Unfortunately, “The Most Famous Girl in the World” by Iman Hariri-Kia was a major letdown. The premise had so much potential, promising a campy, satirical take on modern celebrity culture, but the execution fell flat in almost every way.

From the start, the book was filled with unlikable characters, cringeworthy dialogue, and a plot that felt disjointed and absurd rather than entertaining. Rose Aslani, the main character, comes across as more irritating than relatable, and her obsession with taking down Poppy Hastings quickly grows tiresome. The addition of a rogue FBI agent as a love interest feels forced and only adds to the book’s lack of believability.

The humor, which was supposed to be a highlight, often missed the mark, and the excessive use of profanity felt unnecessary and distracting. The supposed twists and turns of the plot were predictable, and the epilogue left me feeling more frustrated than intrigued. The entire story felt like it was trying too hard to be edgy and relevant, but instead, it came off as a chaotic mess.

Overall, this book was a struggle to get through, and I can’t recommend it to anyone. Even the most die-hard fans of satire might want to skip this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rose is mid bikini wax when the news comes out…Poppy Hastings is being released from jail early for good behavior. Rose woke tirelessly to put her there, but her tell all article did more than just shine a light on her scammer ways, it also turned her into a household name, and gave her an absurd amount of fame. All the anonymous sources for her article are suddenly ending up dead though and Rose is determined to prove that Poppy is behind it.

Oh man…I started this book feeling so bad for Rose, but also thinking she was in way over her head and was dangerously obsessed with Poppy. Spoiler alert: she was dangerously obsessed with Poppy. I could not put this book down. We all know there is something sketchy going on with Poppy, and I just needed Rose and Simon to figure it out already! I was in a trance until I turned the final page! I just loved it!

Thank you to @bookmarked for my gifted copy of this book!

WOW i was not expecting this thriller / mystery / romance story !! there were so many twists and turns i literally could not have predicted the end at all. i think the author does a fantastic job at showing her main character in all of her flawed glory -- she is selfish and absorbed but the reader loves her anyways <3

Whoa, this book! Buckle up and hang on because it's a wild ride. At the beginning of the story, Rose is a young journalist stuck doing grunt work until she starts researching Poppy. Poppy is a clever scam artist who eventually gets taken down for embezzlement after being investigated by the FBI (but before Rose can finish her full story). Rose is forced to quickly publish as a result, before she's finished her expose. The unfortunate effect of publishing the abridged story is that it grants Poppy viral celebrity status, which is far from what Rose intended. After Poppy is sent to prison, Rose's quest for the truth about Poppy turns into a spiraling obsession that blows up both her personal and professional lives, when Rose can't let go of her certainty that Poppy is guilty of much more than what she was convicted of. Rose is an absolute mess, a self-sabotaging trainwreck of a young woman. I mean, there's reasons why she's a mess but her base personality is a lot to handle. And once Poppy is released early from prison Rose becomes increasingly unhinged in her quest for proof that Poppy is guilty of more serious crimes. Rose then teams up with Simon, the charming rogue FBI field agent, to fully uncover Poppy's mis-deeds. So the story started out a bit slow-ish but quickly ramped up into an entertaining caper. And once I embraced how over-the-top it all was, my enjoyment of the story went up exponentially. I would definitely agree with the description that this is "campy and satirical," although there's also a lot of biting commentary about our celebrity culture. I had some initial trouble warming up to Rose, her voice is a bit young and immature for me, but that's a personal preference and I did get on board with the story. Simon and Rose are pretty well matched, both of them obsessive in their own ways. The enemies-to-lovers, open-door romance is mostly a secondary plot to the mystery of Poppy, albeit a pretty significant one. There are lots of layers in this story, you'll enjoy uncovering all of them. Rose made me uncomfortable at times with her brash personality and (justified) obsession with Poppy and bringing her to justice. But I also felt for her and wanted to see her succeed, and it was the author's skillful writing that got me to engage despite my discomfort. And that ending is still with me days after finishing the book, holy cow. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars, this is a new-to-me author that I will be seeking out again! Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book, this is my objective review. Publishes 9-17-24.

I was at a loss as to how I was going to review this book, so I'll sum it up exactly as how I described it to a friend: If you love stories about white collar crime, con-artists, our fascination with all things pop culture/zeitgeist and want that blended in with something that'll be a cult-classic in the years to come, then THE MOST FAMOUS GIRL IN THE WORLD is the book for you. A+ Iman Hariri-Kia.

It's like Zoolander but for the TikTok age. LOVE IT.

Iman Hariri-Kia's sophomore fiction novel, THE MOST FAMOUS GIRL IN THE WORLD, is a ridiculously fun, wild ride! The cover immediately drew me in, but the story is over the top thrills and laughs.

It's been two years since Rose wrote an article about Poppy Hastings―a socialite grifter who defrauded some of the most wealthy and influential people in the world. Poppy has turned into a celebrity, causing Rose to realize that her article backfired. When Poppy is released from prison, Rose begins to unravel. Rose knows that Poppy is responsible for more crimes, but she can't prove it. Rose decides to investigate with the help of FBI agent Simon, and the two forge a chaotic path towards exposing Poppy and getting revenge on how Poppy affected their lives since her fame took off. The duo knows that taking down someone this famous will be difficult, but they did not realize how much of an adversary Poppy actually is.

THE MOST FAMOUS GIRL IN THE WORLD reminded me so much of Anna Delvey and you can totally see the inspiration there. This book was definitely a satire about social media and pop culture. I loved Rose and loved her banter with Simon. I thought this book was such a good escape from heavier reads that I've picked up recently as well. It was a refreshing take on the thriller genre for sure. There's a bit of smut and romance, but it's short lived so if you're not a romance fan, don't fret! This book won't be for everyone, but that's ok because I don't believe the author intended for this book to be for everyone. All I know is that this book is for me and I can't wait to see what Iman Hariri-Kia comes up with next.

"The Most Famous Girl in the World" is a satirical thriller with elements of dark comedy and social commentary.

A reporter who exposed a socialite scam artist must team up with a rogue FBI agent to take down the now-famous influencer, whose crimes run deeper than anyone knows. As the scammer's star rises, the reporter spirals into obsession, determined to reveal the truth in a world captivated by celebrity culture.

I absolutely love satire, I knew going into this it was going to be a little unhinged. The friendships were hilarious and I love how they pulled “pranks” which was really just sarcasm and dry humor. The main character is intentionally unlikable, and I never knew what she was going to say next.

This could easily be a tv show, I could picture every scene playing out. Although at times the constant profanity was a bit much for me, but that’s a personal preference. Even though I knew the ending twist was going to happen I was still hoping it wasn’t! This was fun

This was an addictive and stunning sophomore novel by Hariri-Kia. In this voicey and laugh-out-loud satire, we follow Rose Aslani, a mdidle-eastern-american woman who becomes obsessed with a scammer-turned-socialite, Popping Hastings. I love the middle-eastern rep and love the nods toward Inventing Anna, in fact anyone who is a fan of that show would likely be a fan of this novel. This read will keep you gripped and entertained the whole way through ("I'm sat." as everyone is now saying). I will read anything Iman Hariri-Kia writes.

This was sharp, clever, and steamy! I loved the campy aspects. It was humorous and well developed. The last page was the best.

This book was very camp, very meta. I was pulled into this world pretty quickly. I did struggle with understanding Rose’s mindset and how and why she let Poppy get so very under her skin. I wanted that to be explained a little more, but with the book being so camp, I just went with it. I was really predicting and hoping for a final big twist and was definitely surprised with some, but not all of the ending. I can absolutely see Poppy being a real person; the worst people are always made famous.

I enjoyed this a lot more than Hariri-Kia’s first novel, but enjoyed the little easter egg callback to Noora.

This book would make a perfect Reese’s Book Club pick and eventual movie/mini series adaptation.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
3.75/5

This book is easily one of the best I've ever read, and that's saying a lot. I knew going in that I was going to love this, having really enjoyed Iman Hariri-Kia's previous novel, but this still blew me away. From the first line right through the acknowledgements I was just glued to the pages, coming up with theories as to what happened, and commiserating with the main character Rose. I really enjoyed the plot of this, it kept me on my toes literally until the ending. THE ENDING OF THIS WAS ABSOLUTELY INSANE AND I DID NOT EXPECT IT AT ALL. I loved the friendships within and the relationship as well. I loved the nod within to A Hundred Other Girls, it made me so so happy to have that little moment. I also really enjoy the style in which Hariri-Kia writes in, it's just addicting to me, I cannot get enough of it. If you're looking for something that's going to consume you fully, and shock you to your core, pick this one up!!

This women's fiction novel was basically like a satire of Anna Delvey/Gypsy Rose Blanchard but as if the author wrote herself into the story as an investigator. I was not here for the author's hero tale because it felt a bit too, not like, preachy but almost. But, by the end, I give because there was an interesting twist and turn. The twists had me hooked, especially the epilogue. Honestly, this book got so much better as it went on and proved the author's writing chops.

The concept of this is appealing - essentially the Anna Delvey story told from the journalist's perspective, but with murder, mental illness, and more at stake.

Unfortunately the execution left a bit to be desired. The narrator's voice was tolerable at best, irritating at worst. That may have been on purpose to show her unreliability, but it distracted from the plot. Speaking of, the plot got all sorts of messy in the back third of the novel. There was substance abuse, conspiracy theories, and more that just felt slapped together.

This would make for a fun movie, but in writing it feels throw together.

Entertaining sharp definitely brought Anna Delvey to mind.I was immediately drawn in to this well written entertaining read.A book that should get a lot of attention.#netgalley#sourcebook

This book was somewhat entertaining but the writing was not for me at all. I was interested in the plot enough to stay in it but I was not a fan of the ending. Overall an intresting premise that was executed somewhat well, just not for me personally. I could see many others enjoying it though.

A satirical novel based solely on the powers of social media, this one was an absolute riot and a YES from me!

I was gifted a copy of this and then applied for the NetGalley arc so I could write a review - this novel has had some polarizing feedback and I want to make something incredibly clear: THIS IS SATIRE. Satire at its best, if you ask me. The pace is great, the wit is there, and the ending is hands down creepy and hilarious all at once. I loved how this one all tied together at the end (Roommate especially) and how our unlikeable main character evolved into a not-so-insufferable protagonist through it all. I loved Simon and thought he could have been better developed…but the only thing I was not super pumped on was the surprise (to me?! Just me?!) spicy scene. I was reading along and then wham bam, here we are - I was not expecting it but looking back it does feel very apt for this novel.

This one kept me up at night, made me giggle and was a great feel-good read. Not that I felt good after, but that it just was a fun one. Again, SATIRE. Go into it realizing that this is a very long essay on the powers of social media and I think you’ll do just fine.

This book manipulated me, and I loved it! An obvious play on the media sensation that was Anna Delvey, ‘The Most Famous Girl in the World’ was a treat! Rose is a journalist dealing with her own cultural identity and bad attitude while obsessing over Poppy Hastings, a celebrity that Rose profiled causing her arrest. Now that Poppy is out of prison, Rose can’t let the feeling go that there’s more to the story.

While I loved the premise of the ‘what if’ blend of fact and fiction here, a lot of the references and behaviors were a little trite for me. The sex scenes were incredibly graphic for a book that otherwise seems a little more YA. I enjoyed the twists at the end although the final one was a little too expected.

Equally acerbic and hilarious, this dark comedy thriller was completely unexpected and a wild ride, from start to finish. Iman's sharp writing, messily realistic characters, and the twists kept me tapping through this book until the very end - at which point I threw my Kindle in shock. What a ride. What a book. Iman, you're a genius (and I can't wait for the next one).

Unfortunately, I found "The Most Famous Girl in the World" to be pretty disappointing... Admittedly, some of this could be attributed to expectations; I was expecting something a little more literary, more of an exploration of para-social relationships and the fickle nature of public opinion. In reality, this was just a little too ridiculous for me--it was too difficult to suspend my disbelief. That being said, I'm not entirely sure who I would recommend this to (because obviously this book has an audience, even if it's not quite for me)... maybe for fans of "Cult Classic" by Sloane Crosley or Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou.

The plot was initially intriguing to me but quickly devolved into something I'm not particularly interested in. I wish there had been more of a focus on why people like Poppy and why Rose is so obsessed with her. I understand that the way it's written helps build mystery around Poppy as a celebrity, but it left me feeling like none of the actions had enough motivation.

I'm no stranger to dysfunction, but I'm sad to say that there are certain kinds of dysfunction I find it really hard to relate to and Rose got on my nerves fairly quickly. There are enjoyable moments from the other characters but I was mostly overwhelmed with the voicy-ness of the writing and interactions: it felt like everyone was trying very hard to be quirky, which ultimately made them more flat. The same can be said of the writing, sadly. There were hidden gems when Hariri-Kia explores serious topics in a very compelling way, but there easily forgotten amidst the hijinks.

And I'm really sorry but don't even get me started on the ending...

Ultimately, I think this is a very strong case of misinformed expectations. If you go in expecting silliness, you could have a very good time.

Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.

I want to preface this by saying I am not really a good reviewer. I'm not good at articulating what I do and don't like in an eloquent way about books, but I'll do my best. I loved the beginning premise/idea of this book. This thought that we make con artists celebrities with this whole "girl boss" attitude and give them exactly what they want is a super interesting thing to explore. That coupled with the toll that a con artists notoriety could take on the person who broke the story in an attempt to "take them down" so to speak.

That being said, I think this book executed that poorly and lost any interesting exploration of that in the first fifty pages. There was too much going on, the reveals became so ridiculous and by the third big "wow" reveal moment, I was completely turned off the book. Plot twists at the end and the end of the epilogue were just so far past ridiculous. I think my biggest issue with all of that was that this book was presented as a satire about con artists and that phenomenon in our society. The level of ridiculousness that this book went into, I feel, rendered any meaningful critique pointless as they got lost in the sheer absurdity.

Finally, the addition of the romance plot line felt quite random to me and wholly unnecessary. It sort of came out of nowhere and felt like a box to tick with tropes and the goal of drawing in an additional group of readers.

All in all, I am sorry to have not liked this book. I had high hopes and was really excited to begin it. Maybe it just wasn't for me.