If you were hoping for a novel that's Black Swan-meets-Yellowface with a musical theatre twist, this is the book for you. Hambrock's prose is deft and pointed, bringing you into Jessamyn's single-minded world. The truth is slippery and opaque—until the dazzling, disastrous climax slaps you in the face (in a good way, of course). A book like this is too intense to properly describe; you must go on Jessamyn's journey and see for yourself.

OMG this book is genius. The protagonist is so outrageously flawed that you cannot look away. Still, call me crazy, but I felt for her too and could feel the intensity of her reaching for her dreams despite her overt arrogance, which is really all smoke and mirrors. It's hard to review this without giving away any spoilers but I will say I've never quite read anything like it, I enjoyed it so much because it's so different! It's bold and risky and so brash and perfect. How can you root for her, but somehow you do and then as her world changes there's that swallow of dread, that feeling things may of hand - inevitable maybe? Maybe not? I still had hope! What a cracking read!

She's a Lamb feels like a lighter, funnier take on what's been derisively but not entirely inaccurately described as “weird girl lit” - books that are often concerned with the artistic process and unhinged women - Mona Awad’s Bunny, Melissa Broder’s The Pisces and Eliza Clarke’s Boy Parts come to mind, and readers who enjoyed those will find something to connect with here too. There's also something of the cinematic here, which makes sense given narrator Jessamyn’s obsession not just with being an actor or a performer but a *star*, and you'll find elements of Black Swan, All About Eve and Pearl as Jessamyn tries to usurp the role of Maria in a regional production of The Sound of Music.

Jessamyn is an interesting addition to the canon of unreliable narrators; normally within this trope we'll believe one thing only to find, or at least suspect, that that's not true. In I'm a Lamb we instead see Jessamyn do awful things and then later attempt to gaslight us, and herself, into believing that they didn't happen.

There's an undeniable tragedy amidst the black comedy - Jessamyn is constantly abused by men she thinks adore her, is taken advantage of by a snake oil singing tutor, and has a chance to be a genuinely great actor but is instead fixated on the idea of being the sort of wholesome star that brings joy to people's humdrum lives, the sort of star that doesn't really exist anymore. That she’s undergoing all this for a regional theatre production that she is not even a good enough performer for makes it funnier, and sadder.

Jessamyn is part bitch, part delusional, and mostly deeply flawed and unaware of reality - but following her attempts at success and strange relationships like her boyfriend Vishal who is successful and emotionally unavailable contrasted with Anton an ex-stalker turned volatile boyfriend. With aspects of all weird girls before her, Jessamyn is our anti-hero, a bitch we know is a bitch but we can’t help but hope things go well for her as she becomes more and more obsessed with becoming the lead in The Sound of Music we see flecks of Miranda from Mona Awad’s All’s Well and Nina from The Black Swan. Theatre and reality become blurred, and the contrast between the plot of Jessamyn’s horrifying plot to be cast as the lead and the musical solidify the horror and insanity that comes from inhabiting a character that is more than the role sought out, but what acting is, and what can be embodied and altered by our own minds. This reads like a thriller and a car crash you just can’t quite look away from.

Well written and intriguing, but uncomfortable and very dark. “Black Swan” vibes. Reading a book with a narrator that is clearly disturbed can be tough for me. The internal dialogue has so much rationalization and theatre rhetoric, it was transparent and sad. Some may find this depressing and others may find it melancholic. The ending is a bit ambiguous. Reading this book feels like circling a drain. If you like a dark character study, this book may be a good fit for you.

Jessamyn knows she is meant to play Maria in a regional production of The Sound of Music, but instead she is given the chance to be a childminder for the Von Trapp children actors. She talks herself into that she is really the understudy without being called that, and tells everyone in her life that she is playing the lead. Drama ensues.

Thanks to @netgalley and ECW Press for the ARC. Book to be published April 8, 2025.

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I really enjoyed reading this book, it had that humor element that I was looking for and still have that sense of danger. The plot worked with what I was expecting and thought the characters had that feel that I wanted. Jessamyn was a great character to follow and I enjoyed going on this journey with her and the rest of the characters. Meredith Hambrock wrote this in a way that was charming and worked.

She's a Lamb! by Meredith Hambrock is about the pursuit of fame and success and a flawed character's ambition and lengths she will go to to reach it.

The story follows an unreliable narrator with dreams of Broadway but doesn’t even have the talent for regional theater. Jessamyn is on a mission of self determination that leads to self destruction. Someone dies in the end! The end of the novel was abrupt which I didn’t appreciate so the story doesn’t wrap up nicely. Thank you ECW Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own!

What a toxic, twisted gem this is. Really loved Meredith Hambrock’s writing style and the way she crafted her main character, Jessamyn St. Germain (the name!). I was really dazzled by the way Hambrock made Jessamyn a mildly demented, narcissistic, vapid woman, but also allowed her to make sharp, extremely valid and true statements about the inherent misogyny in the entertainment industry, and in society in general. The book was funny and propulsive and I could not stop reading once I started. Also, what a cover!

She’s a Lamb! by Meredith Hambrock is a dark, suspenseful dive into ambition, delusion, and the often grotesque pursuit of dreams in the performing arts world. Hambrock paints a vivid picture of a woman consumed by her pursuit of fame. The novel strikes a chord with its sharp satire and biting humor, offering an incisive commentary on the lengths one woman will go to achieve what she feels is her birthright... stardom. Jessamyn’s downward spiral into obsession is tense and unsettling, and fans of psychological thrillers like 'The Girl on the Train' and 'Yellowface' may find this portrayal gripping.

While the novel’s dark humor and sharp commentary are undeniable, I found it difficult to connect with Jessamyn, whose increasingly erratic behavior made her hard (for me) to sympathize with. The narrative’s focus on her delusions also left me feeling somewhat disconnected from the story as a whole. Despite my personal reservations, readers who enjoy deeply flawed protagonists and social critique may appreciate She’s a Lamb! for its satirical take on ambition and self-deception.

Thank you to ECW Press, NetGalley, and Meredith Hambrock for providing an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

She’s a Lamb follows Jessamyn St. Germain who believes she is meant to be a star. Jess has been stuck doing TV commercials and being an usher at a small theatre. Jessamyn desperately wants the role of Maria in the upcoming production of The Sound of Music. She ends up being the childminder for the kids playing the Von Trapp children but will stop at nothing for the lead role.

Just by looking at this cover I thought this was going to be an unhinged sad girl novel and in many ways it is. Jessamyn’s inner monologue is over the top and pretty silly. I enjoyed this for what it was but it wasn’t a new favourite.

There is so much I want to say about this book but I’ll try to be concise. As an actor and overall theatre nerd, I was drawn to this book, especially as it was compared with one of my all time favorite books, All’s Well by Mona Awad. Like Awad’s novel, this is a glorious unhinged woman story with a staged twist. And what Meredith Hambrock has done is create a character study of the worst, most entitled narcissist you’d ever meet and still make her sympathetic and complex. That’s hard to do, and it’s a testament to Hembrock’s talent as an author. I love a story where you see someone’s entire persona fall apart piece by piece, going past the point of “how could this get worse” and making the story absolutely bonkers in the best way. All I know is that if this ever gets optioned for a film, I’m gonna pull a Trisha Paytas and gun for the role. In the meantime, I’ll just be forcing every actor I know to read this. Oh, and the Singin’ in the Rain homage in the climax? Perfectly executed. Five stars, no notes.