Rising Star - Michele Kwasniewski (Blog Tour & Review)

Finished Reading: 21/06/2021

Author: Michele Kwasniewski

Publisher: Rand-Smith LLC

Publication Date: October 20, 2020

Rating: 4/5

(This review is part of the blog tour organised by Random Things Tours)

About the book:

In the first book in THE RISE AND FALL OF DANI TRUEHART series, RISING STAR, fifteen-year-old Dani Truehart is living a life that is not quite her own. Driven by her mother's desire for fame and fortune, she has spent her childhood dutifully training for a career as a pop star. On the brink of discovery, doubts begin to creep into Dani's mind as she questions her own desire for fame, and she wonders whether she can trust the motivations of the adults who are driving her forward.

Following a brilliant audition arranged by her vocal/dance coach and former '80s pop icon Martin Fox, Dani is thrown full-force into the music industry. She leaves her friends, family and scheming mother behind to move with Martin, who has become her legal guardian, into the Malibu compound of her new manager, Jenner Redman. Jenner, the former swindling manager of Martin's boy band, leverages what's left of his depleted fortune to launch Dani's career.

Isolated from her life at home and trying to stay apace with her demanding schedule, Dani struggles to keep in touch with those she loves, connect to her withholding mother and find her voice as an artist. With Martin and Jenner at odds over their rocky past and finding herself unprepared to handle the pressures of her future singing career, Dani's debut album and future stardom are at risk of falling apart.

Review:

        I was not sure what I was expecting from this story; a teenage star getting manipulated by her dear ones and losing her cool? Probably. Well, it is not that story. There is some angst for sure, but evil mamas aside, there are no surprising twists or turns in the plot (though I was waiting for one like the spectator of a scary movie).

        Ever wondered how a pop star came to be or how success feels? If that is you, then this story is a must read. Dani Truehart is on her way to fame and it is a path filled with sacrifices, endless hours of hard work and  . . . missing the normal life. Sure, we can't have everything and a star's life is not that bad either. There are no fights with best friends or breaking up with boyfriends which was another surprise I found in the story. I had my doubts on Sean, but the guy seems to have a strong head on his shoulders. 

        Hmm, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Once the star starts to burn brighter, will everything remain the same? I can't wait to see what happens next.

Meet the author:

The author, Michele Kwasniewski, is an entertainment industry insider who has seen what the Hollywood machine can do to people – having worked for many years in film and television production on such films and TV shows as Primal Fear, Independence Day, Evita, Face/Off, Big Brother, and many TCL, HGTV, and Discovery series including: Meet the Pandas, Adoption Story, Wedding Story, and Extra Yardage. 

 

With her book, she shares the glamour and excitement of fame as well as the hard work it takes to achieve success and the price of living life in the public eye.  Everyone wants to be famous, but most people have no idea what that really means.  Michele has seen it firsthand.  She is an active member of the Producers Guild of America.

Duvet Day - Emily Kerr (Review)

Finished Reading: 6/6/2021

Author: Emily Kerr

Publisher: One More Chapter

Publication Date: May 27, 2021

Source: NetGalley

Rating: 4/5

About the book:

Young lawyer Alexa Humphries’s one true love is her precious duvet, yet she is torn from its comforting embrace every morning while the foxes are still scavenging the bins outside and doesn’t get back until long after most normal people are already asleep. Worn down by the endless demands of her suspicious boss and her competitive, high-flying housemate and fellow lawyer, Zara, Alexa barely recognises herself anymore. This wasn’t how life was supposed to be.

But today is different. Today, Alexa just cannot get out of bed to face the world. Everyone deserves a duvet day, don’t they?

But what starts as a mini-rebellion against the tyranny of her job soon sees her locked out of the flat wearing nothing but a unicorn onesie and what’s left of her dignity. Desperate to track down a spare set of keys before her back-stabbing housemate finds out she’s pulled a sickie, Alexa sets off on a wild goose chase across London. Before long, she’s being blackmailed by an annoyingly handsome photo-journalist, forcing her to trail after him while the hours before she has to get home tick down.

As Alexa’s dreams of Netflix and self-care turn into the duvet day from hell, what’s starting to feel a lot like the beginning of a breakdown might actually be the making of her. Will she get home in time to keep her job … and does she even want to?

Review:

        It is not every day one is fortunate to find a book with Sophie Kinsella vibes -- a lot of self-deprecating humour, finding your way back in the world . . . you know the drill. Kerr's writing may not be as polished as Kinsella's but her heroine definitely is one of the best.

        Meet Alexa Humphries. A young lawyer in one of the top law firms in London. Top of her class and pride of her teachers. If only her work life is as happy as everyone believes it to be! Back to reality: she is struggling with the pressures at work, weary of her co-worker slash housemate, hasn't even met the third housemate and quite obviously, no friends in London.

        And one day all tides break loose. She had enough of it and in a daring moment, she never thought she was even capable of, she called in a sickie. But the hopes of having a duvet day with Nutella and Netflix is soon turned into a nightmare when she is left locked outside. There begins the journey to secure a key and also a journey to get back to her life that is lost.

        I loved this story this much because of Alexa. She is so down to earth and passionate about her career and there is no wonder people took advantage of her. She is a wolf in sheep's clothing who finally came to believe that she is also a sheep. Kerr has kept the romance element to a minimum which I loved (Sam is not really a likeable character, by the way). So if you are in need of an inspirational story during the pandemic where a young woman finally learns to stand up for herself, then look no further. Happy reading everyone!!!

Meet the author:

Emily Kerr has been scribbling stories on bits of paper ever since she learnt how to write. She works as a journalist and is based in Yorkshire.

She can generally be found with her nose in a book, or hunched up over her laptop typing away, though she has been known to venture outside every so often to take part in various running-based activities.

Emily loves to hear from readers. You can tweet her @EmilyKerrWrites or check out her Facebook page www.facebook.com/emilykerrwrites and website www.emilykerrwrites.com.