About the Book
-
Author:
- Dana L. Davis
- Genres:
- Boy-Girl Romance
- Contemporary
Cover Story: Reflective Pink
BFF Charm: Heck Yes!
Talky Talk: Brooklyn Babble
Bonus Factor: Identity Swap
Relationship Status: Pragmatic
Cover Story: Reflective Pink
There’s a pair of pink sunglasses with the book’s title in the lenses, on a pink background. It’s cute, but a little flavorless. We don’t get any hint of the main character’s personality, nor the Los Angeles locale, or even Red’s hometown in Iowa. This book cover is pretty generic, which is a shame as Red has a ton of personality and sass.
The Deal:
Red Morgan, 18, lives on a farm in Iowa. She loves her family, her farm, and to sing. She’s captured one day singing “Over the Rainbow” before falling into a pile of manure. The clip goes viral, but not just because of her voice: she looks like a dead ringer for Zay-Zay Waters, the hottest singer-celebrity of the now. Soon after, Zay-Zay comes to Iowa asking for a strange assignment: to swap lives for a week, so that she can get a break from being THE Zay-Zay Waters. Red, though initially uninterested, negotiates a deal to help save her family’s farm, and Zay-Zay gets a chance to be off the grid. Red is soon swept up into Zay-Zay’s world. After a makeover, signing an NDA, and learning a ton of rules, she gets placed on a red carpet in a pair of sunglasses and heels and the world believes she’s Zay-Zay. But what happens when she meets Zay-Zay’s fake boyfriend, Koi, and real sparks fly?
BFF Charm: Heck Yes!
Red is supposed to be silent and pretty, just standing in for Zay-Zay, but she finds it difficult to muzzle herself. Her voracious appetite outs her to Koi, who plays along with Red as she continues to pretend to be Zay-Zay; her personality captures the attention of a prominent director (Koi’s best friend); her singing voice is different enough from Zay-Zay’s that she garners the accolades of the masses. And Red is a good person, through and through: she initially doesn’t want to go along with Zay-Zay’s scheme but knows her family could use the money, so she agrees. She loves animals and can laugh at herself for falling into a pile of manure! I’d be her friend, definitely.
Swoonworthy Scale: 5
Koi is a lead singer of a band that’s struggling to gain a foothold in popular culture, and his fake relationship with Zay-Zay is a way for him to get a little more attention. But he didn’t expect to meet Red, Zay-Zay’s stand-in. When he discovers that Red isn’t who she is supposed to be, he doesn’t stalk off in disgust – nope, he decides to up the ante! That includes more kissing, hugging, and attention-seeking PDA. Koi opens up to Red about his family life (or lack thereof) and his found family. He’s sensitive and swoony and super cute. We need more Kois in this world.
Talky Talk: Brooklyn Babble
Not gonna lie, the writing was a little rocky. I found myself not totally engaged with the material, and it didn’t help that Zay-Zay is from Brooklyn and speaks with an affectation, most of which is “translated” by Red. It made the book start and stop in spurts for me. But once Koi is introduced, the Brooklyn banter is reduced, and the real fun begins. This is, at its heart, a story about a girl who is learning to stand up for herself, to be herself, and to find love in the process.
Bonus Factor: Identity Swap
I love swapping-places stories. The Parent Trap, It Takes Two, The Princess Switch. I eat them up with a spoon. And while we don’t see Zay-Zay’s side as she is incognito for a week, we do see Red as a fish out of water, learning that all that glitters is not gold.
Relationship Status: Pragmatic
Let’s be real, this is such an impossible scenario that it takes a lot of suspension of belief to get us on board. But the story surprised me in that it doesn’t end when the two switch back to their original places. The rational ending made me like this book more, but it’s not one with a ton of shine.
Literary Matchmaking
If you’re looking for another body swap story, check out Where I End and You Begin by Preston Norton.
Two sisters switch places in Maggie Knox’s holiday romp, The Holiday Swap.
FTC Full Disclosure: I received a free review copy from the publisher. I received neither kittens nor compensation for this review. Fake Famous is available now.
I HATE when authors try to transcribe an accent, be it Ozarks, Boston, or Puerto Rican. You have to make the reader hear the accent without spelling it out.