3.50 stars.

This had big i know what you did last summer vibes, with a horror movie within horror book..The beginning was a little slow but the writing was good enough to keep me interested. The end was super twisty and typical horror/ slasher fun. It was a fun lighthearted read with lots of twists. The use of past and present helped to keep you invested in the story. This is my first book by this author but will definitely read more

Ella Winters is trying to get back in the acting game after a long hiatus. Twenty years ago, she achieved success from her starring role in the horror film “Grad Night.” But something happened all those years ago and the cast members are the only ones who know the truth. Now, to get her career back on track, Ella agrees to do a 20 year reunion special with the original “Grad Night” cast. The whole group is back at the cabin where the horror movie was filmed, and seeing everyone again has Ella overwhelmed by the secret she’s kept for so long. Then, reality begins to imitate film when a masked killer begins hunting Ella and the other actors. Does someone know what happened during filming? And are they back to exact their revenge?

This one was so fun & totally took a turn that I wasn’t expecting. I loved the alternating timeline and that this book managed to surprise me a couple different times. I would recommend this to fans of slasher films.. especially those from the 90s!

(3.5 rounded down) This is a mystery/thriller with a pretty fun premise - Ella is returning to an isolated cabin for a filmed reunion of the slasher film she was a part of twenty years prior. Something went wrong during that filming and at the reunion, a killer starts stalking the cast and crew. Having read Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay this felt reealllyy similar to that, even down to the story structure - both present and past timelines are presented, along with selected script pages. But, while Horror Movie was a supernatural examination, this is a popcorn slasher. I found the first 70ish% to be a bit slow - the last 30% is extremely fun and twisty. It’s a quick read, but I do wish there had been a bit more…excitement (I guess?) throughout, as opposed to a lot of exposition and kills at the end. The story also touches on the mistreatment experienced by actors at the hands of directors with more power, which initially, I was frustrated by - this feels advertised as a fun thriller, and the power dynamic & abuse plot line were upsetting to read - but I’m actually glad that was a plot point. Miranda Smith wrote it with empathy and nuance. The characters fit into stereotypes you’d see in your usual slasher (the virginal final girl, the slutty friend, the annoying jock, the nice guy), but it feels intentional in the telling of a horror movie. My other minor quip is a problem I have with most mysteries/thrillers that are focused on a past event being dug up : this “traumatic event” is constantly mentioned and alluded to, with no one mentioning anything beyond that it was bad or scary or still affected them, and it gets annoying after the 20th mention. Like yes, I get it! Something bad happened and that event is going to be impactful when we get the solution to the current mystery! No need to mention it every 4th page! I’m being critical here, but I did enjoy my time with this, even if I won’t be thinking about it for too long.

I was excited to read this book as I love books about slasher movies and books that double as their own slasher movies. Slasher movies with a masked killer are kind of modern day "Who dun its?" and trying to figure out who the killer is while watching our main characters being offed one by one throughout the movie. The main character of this book is Ella, who is an actress who is attempting to reignite her Hollywood career. She took years off to help take care of her sick mother, and now that she is middle=aged, she is no longer being offered roles other than playing the mom in a tv show or movie. Ella's agent approaches her with the offer she can't refuse: If Ella tapes a reunion for the movie that launched her career with all the original cast members on the original set, it will relaunch her celebrity and she will be in high demand as an actress.

The problem with the reunion is that something really bad happened all those years ago when filming the movie and Ella doesn't want to go back and relive those memories. Of course, Ella does end up going back and at first is happy to see all of her old castmates and catch up with them all. They all haven't been in contact since the press for the movie ended years ago partly because of the bad thing that happened on set. The main characters are: Leo, the boy-next-door type who dated Ella while shooting the movie and for awhile afterwards. He has maintained his celebrity over the years and has been in many lead roles. Riley, the good looking guy who struggles with addiction and because of that hasn't been the major star he wanted to be. Aires, the child-star actress who became an influencer and doesn't act too much in the current day. And Leo, the director of the movie who has come under fire recently due to the "Me too" movement.

The book starts quickly, and the characters are back at camp within the first few chapters. After all this, the book starts to move at a slow pace. Following Ella's POV, she instantly regrets coming back and is full of dread. It takes the rest of the book to actually find out what bad thing happened on set all the years ago filming the movie. In the meantime, the book switches between present and past through Ella's POV for some character back story and development. Towards the end of the present day storyline, they add a slasher element where there is a masked killer who arrives to the reunion who knows what the main characters did in the past. The killer reveal isn't that interesting, nor is the reveal of what happened in the past.

Overall, I thought this was an average book. I thought the slasher and big secret from the past aspects of the story under-delivered. However, I did like Ella as a main character and I did enjoy her past POVs to see what it was like shooting her first big movie and learning / growing up on the job. This kept me interested enough to keep reading until the end. This was a middle of the road book for me, I've read worse and I've read better.

Smile for the Cameras follows Ella as she tries to reignite her acting career. Her mom has recently passed and Ella hopes to get back to acting, when her agent convinces her that she should do a reunion for the movie that kickstarted her career. Grad Night was a slasher film that skyrocketed her career. But it also holds a lot of bad memories. Her agent convinced her to attend and we flip from present day to the past from both her point of view and the script.
I really enjoyed this! The first half of the book moves very slowly but there was enough suspense to keep me invested. It was such a unique perspective coming from a scary movie in a scary movie meanwhile doing a great job of hooking you into the cast and keeping you on your toes.

I was a bit hesitant going into this one, primarily because locked-room thrillers tend to be repetitive and all play out the same. But that was absolutely not the case for Smile for the Cameras. The approach was unique, the characters were more flushed out, and the writing kept me invested right from the start.

The dual timeline format with the screenplay intertwined made for a quick read, and the overall vibe was reminiscent of a 90s slasher film. It kept me guessing right until the very end. Overall, a very fun read that had me shocked at the ending!

I was SO excited to read this book based on the description, so I dove right in after I was approved. It’s a locked room-ish thriller based on 90s slashers movies…hello YES PLEASE! Unfortunately this book fell short of my expectations a bit. Parts of the book (honestly, close to 60% of the book) moved SO slowly, and then to me the ending seemed so rushed and the reveals just keep coming all in a row. Even though some points felt a bit ridiculous, I still really enjoyed following the journey of the story.

I will admit I am a sucker for a good slasher. Smile For the Cameras fits the bill for any slasher/horror fan. I stayed up late in the night to finish this book and it was worth the loss of sleep. I recommend to anyone looking for a fast paced read with plot twists.

Thank you to Netgalley, Ballentine, and Miranda Smith for allowing me to read this ARC.

This had an interesting premise but the first 65-ish% dragged on. We kept getting hints that something awful happened 20 years ago and was covered up, but it took a long time for anything to happen.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book has been brought to you by #MeToo, (The Final) Girl power, and a number of other thriller genre cliches.
So why did I read it? Well, I'm a sucker for books about movies and a fan of slashers movies. Why specifically slasher movies? Because as this book can amply attest to, slashers work better on screen.
Does that mean this book was a dud?
Well, no, not exactly, but it did get more and more trite and obnoxiously overexplained as it went on. The movie slashers usually have the decency to wrap up under 120 minutes or so.
Also, they are usually more fun. And, as the case may be with all the Scream movies, infinitely cleverer.

This book didn't quite hit those marks, but the genre seems to thrive on mediocrities, so it'll fit right in.
This is a story of Ella, a washed-up actress pushing forty, who gets a second chance at stardom when she is invited to the twenty-year reunion of the slasher flick that put her on the map. And also, the one that led her to eventually quit the business.
Why? Because something went wrong during the shoot, though the author really takes her time revealing what that something may be. I think the idea there is to pump up the suspense, but it veers into roll-your-eyes silliness instead.
So in the genre-standard alternating timelines of then and now, interspersed with the original movie script, the reader gets to slowly find out what happened, who died and why and how, etc.

This is the kind of book that makes up by easily digestible readability what it doesn't have in depth or originality. It's fine, it's entertaining, it passes the time, but it doesn't even try to say anything interesting or new.
Just about all the male characters are evil. Most of the female characters are virtuous. The past reveal is hugely underwhelming. The present reveal is overwrought to the point of convolution. But it's an easy, mindless read of more-of-the-same variety that is sure to find its audience.
Thanks Netgalley.

This is genuinely one of the best “Final Girl” thrillers I’ve read in a while! You start off in the dark about what happened during the original film shoot and slowly piece it together through flashbacks and conversations between the cast during the reunion. It was fast-paced, intense, and kept the adrenaline running. The overall concept of the story was interesting and it was executed really well. I’d give this a 9 on a 10 point scale, converting to a 4.5 star, but I am choosing to round up as NetGalley doesn’t allow for half stars. Highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys thrillers, “Final Girl” stories, and wants a book they will devour in a couple days.

Are you ready for your next psychological thriller? Check out Smile for the Cameras by Miranda Smith. It was a great read.

This was a fun campy horror book that reminded me of I Know What You Did Last Summer & Scream! Really enjoyed it! Thanks NetGalley, Random House & Miranda Smith for letting me read Smile for the Cameras before its June 2025 release!

𝐈 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞, 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐞, 𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐥, 𝐖𝐞'𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫. 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤? 𝐓𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬? 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐞?

I was so excited to see that this author had a slasher book in the works, and this was everything I hoped for! Twenty years ago, Ella Winters was Hollywood's newest It Girl. A seemingly overnight sensation, her claim to fame was the Final Girl in the slasher 𝑮𝒓𝒂𝒅 𝑵𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕, which would go on to become a cult classic. The world was at her feet, until one terrible night in the woods with her co-stars changed the trajectory of her life forever.

Ella retreated from all the fame and glory to care for her ailing mother who sacrificed so much for Ella's success; at least, that's what people thought. While her mother did indeed need care, Ella also needed time to assuage her guilt. Now that her mother is gone and her career has long-stalled, one call from her agent was enough to get her into a meeting. She's tempted by promises of projects, but they all hinge on one thing--a reunion of the original members. If Ella refuses, her career is done. But saying yes means facing the awful thing they all did so many years ago.

She reluctantly agrees to return to the original set, a rustic cabin in rural Tennessee, to reunite with her castmates. But it isn't long before the actors begin to fall victim to someone dressed as the original villain, meeting the same horrific fates as their fictional characters. That's when Ella knows their secret has been exposed, and someone is getting their revenge.

Steeped in the nostalgia of 90s slasher films, SMILE FOR THE CAMERAS will make you reminisce for a simpler time when the blade of an ax, wielded by a very clear villain, was coming for your face instead of the knife buried in your back by a smiling frenemy. Thank you to Random House Publishing/Ballantine for this early read. This title is expected to publish June 24, 2025.

This is my opinion and my opinion alone.

First, I would like to thank NetGalley and Ballantine for the chance to read Smile for the Cameras by Miranda Smith.
I think the story is great, but it was too repetitive and just was not going anywhere. There could have been more to add and make it more of a thriller. I was annoyed with the MC and her story.

This was just not a read for me.

I really liked this book. I loved the theme of a 20 year cast reunion on the original set of a horror slasher movie. I was convinced I had it figured out and I was blown away by a quite a few plot twists. Highly recommend.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.
Smile for the Cameras by Miranda Smith is an engaging and thought-provoking read that dives into the world of fame, identity, and the impact of social media. Smith’s writing is captivating, and she does a wonderful job of creating relatable characters while exploring the consequences of living under the constant gaze of the public eye. The narrative is compelling, with moments of both humor and poignancy, making it an enjoyable experience for those interested in contemporary fiction. However, at times, the pacing can feel a bit uneven, but overall, it’s a solid exploration of modern celebrity culture.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 (rounded up)

Thank you Bantam/Random House Publishing Group & NetGalley for the opportunity read an e-ARC of Smile for the Cameras ahead of its June 2025 release.

I really enjoyed this book! I’m a big fan of slasher films & horror so this entire book felt nostalgic. It was definitely a unique concept for a book & I really appreciate the inclusion of the “screenplay” scenes , it really felt like watching a movie! This was an incredibly fun and thrilling experience. The author has a very easy to read/follow writing style and man , I read a lot of thrillers but I did NOT have any of the twists figured out with this one! Truly shocking, surprisingly moving & an overall amazing tale of strength & survival. I also loved the nods to how the MCs all dealt with life after tragedy/trauma & how delicately that was handled & how amazingly it played into the story itself. Having past & present POVs worked really well in this book as it felt like you were discovering all the little secrets as they played out back then! My only reason for taking down 1/2 star is because it took about 60% to get to the main climactic plot point of the story , but it was still nice to have some “getting to know” the characters in the beginning, I just think that portion could’ve been a bit more condensed. However, I’m not upset about it & this book defintiely gets a rec from me to every thriller & slasher movie lover!

My review can be found on Goodreads currently which I will link below. I plan to post a review to my Instagram profile where I share reviews & book related content, but I will be waiting closer to publication day to post that. Once posted I will edit my feedback to include that link! I have also included a link to my fable review which includes he same info but expands on rating specific elements of the book! Thanks again for the opportunity!

Thank you, NetGalley for allowing me to have this arc. I love slasher films. I love the dual timeline. And I felt like this book came together at the end and a really good way. This book was such a fast pace good thriller. I really enjoyed how they had the script involved in the book as well. I cannot wait to see what else is. Author is going to write.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for gifting me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I won't lie - the cover of this one was exactly the type of cover that draws me in without even reading the synopsis. I was getting big time "Cabin in the Woods' vibes from this one so it was an immediate request. This was so fun and it was a quick and twisty read. It was like Prom Night meets Blair Witch Project meets And Then There Were None, and I really enjoyed it. A campy slasher was an unexpectedly fun read for this team of year and it was really enjoyable. I really liked the 90s horror slasher vibes and if you're into the horror/thriller genre at all, you'll have a blast with this one! Three and a half stars, but rounded up to four for NetGalley. Can't wait to buy the hardcover for my shelf!