Let me say there isn't necessarily WRONG with this book, I just found it a little too heavy and depressing for what I was looking to read at the time. In the time of Me Too, I think it's an important book, just wasn't for me AT THE TIME. I may try it again in the future, and until I do I won't review it elsewhere.

I did not just love this book. I appreciated the Me Too aspect of it, and the emphasis on a young woman who experienced sexual assault in Hollywood learning how to live her life again after the assault. Maybe it was the timing of when I decided to read it, but I could not quite connect with the character. However, I found the characters around her very interesting, including her younger sister and best friend.

THE COMEBACK is definitely a book that made me think. I am not sure exactly how I feel about it, but there are moments when I wanted more or thought the author could have pushed the character a little more. All in all, it was a good story, but I don't know if this one was for me.

This was a great book that detailed a really horrible and heartbreaking story of a young actress. I found the authors note at the end to be really interesting- she had started this right before the #MeToo movement started to unfold. I appreciated Grace’s story and her struggle to accept and cope, but for some reason this book took me so long to finish. I give it 3.5 :)

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced copy of this book.

—t h e c o m e b a c k—⁣

The Comeback by Ella Berman is a deep dive into the impacts of addiction, stardom, trauma, and rape. It is not a light read - but rather, an emotive and raw journey following young megastar Grace Turner as she vanishes from the public eye and returns to her parents home in Anaheim. The real story, for me, picks up when she returns to Hollywood and faces her demons - including the man who made her career and abused and traumatized her. ⁣
—⁣
The book is tense but well written. I was on tenterhooks as more and more of Grace’s character and trauma is revealed. This is not for the faint of heart and triggers abound in this book, but it was a good one. Definitely reminiscent of #metoo and Harvey Weinstein. I appreciated how thought provoking this book was. The style is really unique as the author wavers between various periods in Grace’s tumultuous life. The story is disturbing at parts as Grace suffers and grapples with her own trauma. I found the pace a little off but otherwise, this book really hooked me.⁣
—⁣
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞: redemption, character driven books, LA. ⁣
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡: a kombucha ⁣
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐧: a party dress⁣
—⁣
A hard read but worth it - 3.5 ⭐️⁣
Please be aware of the potentially triggering elements of the book - abuse, rape/molestation, drug and alcohol abuse and addiction, suicide, etc. ⁣
—⁣
Thank you to @berkleypub for the [gifted] book #partner. Thank you also to @netgalley! ⁣

I believe in honesty as I review books. Unfortunately, I did not finish this book because, while promising an interesting premise, acquired a slow pace and lack of direction for me. I turned each page wanting something to happen and that's never a good sign for readers paying attention. While I wish the author well, I felt this book containing lackluster qualities.

We meet Grace Turner in her decline, a decline that could only start at the age of 24 in a place like Hollywood. A year before, Grace was at the height of her career, about to likely get a Golden Globe nomination due to her 8 year connection with famous director, Abel Yorke . Many thought she was only one movie away from being part of the A-list but she disappeared.
Now's she back but with no plan as to how to restart her career but a chance to find the strength she didn't know she had.

This book is very of the moment- part of it speaks to the #metoo movement. I wish we would have known more about Abel, since he was such a big part of Grace's life, although, I guess in the end he shouldn't matter. I actually could 100% see this being a movie with Florence Pugh playing Grace.

Focusing on the dark, manipulative side of Hollywood and what happens when young children (particularly girls) are thrust into an adult world, this book totally hits the mark.

I found Grace to be a flawed, yet likeable, character, willing to put in the work to better herself, but also one who regresses when life gets too hard. Determining who she can trust, exploring a tentative relationship with her sister, and acknowledging the pain of her parents, Grace’s growth throughout the book is apparent.

An uncomfortable book, but one worth reading.

I read this fairly quickly, among all the chaos of Covid. It made for a fantastic distraction. I loved the dark narrative. The flawed characters. Overall a great 4 star read.

This novel was different-- and better-- than I expected. A rich examination of the making and unmaking of a former child star, set at the beginning of what became the #metoo era (though the author's note clarifies some details about this). Honestly, this book had such unexpected humor, interesting and well-wrought character relationships (especially between the female characters) that I found myself utterly engaged. The first thirty pages didn't snag me, but once I was in, I was in. Looking forward to the next work that Berman writes.

I read this one on a whim, it was sent to me through an email widget. Its a good book, but not really up my alley. I don’t think I was the intended audience on this one

The Comeback is perfect for the reader who is also in-tuned with the darker aspects of pop-culture. This book was extremely heavy and handled important topics such as sexual assault, depression, addiction, depression, and many more. I think it handled those topics well and with grace. That being said this book didn’t really pick up until the last 10 or so chapters and I think could have offered more. An excellent debut from Berman!

Reading this book was very intriguing because of how real it seemed. Grace was a child actor in Hollywood. The place where everything seems so glam and perfect. Throughout the book we learn that it's not that at all. How it affects Grace.

OOOOOooooo I LOVED this book so much. I flew through it and become completely immersed in Grace's story. Able was WRETCHED and the entire time I was reading I kept thinking of Harvey Weinstein. I thought the author did an amazing job of realistically portraying what life is like for child stars and I can't wait to read what she writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
This book has all the triggers: suicide attempt, drug use, sexual abuse, etc. 3.5 stars. It is about Grace, a child star who disappears from the limelight at the height of her fame and how she deals with the sexual and emotional abuse from her director as well as the manipulations on her. It is a #metoo book but I did not connect with it. The first half dragged on, the second half showed a lot more growth. def a character driven novel so if you enjoy that and an insight into the lives of celebrities, this might be for you.
The author could have done more research on shattered patellas, someone who has a shattered one isn't going to be walking around the next day or jumping in the ocean. Probably something only someone who broke a patella in Beverly Hills would pick up on. The descriptions of LA and the surrounding areas were spot on though.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel. I was not able to connect with the character and will not be able to give a full review.

I listened to this one on audio as well as reading the ebook. It definitely had me hooked as I was wondering what events led Grace to her current state at home.

This book had a lot of potential. However I felt like it fell flat for me. It had this chance to really build up to what was going on with Grace, but it touched on it and moved on. It felt like there was too much extra going on, but not enough of the real reason for her breakdown. I wish, for our current era, that it would have given more of an inside look as well.

The writing is superb and the story was different and interesting. Grace Turner is a famous actress that disappears from the spotlight because an academy award winning director controls her every move. This was difficult to read at times, but very thought provoking and timely.

I LOVED the synopsis when I read it but unfortunately the book didn't deliver.

Although the writing was good, I'm sad to admit that I didn't warm up to the main character Grace, and besides the flashbacks, the novel on its own didn't pull me in nor did I at the end care for Grace anymore than at the beginning.

Moreover, the plot was meandering along, and I had the hardest time concentrating on what I was reading.

I feel after reading other reviews, that this book wasn't the right one for me, because I didn't see the compelling and haunting aspect of it. Sure it was emotional, but overall the plot was bland and failed to get me emotionally invested.

Grace started her movie stardom at a young age. Able Yorke was a director who saw something in her and made her his muse. So what happened to send Grace to go running home to her parents and hide from the world?

You find out slowly some of Grace's secrets as the book progresses and it's all very timely.


I probably should have said at the beginning of this non review that the book just did not wow me as it has other people. Go read their reviews.
I'm a long time 'like' nothing reader.

HOWEVER...I think if you are hiding from the press and the bad person some of the things that Grace did just didn't make sense to me.


Other stuff that just lost stars for me were the fact that the ending was pretty much sleep inducing and the book tended to drag in several spots.

I'm sorry five star peoples.

Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.