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The rules are clear—until they’re broken. Lauren Layne puts a New Adult spin on Pygmalion, also the inspiration for Pretty Woman, and gives the classic love story its edgiest twist yet.
“Who knew that pretending you’re not falling for someone would be so much more difficult than pretending that you are?”
Stephanie Kendrick gave up her whole summer to ace her NYU film school screenwriting course, so she’s pissed to be stuck with a preppy, spoiled frat boy as her writing partner. Then again, with her piercings, black-rimmed eyes, and Goth wardrobe, Stephanie isn’t exactly Ethan Price’s type, either. He’s probably got his eye on some leggy blonde with a trust fund . . . or does he?
As the summer scene kicks off in the Hamptons, Ethan is desperate to make his snobbish mother forget the pedigreed girl who broke his heart. While Stephanie’s a stretch as a decoy, the right makeover and a pastel cardigan just might do the trick. She may not love the idea of playing Ethan’s brainless Barbie girlfriend, but the free rent and luxurious digs make a tempting offer. So does the promise of a ready-made screenplay idea inspired by their charade.
But when Stephanie steps into Ethan’s privileged world, the “acting” begins to feel all too real. The kissing and touching that were intended to fool the Hamptons crowd wind up manipulating them. And Stephanie faces a question she’s too afraid to ask: Is Ethan falling for the real her or for the dolled-up princess he wants to see?
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MICHELLE’S REVIEW
This book is 100% romance. If you want a book full of steamy sex scenes you are not going to get a lot of that here. But if you miss out on reading this book- you really are doing yourself a disservice because I loved it.
It’s a modern day twist on Pygmalion and it’s full of references to Pretty Woman so what’s not to love??
Stephanie and Ethan could not be more different on the outside. But what lies beneath the surface is actually not all that different. Stephanie is a little goth that has shut down to most people in her life because of her past and issues with her family. Ethan lives a rich life and seems to have it all. But he’s also dealing with cheating exes, best friends that are sort of failing in that role and a secret that he’s hiding from his father that is tearing him apart.
When Ethan and Stephanie get thrown together for a film project to write a script for a movie. Ethan has a bright idea to make life imitate art and together they decide that their movie can be based on a real life project of Stephanie pretending to be his girlfriend so that he can get his mother off of his back and show his ex that he’s moved on. And of course you are sitting there knowing this will nevre work- but then it works and you’re like:
Of course- the kisses between them start to blur the lines between acting and reality and that’s when things get awesome,
Both Ethan and Stephanie are wonderfully written characters. You kind of fall in love with both of them or at least I did. To me, the banter between the two is hilarious. They are witty and have the perfect touch of sarcasm and sexual tension between them.
I was just like:
One thing I love is that while they spend some time fighting their feelings, it doesn’t go on forever and so when they stop fighting the truth it’s awesome.
I thought the ending was perfection because I love when a man has to grovel and I love when a strong woman has to let the walls down a bit so basically this ending was amazing.
There were a few editing issues but that might be attributed to the ARC copy and hopefully will not be in the final copy. And they weren’t distracting, I just noticed them.
If you are looking for a true romance novel with just a perfect touch of steam, two likeable characters and a bit of humor, this book is for you!
AUTHOR INFO
Lauren Layne graduated from Santa Clara University with a B.S. in political science that she has yet to put to good use. After dabbling in an e-commerce career in Seattle and Southern California, Layne moved to New York City, where she now writes full-time. She lives with her husband and their plus-size pomeranian in a tiny Manhattan studio.
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