Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

How to Fake it in Hollywood by Ava Wilder

5 reviews

seehorse2326's review

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funny lighthearted 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? It's complicated

3.75

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olpapi's review

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emotional lighthearted tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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utopiastateofmind's review

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3.0

 (Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)

 How to Fake It in Hollywood begins with this idea of, "what's next"? After the career decision we thought would be it for us, what do we do now? After the loss of someone we never thought we'd have to live without, what now? Beginning with this premise for both Ethan and Grey, their fake relationship is designed to help give them both a boost. For Ethan he needs a reputation boost after the death of his best friend, and dissolution of his marriage, if he ever wants to make the movie they always said they would. And for Grey, she wants to bounce back after the ending of her long term project to find some more projects she loves.

How to Fake It in Hollywood doesn't shy away from the ageism and sexism in Hollywood. The ways in which her decisions, and their fake relationship, effect Grey differently than Ethan. While I was prepared to love Grey immediately, I felt like the story ended up focusing more on Ethan. Ethan's struggling with grief, self-loathing, and alcohol abuse. He's stuck thinking everything he touches will be ruined and that he's the cause. So granted, his POV ends up being deeply emotional almost from the get go. Whereas with Grey, it took me a bit longer to figure out her central character. 
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nina_readsbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful 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

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kayaks's review

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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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