If you read my recent review of Lindsey Kelk's debut novel 'I Heart New York', you'll know how much I adored it. It was funny, sweet and an easy read, with lovable characters and witty one-liners. I was super eager to read the follow up book, 'I Heart Hollywood', but did it match up to it's utterly brilliant prequel?
When we left our heroine Angela, she had it all - she was living in New York with her BFF Jenny, blogging for one of the most successful glossy magazines The Look, and had bagged herself a drop-dead-gorgeous musician boyfriend, Alex. Just when we thought life couldn't get any better for the lucky cow, her editor (Scary Mary) sends her off to Los Angeles to interview the hottest Brit actor, James Jacobs. 'I Heart Hollywood' follows Angela during her two week stint in LA. What could be better than a fortnight of shopping and sunbathing with her best friend, and interviewing the most famous celeb around? Well, this is Angela Clark, and if the last book is anything to go by, anything can go wrong.
When we left our heroine Angela, she had it all - she was living in New York with her BFF Jenny, blogging for one of the most successful glossy magazines The Look, and had bagged herself a drop-dead-gorgeous musician boyfriend, Alex. Just when we thought life couldn't get any better for the lucky cow, her editor (Scary Mary) sends her off to Los Angeles to interview the hottest Brit actor, James Jacobs. 'I Heart Hollywood' follows Angela during her two week stint in LA. What could be better than a fortnight of shopping and sunbathing with her best friend, and interviewing the most famous celeb around? Well, this is Angela Clark, and if the last book is anything to go by, anything can go wrong.
I had high expectations for this book. The first one was fantastic and the cover is equally pretty. I'm not sure whether my presumption was the downfall, or whether the storyline just wasn't up to scratch, but whatever the reason, I was feeling somewhat let-down by 'I Heart Hollywood'. Don't get me wrong, it was certainly an enjoyable read, but it left me feeling like something was missing. The spark that captured my attention throughout the first book had gone.
The pace had slowed-down substantially, and whereas every page used to be jampacked with action and comedy, this story seemed to have a lot more fillers and subplots. One substory that didn't add anything to the overall read was the one involving Jenny and an old Hollywood acquaintance, Joe. He wasn't a likeable character and the storyline involving him was quite dreary. Even the ending of that particular part of the story was silly, so the whole thing just seemed completely pointless. I think Lindsey would've done better to build on the friendship of Jenny and Angela instead of featuring a meaningless, boring, and predictable character/story.
As soon as James Jacobs and his awkward PR man/assistant was brought into the book, things definitely picked up. The fast-paced passion and enthusiasm that I'd loved from Lindsey the first time around kicked in and I found myself getting engrossed in the storyline once more. In true Angela style, she managed to find herself in some compromising situations with the world (and Alex) looking on. The paparazzi were printing photos left, right and centre of the latest 'celebrity love story' to hit Hollywood. At times it did seem a little bit far-fetched, but the beauty of Lindsey's writing style is that you can't help but to really get involved.
The twist was quite good, and although you know there's a secret somewhere, you can't quite work out what it is. Well, I couldn't! I was a little bit upset at the ending too, as one of my favourite things about the 'I Heart...' series and Angela's new life was evaporating before my very eyes. But, every cloud has a silver lining and all that. I won't say anymore on that as I don't to spoil it for you, but I've just bought the next installment to see how, or indeed if, it all works out!
The pace had slowed-down substantially, and whereas every page used to be jampacked with action and comedy, this story seemed to have a lot more fillers and subplots. One substory that didn't add anything to the overall read was the one involving Jenny and an old Hollywood acquaintance, Joe. He wasn't a likeable character and the storyline involving him was quite dreary. Even the ending of that particular part of the story was silly, so the whole thing just seemed completely pointless. I think Lindsey would've done better to build on the friendship of Jenny and Angela instead of featuring a meaningless, boring, and predictable character/story.
As soon as James Jacobs and his awkward PR man/assistant was brought into the book, things definitely picked up. The fast-paced passion and enthusiasm that I'd loved from Lindsey the first time around kicked in and I found myself getting engrossed in the storyline once more. In true Angela style, she managed to find herself in some compromising situations with the world (and Alex) looking on. The paparazzi were printing photos left, right and centre of the latest 'celebrity love story' to hit Hollywood. At times it did seem a little bit far-fetched, but the beauty of Lindsey's writing style is that you can't help but to really get involved.
The twist was quite good, and although you know there's a secret somewhere, you can't quite work out what it is. Well, I couldn't! I was a little bit upset at the ending too, as one of my favourite things about the 'I Heart...' series and Angela's new life was evaporating before my very eyes. But, every cloud has a silver lining and all that. I won't say anymore on that as I don't to spoil it for you, but I've just bought the next installment to see how, or indeed if, it all works out!
Rating : 7/10 - If I wasn't comparing this book to the first one, it would really be a fantastic read, but it doesn't quite live up to I Heart New York. Still an enjoyable book though, and a series I definitely recommend you read. It's light, fluffy and pure escapism, just the way I like my chick-lit.
xoxo
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