If you believe in the saying, fake it ‘til you make it, then you’ll admire the novel’s protagonist, Lily Thane. The former child star comes from an acting heritage; her family is well known in the industry and though her stardust is fading – if anything, she’s struggling in finding work – she’s given an opportunity too good to resist. It is simple: be the appropriate beautiful red carpet companion for her one-time stage school friend, Adam Harker. He needs a friend and she needs the exposure – simple, right? But once she agrees – and the celebrity world once again admits her – Adam shows off his darker side. He’s got demons and they’re slowly but effectively taking over his personality. The toxic fauxmance isn’t suiting either participant. But a few months later, Adam is dead and Lily is the only person to care enough about him to discover what happened. Though it’s possible you’ll see where it’s going, you can’t help but be captivated by the glamour and grit of celebrity life.

I really didn't like this book. I really wanted to like it as I liked the blurb and the first look, but once I started reading the actual book I found it so hard to like. I didn't like the characters ( I don't think any of them were likeable or interesting), the way the story was written, certain jokes/remarks made, and the way the plot went.
The main plot point of Adam dying (which was the point that originally peaked my interest) didn't happen until at least halfway through. At this point, I already didn't like any of the characters and I honestly didn't really care about what was going to happen. I think if the death happened earlier, I would have been more invested in the plot. I understand you need to build the characters up and tease plot lines but I felt it dragged way too much.
I really did struggle to finish this book and towards the end I ended up skipping pages and skimming parts.

This is a well-paced, charming thriller that drew me in and kept me fascinated through the plot twists and turns to the end. Glamorous actors, seedy sidekicks and genuinely hurt and damaged people come together to give us a glimpse of what really happens behind the VIP curtain, where all isn't as it seems and a happy ending is guaranteed for no-one.

Stage school attendees reconnect at different times in their careers and form an alliance. Mutually benefit on paper but toxic in reality. Messy breakup followed by a new romance with a close friend.
Closure is required but does not happen due to sudden death. Is it overdose or something else.
I enjoyed this book and found the characters fascinating and self absorbed.

The mark of an excellent author is writing a book that keeps you hooked even if you hate the characters.
This happended with this well written and gripping whodunit that I enjoyed.
It was an excellent reading experience, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Initially, I struggled with the book because I found so many of the characters unlikeable but it's a skilful author who can make you care about such people. There were plenty of twists and turns in the book and I really couldn't see how it was going to end. A good read.

Lily was a child star, making her name as ‘Little Lucie’ in a saccharine Christmas film, but her career has never really taken off since. In contrast, Adam, once a fellow student at drama school, is on the brink of breaking into the A list. When Adam suggests that Lily pretend to be his girlfriend so he can hide his homosexuality* and she can raise her profile, Lily is happy to agree. But things become toxic between them as Lily realises the extent of Adam’s drug habit, and becomes worried he’ll drag her down with him.

This book has the irritating thriller habit of telling you there’s something big coming up right at the beginning, not having the confidence to believe that the reader will stick with the story otherwise. In Let’s Pretend, we find out in the first few chapters that Lily will find Adam dead in a swimming pool. This, for me, detracted from the plotline in this novel that I really cared about, which was Lily’s devious machinations as she tries to make her name as an actor. Once ‘Little Lucie Turns Detective’ and starts trying to figure out what happened to Adam, this book becomes indistinguishable from plenty of other thrillers. I also tired of how everybody in this novel, including Lily herself, is shallow, catty and unhappy. I love ambitious female characters but this was yet another dire warning about the dangers of ambition - what I'm starting to think of as the Ambitious Women Meet Bad Ends trope - which was a shame.

*(As an aside – I remember reading this secret sexuality plotline for a Hollywood A-lister back in Lindsay Kelk’s I Heart Hollywood in 2010. It’s depressing that, more than ten years later, it’s still realistic.)

This fauxmance thriller following Lily as the beard for Adam, both struggling actors on the rise, did not go where I was expecting, but was nonetheless incredibly satisfying. I was gripped by the various twists and turns, as all the characters are really well rounded and it’s a very engaging read, playing on the fascination with celebrity and dominance of social media in today’s society. Will be delving into anything else by Laura Vaughan!

The characters are so well drawn and the plot so well paced, I couldn’t put it down. Definitely worth a read! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

All Varieties Of Toxic…
Glitzy, glamorous facades hide a multitude of sins in this thought provoking, entertaining mystery. The plot plays host to a multitude of egocentric, narcissistic characters but they are all credible, well depicted and well drawn. They are all toxic, in a variety of ways and they all have secrets to hide. A compelling tale and an immersive read.

This story is a murder mystery where all the characters are involved in film or theatre. They are mostly narcissistic and unpleasant, but the book is still very readable.. Lily works as a "girlfriend" for Adam, and they have a volatile relationship. Adam dies of a drug overdose at a party, but Lily, with her knowledge of Adam, cannot believe this and begins an amateur murder investigation.

The writing style is upbeat, and there is quite a lot of humour in the toxic way that the characters interact. However, the story was a lot deeper than the tone suggests, and shows how the shiny facade can cover a lot of difficult experience and emotions.

A really interesting and Intellegent story. I loved the characters and the excitement of the story. Couldn't read it fast enough xc

Found this difficult as the characters are all unlikeable but not enough depth to overcome that. I think it just isn't me, that brittle, kick everyone down, keep smiling sort of setting and I was a bit relieved to finish it. I think it was good, just not for me.

This is the one make-believe relationship that can lead a person to their death… The fake affair between two old acting school friends takes a sinister turn when the man drowns under suspicious circumstances. Loved the plot and the main female character!

This was such a gripping read, I couldn't put it down. It was compelling, engaging and unpredictable. My heart was in my mouth a lot whilst reading it. It was well written with really good character development and a great storyline. Laura Vaughan is definitely an author to watch.

An entertaining read with an unexpected ending. A washed out former child star becomes the beard of a old acquaintance on his rise to the A list. Who is the most self involved is not always who you think and the roles being reversed at times gives the story an interesting cadence. The little glimpses into what fame can entail and the fragility of appareances keep you wanting a bit more and almost like a voyeur you cannot look away. All in all, a good read.

Having greatly enjoyed Laura Vaughan’s previous novel, The Favour, I was delighted to come across Let’s Pretend, set in the dazzling but often toxic world of child acting. Lily Thane is a former child performer whose acting career is wilting. This is why she agrees on a bizarre arrangement with former school friend Adam Harker, who is later found floating in a swimming pool, dead from a drug overdose. The extraordinary party Adam attended before his death forms the backdrop for much of this novel and is redolent of Great Gatsby’s lavish parties, although this party has much less charm and its attendees are a lot less likeable. That Vaughan manages to keep the reader engaged throughout a whole novel peopled with narcissistic, unsympathetic characters pays tribute to her enormous capacities as a writer. I would highly recommend Let’s Pretend – and am already on the lookout for whatever Vaughan may write next. Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the free ARC provided in return for my honest and unbiased review.

Nicely paced, well written, atmospheric and unpredictable - I enjoyed this a lot.

My thanks to Atlantic Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

A somewhat intriguing read about a former child actress, now a woman in her thirties struggling to find a role getting by on small bits. That best friend, that aunt/sister. She gets attention from a hot actor called Adam.
Sounds too good to be true. Because it is. Adam is looking to come back but he has a secret. He’s gay and needs to throw people of his scent. So he propose a fake relationship...
Let me make something clear. This novel is being billed as a thriller/mystery. It’s not! The mystery element doesn’t come in until the second half, so go in with the correct expectations. The drama comes in with our protagonist’s fake-up relationship being jeopardised due to bitchy nature of her friends and her struggling to keep hold of Adam, the only person who can resurrect her career. The characters are all narcissistic. They also felt a lot younger than their age. I did feel like I was reading a YA read. Honestly I was going to DNF, but persevered. It was an okay. Nothing great though. A bit slow at times but the dialogues were easy to zoom through and it gave me Gossip Girl/Beverly Hill vibes.

I requested this book because I adore thrillers/suspense stories set on movie sets, like All About Eve, Perfect Blue (an absolute masterpiece), Mulholland Drive and I Know Who You are by Alice Feeney. However, this felt like watching a terrible reality show.
I thought this was a suspense read, but the murder doesn’t take place until halfway through the novel. The characters are unlikeable, which is fine, but there’s no voice; nothing compelling. No insightful observations. It felt like reading a diary of a self-indulgent 30-something year old. Ultimately I just wasn’t gripped.