I've read a lot of articles written by James Weir over the years and this book has his signature zing, humour and witty relevance in spades.

Byron has become overrun with influencers and tourists and generally annoying people, and all local girl, Aimee, wants is for them to leave and go back to where they came from.

She's on a time-out with her fiance, her financials are up the creek, and a trashbag of a reality tv show is being filmed in her beloved town. Add a potential new love interest, a deal with the devil, a tonne of passive aggressive swipes (done so very well) and you have yourself a very entertaining story.

I enjoyed this book more than I honestly thought I would. The little additions and mentions of things from the 90s and 2000s were excellent and made Aimee feel so relatable to me. I didn't love the ending, but overall this was a quick, fun read.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I enjoyed this lighthearted read.

Aimee has lived all her life in Byron Bay. She is getting fed up with life and is especially annoyed by the influx of all the newbie celebrities and pretentious influencers who are arriving in Byron Bay.

Her niece is chosen to star in a reality show. She is also asked to star after ranting in public, ending up with her being called “Byron Karen.”

To make things worse Tim, her narcissistic fiancé, wants a chance to play the field. This was his irritating mum’s idea.

Aimee gets a lot of attention from the film crew, locals, the producer, and a newbie called Jules. Jules seems to be a bit of a Mister Perfect.

This is a funny, well written read. We see Aimee cope with the oddness of being involved with reality tv. We meet some of her amusing friends.

There’s a point where she gives Tim, nice but dim, his comeuppance. This bit was particularly enjoyable to read.

I recommend this book to others.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.
I thoroughly enjoyed Aimee's story. I found it well written, and the story flowed well. There is laughter, romance and some fun banter. She has fierce friends that stick by her no matter what.
A nice quick read.

I enjoyed this so much! A breath of fresh air - and the mood elevator I needed. Fun, light hearted and clever, it’s the perfect summer read. Highly entertaining and highly recommended!

I was very excited to see this title. I am a regular reader of James Weir's media columns and he often reduces me to tears of laughter so I had high hopes for this book. While this was a reasonable read I felt that Weir diluted the very thing that makes his writing so funny and relatable a little too much in the narrative so this became a good read rather than a great read. The potential was there - the issues touched on - influencers, wealth, the rental crisis and small coastal towns being over-run by city dwellers bringing up the very elements they are trying to escape. All incredibly relevant and potentially hilarious - but it's like Weir tried a little hard to be a 'writer' rather than allow his unique talent to shine.

So many plot elements were skimmed over to fit as many different elements as possible but it meant that the narrative didn't go quite as deeply as it could with each different plot development and left me wanting more, but not in a good way. The protagonist Aimee was difficult to relate to at times and the myriad of her relationships in the novel didn't go as deeply as they could.

All that said I was happy to read the book and I enjoyed it, I just didn't love it and I so wanted to!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

I thoroughly enjoyed this light hearted read which is perfect for Summer. It tells the tale of Aimee, a born and bred Byron local who gets sucked up into the vortex of influencers, celebrities, confused relationships and reality tv. Highly recommended - it’s fun and relatable.

Byron Bay is getting its own reality show, Brats of Byron Bay. Aimee a 36 year old woman, on a break from her fiancé of 18 years, isn’t to happy about it, nor is a lot of people living in Byron. Aimee is dubbed the Byron Karen for complaining about it, and being so negative. Oops! She has just found out her Niece is starring in it, and somehow she has got roped into starring in it as well.
Some weird and funny characters, a steamy hook up, lies, cover ups, bad decisions, ridiculous antics and some good one liners make this a fun story to read.
Thanks to Netgalley and publishers for this arc.

I am a James Weir fan and love his hilarious recaps of Aussi reality TV Shows. It was a no-brainer that I would request a copy of "The Hemsworth Effect." 36-year-old Byron Bay local Aimee Maguire's life has been turned upside down. Officially in the time-out zone by her fiance, her business has no home, given that the building will be sold. Her niece, Freya, arrives at Byron Bay with her hidden secrets. '… it's The Hemsworth Effect. That's what's ruining Byron Bay'' is a quote that launches our protagonist into instant stardom, and she is crowned as a Byron Karen. This read is infused with plenty of pop culture and Aussi references, adding to the lightheartedness. James does an incredible job of introducing a range of characters who inadvertently cross paths with Aimee. He was indeed in his element when he introduced the reality TV plot! The overall plot wrapped itself up well though there were multiple facepalm moments as I read how Aimee navigated the numerous situations. One downside for me was that the humour became too repetitive. However, it was a good read and drove home multiple lessons on less force and more flow—a 4-star read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for giving me an e-ARC. This honest review is left voluntarily.

This was terrific.
Aimee has loved her whole life in Byron Bay and is growing increasingly disgruntled with the explosion of celebrities and hipster bougie influencers.
When her niece is picked to star in a reality show, Aimee is also asked to star after a very public rant earned her the nickname ‘Byron Karen’.
There also Tim, her cardboard, long time, fiancé who wanted a ‘time out’ to play the field at the suggestion of his more than irritating mother.
Aimee’s best friends insert appropriate humour and drama when the cameras are off.
Suddenly Aimee finds herself with a lot of attention. From locals, the filming crew, one of the producers and a newbie.

I really enjoyed this. It was witty and funny. Reading Aimee navigate the world of reality TV and all that comes with it felt realistic.
Jules…Jules…Jules…the newbie seemed too good to be true, like I was waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Heath, the producer, definitely grew on me as a character and if I’m pulling for anyone to get with Aimee, it’s Heath.
There was a lot to enjoy about this tongue in cheek novel.
But sometimes, I felt like I was missing big chunks of information. Like Aimee and Tim. It was cathartic to see her semi-lose her shit at him.

Definitely recommend.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley and all opinions are my own.

The story is not really the celebrities pushing the prices of property up in Byron Bay. It is more about Aimee and her past.The story takes on a vibe of reality show/ drama. Aimee is a real hot mess. She has friends who love her, but she is a really hard girl to like. Despite sharing a space with the celebrities, she hardly pays attention to the comings and goings around her. Her ignorance is a source of pain for her, but a comedy for the readers and those around her.

While Aimee has a reason to skate by with minimal knowledge of things that are going around her, and you feel like you want to splash her with a triple shot latte with oat milk, this makes her real. So when you are frustrated with Aimee, remember that she's fictional, and it is a great work of the author making you angry. Let it go...

Whether if you are Aimee, Rob, Charlie or Freya, being yourself is the moral of the story. And #DontForgetYourKeepCup.

This wasn't a book that I would necessarily have seen myself reading but the ever evolving fascination with Byron Bay persuaded me that a more contemporary assessment of life in Byron might be amusing. I finished it and I'm not sure I found it as amusing as others did but I did find it illuminating. Drugs, celebrities, wannabes and a lot of confused people. It is a pastiche of reality television, meets Liane Moriarty meets whatever with a biting description of the destruction of a once beautiful town and its lifestyle. The characters are generally appalling (although to be fair, sometimes they are so appalling as to be amusing) but that is what they are meant to be, if it had been a reality TV show I would have turned it off but I ploughed on through the book. Best characterised as a beach read. because you do want to get to the end of it. Thanks to @netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read an advance copy.The opinions are my own.

The Hemsworth Effect was a light, quick read, nothing too heavy or serious. I haven’t read anything by this author before, but I thought the blurb sounded funny; rich outsiders taking over Byron Bay and all of their pretentious ways. And it was pretty funny to read about the locals and their reactions to all of the TV stars and production crews in their town. Total escapism.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley in return for my honest review.

I liked the premise of the book - cashed-up out-of-towners taking over Byron and squeezing out the locals and their understandable annoyance, told in an amusing way. I could totally get behind this premise and the antics of 'influencer reality tv' stars and producers and the local's reactions, but I just could not understand the relationship the main character Aimee had with her 'fiance'. If the bloke I had been living with for 18 years told me that he wanted a break before we got married and then hooked up with a 20-something babe in no time flat, he would be out on his arse so fast, his head would spin. There would be no occasion in which I would still refer to him as my fiance, or even consider marrying him once the 'break' was over. That just seemed too stupid for words. Actually, Aimee seemed a tad naive and made a few questionable decisions that had me rolling my eyes.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC

James Weir's given a super fun, fast paced, light, witty great beach read.
Aimee's life as a Byron local goes pretty much into free-fall, Caught up with influencers descending on her town, TV crews and money not far behind and the changes they wreak.

Thanks NetGalley or the ARC!

‘… it’s The Hemsworth Effect. That’s what’s ruining Byron Bay.’

Thirty-six-year-old Byron Bay local Aimee Maguire is having a difficult time. Her fiancé, Tim, has asked for an official time-out, and the building she rents is about to be sold. Aimee can’t find anywhere to move her business (The Dream Explosion) because Byron Bay rents are now out of her reach. And then her niece, Freya arrives. Aimee Maguire, a cranky local, is about to become ‘Byron Karen’ and become involved in reality TV.

‘They all end up going back to wherever it is they came from.’

Sit down, relax, and prepare to meet some truly awful people (and a few nice ones). Learn more than you ever wanted to know about Brazilian Butt Lifts (BBL) and the lives of those who want to be influencers. Oh, and be prepared to endure way too much smirking (about forty instances) as the hordes (yes, the good, the bad and the ugly) infest Byron Bay. Proof positive that good taste and money often occupy separate spheres.

‘Why couldn’t everything just stay the same?’

I rolled my eyes; I laughed but I definitely did not smirk. I was amused and occasionally bemused (I am way too old to pick up all the pop culture references, and I absolutely detest reality TV). At the end of this satirical romp through Byron Bay, I crossed it off my ‘must visit’ list and hoped that Aimee found her own way out.

#AimeeMovesOn #NotForTheFaintHearted #TooMuchSmirking

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

DNF - read the first fifty pages and it’s not for me. Didn’t seem like there was any plot and I wasn’t finding it funny or insightful.

James Weir has written a gem of a novel that is full of humour and satire. You can feel the vibes of Byron Bay as it goes through a change coping with an influx of 'influencers', 'the haves and the have-nots', 'the reality film makers', and the 'shifting atmosphere'. Brilliant writing that provokes the reader to experience the story 'first-hand'. Highly recommended five star read.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

Art imitates life?

This quite a fun read. I especially enjoyed the witty dialogue between characters. Nothing heavy, just an easy summer read. Shave about 50 pages off and it’d be just about perfect.

I loved how each different character slowly chipped away at Aimee's cynical personality and inspired change. But I wasn't a fan of the end. I felt like certain parts weren't wrapped up well and it left me wanting more.

Overall, this is a really well written book that I absolutely adored!! If you're a fan of reality shows and cynical 30 something's you'll definitely want to give this one a read!!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book.