I couldn't put this book down, just per loved it from start to finish and can't wait for more in this series. Really like this author and this book. You really should give this book and author ago as you won't regret it I promise you that. Of course would recommend this book to everyone and can't wait for more. Plus left review on Amazon.uk.

This was an easy book to get into. A great holiday read .I did expect it to be abit more raunchy than what it was , but I enjoyed it and would recommend.

I really enjoyed reading this rom-com romance about Marissa who comes from the Hollywood elite and Simon a B list actor from the slums of London. A chance meeting at the country club starts when Marissa makes up a fake boyfriend (while staring at Simon who is sitting at a near by table) because her mother is yelling at her about not taking back her cheating ex. Simon needs a fake girlfriend to improve his image for a chance to get a part in a up coming movie so he approaches Marissa near the restroom and proposes they be in a fake relationship that they both can benefit from.

Thus begins their fun filled adventure that includes the mother from hell, lots of steam and discovering what is really important in the long run. A great start to "Kiss Talent Agency" series.

I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy provided by Season publishing/NetGalley.

This story was exactly how the blurb described. Yes there were steamy moments, yes there was romance, yes there was good writing. Sometimes you need to take a break from the more complicated reads to simplify it down. But you see I have read enough romance to know how the story will go, and for that reason even though this was a easy cute read it really didn't hit the spot. I knew once I started this one was going to be ehh.

Marissa is a rich girl trying to get away from her overbearing mother and Simon is a B-list actor trying to make it big. They both decide to use each other to try to get to their end goals. Simon has a poor background while Marissa is rich. This brings in friction from Simons end and he feel less than her.

Recommendation: If you like the blurb, thats what you will get.

I liked the sound of this when I read the blurb, it sounded kind of funny and quirky. Sadly, my expectations didn't match with the novel. Not to say the novel was bad, just that I was hoping for something a little different.

Marissa Woodcrest is a poor little rich girl. Her mother is a snob and blames Marissa for ditching her cheating ex-fiance Charles, in her mother's eyes Charles' pedigree overrides his personality and behaviour. At yet another interminable family dinner at the country club Marissa is trying to resist pressure from her mother to beg Charles to take her back and she makes up a fake boyfriend, describing a handsome man she can see at the other side of the restaurant. Little does she know that her waitress is actually the man's sister.

Simon Dale is an actor in Sci-Fi TV show in which he plays a green alien, there's lots of sex and its a really cheesy soap opera. He is desperate for a part in a big new film but the producers Noble and Spires have doubts about his commitment. When his sister tells him about what is happening at the other table he offers Marissa a deal: be his fake girlfriend to help him land the part and he will be her fake upper-crust English boyfriend to stop her mother's bullying. When she was much younger Marissa was into bad boys and she nearly died in a car accident. Ever since she has tried desperately to be a good girl and do everything her mother tells her.

Of course Simon is hiding both his identity as a soap opera actor from Marissa's parents AND his real background from Marissa. He isn't a wealthy, James Bond-esque Brit, he's a "street rat" and a "kid from a trash family from the east side of London". Now I am British and I can assure you that we do not refer to the east side of London, its the East End (which to be fair is used extensively later in the book), nor do we call people street rats or talk about trash families. I appreciate for many readers this won't matter an iota but I wish writers would at least do a little research to provide authenticity. OK, rant over.

Because of his background Simon has feelings of inadequacy, he doesn't think he is good enough for Marissa. Conversely, Marissa feels inadequate compared to Simon's leading ladies and former girlfriends. Inevitably there is a poisonous ex to match Marissa's ex-fiance.

This was an easy read, at one point I thought it was maybe an old-fashioned erotic novel because of the sheer number of 'encounters' between Marissa and Simon in which he taught her how to receive pleasure. Yes really!

Recommended for people who like a sweet old-fashioned romance with a bit of steam, mixed with Hollywood glamour and scheming exes.

Marissa is stuck in a bad cycle of her own making with her family. Her overbearing mother is trying to boss her and pressure her into going back to her cheating ex-boyfriend. Simon is a B list actor who needs some help of his own to get a part in a big movie so he can make it big. When he makes the offer to help her by being her fake boyfriend and she be his fake girlfriend things get exciting. She's rich and wonderfully sweet and he had a horrible childhood and sees himself as not good enough for her. Simon may be mixed up about his self worth but he is a perfect gentleman to Marissa. He sees her as she is and she's sees herself as flawed and not good enough for him. He's the strong one for a good portion of the book until everything falls apart but by then Marissa finally realizes she's strong too. She's worthy of love. It takes losing Marissa for Simon to let go of his past. Some parts felt a but cheesy but over all i loved both Simon and Marissa. They were stronger together even though in a lot of ways they were so different.

Find out more about this brand new series and Virna DePaul here www.virnadepaul.com

This is a great book; this is the first book in the Kiss Talent Agency series written by Virna DePaul. This is a great book with a wonderful story and well developed characters. This book will keep you reading long into the night. If you are looking for a great book, then you need to read this book. I am looking forward to reading the next book by this great author. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader’s copy of this book. The free book held no determination on my personal review.

Marissa

Appearance is everything to my upper-crust mother, but when she insists I take back my pedigreed-but-cheating ex? I’d rather stab myself with a salad fork. So I blurt out I’m dating someone new. Someone like…that smoking-hot, vaguely familiar guy across the restaurant, who could be the next James Bond.

Turns out he’s the star of my favorite, cheesy, sci-fi soap opera. (Don’t judge me.) One minute I’m fantasizing about Borg and his green-hued abs. The next, Simon Dale is making me an offer my sex-starved body can’t refuse.

Simon

I’m up for a breakout movie role that’ll launch me off the B-list, but I don’t need a script to read the scene between Marissa and her mum. Even though I’m a London gutter rat who never rubbed elbows with a Royal, I easily slip into the role of Marissa’s doting boyfriend. Why? I need a favor in return— a steady girlfriend, just long enough to convince the producers I’ve changed my wild ways.

Trouble is, I’m going all Method on this relationship—and close to losing the one thing that could break me. My heart.

Marissa is kind of Hollywood royalty because of her family’s money. She doesn’t feel that way and just wants to live her life as a normal person. Her mother, however, has very different ideas. When Marissa tells her mother that she broke up with her long-time boyfriend because she found out he’d been cheating on her for 6 months her mother freaks out like it’s the end of the world. Not that he’d been cheating on Marissa but that she broke it off. Nice mom. Not. Marissa’s mom is insisting that she get back together with her boyfriend but Marissa refuses. She sees a guy in the country club they’re at and makes up a story saying that she’s already seeing someone new. Due to a set of circumstances she actually meets the guy and it turns out that he needs a fake girlfriend as well.

Simon is an actor on a tv show where he’s an alien. He really needs a big break doing some serious film work but no one believes he can do it. He’s got a playboy reputation and the producers of the one big film he’s being considered for think his reputation will be bad for publicity. Simon’s not the person they think he is. He grew up in the streets of London but he got him and his sister out. He lives simply and saves his money as he doesn’t feel he deserves better. When he meets Marissa he tells her that it’s all fake but the more time he spends with her the more he can’t get her out of his head. Unfortunately they’re ruse depends on the producers believing them as well as Marissa’s parents never finding out who he really is.

This was a cute story. It was a pretty simple fake relationship story but I like the way the author threw some curve balls in there for us. Having Simon grow up as a London gutter rat was an interesting aspect of the story and of course that effected almost all of his decisions. He was a good guy and not an actor that made some money and then lived lavishly. He lived above a bar and saved his money.

Marissa was a woman who had lived under her mother’s thumb for so long she truly didn’t know how to get out from under it. Being with Simon made her look at her life differently and want to stand up to her mother and do what she wanted with her life. She grew a lot during the course of the book and I liked who she was at the end.

The relationship with Marissa and Simon started out as just playing a part, then just sex and then more. Of course neither admitted it which is always frustrating when that happens with characters but I liked that they worked it all out in the end. Overall it was a fun book and I definitely enjoyed reading it.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

This will post as a guest review on Book Binge.
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Overall the story was written quite well. Good characters and romance.

Lip Action, Virna DePaul

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre:  Romance,

I've mixed feelings about this. parts I liked and other bits not so much. 
I loved Marissa but what an awful family she had, especially her mum. What parent wants her daughter to marry a cheating jerk.
Her dad kept quiet, but that's a cop out IMO, he should have spoken out.

When her mum is pressing her to take back the jerk, the cheater just because she's 28 and not married....I could scream at her, and of course Marissa won't but comes up with a fake boyfriend to hold her off for a bit. Coincidentally the guy she's looking at right then needs a fake girlfriend...

Simon wants the lead in a film that could make him an A list actor, but his past rep lets him down. In a moment of insanity he tells the producers he has a girlfriend....So when he hears Marissa he knows exactly what to do. 
OK its a bit of a stretch believing they could meet just like that - but truth is strange sometimes so I'll go with it.
They then go back and forth, will she won't she, with pressures on both from his agent and her mum til she finally decides yes. She's such a nice girl she just can't let Simon down. even though she hates deception and lies.
Its kind of predictable after that, fun to read but nothing greatly original.
The down side, the drama, the sad bit happens just as you'd expect, and though I love that side I hadn't really got connected enough to this story and characters to really feel any great emotions. 

Its a fun story, easy and lighthearted, some steamy sensuality, and a kind of easy beach read. 

Stars:3, its a fun read but not characters or a story I really got involved with. 

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

Right so I've been re reading a lot lately because I've been in a bit of a book funk. Just generally finding myself unsure of what I want to read.

I won't say this is the best book I have ever read,not even close. However it's gave me what I needed right now. Normally this would be a 3ish stars for me but I must admit that in my book funk mind it hit the spot and I do like a cheese fest every now and then.

I like the storyline. All though it's not an original one the author did a good job of making it her own. Fake relationship romances are some of the best for me. That build up of sexual tension, the worrying over if the other feels the same at the same time as a cute romance blossoming it hits all the spots for me.

Simon although comes across as a arrogant turd at first has layers. A broken past that he can't forget or move forward from he's haunted by his own demons. I enjoyed his personality and I loved the way he was towards Marissa. Always reassuring her, extremely patient and really just wanted her to be herself instead of someone who's been moulded. However I found there was a lot of his history/past missing. Yes you get a few brief answers but it wasn't enough for me to love him completely.

Marissa again is very likeable and very relatable. She living with the guilt and fear of her past spent the next 10years moulding herself into someone her parents would approve of instead of being herself. You get glimpses of her true self shining through and when you do it's fantastic. She's sweet caring and a little feisty with a little nugget of wild. But again you don't get enough of her like it to love her!.

The story is nice with a good amount of cheese which if I'm honest I enjoyed. However it's extremely fast paced so you don't have enough time to love the characters or pay to much attention to where they are at because your moving forward so quickly. It's missing a lot of their history and their growth as an actual couple which in my opinion would have made this a great story. The epilogue was super cute though.

But again i enjoyed it and it gave me what I needed from it.

I kindly received this ARC from netgalley in exchange for an honest review

a good quick ok read.

Marissa can't believe her family wants her to take back her cheating ex just because he's SOMEBODY. How things look are everything to her mom but Marissa prefers a guy she can trust. When she meets Simon she is stunned by two things: his handsomeness and the fact that he is the star of one of her favorite TV shows. Simon grew up on the wrong side of the tracks and knows he's not good enough for Marissa but their chemistry is combustible. Enjoyable romance!

I read a little over 25% before calling it quits. Extremely repetitive. Marissa is a good girl. She can't date bad boys again. Oh the crash. Oh she'd like to be a grown up version of wild. She's a good girl. She can't date him.. The crash. Oh to be wild. Seriously, this cycle was reared at least 4 times already. Plus I can't like Marissa. She has no backbone and she's selfish.