Told in a Hollywood "tell all" style with interspersed interstitials, this novel tracks the public downfall of child star Hayley Aldridge. Complete with inappropriate advances and misconduct on the part of actors and directors, this book gives a (hopefully) fictionalized account of behind the scenes Hollywood. After Haley is publicly judged as "coming off the rails," she is place into a conservatorship under her father's care. The conservatorship becomes more strict with Haley being held a prisoner in her home without a phone, access to people except to work on movies her parents forced her to do, and little contact with her children. Finally, Haley and her teen daughters plan a social media campaign to #freeHaley.

Obviously a spin off on the Britney Spears conservatorship drama that recently played out in social media. Engaging book, but I hope that Hollywood is nicer and more care is given to these kid actors than what is shown in this book and, quite frankly, the real life media. For me, this was not just a book mimicking a real life scandal, but a peek at what might be a disgusting lifestyle that is perfectly legal and allowable in our country.

Short and entertaining. I enjoy the parallels to Britney although the conservatorship part was pretty small.
More about the overall career of a child star in the 90s.

The world was shocked, but not surprised when pop princess Britney Spears had a very public crisis in 2007 that ultimately led to her being placed in a conservatorship controlled by her father for 13 years. Britney’s conservatorship ended recently in 2021 with the help of the #FreeBritney movement; however, due to Britney’s increasingly strange and erratic behavior post-conservatorship, spectators have begun to question whether the conservatorship was in fact warranted. Nickelodeon child star Amanda Bynes was in similar situation. She was placed under a conservatorship after she exhibited self-destructive behavior, and just last year petitioned the courts to bring it to an end. However, Amanda was recently found wandering the streets of LA naked and was thus placed on a psychiatric hold.

Many people would argue that both Britney and Amanda are in need of some protection, stability, and monitoring through conservatorships, but the real issue at the heart of these situations is, “What happened to these girls in their formative years to make conservatorships warranted in the first place?” Elissa R. Sloan explores this topic in her new novel Hayley Aldridge is Still Here, a story clearly inspired by the plight of Britney Spears and others like her. In this book, Hayley Aldridge, a hot commodity in Hollywood, literally grows up in the business, having started work very young on commercials before landing the TV show role that would define her life. As Hayley matures from a precocious six year old into a curious young woman, the things she has seen in Hollywood begin to take a toll on her, and she starts experimenting with substances, partying all hours of the night, and behaving promiscuously. Before she can even grasp what is happening, her turbulent behavior lands her in a conservatorship and life as she knew it is over.

In Hayley Aldridge is Still Here, Hayley tells her story to her 17 year old twin daughters, who are questioning why their mother can’t leave the grounds of her Hollywood mansion, why they can’t bring cell phones to her home, and why everyone is talking about her on the TV. Hayley brings them, and us, back through the years, exploring how her life, once brimming with possibility, was diminished to what it is now. Sloan expertly delves into issues of substance abuse, sexual harassment and abuse, and the hunger for money, power, and fame, as she shows how Hayley, and countless other young girls and boys, are exploited by the business, and often their own families, for self-serving reasons. To the outside world, being rich and famous often looks glamorous, but to many of those living it, it can only be described as hell.

Hayley Aldridge is Still Here is an engrossing tale of the horrors of Hollywood, and will especially be enjoyed by anyone who has followed Britney Spears’ conservatorship struggles through the years. Sloan is so adept at crafting a believable story, I often forgot that I was reading a book about a fictional character, and not in fact one of show business’s chewed up and spit out young starlets. She shows how the media spins stories about celebrities to suit their agenda, blowing situations out of proportion or painting them in a completely negative light, thus ruining lives.

The only issue I took with this book is that it primarily explored Hayley’s life pre-conservatorship, and showed us very little of what her days were like once she was locked down. I would have preferred the novel be split into two parts, going into detail both pre- and post-conservatorship. Also (mild spoilers ahead), while Sloan lightly touches on mental health and how it presents itself by the way of erratic behavior, she doesn’t confirm that Hayley does in fact have a disorder, much unlike that of Spears and Bynes who are clearly struggling outside of their conservatorships with some mental health issues. Hayley is primarily painted as a victim of the business, the media, and her parents, and while Hayley might have led a completely normal life if she hadn’t been launched into super stardom, nothing is really her fault, unlike the situations of some of her real-life peers. Sloan missed the opportunity to add some complexity to her novel by making Hayley out to be a blameless victim.

Highly recommended to fans of pop culture!

This almost felt too soon after the Free Britney movement but I think it offered a unique perspective. It definitely kept my interest even if I didn't totally love it. all.

This is an empowering fan-fiction version of Britney Spears' conservatorship saga, with some details shifted to tell the story of a child actor. The plot is juicy and captivating, even if mostly predictable.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Elissa R. Sloan, and publisher William Morrow for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

I adored Sloan's first book, The Unraveling of Cassidy Holmes, so I was really looking forward to reading this! Unfortunately, this book did not quite live up to my expectations. I do think this is a fascinating book that is all too timely with the #freebritney movement going on; it sheds insight into what might be happening behind the scenes for someone who is locked into a conservatorship and really brings to light whether or not people should be forced into this situation, especially for so many years. However, I think the storytelling in this book falls flat and does a huge disservice to the character of Hayley. Hayley's life story is told by her in series of flashbacks, as she tells her teenage daughters in the present what led to her conservatorship. Whereas the book was too short as a whole and wrapped up much too quickly for my liking, portions of these flashbacks were way too long and repetitive. It is necessary to understand how Hayley got to this point, but the book barely spends any time with her in the present day. I wanted the book to show more of who she was currently to connect with her more as the reader. Important moments from her past that shaped her trajectory are completely glossed over many times and not given the same weight as repetitive scenes of partying and drug use were. Overall, this book was a juicy read that kept me engaged, but it had the potential to be a more thought-provoking and engaging read that it unfortunately held itself back from going to that next level.

I really enjoyed the first half of this book and the book overall. This book is told from the first person in the format of the main character telling her daughters why she is under a conservatorship - clearly inspired by the Britney Spears situation. While I understand the format, it was a bit jarring at times swapping between the past and present. There was a mix of talking to the children directly and talking about them as if the story was not being told for them (you vs my daughters). I really enjoyed the drama and glam of the first half, the rise to fame and the details of the settings and characters. It was incredible to reflect on how pop stars of the early 2000s were treated so poorly and how society really let them down. I wanted more from the ending though as it felt a bit rushed and all the build up was for not much. It is a slow burn but a fast read. If you are obsessed with all things 2000s pop culture, love celebrity drama, a questionable narrator and a plot driven story with strong character development, this is a great read for you!

Thank you William Marrow and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book early and at no cost in exchange for an honest review

This is a thinly veiled take on the Britney Spears conservatorship. Like Britney, Hayley has horrible parents, a younger sibling trying to break into the business and a grass roots social media campaign to help get her free. Both Hayley and Britney start off as child stars but Hayley stays in the acting business. What she endures as a young, female actress is nauseating and I’m sure not far from what actually takes place for young stars, unfortunately. Hayley is used and abused by everyone around her which results in a pretty major drug and alcohol addiction, combined with mental health issues which ultimately lead to her conservatorship. This is a great look at the Hollywood scene in the early aughts.

It's my first Elissa R. Sloan book and won't be my last. I definitely want to pick up her first one now! I followed the #FreeBritney movement and was happy to hear when her conservatorship ended. This is based loosely on that but didn't feel exploitative at all like I thought it might. I love books about celebrity culture and Hollywood and this didn't disappoint. As someone who lives in L.A. and worked in Hollywood, this felt very spot on. I enjoyed the storytelling device of older Hayley telling her life story to her 17-year-old twins. The voice is very personable and easy to read. I appreciated how this book deftly explores the dark side of this industry: body shaming and objectification where young starlets are taken advantage of with nobody to look out for them.

I was fully obsessed with this book while reading, and the story as a whole did not disappoint. From the realities of the pressures on child stars to the obviously Britney Spears inspired conservatorship Hayley is placed under, this book is an absolute page turner and a thoughtful look at celebrity, money, and Hollywood.

This novel reads like a Brittany Spears bio. Hayley Aldridge was a child star who made some terrible misjudgments and errors in her young life. She probably wouldn't have made such grievous errors, however, if her parents hadn't been such absolute money-grubbing trash. Anyway, it did help me understand what poor Brittany Spears must have gone through with her conservatorship. Because this is exactly what happens to Hayley. Right down to the southern roots, little sister also trying to be a star, partying, drug use and mental incapacities. Anyway, I enjoyed this novel and it was an easy read. A good second novel from Sloan.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this e-arc.*

This will be the book of Spring 2023!!!! Britney fans, where you at?!?! I adored Hayley and as a 90s baby, just loved every minute of this story. A fast, eye-opening story about how poorly we treated our child stars (especially females) and the repercussions of that. #helphayley

I wanted to love this book. The premise caught my eye as I'm a millennial who grew up with Britney/Christina/Lindsay/Paris/etc, and with the recent documentaries on Britney Spears, I was curious how Elissa Sloan would write this story. Hayley Aldridge isn't quite Britney Spears, but she's telling her story anyway. I loved the way this book made me think about how we treated celebrities (and women) in the 2000's, and how men in power will do what they want. I think that this would make a great movie! However, I just did not connect to Hayley, her family or friends in the way I wanted to. This one was unfortunately missing that spark for me...possibly because the book was 'told to us readers through Hayley telling her own daughters her story.

I really enjoyed the book about an IT girl whose life is being controlled by everyone but her. It’s a perfectly timely story about women taking ownership of their own life and direction.

This ripped-from-the-headlines story of a former child star caught in a conservatorship inevitably draws comparisons to Britney Spears (there are also elements of Drew Barrymore/Lindsay Lohan/Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen in Hayley's story). It's a cautionary story of neglect, fame, and power; fast-paced and moving at times.


Many thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Hayley Aldridge is a former child star. She was one of the stars of a long-running tv show as well as appearing in movies. After a meltdown in front of the cameras, Hayley is put in a conservatorship by her parents who she has supported since she began acting. She is eager to end the conservatorship but without control of her money and without a cell phone she is unable to do anything. After finding out that #helphayley is trending, she tells her story to her teen daughters and convinces them to help her get free.
This book is obviously based on Britney Spears and it could have come off as exploitative but the author has masterfully written a book that takes a hard look on how we treat celebrities particularly young celebrities and how the system and adults tasked with protecting them fail. The author has treated the subject with so much compassion.that you really feel for Hayley and her real life counterparts.

This was a such a great book. I raced through this book, largely based n the story of Britney Spears. I loved it, but I would have loved to had another 20-30 pages to explore her relationship with her mother and for an epilogue. I was really sad to see it end and look forward to more from this author.