A great romance with both tropes and depth. These characters felt very real and their relationship was a delight. I absolutely loved it!

Short synopsis: In an attempt to revitalize their careers, budding starlet Grey and A-lister Ethan enter into a fake dating contract. Both hoping to get some positive publicity out of the arrangement, but what they don’t expect is some true feelings.

My thoughts: What a great debut book from Ava Wilder, I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next! I love a good celebrity romance, and a peek into the life of the “rich and famous.” I know this is fictional, but I’m sure there are some elements that are realistic.

I loved Grey and Ethan, such great main characters. They both had past demons (child star, and death of a best friend) and I enjoyed I loved seeing how their past shaped who they have now become.

The banter was cute and witty, and watching them fall in love was sweet. Sometimes in order to love someone you have to let them learn through their own mistakes

Read if you love:
* Lifestyles of the rich and famous
* Childhood celebrity crushes
* Forced proximity
* Emotional growth through traumatic pasts

⚠️ Trigger warning: Alcohalism, death of a best friend, bad family relationships

Overall I really enjoyed this one. While reading the first half I became quite obsessed, however, the second half did let me down a bit. I could’ve used a bit more character depth.

I love Hollywood, actors, celebrity gossip and A-list stars so when I received the ARC for this Fake Dating book between actors I got really excited. Who doesn’t love Fake Dating?! The premise is a reclusive A-list actor whose image needs rehabilitating agrees to a fake dating arrangement with a starlet who was on a popular teen tv show and wants to be taken seriously. This mutually beneficial contract is set up by their shared agent and, turns out, they like each other for realz! There is magnetic chemistry! Grey and Austin are into each other and there is a lot of sexual tension between them.

I really enjoyed this Hollywood story not only because I could picture Leo and maybe Blake Lively as the MCs, but I also live in LA and am familiar with where they hang out to try and get photographed by paparazzi. They go to Palm Springs and the sexual tension is boiling over between them so Grey suggests they have sex once, which, you know, always works to release tension! Especially if it’s good! But then of course a scandal breaks out and things get sketchy. I won’t say more, but i did enjoy the conflict and resolution.

My only critique would be there were a couple of plot holes in the story. For example, Grey has no interaction with Austin’s kids despite his shared custody. She does befriend his ex-wife, which is cool, but doesn’t talk to the kids once. And the prose itself was good but not my absolute favorite writing that I’ve read lately (mainly because there have been some excellent books out this year!) But I did really enjoy it and couldn’t wait to see how it ended. It’s very entertaining, romantic and impressive for a debut novel. Also, how cool is the name Grey? I love it!

CW: Alcoholism, addiction, grief

••••••••

Thanks so much to NetGalley & Random House for the ARC !!!

This story was not what I expected. It is well written and the characters have depth to them, and that's really good. Sadly, I couldn't connect with the characters or understand why they would continue a fake relationship, that turns into something real, and very toxic. I enjoyed the first half of the book and really struggled with the second half.

I did love the secondary characters, especially Kamilah and Nora. They were the voice of wisdom most of the time and they were true friends to Grey.

*I received and ARC through Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

This debut romance wasn't incredibly unique, but it was super addictive and was the perfect vacation read for me when nothing else was holding my attention. In this fake relationship story, a young Hollywood actress (Grey) who is coming off a role in a successful, long-running teen soap opera is set up with an A-List actor (Ethan) who is coming off a divorce and the death of a close friend and business partner. There is depth to this story in the form of commentary on addiction, grief, social media culture, and gender dynamics in Hollywood. I was invested in Ethan and Grey working through their issues. A solid romance for when you need something easy on your brain!

I wanted to love this one and I somewhat did. I liked the plot and I like the characters, but I went into this thinking it was going to be a fun light hearted rom com and I didn't get that. It was definitely more deep than I was thinking it would be. I'm not mad about it, but was just expecting a lot of romance and cuteness.

This book shines a light on the dark side of Hollywood and what people go through. It was alot to read about and I didn't love the chemistry between the two main characters. They just didn't seem to have that fire between them.

I was hoping to have loved this more, but it was just a so so book for me.

Grey and Ethan are both Hollywood stars who need to fix their image, for different reasons. Their publicists come up with the idea to have them fake date each other to help their images out. This also covered some heavier topics that I wasn’t expecting but it was done well and I enjoyed it! I enjoyed their relationship, especially when it was fake as that’s one of my favorite tropes!

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

How to Fake it In Hollywood has a more serious take on a fake dating trope with a dash of an age gap.

Grey and Ethan are both actors who need a little something to add some life back into their careers so they are matched up to be in a six month fake relationship. Of course they both start to catch feelings but Ethan has some skeletons that he brings to the relationship.

I enjoyed this one as it was a romance with a little bit of a dark and real side. However I do feel like Ethan was the "bad" guy where Grey definitely had some issues she needed to work through that didn't really get resolved. I feel like I just wanted a little bit more from our leading lady.

Also, I don't think the cover art matches up with the characters at all so definitely had to adjust my expectations. Overall if you like contemporary romance with less fluff but still open door than I'd say try this one.

content warnings: alcohol abuse

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

HOW TO FAKE IT IN HOLLYWOOD was unexpectedly a charming read and much more serious than the rom-com that I thought it was. Fake dating is almost always associated with rom coms and this book has heavy themes of grief and addiction throughout. It’s angsty and heartbreaking and so I think I was just a little thrown off when it wasn’t as light and fluffy as I had been led to believe.

Regardless, Grey and Ethan went through a good amount of character development between the both of them and I think it also offered some insightful commentary on Hollywood, how easy it is to fall into addiction and the fickleness of public opinion. Grey is an extremely intelligent woman as well who, despite the events of the book, is extremely relatable in her insecurities. This may seem in conflict to my previous sentence, but she also generally has a good grasp on what she wants out of life. Ethan is tragic in his addiction and grief, but it is a romance novel after all, and so, there is a guaranteed Happily Ever After. I did appreciate the author’s deliberate and thoughtful approach in not romanticizing it or having a Grey be the “cure” for him.

Overall, this was a really solid read with characters that burrow your way in your heart so that you can’t help but root for them.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

This book was incredible! Thank you so much for the opportunity to read it. I flew through this and devoured every page. It is funny and adorable. Definitely worth buying now!

How to Fake It in Hollywood by Ava Wilder is a romance novel about an up-and-coming actress Grey and a disgraced well-known actor Ethan. They both need a boost to their acting careers, so they begrudgingly start a fake relationship. However, they end up actually falling for each other. Is it really that easy though? Or will complications derail their relationship? I enjoyed how this story wasn't too light and fluffy, and it actually dealt with real relationship issues. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

I went through a phase where all I read for 2 months were cutesie rom-coms. This was one of them. My favorite thing about How to Fake it in a Hollywood is the way that Ethan and Grey interacted with each other. It felt like I was reading about real people and not a figment of Ava Wilders imagination. I absolutely adored this book and definitely suggest it to anyone else on a rom-com binge.

Thank you to Net Galley for this ARC! I I heard so many great things about How to Fake It in Hollywood by Ava Wilder, so I was very excited I had a chance to read it!

I'm a huge fake relationship trope fan, so I knew I would really enjoy this book. The story definitely went deeper than I was expecting a fake celebrity romance was going to, but I think it made the story so much more interesting than other books with similar themes.

Our MCs - Grey Brooks (actress and former teen soap star) and Ethan Atkins (award-winning actor and divorcee) are brought together to hopefully help each other's careers which starts their unique and slow-burn relationship.
As they navigate their growing feelings for each other, Ethan struggles with his substance abuse issues and Grey struggles with her confidence in a brutal industry.

Overall, this was a fun and quick read with interesting/flawed characters while still giving us a HEA - would definitely recommend it!

𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚍:
I was really intrigued by the blurb. Hollywood stars fake dating to boost their respective careers? I’m here for it. The chemistry between the two MC’s wasn’t as magnetic as I was hoping, but I loved the first half of the book. There were so many cute moments between the two but after the whole weekend away, it lost me. I really liked Grey more than Ethan. He was a bit problematic for me. Although, I did eventually enjoy his character development towards the end. The author did an amazing job of including everyday life struggles throughout the story, including substance abuse and grief.

𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
There was a bit too much drama towards the end of the book, that really isn’t my taste. And of course the miscommunication tropes which I don’t care for all the time. ETHAN GETTING OUT OF THAT CAB! Ugh, that pissed me off more than I would like to admit 😂

Overall this was a really cute book. And I haven’t read anything where both celebrities were fake dating each other and I thought for the most part that it was done very well.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House, and Ava Wilder for this copy in exchange for my honest review.
3w
bcbookbell𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚍:
I was really intrigued by the blurb. Hollywood stars fake dating to boost their respective careers? I’m here for it. The chemistry between the two MC’s wasn’t as magnetic as I was hoping, but I loved the first half of the book. There were so many cute moments between the two but after the whole weekend away, it lost me. I really liked Grey more than Ethan. He was a bit problematic for me. Although, I did eventually enjoy his character development towards the end. The author did an amazing job of including everyday life struggles throughout the story, including substance abuse and grief.

𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
There was a bit too much drama towards the end of the book, that really isn’t my taste. And of course the miscommunication tropes which I don’t care for all the time. ETHAN GETTING OUT OF THAT CAB! Ugh, that pissed me off more than I would like to admit 😂

Overall this was a really cute book. And I haven’t read anything where both celebrities were fake dating each other and I thought for the most part that it was done very well.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House, and Ava Wilder for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

I went into this book thinking it would be a light and breezy romcom based on the cover and I was so wrong. This is a story of recluse man and unemployed woman who both sign a contract to fake date in order to boost their celebrity status. It’s pretty predictable from the very beginning that the duo will fall in love but not without some twists and turns along the way.

I rated this a 3 star read because I enjoyed the rawness and complexity of the characters as well as the sunshine v grumpy trope. I also loved the overall theme that you first have to love yourself before you can love another. As I said earlier, it was overall predictable but I felt they should have encouraged each other to stop drinking and go for their goals. Lastly, their communication wasn’t always the greatest, which in the beginning made sense but towards the end, should have taken better shape.

Rating:
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Spice:
🌶

TW:
-alcoholism
-drugs
-death

Thank you to @netgalley and @randomhouse for providing a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Heavy on the rom, some com (mostly in the first third), and very angsty. I will read anything about famous people fake dating (or just dating in general lol) but this one missed the mark for me :(

It felt very much like Grey was having a whirlwind romance with a teenager trapped in a 40-year-old man's body lol. And then halfway, the tone of the book changes and Ethan's problem with drinking becomes an overwhelming issue. Now, you KNOW I demand my romances to not just be solely about the romance, so that's not why I feel iffy about it. I think ... how the conflicts were written and explored didn't match the vibes this story was trying to give off.

ANYWAY I won't lie, it was entertaining and I never wanted to put the book down. But Grey and Ethan were not good for each other and they both need to do some healing. As we all do. But separately.

Grey Brooks’ success as the star of a teen drama has not translated into a successful acting career as an adult. Ethan Atkins was highly successful, but following the death of his best friend Sam, Ethan’s acting career and his marriage crashed and burned in an alcohol-fueled depression.

Grey and Ethan have the same publicist, who comes up with the idea of having Grey and Ethan fake a romantic relationship as a way to bolster Grey’s career and revive Ethan’s career. Neither one is particularly excited by the idea (even though Ethan was Grey’s tween celebrity crush), but they each decide they have nothing to lose. The fake relationship does not get off to the best of starts, in large part because of Ethan’s attitude and his assumption that Grey is only using him to advance his career. However, she also challenges him in a way few people have.

A weekend getaway will change their relationship dramatically but will have repercussions that will potentially ruin everything. Ethan will have to come to terms with his addiction and with his regrets about the past. As he is trying to get his life back on track, things are starting to look up for Grey, who has developed a friendship and later business relationship with Ethan's ex-wife, Nora. Grey and her best friend Kamilah have been working on a screenplay but had yet to gain sufficient appropriate interest, which will soon change. Kamilah and her partner Andromeda are two of the most creative and enjoyable characters in the story; while their role is somewhat limited, it is ultimately very consequential.

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Up-and-coming celebrity needs to get her name out there. Enter seasoned celebrity with bad press in need of redemption. Now you've got a fake dating situation, in the public eye... nothing could go wrong right?!

This book is ALL OF THE FEELS. I loved that Grey was young but stood her ground, knew what she wanted, and didn't accept anything less than what she deserved. This book is NOT an easy rom-com read; it's deep and sad and very dark in certain parts. It approaches some really difficult topics so definitely check TW before reading.

With hints of fake dating, sort of enemies to lovers, a little bit of a slow burn, a lot of doubt, and ultimately so much romance, I absolutely adored this book. What a STUNNING debut novel by Ava Wilder!

I read this one quickly at the end of July and honestly, I don’t remember much. From what I do remember, the relationship between Grey and Ethan was toxic AF. I didn’t read the synopsis of this one, just saw lots of glowing reviews and requested it from Netgalley (story of my life). The synopsis says Ethan struggles with grief and his drinking. That’s putting it mildly. I am a child of alcohol addiction, both of my parents were alcoholics but have been sober for 15 years come January. I never really considered alcoholism in books to be a possible trigger for me, but this book put that to the test. I might’ve disliked it as much as I did given my history, but I wanted to shake Grey and yell quit enabling him!!!
This is a debut novel and the writing was done well from what I remember. I burned through it quickly, I was intrigued by the story and where Grey and Ethan’s story was going. I was super happy to see Ethan’s ex wife never painted as a villain, and honestly, the only mentally clear person in this book. I can’t stand the whole evil ex wife/baby momma plot. I do see why people enjoyed this book, I think if I didn’t have a personal traumatic experience surrounding alcoholism, maybe I could’ve enjoyed this too. Just wasn’t in the cards for me.