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A review by cloreadsbooks1364
How to Die Famous by Benjamin Dean
4.0
"Every time I landed on the front page, Omni Channel saw it as good publicity, hoping the millions of people analysing my life would also tune in to watch Sunset High. They were stirring the pot for their own gain. They didn't care what damage it did to me, so long as they got what they wanted."
How To Die Famous
By Benjamin Dean
4/5⭐️
Genres: YA, thriller, fiction
An actor disappears from the spotlight, a crew member falls off a balcony to his death, the lead actor goes missing... All of these events lead to the show Sunset High being deemed cursed, and when four young stars meet in LA to film the reboot it seems that the bad luck hasn't run out yet.
Abel enters the set determined to solve the mystery of his older brother's death, not believing that he simply fell off a hotel roof while working on the show three years prior. He plans to secretly leak stories to the press from the inside. Once there, he works with costars Lucky, Ryan and Ella, all who have a lot to deal with, to bring down Omni Channel once and for all.
Abel was an interesting protagonist, definitely not developed nearly as much as I'd like, but I enjoyed how quickly he bonded with his costars.
Lucky understood that his mother's death was due to paparazzi called by Omni, Ryan had a stalker and feared that she would be next to disappear, and Ella had to put up with her emotionally abusive, controlling mother who managed everything she did. All had a reason to hate the spotlight, leading to them working with Abel.
Throughout the novel we hear of the horrific treatment actors had to endure from Omni. Mila Stone, who disappeared from the spotlight after starring in the original Sunset High, tells Abel about how Omni made her feel unworthy and scared for her life. We also see Lucky and Ryan threatened. All four protagonists are commanded to hide their sexualities from the public.
The most appealing part of this novel was the mystery itself. Unfortunately the end twist was extremely predictable. However, I liked the fast pacing and the 4 different perspectives.
Overall, this was a good YA mystery thriller encircling the concept of fame and how the public eye can negatively affect celebrities, and how they are often controlled by others.
Queer rep:
Lesbian protagonist
Gay protagonists
Mspec protagonist
TWs: death, murder, homophobia, alcoholism, addiction, outing, stalking, car accident, emotional abuse
How To Die Famous
By Benjamin Dean
4/5⭐️
Genres: YA, thriller, fiction
An actor disappears from the spotlight, a crew member falls off a balcony to his death, the lead actor goes missing... All of these events lead to the show Sunset High being deemed cursed, and when four young stars meet in LA to film the reboot it seems that the bad luck hasn't run out yet.
Abel enters the set determined to solve the mystery of his older brother's death, not believing that he simply fell off a hotel roof while working on the show three years prior. He plans to secretly leak stories to the press from the inside. Once there, he works with costars Lucky, Ryan and Ella, all who have a lot to deal with, to bring down Omni Channel once and for all.
Abel was an interesting protagonist, definitely not developed nearly as much as I'd like, but I enjoyed how quickly he bonded with his costars.
Lucky understood that his mother's death was due to paparazzi called by Omni, Ryan had a stalker and feared that she would be next to disappear, and Ella had to put up with her emotionally abusive, controlling mother who managed everything she did. All had a reason to hate the spotlight, leading to them working with Abel.
Throughout the novel we hear of the horrific treatment actors had to endure from Omni. Mila Stone, who disappeared from the spotlight after starring in the original Sunset High, tells Abel about how Omni made her feel unworthy and scared for her life. We also see Lucky and Ryan threatened. All four protagonists are commanded to hide their sexualities from the public.
The most appealing part of this novel was the mystery itself. Unfortunately the end twist was extremely predictable. However, I liked the fast pacing and the 4 different perspectives.
Overall, this was a good YA mystery thriller encircling the concept of fame and how the public eye can negatively affect celebrities, and how they are often controlled by others.
Queer rep:
Lesbian protagonist
Gay protagonists
Mspec protagonist
TWs: death, murder, homophobia, alcoholism, addiction, outing, stalking, car accident, emotional abuse