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A review by aplace_inthesun
Not Here to Make Friends by Jodi McAlister
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
If you’re at all fascinated with the workings of reality TV then Not Here to Make Friends might be just the book you needed. It’s book 3 in a series, but I hadn’t read the two prior and had no issues - it’s a perfect standalone on its own merits and I didn’t feel I missed anything.
Lily is the TV villain …. And Murray is her producer. I don’t want to give too much away of the plot, other than to say Lily and Murray share a history, and when they are unexpectedly thrown together on the set of Murray’s latest reality TV show (a la the Bachelor and the Bachelorette) things get really interesting really quickly!
There is alot of backwards and forwarding between Murray and Lily throughout the book. The book gives progressive chronological flashback chapters from Lily’s POV interspersed with current day POV’s. It’s an interesting way to reach a final destination, and I think it was really effective here.
The potential machinations of the show just hooked me in, and the behind the scenes work that goes into making things seem a certain way, even if they aren’t’
I’m not sure if Lily is going to be everyone’s favourite FMC but she had a fascinating character arc. Murray was a little more staid and consistent - so it was an interesting, though successful pairing of characters.
Thanks to Simon and Schuster for sending me a copy of the book to read and review.
Super fun.
** I saw a couple of reviews comparing this book to the earlier books, and given I’ve not read them, this book seemed super fresh and engaging, particularly for this time of year where I want to sit outside or go to the beach and read. It’s perfect for that!
Lily is the TV villain …. And Murray is her producer. I don’t want to give too much away of the plot, other than to say Lily and Murray share a history, and when they are unexpectedly thrown together on the set of Murray’s latest reality TV show (a la the Bachelor and the Bachelorette) things get really interesting really quickly!
There is alot of backwards and forwarding between Murray and Lily throughout the book. The book gives progressive chronological flashback chapters from Lily’s POV interspersed with current day POV’s. It’s an interesting way to reach a final destination, and I think it was really effective here.
The potential machinations of the show just hooked me in, and the behind the scenes work that goes into making things seem a certain way, even if they aren’t’
I’m not sure if Lily is going to be everyone’s favourite FMC but she had a fascinating character arc. Murray was a little more staid and consistent - so it was an interesting, though successful pairing of characters.
Thanks to Simon and Schuster for sending me a copy of the book to read and review.
Super fun.
** I saw a couple of reviews comparing this book to the earlier books, and given I’ve not read them, this book seemed super fresh and engaging, particularly for this time of year where I want to sit outside or go to the beach and read. It’s perfect for that!