Audio book length: 10 hrs 13 mins
Rating: 4 stars
CBR17 Bingo: Work (Actors on set - and in private)
I read this book at the end of March, and as such, I'm going to rely on the official plot summary to help me out here:
Hattie Murton never dreamed of TV stardom. A straight-from-a-fairytale encounter with a casting agent somehow landed her a part on what she’d thought would be a one-off pilot for Leicester Square, a bodice-ripping drama adapted from a bestselling romance novel. Buoyed by a surge in demand for romantic dramas, the show instead propelled its core cast to household-name status within a month.
Hattie tries to look on the positive side of all situations, but four seasons of brutal press, overly invested fans, and a cutthroat industry that’s never quite felt like the right fit would give even Pollyanna an edge of cynicism. And high on the ‘con’ list when it comes to her current and unintended career is having to share a set and some horrendously early starts with Anthony Rafe. Leicester Square villain. A-lister. Absolute prat.
In the new season’s scripts, it appears that her previously sane, rational character is about to lose her mind and begin an unexpected and unsettlingly graphic affair with the series villain. Forced into close—very close and very…intimate—proximity with the man everyone loves to hate, Hattie’s horror is matched only by Anthony’s drawling disdain. But when very real chemistry sparks during their scripted love scenes, Hattie begins to think the industry’s legendarily heartless Bad Guy might just have a pulse after all. And Anthony, for his part, is caught off guard by the way his heart races when he’s around his aggravating onscreen lover.
As reality starts to imitate art a little too close for comfort, the world’s most unlikely couple might just have more in common than they thought…
As far as I'm aware, this is still only an Audible exclusive, so anyone who actually wants to read it on paper has to wait until Amazon decides to eventually release it in other formats. I was just excited to get another romance by Parker, who has written some of my favourite contemporary romances. This book has a lot of similarities with some of Parker's early novels; the sweet and grumpy actor pairing who fall for one another is very reminiscent of Act Like It, and the soap opera shenanigans seem very similar to the series Lily initially stars in in Pretty Face.
I can see why getting Nicola Coughlan to narrate this audiobook, especially since it's about actors on a romantic period drama, but it took me about 20% of the audiobook to get used to her narration, because she's just so familiar to me from Derry Girls and Bridgerton. She does a good job, and if you don't know her voice from her other projects, this isn't going to be a problem for you as a listener. I don't remember anything standing out to me negatively about Gwylim Lee, so he probably did a perfectly fine job. Sadly, this isn't a dual narration, which is now my favourite way to listen to romance audiobooks.
I really only remember glimpses from this story now, like Hattie making book nooks for those she cares about and having several burly brothers (I think). I also think she wants to stop being an actress and open a book club in a small village somewhere. It's all very vague now. I really shouldn't wait so long between reading and reviewing. I do remember enjoying it at the time, especially once I got used to Nicola Coughlan's voice in my ears. If you've enjoyed Parker's books in the past (and have access to Audible), it's a fun listen.
Crossposted on Cannonball Read
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