This seemed to have my kind of vibe - set in the 70’s in LA with a cast of characters that are part of the Hollywood elite. There are a lot of characters and some seemed unnecessary. The story was predictable and it was really obvious what was going to happen. That being said, I loved the drama!

I was really looking forward to reading this novel. I have previously read Karin Tanabe’s Women of Intelligence, which I loved. However, I could not connect with this story. Thank you #NetGalley, #StMartin’sPress, #KarinTanabe and #TheSunsetCrowd for the novel for my honest review.

It was going to be a one-star for me except the last 1/3 picked up a bit. I just didn't like any of the characters and I guess I don't care enough about Hollywood or celebrity to find a story like this interesting. Endlessly naming celebrities just doesn't do it for me.

Sunset is the place to be for young ingenues and up-and-coming luminaries in the rock world and Hollywood in the 1970s. Evra Scott, child of a famous actor and director, runs this clothing boutique where celebrities, socialites, and other stars buy their frocks for parties, restaurant openings, and the red carpet. Bea Dupont captures it all on camera for magazines like Vogue and Rolling Stone. Then Theodora Leigh becomes part of their crowd, a woman striving to be a successful producer. Their lives will never be the same in The Sunset Crowd by Karin Tanabe.

I wanted to love this book. It contains all the elements of a good read for me--the 1970s, rock stars, journalists, celebrities, decadence, scandals, and jet-setting. I strapped myself in for a good time and all the thrills of this lifestyle through vicarious means. It starts off pretty well but pretty soon became lackluster.

The writing is good and deliciously descriptive. I liked how the author wove the names of hot shot celebrities from the time into the story without sounding like name-dropping. You never felt like the celebrity wasn't brought up without a reason, but the main characters really didn't hold sway with me.

I liked the narrator, Bea Dupont, who was from a wealthy, cultured family from the East Coast. She rebels against convention to become a photographer, and I thought her perspective was good. The other characters didn't stand out that much to the point where some blended together. And Bea's unrequited love interest was so bland and dull to me even though he was portrayed as dynamic and exciting.

Towards the end, the book does pick up, but it's so far from the beginning that I believe some readers will lose interest before that time. One reveal I caught onto halfway through the book, but the other was shocking. I think that some intrigue was lost until about 80 percent of the book, which is a shame. There was potential in this book, but it was boring in too many parts. I think it's more of a 2.5 than a 3-star book.

Wow!
I agree with a lot of reviews, this will make a wonderful show/film if it gets chosen to be adapted!
I would love to see it onscreen!
Very articulate, descriptive storytelling by the author. I would read more written by her.
Yes, lots to absorb in the beginning but definitely worth it at the end!

Thankyou to author Karin Tanabe, Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for tte opportunity to read this ahead of publication date.
Charlene @lastnownext 📚🌸🤗

🎧4.5⭐️- The first time I picked this up I couldn’t concentrate and was bored to tears. I made it 30% before I decided to move on. A few months later, I checked out the audiobook from my library and tried again, and I am so incredibly happy I did.
Taking place in the mid 70’s this is a story of love, lust, fashion, fame, and the lengths some will take to make sure their light never dies.
Told from the point of view of Beatrice Dupont, a photographer for Vogue and Rolling Stone, we are introduced to Evra Scott, Kai de la Faire, and Theodora Leigh. Their lives are glamorous from the outside, but once their secrets are discovered, things aren’t quite like they seem.
Karin Tanabe has brought the fast paced setting of LA of the 70’s to the page and readers will be sucked in to Bea’s life with the rich and famous.
The writing of this is pure genius and character development is spot on. I’m not often one for wanting books to become movies, but this plays out so beautifully that I think it would be amazing on the big screen. After listening to this one, I’m excited to read more of Ms. Tanabe’s work.

While I loved Karin Tanabe's previous books, The Sunset Crowd just missed the mark for me. The author continues to really delve into great topics and craft a beautiful picture, but this one is tedious. It goes on and on, without anything happening, and introduces a long list of characters that are hard to keep track of. I ended up having to put it down after I tried both the written copy and the audiobook and it still couldn't hold my interest and inspired more feelings of annoyance than anything. I normally don't review books that fall into the DNF category for me, but this one was just such a chore to get through that I felt it needed a review.

A fascinating look at Hollywood, with a main character who is messy and real. Loved the prose and quick-moving plot.

I did want to like this book but it took too long to get into the plot. I did not finish this book but do not put it against the author. There are times when I think a book will be perfect for me, but it turns out not to be the case. That said, I always give authors another chance, so I'll look forward to their next work.

WOW!! Karin Tanabe's 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘥 is a novel set in glitzy Los Angeles and opulent Cannes. It immerses readers in the decadent world of the 70s celebrity culture through the lives of three intriguing women — Evra Scott, Theodora Leigh, and Bea DuPont. For those who wish to re-live the 70's and live vicariously through those times again and through these 3 women, this is the book for you. A book about the lifestyle of the "Rich and Famous," a lifestyle that many aspire to but rarely achieve. My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.












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I liked the 1970s setting. I loved the design at the beginning of each chapter because it was vintage 70s.
I failed to relate to any of the characters in the book. I tried chapter after chapter and but I just couldn’t engage with the story and what was going on.

The decadence of the Sunset scene is front and center as our backdrop. Following our main character, Bea DuPont, who seemingly truly appreciates the life she’s built living in Laurel Canyon, being part of Evra Scott’s circle and still in the life of her teenage, private school Hawaiian crush, Kai, we get to be a part of a truly elite world. Bea i’s a very successful, sought after photographer, but she is still striving for Evra’s approval and inclusion while wishing that Kai would choose her. She, time over time, takes Evra’s side even against Kai, but that longing is still there. Enter Theodora Leigh, seemingly an assistant at Paramount who keeps improving her situation at every turn. It’s too good to be true, and that is it. The house of cards they’ve all built will come to a reckoning. The story evokes feelings of starting out, trying to create your own identity in a foreign world, which makes Bea relatable in that sense, until you realize she is just as elite as all of those around her. Theodora’s striving is a foil to the perfection of their glass world and she wants to be on the other side of the glass, but her form of fitting in puts them all at odds with each other. I really enjoyed the ride even if that level of affluence is not relatable, the building and rebuilding of your life is. I do recommend.

Need a book rec that is a breath of fresh air and super juicy with a look back into the retro late-70s Hollywood? Look no further! The Sunset Crowd by Karin Tanabe is beautifully crafted with a flow so good you don't even realize you've finished the book, but you want more, more, MORE!

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4

Bea is a member of the elite. A rich girl from New York, boarding school in Switzerland, and now living in LA as a photographer. Evra is also elite, by Hollywood standards, as the daughter of movie stars. At the opening of Evra’s new clothing store on Sunset Boulevard, she and Bea meet. Not only that, but Evra is dating Kai, Bea’s boarding school crush. They become inseparable friends until one day, when Theodora Leigh enters the picture. The mysterious woman is full of stories, ideas, and money…an ideal combo in Hollywood. But there’s more to Theodora, and the drama that enfolds is a true Hollywood story.

I really loved the first 75% of this book. The ‘70s Hollywood glitz and glamour, and the fashion and drama were all really intriguing. But the last 25% brought my rating down. I didn’t love how the ending came together. I thought there could’ve been a better way to bring everything full circle without the heartbreak and mystery that we were left with. But overall, I still thought it was good. It was well written, and kept my attention the whole time.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love this author's novels and he looked forward to this one, which was said to have some "Daisy Jones and the Six" vibes. Unfortunately this book didn't click for me as I found the characters hard to follow and did not find interesting.
I absolutely look forward to reading other books from this author.

✨DNF @ 42%

✨I’m simply not interested. A historical fiction book set in the 70s will inevitably be compared to Daisy Jones & the Six. as much as I tried to stay objective, the level of depth this book had was just nothing compared to TJR.

✨mainly, I feel like that is because of the research. I don’t feel like this book was as well researched as it could have been. It felt like someone from the 21st century writing about every stereotype from the 70s. There’s tons of sex and over sexualization, drugs, alcohol, messy relationships, excess wealth in Hollywood, etc. but, to me, there wasn’t anything deeper.

✨I did like that we were mainly seeing things from Bea’s perspective, a photographer that has connections but is observing other “main characters.”

✨I just wish I felt more of a connection.

From my blog: Always With a Book

I became a fan of Karin Tanabe after doing a buddy read for her book, A Hundred Suns. I fell in love with her writing and knew I would be reading everything she writes after that book. I loved her next book, A Woman of Intelligence and was excited when I saw this one was coming out. What I love most about her books is that no one book is exactly the same.

This time around, we are transported to the glitz and glamor of Hollywood in the 1970s. I found myself instantly captivated by the vivid and immersive writing and loved how she is able to bring her characters to life so vibrantly! I was instantly taken with the drama that ensues with the friends as they are all consumed with trying to make a name for themselves. Hollywood really can be quite cutthroat as one tries to make it to the top and we see the lengths one will go to make it to the top. It was interesting seeing this from the different careers that each of the friends had – the actress, the stylist, the screenwriter, and the photographer – they weren’t competing against each other necessarily but we see just how far that ambition takes them and what they were willing to do to get to the top.

I enjoyed this one, it was the perfect summer read, filled with complex characters, secrets, and lots of drama. I love being able to lose myself in these types of reads during the summer and this one totally did just that.

This one just felt abrupt and not fully thought out. The setting and historical nature of the novel was super cool though.

Thank you to the publisher for the arc!

This was okay. It kind of dragged in some places but the last 10% made it worth it.

I had a hard time engaging in this book. Pacing started out slow. I just couldn't get into it. I ended up DNF'ing at 20%.