Heather Cocks

I could not put it down. For something that is essentially royal family fanfiction, it was incredibly well-written, engaging, and so very very compelling. The characters were wonderful and felt like real people, warts and quirks and all.

Super fun. I imagine this will become a comfort read of mine.

American Rebecca Porter definitely did not take a semester abroad at Oxford because she wanted to fall in love with the prince of England. But she did. And she quickly learned that if she was going to be with him, all her other wants and needs would go out the window. She has zero privacy from paparazzi and vicious bloggers. His family hates her (except for his hot younger brother). And after she has a falling out with her twin sister, Rebecca doesn't have anyone she can trust and confide show more in. Is she doing the right thing? Is all of this worth it?

This is a very fun read, and I read all 450 pages in two sittings. The subject matter is a bit fluffy but the book is very well written, with complex and sympathetic characters. (Bea is my favorite.) But there's some meaning here as well. The book has a lot of relevant things to say about the royal family's relationship with the media, in a way that is similar to the play [King Charles III]. There was the tiniest bit of character stuff that annoyed me: I have zero sympathy for Lacey. If she didn't like living in Bex's shadow, why didn't she go off and live her own life instead of just tagging around behind her sister? The comparisons between Lacey and Freddie don't hold water, because Lacey is free to leave (unlike Freddie) and Lacey has only had to be in her sister's shadow since Bex started dating Nick, while Freddie has been in his brother's shadow since the moment he was born. But it reads so quickly that it's easy to gloss over a small annoyance or two.

The ending of this book was hard to pull off, but I liked it a LOT. Highly recommended for anyone looking for something fun and absorbing to read. show less

Brooke Berlin is pretty, popular, rich and the daughter of the super-famous action hero Brick Berlin. She’s about to have her big sixteenth birthday party. Paparazzi will be there to cover the event, and she’s finally going to make her way into the spotlight. Her plans are all turned upside down when a girl named Shelby, Brooke’s nemesis, breaks the news via her father’s rag-mag, that Brick has a love-child. To make matters worse, the girl’s mother just passed away and it was her show more dying wish that she meet the father she never knew she had.

Molly Dix isn’t prepared for the Hollywood life. Growing up in small-town Indiana, she’s been sheltered, and her only brush with celebrities and paparazzi is what she’s seen on TV. When she gets to L.A. she is excited and nervous. She has a chance for a new life with her father and a sister she never knew she had. Brooke, however, isn’t as excited about this new creature from the mid-west that has invaded her house and poisoned the air with bad fashion and (gasp!) bangs. Just a few chapters in, the gloves are off as the sisters grapple, gossip and one up each other. But, when Shelby rears her ugly head and spreads some vicious rumors of her own, Brooke and Molly have no choice but to work with each other, or face having their reputations ruined for good.

Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan bring the same humor from their fashion blog (gofugyourself.com) to this witty, slam-dunk tale of a fish-out-of-water, and the unsuspecting ally she finds in someone she thought would be her worst enemy. The story is part Clueless, part Mean Girls with a splash of Pygmalion thrown in. The writing is quick, witty and at times, laugh-out-loud funny. The celeb-sightings (and jabs) are plentiful, and I loved how they meshed real Hollywood with their own stories and characters. This book is light and funny, and though it’s hard for me to empathize with spoiled rich brats, the characters have enough depth to them to make them likable. show less

What a mess! And I liked it. This is juicy Lifetime drama disguised as a Hallmark miniseries. Sex, scandal, lots of alcohol which didn't help either front. I laughed. I gasped. I couldn't stop thinking about this ridiculous and stupid book. I regret nothing and everything.