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.