Narrated by Thérèse Plummer & Andrew Eiden
If you read my reviews regularly, you’ll know that m/f contemporary romance has never been something I gravitate towards, but the occasional one does catch my eye now and then, and Ava Wilder’s début romance, How to Fake it in Hollywood, is one of those. I picked it up on a whim because I’d read a couple of reviews that intrigued me – and, okay, also because of Andrew Eiden.
On the surface, it’s your basic bad-boy meets good-girl story with a fake-dating trope thrown in, but there’s a bit more going on beneath, especially because both leads are carrying a lot of baggage which trips them up several times along the road to their eventual HFN. Grey Brooks – whose real name is Emily – is twenty-seven and has been working in front of the camera for two decades. The successful teen drama in which she’d played the lead ended eight months earlier, and although she’s done the odd bit part here and there, she’s yet to land another decent role. Together with her best friend Kamilah, Grey is drafting a script based on a best-selling novel and they’re planning to direct (Kamilah) and star (Grey) once they can get the project greenlit. Now, though, Grey is up for a role in a major fantasy franchise, but she’s been out of the spotlight for a while and profile counts in this business, so her publicist comes up with a way to increase her chances of getting the part and getting backing for the movie further down the road.
Ethan Atkins and his best friend Sam Tanner were a Ben Affleck/Matt Damon style writing/acting/producing duo who had some major successes before Sam died tragically in an accident five years before. Ethan’s marriage fell apart shortly afterwards and ended in a very public divorce, and, devastated by grief over his friend’s death, he retreated into the bottom of a bottle and has pretty much remained there ever since, living as something of a recluse and not taking on any more movie roles. But if he’s going to get the final movie he and Sam wrote together made, Ethan knows he’s going to clean up his reputation and get back out there, be seen and do some schmoozing in La La Land.
Ethan and Grey happen to share a publicist, and it’s she who comes up with the idea that they should pretend to be in a relationship. Gorgeous bad-boy actor Ethan Atkins dating an equally gorgeous and talented young actress, being seen at a number of carefully curated events and occasions for an agreed period – six months – will generate plenty of the right sort of publicity for both of them – it’ll raise Grey’s profile and remind people of who Ethan is – or was – before he disappeared from the Hollywood scene. It’s a win-win. Neither of them are keen on the idea but in the absence of any other strategy, they agree to meet and talk it over.
That initial meeting is…awkward. Ethan and Grey get along okay, but somewhere along the way, their conversation hits a few sore spots for both of them, and Grey finds herself delivering a few very blunt home truths. In the end though, they agree to give the fake-dating scheme a try.
The chemistry between Ethan and Grey sizzles with tension and sensuality, and their romance is nicely developed. Grey had a massive crush on Ethan when she was younger and she recognises the resurgence of a degree of that infatuation at the same time as she sees the reality of the divorced father and shattered friend with a self-destructive streak who seems to always have a drink in his hand. But as they spend time together and Ethan starts to let down his walls a little, Grey gets to see the funny, kind and generous guy inside that broken man, and, against her better judgment, can’t help falling for him. Ethan is smitten with Grey almost from the beginning, drawn to her strength, her vivacity and her talent. They come vividly to life and feel very real and very grounded (considering the world they live in), and the author does a great job of showing all the ways they’re perfect for each other – while also showing all the ways they’re enabling or hurting each other.
The second half of the book is less cohesive, however. I’ll try to avoid spoilers – but at the midway point something happens that seriously impacts Grey’s personal life and career and the focus shifts from the relationship to a lot of external drama. The author packs in not one but two crisis moments, and because Ethan and Grey spend a considerable amount of time apart, the energy and vibrancy brought to the story by their interactions is lost. The story ends on what I’d call a firm HFN, but the dénouement is rushed; there’s a time jump near the end – the reason for it is perfectly understandable – but it means we miss out on some important steps so the HFN doesn’t have a very solid foundation.
On the positive side, kudos to Ms. Wilder for tackling some difficult topics – most obviously alcoholism and response to trauma, but also media intrusiveness and the toxicity of a culture that punishes women for things which, in men, it turns a blind eye to – and also for creating some wonderful female relationships, especially the friendship which develops between Grey and Ethan’s ex-wife. But the handling of Ethan’s addiction is somewhat uneven; in the first half, it’s subtly ever present in the background, and in the second it becomes much more prominent so abruptly that it feels forced.
I listen to Andrew Eiden fairly often, but although I’ve seen Thérèse Plummer’s name on lots of romance audiobook covers, I haven’t listened to her before. She’s excellent, and I really liked her interpretation of Grey, who is upbeat, witty, determined and doesn’t take any of Ethan’s bullshit. Andrew Eiden is (of course) terrific as Ethan – all gruff sexiness and wry humour with an underlying fragility and vulnerability. The emotional content of the story is expertly conveyed, the pacing is good and the cast is clearly differentiated; both performers are able to employ a variety of tone, timbre and accent in their characterisations and are adept at voicing characters of the opposite sex. It’s a fabulous performance all round.
How to Fake It in Hollywood is an enjoyable character-driven love story and an impressive début from Ava Wilder. The second half does drag a bit, and there are issues I felt should have been addressed before the end, but the characters are well-drawn and sympathetic and their romance – as developed in the first half – is sexy and fun. If you’re in the mood for a superbly narrated contemporary romance that takes an honest look at some difficult topics, this one is worth considering.
Caz
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