Member Reviews
I really enjoyed this novel! I have liked all of Samantha Bailey’s books. It kept me engaged, on the edge of my seats at times and made me gasp. Great read!
Hello Juliet follows Ivy Wescott who was, surprisingly, cast in the title role of a 2014 teen drama. She already feels awkward and ill-equipped for the role, and the hate from fans of her friend, Lauren, who was cast in a supporting role, intensifies those feelings. This book goes back and forth between 2014 and now, when Lauren is found murdered. Ivy discovers the body but also seeks to discover what went wrong a decade ago that turned everyone against her.
I genuinely hate to be the only three star review (at the time of this writing) but I could not get into the story. I found Ivy's lack of confidence and inability to deal with virtually any negativity or setback annoying and it got old very quickly. Skipping from the 35% mark to the last few chapters, I could see how the story had a lot of unexpected twists and turns. If I could have liked Ivy, I probably would have enjoyed the mystery.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
This book was so good from start to finish! I was so shocked by the ending! It was fantastic! I loved the characters
We were so excited about this new release at @thrillerbookloversthepulse! The hype was definitely well-deserved because I loved Hello, Juliet!
As someone who’s always loved TV dramas, this story had me hooked. It felt like I was watching a television show play out in book form. It was juicy, entertaining and utterly binge-worthy.
There were tons of great twists throughout but, the ending took things to a whole other level. I never saw it coming!
Thank you so much to Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this e-ARC!
Read if you like:
✨TV dramas
✨Juicy plots
✨Fame and fortune
I have to be honest when I started this I definitely wasn't getting into it wasnore like a teen book style I gave up on it but recently went back to finish it and have to say I'm glad I gave it a finish. The storyline got more intriguing abd interesting tge second half. Got into the characters mote and did end up enjoying it.
So if anyone else is like I was give it a chance
Thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an early release of this book.
Hello Juliet opens up with a bang as Ivy enters the set of what should be a reunion show to find a costar dead. But why and who’s next drives the storyline that feels like the teen drama show The OC with the curtains pulled back.
A reimagined type of thriller that takes a teen show (think WB) that is fueled by fans and divided by social media and makes it… a killer comeback.
Friendship, fake relationships, dual timelines and a little of what’s behind the ‘curtain’ type of drama thriller, I couldn’t put it down. It felt like such a fresh idea and I needed to know the whole picture.
The ending 🧐🤯 geez….
Well, she’s done it again! Since I read Woman on the Edge in 2020, Samantha Bailey has been an auto-read author for me. So as a member of Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse, I jumped at the chance to read her latest novel.
With Hello, Juliet, the author has once again written a great domestic psychological thriller, this time set in Hollywood, about the cast of a teen TV drama show, called Hello, Juliet. The novel is set in 2014, when the show was launched, and in 2024 when a costar ends up dead on a soundstage just as a reunion show of the cast is planned.
The novel is written from both the point of view of the likeable main character, Ivy, a young actress, and interspersed with social media posts and gossip/tabloid articles. The story looks at the price of fame and living in the Hollywood limelight, including the toll it takes on relationships and self-worth.
The story unfolds at a steady pace, there are secrets and lies, a great twist near the end which I didn’t see coming and a satisfying epilogue.
I inhaled this book in a day as I couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend!
Thanks to the publisher for this complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
a murder mystery thriller surrounding a cast from an old teen drama………yeah of course it was good!! loved the past and present povs, loved the little inserts from social medias and gossip blogs, loved the short chapters. it was fun!! I’m so glad I got to read, thank you netgalley for the early copy!!!
This twisty mystery with an ending that blows your mind is my first by the author but certainly won't be my last. I lost hours engrossed in this story of actors who come back together for a TV show reunion that turns deadly. Soooooo good, Samantha Bailey is an auto-buy author now!
I absolutely devoured this book! I loved it! Twisty, fast paced and kept me on my toes til the end! I haven't had a thriller send me on a rollercoaster like this in a long time!
HELLO, JULIET was a quick and entertaining read that packed a lot of action and twists. The dual timelines were easy to follow and Ivy was a relatable protagonist. The chemistry between some of the characters seemed a bit forced, which made some of the motivations a bit unbelievable. Still a generally fun read and would recommend.
Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read and review HELLO, JULIET.
Show Business Can Be Murder!!
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I have been a fan of @sbaileybooks for many years and have loved each one of her books! I have been looking forward to her 2025 release since it was announced, and was very excited when I got approved for an early copy to read! 📖
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I really enjoyed #HelloJuliet and the behind the scenes of show business and how it can change people for the better…or worse!! Samantha did a wonderful job at developing the characters and I loved how the book would go back/forth between past and present (an aspect of her books she writes very well)
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Hello, Juliet is full of twists and turns, red herrings, mystery, and the giltz and glamour of Young Hollywood!! 📺
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Another solid novel and I can’t wait to discuss Hello, Juliet with other readers!! Make sure to pick up a copy on April, 29th 2025!!
My new favourite book from Samantha M Bailey!! Gosh this was good! i wish I had started it when I could have just binged the whole thing, it could very easily be done. I love a Hollywood story, getting behind the scenes is so much fun. And my goodness, the ending was brilliant!! Was absolutely on the wrong track and I loved it.
Without giving too much away, this is the story of a show called Hello, Juliet and its cast. The lead actress, Ivy, was a nobody in Hollywood until she gets this role. Strong friendships formed with the other actors. And now a reunion is on the cards….
I suggest going in knowing very little and you will love it. It Is twisty, it is full of surprises believe me. I formed some quite strong feelings about these characters whilst reading this. Just fantastic!!
All of us at Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse have been eagerly awaiting this book and it did not disappoint at all. Publishes on April 29th by Thomas and Mercer. Get it in your TBR.
I feel like I just got off of a Hollywood themed rollercoaster! This one was a wild ride that was full of unexpected turns. When I had to take a break from reading because you know, life, I found myself thinking about this book and looking forward to when I had time to read some more. Hello, Juliet was full of unexpected and interesting characters!
Ivy Westcott has been off the big screen for awhile when she gets her big break in a teen drama called Hello, Juliet. But there’s not just drama onscreen, there’s also loads of offscreen drama with her castmates – friendship, romance, and backstabbing – with tragic consequences. Now years later, someone wants to film a reunion show, and Ivy needs the money to support herself and her devoted mother. But drama rears its ugly head again when Ivy arrives at the soundstage to find one of her old costars dead, and ends up right in the police’s crosshairs as a suspect.
Between the twists, turns, and teen angst, Samantha M. Bailey has another winner on her hands! The dual timeline structure unfolds the past and present at such a fast pace that I couldn’t put it down. Those short, snappy chapters and their cliffhanger endings had me in their grip and were not letting go! I loved how the snippets of social media posts and the Hollywood gossip articles made this such a juicy read. And then the big twist – oh, that twist! Never ever saw that coming! Satisfyingly shocking!
If you’ve ever loved a WB show or you’re a thriller lover who loved Honey by Isabel Banta, this one might be right up your alley! I know my friends at Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse are going to be buzzing about this one!
Woah! This book was excellent. Nothing was as it seemed. We go back and forth in two time lines, 2014 and 2024. Both narrated by Ivy, or Poison Ivy to her haters. Ivy is/was an actress in a popular teen drama. (Think 90210) it’s hard to tell the plot without ruining some of the book, so I won’t say much more. I was hooked though and finished the book quickly.
I loved this book as it hooks you in on the first page. Ivy Westcott was cast as the lead in television show Hello, Juliet. She was excited that this was going to make her career. Unfortunately, she is cast into the limelight and the media nicknames her #poisonivy. Her life spirals out of control and she flees the Hollywood scene. I enjoyed how this was told in present and past points of views with mixed media. You get a feel for all the characters.
Now, years later Ivy is invited back for a reunion show of Hello, Juliet. She wants to make peace with Lauren and be able to provide financially for her mother.
This are so many secrets that keep you guessing who is the puppet master behind the scenes.
I’ve been a fan of Samantha M. Bailey since Watch Out For Her and was eager to read this.
Ivy Westcott fled LA as her acting career imploded. ‘Hello, Juliet’, the series that should made her a star, with her first leading role, cancelled before the final episode aired. A decade later she hopes a top-secret reunion episode could offer a fresh start and financial stability.
It opens brilliantly with Ivy finding her ex-friend and costar dead…
This is a very ambitious thriller. Past and present, deaths and drugs and dreams of stardom. There’s plenty of depth, in the plots and in the characters, Ivy was always an outsider, feeling out of her depth in a cast of stars.
I don’t have the nostalgia for the 90s TV shows that I’ve seen mentioned in a lot of the reviews. It kept me reading and entertained. Ivy’s character was my favourite element and the world she inhabits is very convincing.
Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer
I think my students will love this one, tv show filled with unrequited love, admiring friendships, rivalry and present day complicated relationships and murder. There are some serious topics, mixed in with the drama, parental neglect, substance abuse, attempted rape, but overall tone is engaging and will appeal to my students. I thought it was a YA book but I guess not
Hello, Juliet is a fast paced, addictive, unputdownable thriller that had me consumed right from the start. The past and present timelines, the mixed media, the cliffhanger endings of the chapters truly made for such an engaging and thrilling ride. The way this book was set up, the way the plot was woven and unfolded perfectly blended with Bailey's signature storytelling skills made for a perfect thriller.
I was so hooked on the characters. They were all suspects in my head. The author kept throwing me in all the directions, making me doubt myself at every turn. All the twists, the turns were unpredictable and left me shocked. The ending was absolutely great, Bailey knocked it out of the park with that massive twist. I didn't see that coming at all!
A great roller coaster thrilling ride. A fast bingeable read, very fun and entertaining with an ending you won't see coming!
✨️Thank you to @thrillerbookloversthepulse, @netgalley, Thomas & Mercer and @samanthambailey for my gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.