I Kissed a Girl by Jennet AlexanderMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Finished on June 15, 2021
Favorite Scene/Quote: "Maybe, yeah, sure. Patriarchy bad. But how many serial killers are woke enough to care?"
3.5/5 rounded down
I have varied feelings about this book. The premise was really interesting to me, I have a soft spot for Hollywood romances, but I’m not sure how I feel about it. There were parts of the book that really worked for me, but other parts that just didn’t sit right.
Lilah is a b-movie horror actor who really wants to be taken seriously as an actress. She’s got a job working as the Final Girl in a horror b-movie. Noa was able to get a job as a special effect artist on the show and she’s looking forward to creating bruises and scars and working on set. This is different than working on a friend’s home movie and this time she’s working with Lilah, who she’s obsessed with for years. The two are forced to spend an extended amount of time in close quarters and they wind up bonding with one another.
I really liked Lilah, but I didn’t really enjoy Noa for the most part. Neither character is horrible or anything, I just really didn’t see the appeal for a character like Noa. Lilah is unbelievably sweet and vulnerable, and I want to know more about her past because it is clear that it left her with some emotional/mental scars. I just adored her and wanted to know more about her constantly, especially when more things kept getting revealed. Noa didn’t do that for me. She was judgmental at times, but even when she wasn’t doing anything wrong, I just didn’t like her. The only thing I personally liked about her, was her passion for her work.
The fight part was messy, but not in a bad way. They were both in the wrong for their actions and I really enjoyed that Noa got called out in that fight. She’s very judgy about things that, as she says, she thinks is cringy. She gave off “not like other girl” vibes during a few different parts of the book so I was very happy that someone actually called her out for that behavior. This was probably one of my favorite parts of the book because I genuinely enjoyed it. No one was painted in a perfect light, and it was likely one of the more realistic parts of the book.
I’m not sure how I feel about the stalker plotline that was added to the book. It was a bit obvious, but not blindingly so. My biggest issue is that it felt a bit forced, I guess. I feel like it could have been more than it was. The best part of it though was that it managed to make everyone seem a bit suspicious. So, I’m conflicted. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t amazing either.
I know I’ve mentioned a few things that I didn’t enjoy about this book, but there were parts that I really enjoyed and would have loved to be explored more. I quite liked how the author wrote about being on the set and how their days would go. It was nice and descriptive without going overboard. I really love Noa and Lilah’s friends and I want more about them. I specifically want more about Lilah’s friends because I feel like they are a supportive yet slightly chaotic group.
This book is good and I enjoyed most of it, but Noa took a bit away from the experience. I don’t regret reading this book and I’ll likely reread it at some point. It’s about 300 or so pages and I enjoyed about 200-250 pages of that. I’d recommend it if you’re just looking for a queer Hollywood-style read.
I received an eARC of this book from Netgalley and the Publisher, Sourcebooks Casablanca in exchange for a fair and honest review. I am very thankful that I was able to get this book early.
3.5/5 rounded down
I have varied feelings about this book. The premise was really interesting to me, I have a soft spot for Hollywood romances, but I’m not sure how I feel about it. There were parts of the book that really worked for me, but other parts that just didn’t sit right.
Lilah is a b-movie horror actor who really wants to be taken seriously as an actress. She’s got a job working as the Final Girl in a horror b-movie. Noa was able to get a job as a special effect artist on the show and she’s looking forward to creating bruises and scars and working on set. This is different than working on a friend’s home movie and this time she’s working with Lilah, who she’s obsessed with for years. The two are forced to spend an extended amount of time in close quarters and they wind up bonding with one another.
I really liked Lilah, but I didn’t really enjoy Noa for the most part. Neither character is horrible or anything, I just really didn’t see the appeal for a character like Noa. Lilah is unbelievably sweet and vulnerable, and I want to know more about her past because it is clear that it left her with some emotional/mental scars. I just adored her and wanted to know more about her constantly, especially when more things kept getting revealed. Noa didn’t do that for me. She was judgmental at times, but even when she wasn’t doing anything wrong, I just didn’t like her. The only thing I personally liked about her, was her passion for her work.
The fight part was messy, but not in a bad way. They were both in the wrong for their actions and I really enjoyed that Noa got called out in that fight. She’s very judgy about things that, as she says, she thinks is cringy. She gave off “not like other girl” vibes during a few different parts of the book so I was very happy that someone actually called her out for that behavior. This was probably one of my favorite parts of the book because I genuinely enjoyed it. No one was painted in a perfect light, and it was likely one of the more realistic parts of the book.
I’m not sure how I feel about the stalker plotline that was added to the book. It was a bit obvious, but not blindingly so. My biggest issue is that it felt a bit forced, I guess. I feel like it could have been more than it was. The best part of it though was that it managed to make everyone seem a bit suspicious. So, I’m conflicted. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t amazing either.
I know I’ve mentioned a few things that I didn’t enjoy about this book, but there were parts that I really enjoyed and would have loved to be explored more. I quite liked how the author wrote about being on the set and how their days would go. It was nice and descriptive without going overboard. I really love Noa and Lilah’s friends and I want more about them. I specifically want more about Lilah’s friends because I feel like they are a supportive yet slightly chaotic group.
This book is good and I enjoyed most of it, but Noa took a bit away from the experience. I don’t regret reading this book and I’ll likely reread it at some point. It’s about 300 or so pages and I enjoyed about 200-250 pages of that. I’d recommend it if you’re just looking for a queer Hollywood-style read.
I received an eARC of this book from Netgalley and the Publisher, Sourcebooks Casablanca in exchange for a fair and honest review. I am very thankful that I was able to get this book early.
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