the best way she knows how since her childhood: anxiety, catastrophizing, and trying to get through her day job and keep her dog loved and happy the best she can. Enter Cara, a younger up-and-coming actor who needs a publicist to keep her closeted for her own career, and Ali is assigned to do the job. Somewhere along the way, they fall for each other and Ali finds herself feeling a bit braver and Cara becomes a bit more thoughtful and mature but as Cara's star rises, Ali can't help but feel resentful of the bearding required of Cara and hiding away their own relationship from everyone.
I loved that Ali's grief comes back to haunt her at very organic times and that she has doubts about herself as a neurotic older widow as a prize for a younger, hot, upcoming celebrity. I love that she starts out a mess and learns and grows from her relationship and generally gets to a healthier point in her life after her wife's death, and could potentially even find happiness again.
I also really loved the historical fiction aspect of this. Set in ~2005, we have real-world and Hollywood events to contend with (remember the innocent days when a young up-and-coming actress getting the lead in the new Star Wars films was considered exciting news and not a precursor to weird nerd abuse online forever after for her?) and redacted names to give the impression of talking about actual celebrities.
This was really fun and also emotionally engaging and satisfying, and so I would definitely recommend it!
I loved that Ali's grief comes back to haunt her at very organic times and that she has doubts about herself as a neurotic older widow as a prize for a younger, hot, upcoming celebrity. I love that she starts out a mess and learns and grows from her relationship and generally gets to a healthier point in her life after her wife's death, and could potentially even find happiness again.
I also really loved the historical fiction aspect of this. Set in ~2005, we have real-world and Hollywood events to contend with (remember the innocent days when a young up-and-coming actress getting the lead in the new Star Wars films was considered exciting news and not a precursor to weird nerd abuse online forever after for her?) and redacted names to give the impression of talking about actual celebrities.
This was really fun and also emotionally engaging and satisfying, and so I would definitely recommend it!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt
Minor: Rape
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
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