crashing the a list

4 stars

This was a fun romantic comedy that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. I don’t read a lot of these type books, but every once in awhile I like the escapism this genre provides.

Clara, a book editor, lost her job when her company was bought and downsized. She finds herself sleeping on her little brother’s couch and cleaning out storage lockers for extra cash. While cleaning out a locker of paperwork owned by an old escort service, she finds damning information about a very famous British actor, Caspian Tiddleswich (yeah, pretty stupid name). Clara’s best friend Cici thinks she should sell the information to a tabloid and make a quick buck to help out with her expenses, but Clara shoots down that option. She tracks down Caspian’s contact information and leaves a message that was intended to reassure him that the information is safe. Caspian, however, believes Clara is attempting to blackmail him and shows up angry on her doorstep. When the two are photographed together Caspian’s PR team decides to exploit the situation to help him promote his latest film. Hilarity and misunderstandings thereafter ensues…

The main character Clara is hilarious. Her wit and snark are very fun to read, and I actually laughed out loud at certain parts. I loved the relationship between her and her best friend CiCi. I think most women have a ride or die best friend like CiCi and can easily relate to their back and forth dialogue and shenanigans.

The main love interest, in contrast, felt a bit stiff and one-dimensional. He got mad at all the right parts, was contrite at all the right parts and fell into the typical misunderstandings like a leading man should, but other than these stereotypes, didn’t add much to the story. His speeches were pretty stock “wounded, distrustful male” ones that we’ve read a million times before, but I’ll forgive the author a bit because other parts of the book were so much fun to read. The conflict about 3/4 way into the book was a bit lazy and repetitive, but I guess it fits the formula for RomComs so again, I’ll forgive the author a bit for this.

This was a quick, light read that will put a smile on your face. You should pick it up and check it out for yourself. I will definitely read more books by this author.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.