Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book!

How to Die Famous offers an intriguing dive into the dark side of Hollywood, uncovering the lengths people will go to maintain power and prestige. The premise of an undercover journalist seeking the truth about his brother’s mysterious past had so much potential, and the exploration of fame, social media, and the toll of an "electronic life" was fascinating.

However, I found the pacing to be slow, and it took me a while to feel fully invested in the story. The abundance of characters made it difficult to keep track of who was who, and the plot seemed to meander at times before picking up toward the end.

That said, the cast of characters was well-drawn, and the villain and their sidekick were wonderfully exaggerated. The book’s audacious ending was a definite highlight and left the door open for more stories with this cast.

While it didn’t fully click for me, I can see how this story would shine on screen. It has all the makings of a gripping TV show or movie. For readers who enjoy slow-building mysteries with a Hollywood twist, this might be worth checking out!

Read for Book Committee 2024 (DNF - 0 - 1 - 2)
Rep: Black British
Genre: Thriller/ Murder Mystery
I enjoyed this book. It was about a group of teen actors who are on a Degrassi type of show where theres multiple seasons and they bring back the show with a new cast every couple of years. Except this show is cursed so someone ends up going missing, dying or some tragic "accident" inevitably happens. There was 4 different voice actors and I appreciated the effort in the audiobook. It kept me guessing and wanting to know what happened.

This one was a little less exciting than I was hoping for, but I still decided to purchase it for our high school library. The story is modern and fun, and it's also accessible to a range of readers.

Loved this book! Loved the plot and it kept me hooked highly recommended. Was a quick read for me and hoping to read more from this author.

Decent, twisty mystery. I was a little underwhelmed by the resolution--it almost seemed too easy. Characters were easy to know and entertaining.

HOW TO DIE FAMOUS by Benjamin Dean was a slow build to an undeniably great final reconning.

The reboot of SUNSET HIGH did not go as planned. One of the stars had a meltdown, one disappeared and one took a dive from a roof. So, in an attempt to reboot the reboot, the OMNI channel decides to try it one more time. When the new players are cast, Abel Miller, plucked from obscurity now has a star on the rise but he has other reasons for being there. The death of a production assistant in the last reboot attempt was his brother and he wants to find out what really happened as he had received ominous texts just before Adam died. Lake Carter, writer producer and Director is a tyrant onset and off. He threatens cast mates and anyone related to the production in his desire to ‘re-do’ SUNSET HIGH.

But each of the other cast mates is also hiding secrets. Heartthrob Lucky Tate, whose mother died during a paparazzi chase, now has a serious alcohol problem and word has it that he has cheated on his longtime girlfriend, Ryan Hudson, also cast in the show, with Ella Winter, up and coming new IT girl.

Abel begins talking to hotel clerks, the other actors, production assistants, and even a trash tabloid writer in an attempt to put the last days of Adam’s life into perspective. What he finds along the way leads to a shocking confrontation that eventually leaves another big player in deep trouble. This only confirms why .SUNSET HIGH is called one of the most cursed TV shows in Hollywood history. But even then, things are not as they seem.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters jumped out at me and I could feel myself in conversation with the cast members as they put the pieces together and hid their own secrets. The writing was clear and concise which led to an enjoyable, quick read. I will be watching Benjamin Dean’s future endeavours to see where he takes me next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown & Company for this ARC opportunity. All opinions are my own and given voluntarily.

Abel Miller has just landed a role in the highly anticipated Sunset High reboot, but the show has a reputation for being cursed, and it looks like trouble is brewing for the cast and crew once again.

Abel’s brother Adam fell to his death from a rooftop during the last reboot of the show, and Abel is certain there’s more to the story. He’s determined to figure out what it is while hiding his past from his new castmates.

But his new castmates have troubles of their own: Lucky Tate is grieving the loss of his mother and battling major substance abuse problems. He’s been seen recently with rising star Ella Winter, even though he was previously dating her best friend, Ryan Hudson, and both girls are in the reboot as well.

Things are about to get violent once again: will everyone survive?

Pure escapism, Dean’s novel will especially appeal to students who have been following the recent behind-the-scenes allegations at Nickelodeon or read Jeanette McCurdy’s memoir, I’m Glad My Mom Died. There’s plenty of faux-Hollywood gossip and scandal, and we see that being a young actor or actress isn’t always all it’s cracked up to be. Due to profanity, substance and abuse, and mature situations, this is definitely one we’d save for high school students.

Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are our own.

Review will be shared at https://threeheads.works/category/blog/ya-books/ on October 28, 2024.

After Dean’s last book I was desperate to get my hands on this one. But this one was not at all what I was expected. It just felt rushed and I think I had my expectations set too high.

Ok so the reason I said it feels too rushed is because IN MY OPINION there were too many different POVs and I felt like I was still getting used to getting to know all of them before they were on to the next one. I never felt like we KNEW them if that makes sense. And that happens alot in books that have too many POVs and I think in this thriller, it just didn’t work.

I also didn’t like a huge part of the mystery. I called the plot from the very first time that one person went to that other person’s house and I knew they were going to try some weird thing for the ending too. Now I know this is a YA book, but seriously, reading this, literally anyone could have called that. I don’t think it mattered that I’m not a teen anymore lol It just was spoiled it self from the very beginning.

The reason I didn’t DNF it or just skim it was because I still love the writing style of the author. I was still interested in how they were going to incorporate the show. And that part of it was ok. But because I had already called a very large part of it, I was already pretty meh about it. But it was ok.

Although I was disappointed, it wasn’t too bad. I do think it could have been better without the failed red herrings. They gave too much away and it ended up not being a thriller or a real mystery. I think with a little more editing it could have been a little better.

I really enjoyed this YA thriller mystery! Abel Miller has been cast in the new remake of a super famous tv show called Sunset High. His goal isn't to make it big as actor. It's to get justice for his dead brother who was killed on the set of the first making of the show. Sunset High and it's production company Omnificent have a reputation for being cursed. With the death of a PA, the disappearance of their original star actress and the mental breakdown of another all eyes are on the new show and their actors. This time Omnificent is determined to make the show the hit that it should be, but the cast have another thing in mind. Each member is being abused in someway by their management company and they are all ready to give up or get even. I really liked the complexity of each character and the fact that they weren't just "flat". I enjoyed this book. Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for this eARC.

Thank you so much to Benjamin Dean and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the eARC to review. Such a great quick YA thriller mystery read. Definitely recommend to all YA Book lovers.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

Abel just landed a dream position on a new show but his motives are different than you think. He is there to investigate the death of his brother who died while filming.

This book had a lot of potential for me. I usually enjoy a YA mystery/thriller, especially if it revolves around fame. I also think the cover is really cool. However, I was just not a fan of this one. I felt like the characters fell flat and there just wasn't much to the story. I also feel like the pacing was just too slow.

I hope others love this one but it fell flat for me.

This is a story about teens who are famous because of acting in one of the biggest show remakes. Though this show has had a lot of issues in the past with people coming up missing and even one dead. Abel is the brother of that dead assistant from the previous remake and he has gotten a roll on the new show so he can find out what happened to his brother. This has twists all through it but please do give this a read because the biggest twist is at the very end.

I felt like there was just a lot going on here. There are six different POVs, relationships and characters that didn't make much sense, a complex plot that doesn't feel like what was described in the blurb, etc. The story to me just felt unclear on what it was trying to do. I thought this was going to be Abel investigating the death of his brother, Adam, and uncovering everyone's secrets along the way--the 6 POVs just didn't feel like they did a service to the plot at all. I don't know, this just wasn't for me, haha.

Great book that I could not put down. It was so well written that the story pulled you in and you had to find out what happened next. Loved it!1

This is objectively ridiculous but I still had fun reading it. It was suspenseful and weird and it definitely had me interested. I did think it went on too long though. There was too much and it was messy and I think it needed a couple less plot points. Definitely fun though!

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
I really enjoyed Benjamin Dean’s first YA thriller, and was excited he was releasing another one. However, How to Die Famous missed the mark for me. While there were some solid elements here, particularly related to the issues plaguing child and teen stars in Hollywood, the execution felt rather lackluster. Thematically, I could understand where the book was trying to go, but I can’t say it really got there.
Based on the blurb, I assumed Abel would be the protagonist, but he’s one of about six or POV characters, with about four being the main ones, and all are pretty bland and interchangeable. Some of the interpersonal and romantic dynamics between the “core four” were kinda cool in the drama they brought to the story, and it was cool to see queer rep in this context, but I just was not invested in anybody as more than a vehicle to drive the narrative and themes forward.
The one saving grace is that Dean is great at building suspense, so even while I didn’t care about anyone, so any fatalities had no impact, the story was still fairly fast-paced and the text kept my interest, even if the characters were otherwise uninteresting.
While this book was a bit of a dud for me, my perspective is highly subjective. I can see this book working perfectly for readers who are interested in a thriller with queer rep and a large cast of characters, many of whom have their own POVs in the narrative.

How to Die Famous is a great mix of a thriller with the niche genre of young/child TV celebrity stories, which I tend to love. Some parts of the story were a little hard for me to get into, but in general, I liked the plot and story,

A fun and wild YA thriller!

Abel’s brother recently died and he blames Omni Channel for his death. What better way to find out what’s going on with the world’s biggest network than to infiltrate it. Over night, Abel becomes famous as his role on Sunset High is announced. Joining him are Lucky, Ella and Ryan. Lucky’s been a mess since his mom passed. Ella is being thrust into the spotlight, but not sure if she wants to be there or if it’s really her overbearing mother’s dream. Ryan has a stalker who keeps escalating. On top of that, the show is said to be cursed. Each young actor has their own issues to deal with, but Omni channel is at the forefront of all of them and coming together might be the only thing that saves them all.

This is basically a dramatized reenactment of Disney channel or Nickelodeon and the exploited young actors. I didn’t mind that though as sometimes the best stories are practically ripped from the headlines. This one just had a thriller esque undertone.

This story had a lot of layers and different sub stories going on, however it wasn’t terribly hard to follow. It was fast paced and intriguing. The ending left some to be desired, but my guess is there will be another and I’ll be reading it!

How to Die Famous is a story about four teenage celebrities on a supposedly cursed teen drama show. With fans, paparazzi, and the network always watching them, how can these teens solve the mystery behind the curse and stop themselves from being the next targets.

This was an incredibly enjoyable YA thriller. It is a very captivating look at what it means to be in the spotlight and how dangerous the truth can be. Once I picked this book up it became almost impossible to put down. I wish I could have seen some further relationship development and less immediate forgiveness at the first apology because it would hold more weight if the actions that damaged relationships had any consequence to them. I also struggled with the epilogue, I appreciated some of the information that the epilogue cleared up but the tone of it was a substantial shift and tampered some of my excitement over how good this book is. I loved the characters in it and their motivations. The reveals all made sense and felt exciting. I will definitely be recommending this novel to my students.

4.5 ⭐

We have all seen the headlines about a young star who has turned to drugs, has a bad reputation or worst of all is gone before their time. We wonder how it happened but we forget that these people were money making machines for other people who may not have their best interests at heart. The book explores what happens when the stars fight back and reclaim their own lives over the ones some production company has created for them. A good mystery but also a thoughtful look at the role we play as consumers of paparazzi pics and tabloid headlines in making people’s lives hell and acting like they owe us all of them.