4.5 stars. this was simultaneously so fun and so much deeper than I thought it would be. Loved reading about these actors, and their struggles that accompanied their fame, but also loved the bond between both MCs. Loved the fake dating trope, loved how the author tackled grief and addiction and immense insecurity. less breezy than the cover suggests, but a great read on the inside.

Behind the scenes, it’s been almost a year since Grey Brooks has had actual job. When her long running teen drama series came to an end so did the offers. Having been an actress since she was eight years old, at 27 Grey considers herself lucky. She was able to help her mother pay the bills when her dead beat dad disappeared and has been independent ever since. Smart, pretty and possibly a little lonely, Grey has stayed out of the gossip mags and done the hard work. While she eyes a new role that could put her back on the map her feisty publicist feels the directors need a little nudge. She proposes Grey create a fake relationship with an absolute A-lister that has been reclusive for over 5 years and requires a creative come back as well. A decade older, Ethan Atkins was Grey’s teen heartthrob. A poster of this gorgeous hunk hung on her wall fulfilling all her young fantasies. She agrees with the crazy plan. Little did she know sparks would mutually fly, their chemistry off the rom-com charts. When the paparazzi become uncontrollable Grey and Ethan must put down their scripts face actual feelings Hollywood style. The grass is not always greener but it’s a wild ride to read about. Beach reading at it’s best!

This book was soo good! I didn't even quite expect all it gave. Not only was there romance, spice, fake dating- it felt real. These characters were so well rounded and I could really picture them. It was kinda dark at times. So check trigger warnings. But honestly it showed a whole lot of growing and realities of what that looks like. I took a couple notes while reading and they were... "depending on other people to fix you is impossible." Which is a good lesson for anyone! And this book is in third person but you don't even notice. All in all, a great book!

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce_h8XErx9V/

3.5 stars! The first half was more fun—fake dating, forced proximity, banter; but the second half got pretty dark and sad. From the cover and the summary, I didn’t expect it to go as deep as it did and maybe this was just a case of incorrect expectations on my end.

Content warnings: addiction, alcoholism, drug use, grief. These were huge to the plot so proceed with care.

Both Grey Brooks and Ethan Atkins are members of an exclusive club: Hollywood actors. The difference? Grey starred in a now-ended teen TV show — the kind people hate to love. Ethan started as a teen heartthrob who parlayed his good looks into an Oscar-winning partnership with his childhood best friend — think Ben Affleck / Matt Damon vibes. The similarity? Both are trying to remain relevant in the industry known to chew you up and spit you out. Their relationship begins as a quid-pro-quo publicity stunt. Ethan helps Grey land some more credible roles. Grey helps Ethan repair the image he set aflame after losing his best friend in a horrible accident. Each star is guarded and fighting trust issues, but their chemistry ignited a spark more than either bargained for when signing the contract to fake-date. And, as always, when two stars collide, there’s the potential for an explosion.

Wilder makes an interesting choice to go with third-person dual POV, even shifting between characters in the same chapter. It’s an unusual choice that pays off as readers become more and more invested in the will they, won’t they, should they tug-o-war that ensues. At times, the novel is light and fluffy, full of first world problems, but it packs the punch of a well-crafted character study of what happens when you get everything you ever wanted, but refuse to look at what you actually need. The way she crafts these characters feels so real and so raw, and despite the times when Ethan is deeply unlikeable, we can’t help but root for them.

I was hooked from the very beginning of the story. This was a really heartfelt enjoyable debut. Grey & Ethans's story about the behind the scenes in Hollywood; on how difficult it is to deal with being under the limelight, keeping their private lives private and the struggles they face just like every person in this world. You follow them as they come together to help try to rebrand their fame, tackle their demons, and fall in love in the process. It was a very enjoyable read for me. I will definitely be checking out further books from this author.

Read If You Like:
Celebrity Main Characters (actors)
Second Change
Fake Dating
Forced Proximity
Complicated Past
Heartfelt Storyline
Steamy
Summer Read

Oh my goodness...when is Ava Wilder's next book coming out?!?! This was SO GOOD. I'm a huge sucker for the fake dating trope as is, but add in a Hollywood setting and I'm a goner! The chemistry and development between the characters was fantastic. Excellent, excellent book!

I love a good story about hollywood stars. I really enjoyed the set up of the story...however there were several places in which it could have successfully ended, but for whatever reason, the story was dragged on. It was a good/happy ending of course, but I don't think it needed to go that far.

fake dating to lovers is one of my favorite tropes of all time, but unfortunately this book did not hit the mark for me. i wish there had been more buildup between the two main characters. the pacing of the book was also a bit weird, which didn't help matters. also, a lot of things happened off-screen, and some of those scene i would've appreciated seeing them on the actual page.

overall, this was a quick, entertaining read, and i enjoyed parts of it.

How to Fake it in Hollywood by Ava Wilder is an enjoyable romcom. There is a bit of an age gap between Grey and Ethan as well as lots of fake dating and dual POV! Grey and Ethan are two well known actor/actress who star in many Hollywood films. Their manager sets them up to fake date to boost their popularity. This book can be considered a romcom, but there are also a lot of deep and emotional things going on between the characters. I greatly enjoyed seeing these two people grow as individuals and grow attached to one another.

I really enjoyed this book. The writing was amusing and didn't feel corny. I liked both characters and thought they had really good chemistry. Just the right amount of brooding and longing for each other. It was a great, quick read and I will definitely read more by this author.

So I really enjoyed this book! I was hooked from the start, and I really enjoyed the fact this was so much more than just a fake-dating relationship. I thought Grey and Ethan's romance was very present in reading, and their chemistry was entertaining. Overall a great book that i would totally recommend!

Brief Plot: Grey Brooks needs help in obtaining her next acting job after finishing a long term teen drama. Ethan Atkins is coming out of a 5 year 'retirement' after the loss of his best friend. In a fake relationship agreement to bring talks of them both up for professional promotion, the two agree to a contract. But with chemistry brewing, as well as al lot of unaddressed emotions, the two have to handle and decide if they can be together and be a positive impact to the others life or not.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an eARC copy of How to Fake it In Hollywood by Ava Wilder. This is my honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. I like how the author allows both Grey and Ethan to grow as individuals throughout the story and make them both likeable characters. I also enjoyed that there was more depth to the story with each of their backgrounds.

Looking for a great romance book to read this summer? Look no further! This book was so fun and swoon worthy. But don’t let the cover fool you, there’s some deep topics involved in this book as well. I really enjoyed the characters in this book, I felt like they were relatable, even if you’re not famous. I also liked that it was written in dual POV. If you’re a fan of celebrity and fake dating tropes, I highly recommend this one! I couldn’t put it down once I started it.

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

Grey Brooks hasn't gotten much work since her hit teen drama wrapped up almost a year ago. With a big role possibly on the horizon, she decides to agree to her publicist's plan - fake date America's heart throb actor Ethan Atkins. The only problem is Ethan hasn't worked, let alone stayed sober since his best friend died five years ago. Wallowing in grief and booze, Ethan knows that the window to finish the movie him and his best friend started is coming to a close. He needs to appear stable and ready to work again, not only to finish this movie but to be able to see his kids more. Turns out Grey and Ethan's chemistry is more than an act.

Wow. This was not at all what I expected. When I requested this ARC I thought I'd be getting a light romcom. But instead I got something much deeper. This book still had romcom moments complete with witty banter but it was also full of real issues in both Ethan and Grey's lives - addiction, debilitating grief, and familial problems. I finished this book in a day. I couldn't put it down. I had this sinking feeling for the last 3/4 of the book just waiting for the shoe to drop. Their relationship just didn't feel right. But the author gave me what I needed in the end. Ava Wilder is a talented writer. This was a GREAT debut novel which is out TODAY! I highly recommend the read.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Random House for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I'm feeling conflicted about this one. On the one hand, I liked the characters. I thought they were well-rounded and interesting. But the author did some things with the traditional Romance structure that I did not like at all.

SPOILERS AHEAD

The characters hook up really quickly—which is totally fine, but it's not my preference as I prefer a slower burn. I thought this choice robbed the story of a lot of tension. Anyway, so they got together pretty quickly and then had a breakup very quickly as well. There were two breakups in this novel!! I read Romance for the predictability, honestly, and the structural changes here really threw me off and turned me off to the book overall. I forced myself to keep reading and was just not feeling it by the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy. This honest review was based off my experience reading an ARC, which in no way biased me.

I wanted to like this, I really did. Going into this book I thought I was going to get a cute contemporary romance/romcom. And that’s not what I got. The author tried to make this more than “just a contemporary romance” and some half baked serious themes, which just made the whole execution flop for me.

It has some really great tropes:
-age gap (she’s 27 and he’s 38)
-fake dating
-celebrity romance
-forced proximity
-one bed trope

Things I liked:
-the tropes mentioned above
-While the execution of this book was not my favorite I will say the quality of the writing was well done
-Nora. She was quite possibly my favorite character. Her and Renata.
-I did enjoy that Grey did not let people step all over her (Ethan and her mother specifically).

Things that could use some work:
-Not sure why but their chemistry felt faked (even when they were alone) and forced. They felt very dry to me.
-I didn’t love that she was his fan girl and he didn’t even know she existed, this would have served much better if they were enemies to lovers rather than whatever they were.
-Ethan’s “struggles with drinking” was undersold in the blurb. He is an alcoholic/person who deals with addictions and this book should have had a trigger/content warning for that. I am not by any means an expert but I do not believe this was handled well at all, especially with the time jump and “Ethan is cured” now.
-Speaking of content/trigger warnings, this book needed to have them.
-Making Ethan “become better” only for Grey. This felt odd. He had his daughters to think about (and he complained about missing so much of their lives since the divorce, but again had done absolutely nothing to better himself until he had a love interest) and only when he had a love interest did he even consider doing anything help himself?
-Personally while Grey “made Ethan better” Ethan “made Grey worse”. There is a quote directly from the book that Grey says “…She noted with resentment that it felt like she’d had more hangover in the months that shes met Ethan than in the last few years combined…” (Chapter 26)
-How they could have such strong feelings for each other from fake dating for two months (and him ignoring/avoiding her at all costs for more than 80% of those 2 months), a sex marathon, and a few weeks of zero contact through a breakup? I’m not sure, and this adds to the chemistry feeling faked and forced (even behind closed doors).
-the pacing was so odd. I could never tell how much time had passed (except for the time jump).

Overall, I did not enjoy this book, but others may.

This book took me back to my high school fan fiction days in the best possible way. I absolutely devoured Ethan and Grey’s story and I found myself staying up until 4 am reading until I fell asleep because I couldn’t get myself to put it down. The combination of the fake dating turned real romance with the fun of the celebrity/entertainment world was right up my alley and I couldn’t recommend this book more. Genuinely a 10/10 read that got me out of the reading slump I’ve been in for the past month. If you’re on the edge about reading this book, I promise it’s worth it.

I went in to this book thinking it would be pretty light but it turned out to be more of a romantic drama. Two actors team up to form a PR relationship to help their careers all the while falling for each other. Not everything is as it seems and both have to deal with their internal struggles and demons. Trigger warns for alcoholism, depression, grief, abuse and more - this is certainly much heavier and 'real' than I anticipated.

Don’t let this cute cover fool you - How to Fake it in Hollywood packs quite the punch. I mean yes it’s definitely a swoon worthy romance with plenty of cute moments. However, it also covers plenty of other deeper topics such as grief, substance abuse, and the pitfalls of mega fame. Honestly this book took me on quite the rollercoaster of emotions. I found myself simultaneously rooting for the characters and being so frustrated with them I wanted to reach through the pages and shake them. And thank god we got both of their perspectives. The way Ethan was head over heels for Grey was adorable. Their journey together was really beautiful. My only only complaint was that it felt a smidge too easily resolved in the end. But without a doubt I’d definitely recommend this!