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dantastic's review
4.0
When young Michael Mallory is tasked with writing an article about forgotten siren Diana Christmas, he quickly falls under her spell. Diana tells him she's being blackmailed and Michael goes to settle tings and quickly winds up in way over his head...
I've been friends with F.R. Jameson here on Goodreads for years. When he hit me up to review an ARC of Diana Christmas, I took him up on it. I was hooked form the first page.
Taking a page out of the early Megan Abbott playbook, James weaves the tale of Diana Christmas, a screen goddess that faded into obscurity, and Michael Mallory, the twenty-two year old that she gets her hooks into. Logically, I thought Michael was an idiot for a lot of the book. As a red-blooded male, I understood why he did what he did, logical or not.
It started off simply enough: confront a blackmailer and get him to stop. Things got a little more complicated after that, mostly due to the fact that Diana Christmas was, in fact, crazier than a shit house rat. Things go off the rails in a big way, as expected in stories of this type. Knowing it's Michael telling the story doesn't kill the tension. He gets seven shades of shit beat out of him before the end. Speaking of the ending, it hit me like a truck.
F. R. James crafted a good hard-boiled tale with Diana Christmas. Four out of five stars.
I've been friends with F.R. Jameson here on Goodreads for years. When he hit me up to review an ARC of Diana Christmas, I took him up on it. I was hooked form the first page.
Taking a page out of the early Megan Abbott playbook, James weaves the tale of Diana Christmas, a screen goddess that faded into obscurity, and Michael Mallory, the twenty-two year old that she gets her hooks into. Logically, I thought Michael was an idiot for a lot of the book. As a red-blooded male, I understood why he did what he did, logical or not.
It started off simply enough: confront a blackmailer and get him to stop. Things got a little more complicated after that, mostly due to the fact that Diana Christmas was, in fact, crazier than a shit house rat. Things go off the rails in a big way, as expected in stories of this type. Knowing it's Michael telling the story doesn't kill the tension. He gets seven shades of shit beat out of him before the end. Speaking of the ending, it hit me like a truck.
F. R. James crafted a good hard-boiled tale with Diana Christmas. Four out of five stars.
reviewsfeedblog's review
4.0
***Review originally posted on www.reviewsfeed.net***
This was a new genre for me to explore, and I relished the opportunity to read something new.
Michael, a recently graduated film journalist, lands himself an interview with none other than former star, Diana Christmas. Quickly finding himself between the sheets with her, he embroils himself in a history of blackmail and subterfuge spanning decades.
A forewarning to readers, some of the scenes in the book are NSFW and certainly for mature readers. I have to say that whilst I don’t read anything that… pushes the boundaries, shall we say, I didn’t find the raunchier parts too intimidating or uncomfortable to read. The narrative touches upon intimacy in a way that neither shies away from it uncomfortably, nor records every sordid detail, which makes for the perfect balance for someone like me.
Each of the characters presented in the book are unique and well developed. Diana herself, much as her character would strive to do, really takes centre stage when it comes to development. The author has quite evidently invested a lot of effort in getting Diana’s persona just right. From the way she speaks to the smallest mannerisms, she is remarkably expressive of her thoughts and feelings. She can change the mask she wears at the drop of a hat… and for me really embodies the expression that the whole world is a stage. The performance, in Diana’s mind, never seems to end. Sometimes, that mask slips in the heat of the moment though, and there are a few rare glimpses of Diana’s true self.
Whilst I was less a fan of Michael overall (entirely a personal bias), his character was written perfectly for the role he plays in the story. He is the love-sick puppy forever at her heels, begging for her affections and jumping through hoops to get it. He is the type of man Diana needed and was no doubt waiting for… as he is easy to manipulate. It’s not that I didn’t like him; I just wish that there was a bit more about him. I know he is young, inexperienced with life and no doubt star-struck, but he falls into the honeyed trap hook, line and sinker! I spent most of my time feeling sorry for him really – for someone purportedly educated, he’s a little wet behind the ears at times.
*Insert smutty joke here*
He did grow on me though, I have to say.
Where I found elements of Michael’s personality a few cards shy of a full deck (my opinion extends to all people of this nature – my former self included), the same cannot be said for the narrative itself. Full of twists and turns, the sophisticated, melodramatic soap opera of Diana’s life keeps the story flowing and evolving with each new development. The unexpected, less than fairy-tale like conclusion was surprising, but more importantly, brings some consequences of the pressures of fame to our attention.
Diana Christmas truly is a thriller fit for the silver screen itself.
This was a new genre for me to explore, and I relished the opportunity to read something new.
Michael, a recently graduated film journalist, lands himself an interview with none other than former star, Diana Christmas. Quickly finding himself between the sheets with her, he embroils himself in a history of blackmail and subterfuge spanning decades.
A forewarning to readers, some of the scenes in the book are NSFW and certainly for mature readers. I have to say that whilst I don’t read anything that… pushes the boundaries, shall we say, I didn’t find the raunchier parts too intimidating or uncomfortable to read. The narrative touches upon intimacy in a way that neither shies away from it uncomfortably, nor records every sordid detail, which makes for the perfect balance for someone like me.
Each of the characters presented in the book are unique and well developed. Diana herself, much as her character would strive to do, really takes centre stage when it comes to development. The author has quite evidently invested a lot of effort in getting Diana’s persona just right. From the way she speaks to the smallest mannerisms, she is remarkably expressive of her thoughts and feelings. She can change the mask she wears at the drop of a hat… and for me really embodies the expression that the whole world is a stage. The performance, in Diana’s mind, never seems to end. Sometimes, that mask slips in the heat of the moment though, and there are a few rare glimpses of Diana’s true self.
Whilst I was less a fan of Michael overall (entirely a personal bias), his character was written perfectly for the role he plays in the story. He is the love-sick puppy forever at her heels, begging for her affections and jumping through hoops to get it. He is the type of man Diana needed and was no doubt waiting for… as he is easy to manipulate. It’s not that I didn’t like him; I just wish that there was a bit more about him. I know he is young, inexperienced with life and no doubt star-struck, but he falls into the honeyed trap hook, line and sinker! I spent most of my time feeling sorry for him really – for someone purportedly educated, he’s a little wet behind the ears at times.
*Insert smutty joke here*
He did grow on me though, I have to say.
Where I found elements of Michael’s personality a few cards shy of a full deck (my opinion extends to all people of this nature – my former self included), the same cannot be said for the narrative itself. Full of twists and turns, the sophisticated, melodramatic soap opera of Diana’s life keeps the story flowing and evolving with each new development. The unexpected, less than fairy-tale like conclusion was surprising, but more importantly, brings some consequences of the pressures of fame to our attention.
Diana Christmas truly is a thriller fit for the silver screen itself.
cupofbooksreviews's review
4.0
I received Diana Christmas by F. R. Jameson in exchange for an honest review. I have given this noir thriller four out of five stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sometimes books can take a little while for me to fully engage into, however this was an entirely different matter for Diana Christmas. From the very first chapter I was sold. The descriptions and detail that Jameson used throughout this book made it very difficult for me to put it down. The descriptive writing really helped to picture the world Diana and Michael lived through in my imagination.
Although I, personally, couldn't connect with the types of characters within this book, I found that the characters created by Jameson were unique and well-developed, as at times throughout the story it made me feel quite disgusted by some of the actions made by certain characters which shows that the author has done an incredible job at making the reader feel such hatred towards them through writing.
At times, you could find me reading with my mouth slightly open as there were a lot of twists throughout this story that I did not see coming which had me on tenterhooks!
I can't wait to read the second book in the 'Silver Screen Noir' series called Eden St. Michel which is going to be out later on this summer!
I would definitely recommend this book to fans of noir, thriller, crime and mystery.
chymerra's review
4.0
Thriller Noir is a newer genre for me to read and review. While I have heard of it, I have seen thriller noir films and I was intrigued by a book form of the movies I have seen. I was glad that I accepted to request to review Diana Christmas. This book was an homage to the black and white thriller noir films that I watched as a child/teen.
Diana Christmas was a vivacious redhead who was about to make it big in the late 50’s Hollywood when she walked away from it all. She vanished. 20 years later, in the late 70’s, Michael tracks her down. An aspiring film journalist, he is thrilled at the chance to meet and interview Diana. He did not expect to end up in bed with her. He also did not expect for her to reveal the true reasons why she walked away from it all or that she is still being blackmailed. Michael, believing he is in love, decides to take it upon himself to help Diana get her blackmailers off her back. But Diana Christmas is not what she seems.
Michael was one of the most naïve characters that I have read to date. I liked him but I wanted to shake some sense into him. He put himself into situations that made me mentally shake my head and go “Why would you do that“. Don’t even get me started on his relationship with Diana. That relationship was doomed from the start. He fell in love with her too quickly and she, well, she was not a very nice person to him. Actually, that is an understatement. She cost him everything.
I didn’t like Diana from the minute she was introduced in the book. She saw that Michael was this naïve young man who actually knew who she was and decided to use him. I went from not liking her to hating her in the middle of the book. What she put Michael through was despicable. I was happy when she got what was coming to her at the end of the book. She deserved everything that happened to her.
The ending of Diana Christmas wasn’t a happy one. It was genius of the author to end the book in that way. It was full of regret, self-loathing and a slight undercurrent of bitterness. Which was a perfect ending for this book.
What I liked about Diana Christmas:
A) It was a new genre for me to read
B) Michael
C) The ending. Refreshing to read a book where everything wasn’t ended happily
What I disliked about Diana Christmas:
A) Diana.
B) Michael (yes, I liked and disliked him)
C) Almost too fast-moving for a book
I would give Diana Christmas an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.
I would recommend Diana Christmas to family and friends. I would also reread this book.
I would like to thank the author for allowing me to read and review Diana Christmas.
All opinions stated in this review of Diana Christmas are mine.
**I received a free copy of this book and volunteered to review it**
Diana Christmas was a vivacious redhead who was about to make it big in the late 50’s Hollywood when she walked away from it all. She vanished. 20 years later, in the late 70’s, Michael tracks her down. An aspiring film journalist, he is thrilled at the chance to meet and interview Diana. He did not expect to end up in bed with her. He also did not expect for her to reveal the true reasons why she walked away from it all or that she is still being blackmailed. Michael, believing he is in love, decides to take it upon himself to help Diana get her blackmailers off her back. But Diana Christmas is not what she seems.
Michael was one of the most naïve characters that I have read to date. I liked him but I wanted to shake some sense into him. He put himself into situations that made me mentally shake my head and go “Why would you do that“. Don’t even get me started on his relationship with Diana. That relationship was doomed from the start. He fell in love with her too quickly and she, well, she was not a very nice person to him. Actually, that is an understatement. She cost him everything.
I didn’t like Diana from the minute she was introduced in the book. She saw that Michael was this naïve young man who actually knew who she was and decided to use him. I went from not liking her to hating her in the middle of the book. What she put Michael through was despicable. I was happy when she got what was coming to her at the end of the book. She deserved everything that happened to her.
The ending of Diana Christmas wasn’t a happy one. It was genius of the author to end the book in that way. It was full of regret, self-loathing and a slight undercurrent of bitterness. Which was a perfect ending for this book.
What I liked about Diana Christmas:
A) It was a new genre for me to read
B) Michael
C) The ending. Refreshing to read a book where everything wasn’t ended happily
What I disliked about Diana Christmas:
A) Diana.
B) Michael (yes, I liked and disliked him)
C) Almost too fast-moving for a book
I would give Diana Christmas an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.
I would recommend Diana Christmas to family and friends. I would also reread this book.
I would like to thank the author for allowing me to read and review Diana Christmas.
All opinions stated in this review of Diana Christmas are mine.
**I received a free copy of this book and volunteered to review it**
mistysbookspace's review
3.0
I want to thank the author for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I am a little torn with my feelings about this book. On one hand it's a very quick and easy read and it drew me in from the very beginning but I couldn't stand the female lead character. Maybe that could be looked at as a good thing though. I mean the author must have done something right to make me hate a character so much.
You learn early on what happened to Diana to make her leave the industry so that's not a big mystery. It's full of twists and turns that you want see coming and for me personally it was a little too descriptive a times.
I did enjoy reading this but I just can not get over how a grown ass woman acted the way Diana did and the way she treated a certain person. I can't really explain it without spoiling the book but she just really made me mad.
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