Review ~ Stars in Their Eyes (Wrapped Up in Love #2) by Lauren Blakely

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: October 9th 2014

Description:
A sexy and swoony new adult romance...

Celebrity photographer and college senior Jess Leighton desperately needs to crash the wedding of the year. Snapping just one pic of the A-list Hollywood couple tying the knot will pay her way through grad school. But with security tighter than the bride-to-be's corset, she'll need more than her camera and smarts, she'll need help from her biggest rival--hot, British, motorcycle-riding William Harrigan, whose sexy accent can melt the panties off any woman. He’s the last person Jess should trust, but he's her only ticket in.

William Harrigan wants one thing – to stay in L.A. past college graduation. With a student visa set to expire, the clock is ticking. When he lands a gig that pairs him with the beautiful blond spitfire Jess, he’s scored his best shot at living out the American dream. Winning her trust would be a whole lot easier, however, if he didn’t have ulterior motives...

But there’s no faking the intense attraction between them. Try as they might to resist each other, soon sparks are flying, as they devise a plan to sneak into the ceremony. But when Jess' new celebrity client raises the stakes, she starts to smell blackmail, and soon she and Will are chasing down cheating directors, staking out clandestine trysts, and making fake IDs, all while sneaking scene-stealing kisses and hot nights together.

The audience loves a happy ending, but in a town where everyone's acting and no one's playing by the rules, can Jess and William find their own ever after in time?

My Opinion

First of all, I got both the novella (book 1) and Stars in Their Eyes as a combined book from NetGalley. I reviewed A Starstruck Kiss yesterday so I'm not going to go over that again, but having read them back to back, for me it doesn't make sense to split them up. I know the author is giving the novella away for free, but for me there wasn't a definite break and these two books read perfectly as one novel.

Saying that, I'm glad the novella was included because you'll probably be lost without reading it first. It sets everything up well and Stars in Their Eyes is where all of the real drama kicks off. I didn't think I was going to enjoy the book by what I read in the novella as the pace was a bit slow, and I wasn't really keen on the celebrity side of things (I have issues with celebrities), but I was glad to find that the book picks up and the story becomes much more interesting, with more twists, and more romance.

I liked the characters and the chemistry between Jess and William. I thought it built well and the author leaves you waiting for them to always take the next step for a cruel amount of time. It built the the tension between the two of them and in the end you're just wanting the best for them. Similarly, they both had their own stories and struggles. There were a lot of plot lines over the two books, but most centred on the fact Jess needed money and William needed a visa. This led them into all of the situations they find themselves in.

Although I found some of the twists predictable, there were a few to do with the Hollywood celebs that I didn't see coming. There were many layers to what was going on and things weren't always as they appeared. I was surprised by how much was fake and how much was real in the story, even when I could see the direction the plot was heading.

My only big criticism for this book, is that I felt the ending was all too easy and rushed. You get this brilliant week-long story that details day-to-day living and then, at the end, you're suddenly thrown three months and six months into the future where everything has fallen into the characters laps. Easy are endings are not something I like, but I'm still glad the book finishes on a good note.

Overall, Stars in Their Eyes is an enjoyable read. I would advise reading the novella first so you know what's what, but other than that I enjoy this author's work.

3.5