This book is a delightfully fun read. It is the story of Clara who through a complicated set of circumstances finds herself the pretend girlfriend of movie star, Caspian Tiddleswich. That may not be dreamy as it might seem since Caspian is a rude and demanding jerk, but than Clara begins to see another side of him and starts finding herself falling hopelessly in love for real. Clara is a spunky likeable heroine, and Caspian despite his rigidly tough exterior has a marshmallow center that kind of befits his doofy name. He and Clara make an adorable couple. The other characters in the story right down to the smallest most minor characters are equally as well drawn and for the most part eminently amusing. If you want a book that will make you laugh, but also touch your heart this book is a good choice.

Crashing the A-List by Summer Heacock is a super fun story. Very well written and unique. The characters are and story are great!

Clara Montgomery is out of work, sleeping on her brother’s couch and cleaning out storage units to get some extra money. While cleaning a storage unit with the help of her best friend CiCi she comes across some damaging information on a hot British actor Caspian Tiddleswich. Clara and Cici are trying to decide what to do with this information as the tabloids would love it, and after a night of wine and laughter, the girls decide to leave It alone. The next evening guess who shows up at Clara’s? Caspian himself! And he is there to make her pay for a text she doesn’t remember sending. This is where the fun begins as Clara now has to pose as Caspian’s girlfriend for the press as blackmail to what he “thinks” she did to him. Let the games begin!!

I loved this novel by Summer Heacock. The characters were brilliantly written. The sense of humor of both Clara and Caspian have you giggling with each page turn. I also adored the friendship between Clara and CiCi, there is nothing like having a best friend who will do anything for you and always has your back. Summer Heacock is now on my list of favorite authors!! Thank you so much to Harlequin and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the book to review. It was fabulous!

Title: Crashing the A-List
Author: Summer Heacock
Genre: Women’s fiction/romance
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

For an out-of-work editor, finding a new job isn’t easy. So, Clara sleeps on her brother’s couch while she collects unemployment and job-hunts. She signs on for a stint of cleaning out abandoned storage buildings, but she’s not prepared for the trash, the unidentified objects—are those eyeballs?—or the piles of paper. Then she finds the records of an old escort service—complete with the resume of Caspian Tiddleswich, a super-famous British actor.

Clara’s best friend thinks she should sell her find to the tabloids, but Clara can’t imagine doing that. Instead, she tracks down Caspian’s number and leaves a message assuring him his secret is safe. At least, that’s what she thinks she says. But Caspian shows up at her door, accusing her of blackmail—and the paparazzi gets a picture of their confrontation, and suddenly the two of them are news.

Caspian’s PR team jumps on the opportunity—and Caspian isn’t averse to a little blackmail himself, so Clara finds herself posing as his girlfriend to atone for her sins. But as she gets to know Caspian, she realizes there’s far more to the superstar than meets the eye, and their game of pretend becomes something else.

I read this straight through while in the car on a road trip, and I’m pretty sure my brother thought I’d lost my mind because of all the snickering and outright laughter. There’s a lot of profanity, but this story is hysterical! And, let’s face it, who hasn’t daydreamed about some dreamy actor? Clara was such a relatable character, and her best friend is awesome, too. And Caspian—well, there’s a lot of character growth there. You should definitely read this!

Summer Heacock is a writer, a mom, and a wife. Crashing the A-List is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of MIRA via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)

The story of Clara and Caspian.

An entertaining and fairly fast paced read, full of great characters (I'm hoping her best friend CiCi gets her own book next!)

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for a voluntary and honest review.

I gladly bestow 4 laugh out loud stars! Crashing the A-List is a hilarious drama that start with a misunderstanding, and it all just snowballs from there. Most of the time you'll want to punch Caspian in his entitled face, but once you think about things from his POV, you'll be able to reign it in. SO much comedy in this book, that I wouldn't recommend drinking any fluids while reading, or it might come out your nose. I enjoyed seeing the view of things from a celebrities POV and will definitely stick with my mediocre life of reading and animals, lol. I highly recommend this one, especially if you need a good pick-me-up!

I've been reading a lot of rom-com's lately and was excited to get my hands on Crashing the A-List.

I mean look at that cute cover!!

Poor Clara.. what a start for her in the beginning of the book. She lost her publishing job and is living with her younger brother cleaning out storage units to make some money. Talk about a downer!

So, I didn't like the male character Caspian at all. He was really a big jerk to be. honest. So... couldn't find myself rooting for the love/romance in this one at all. I found myself having a hard time connecting to Clara as well because I was frustrated with her decisions about Caspian.

But, I do have to say I loved Clara's best friend Cici! She was the best!

I just had a hard time connecting with this romance and was more frustrated than anything. It fell a bit flat for me as well.

3 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin/Mira for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Publication date: 7/9/19
Published to GR: 7/7/19

This book delivered in a truly hate to friends and eventual lovers trope. The lovers part didn't happen until 90% of the book. .

I was hoping for a fun rom com where the main character brings up something from the past in the hero's life and they connect. We did get drama but not a whole lot of romance. I am glad that Clara stood up to Caspian after he was so mean.

Overall this was good a dramatic book.

A cute funny RomCom!

Clara was a book editor until she got laid off and now she's sleeping on her brother's couch. To help get back on her feet, Clara takes a job cleaning out abandoned storage units and in one unit she finds all the files for an old escort service. Then on a drunken night, she phones one of escorts trying to tell him she has the file. So a few days later when Caspian (who now is a A-list actor) shows up at her apartment and states that he will call the police on her for trying to blackmail him, but he will let her go if she agrees to be is girlfriend till he goes back to London.

This book made me laugh out loud at the stupid situations Clara and her BFF get into. At first I didn't like Cas ... then I did ... then I didn't ... and so on! But Clara was a character I found endearing right from the start. The only thing that made me mad was when Clara kept forgiving Cas ... I don't know if I could have done that after the really crappy way he treated her. But isn't that the sign of a good book when it can make you mad and laugh in the same chapter?

I received an early copy courtesy of Harlequin-Mira through NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

This is a classic hate to love story and I definitely had fun with it.

Our main character Clara is relatable and I loved her sassy friend CiCi. Their friendship really shines throughout the story. The love interest is a Hollywood actor, so if you are not into that type of thing, that might be a problem. I did not mind that. Though he was not my favourite love interest in the world, there definitely was chemistry and that is what counts in novels like these.

The plot was kind of predictable, but I do not think I enjoyed it any less for that. I enjoyed the writing and the dialogue felt pretty natural. It never got too soppy. The ending could have been a bit tighter; there was a bit of a monologue that felt a bit like overkill, but it could not ruin the novel for me.

The perfectly good book to snuggle up with to escape the world. If the synopsis sounds up your street I would definitely recommend it.

A really fun summer read. Carla is a down on her luck New Yorker who just happens to meet up with a hot actor. The hot actor, Caspian, has his own issues to figure out and luckily Carla is just the no nonsense woman to set him straight. Carla’s mom and friend CiCi deserve their own book. Very enjoyable.

I wasn't sure that I was going to like this story at first, but I did. There was some humor woven into the story that made it delightful. I loved the relationship between Clara and Cici. I didn't think much of Caspian at first. He came off as a big jerk. Clara is sleeping on her little brother's couch and cleaning out storage lockers. She gets into some really icky stuff in there. When she comes across some old papers she recognizes the picture of a famous actor. While drunk, she leaves him a message that brings him running. He is afraid that she is going to tell the world his shameful past. Clara and Cici have no intention of releasing the informaiton, but Caspian is sure that is their intention. He makes Clara help him out by being his date to several functions. She does it begrudgingly and they try to make life miserable for each other in the process. Once they realize that the other isn't so bad after all, things change.

I am still suffering from whiplash from reading Crashing the A-List. If I had to compare the experience of reading this book, I’d say it’s like following six seasons of Vampire Diaries, being emotionally torn apart by the push and pull of a certain couple – sans the supernatural element but all the more gushing and ripping out your hair at the characters’ actions. And I would gladly suffer through that hell over and over again if it means having as much fun as I did reading Crashing the A-List.
Crashing the A-List follows Clara who, after four months of unemployment resorts to sleeping on her brother’s couch until she can find another position in publishing. To earn some money in the meantime, she accepts a job offer to clean out abandoned storage units, spending her days sorting through other people’s memorabilia, helped emotionally and actively by her best friend CiCi.
When Clara stumbles on a dark secret of an actor both she and Cici adore hidden in a box one day, they joke about making some money with that information. Alas, not able to do something so morally abhorrent, they laugh about it and Clara tries to put it out of her mind. However, after an attempted move of altruism is construed as a sinister act, none other than the actor himself, Caspian Tiddleswich, shows up at Clara’s front door, demanding repentance. And how does he plan to make her atone for her sins? By pretending to date him to help him promote his latest movie, all while exchanging barbed puns behind closed doors…until a fake romance for the cameras might turn into something more…
Hate-to-love romance? Fake dating? Sign.Me.Up.
This book had me laughing out loud quite a lot of times. The dialogue between the characters is hilarious, especially when Caspian meets Clara’s mother. There were genuinely heartwarming moments as well (we all need a best friend like CiCi) and the pacing of the novel was incredibly engaging. The wit and humor of the characters bounced naturally off each other and you could feel the chemistry between Caspian and Cici, especially in the hate-part of their hate-to-love romance.
The second half of the book gets a bit more frustrating. We essentially have the same conflict again – Caspian not believing Clara that she has nothing to do with information being leaked – which added a great ton of vulnerability to the pages and I would lie if I said I didn’t shed a tear or two – but it was also frustrating because Caspian should have known better at that point. He essentially resorted to his mean persona instead of letting Clara explain. The drama was real.
It frustrated me so much I was trying not to pull my hair out – see the first paragraph of this review – but it was also amazing?! Often in romance novels, we get bland characters that don’t have a lot of personality where the focus is too much on the romance and not enough on the individual characters and their conflicted feelings outside of that romantic plot.. Oh, woe is me because this guy likes me and I like him but *insert excuse here* is keeping us apart. Hard to stay engaged in that been there, done that character arc.
Thankfully, this was not the case with Clara nor Caspian. Clara is struggling, yes, but she never compromises her integrity. I raged with her when Caspian wouldn’t believe her, cried with her when she was feeling overwhelmed by the paparazzi treating her like an animal at the zoo and threw my fist in the air Nelson-style when something finally went right in her career. Clara is dealing with Caspian, yes, but she is also an editor passionate about finding a way back to her career, a good friend and sibling, and kind to the people around her.
And Caspian Tiddleswich. Boy oh boy. There were so many plot twists concerning him - I basically liked him half of the time and wanted to chuck him out of a window the other half. Which is how Clara probably felt, so, I guess that’s fine. Caspian is a conundrum within a conundrum. An actor who has a real hard time taking off his mask. But somehow, that made him all the more intriguing. Without spoiling too much, there are some moments where I good and well wanted to lock him up for what he did and I just want to thank the author for how she handled Clara’s reaction to these moments. Sometimes, there’s a thin line between intimidating and terrifying, a misunderstanding and verbal abuse and I love how this was clearly pointed out in this novel and dealt with instead of pushing it under the rug, and resolved without resorting to clichés.
Admittedly, Crashing the A-List is not without its flaws. The plot meandered a bit at the beginning and the repetitiveness of the first few chapters made it drag a bit. The secondary characters could have done with a bit more development. CiCi, best friend extraordinaire, was so quirky and interesting that I would have loved to learn a bit more about her. The same can be said for Clara‘s brother Tom whose only spoken words are in concern for his sister, which is nice, but there was room to make him a bit more fleshed-out. But these are minor points that did not affect my overall enjoyment of this very summery, emotional and exciting read that I hope you’ll give a chance!

This book is so much fun. It's one of those books that is 100% unrealistic, but you love every minute of it anyway. This is the story of a girl who accidentally blackmails a former prostitute, current movie star. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys salacious, gossipy romance. Heacock wrote a fun novel full of quick wit and desperation. Because how else do you get yourself into these situations if not desperation?

Crashing the A-List by Summer Heacock

Enemies to maybe friends or more in this often humorous and clean romcom.
Clara is working temporarily to clear out some storage units while looking for a job. Ethics override the chance for some quick money but Clara’s actions are suspect by Caspian. He doesn’t believe her claims of innocence.

I really liked that as Clara was interviewing, she knows the insider industry details. That makes her quite professional and prepared.
I think the hero was too quick to judge and lack of trust really hurt the story and relationship. But it’s a romance so a grand gesture makes it a happy ending.

50% humorous with serious overtones.

Minor excerpt that had me amused:
Clara and her BFF are stressed about situation.
“We stare desperately at each other for a moment and then silently start eating fries again. She’s right. They are oddly helpful.”
Excerpt from Crashing the A-List by Summer Heacock

I received a copy of this from NetGalley.

Publisher’s description: After four months of unemployment, former book editor Clara Montgomery is officially stuck—stuck sleeping on her little brother’s ugly couch in Queens, stuck scrolling through job listings in search of a new editorial position…and just desperate enough to take on a temporary gig clearing out abandoned storage units. If nothing else, she’s determined to keep her rapidly dwindling savings account intact.

Unfortunately, she is in no way prepared for stumbling upon dead snakes or dealing with glass jars that she’s convinced are full of pickled eyeballs. And why does everything seem to smell like beets?

Then Clara comes across a unit that was once owned by an escort service and finds the brothel “résumé” of a younger Caspian Tiddleswich, an astonishingly famous British actor. She has no intention of cashing in on her discovery, but her awkward attempts to reassure Caspian that his secret is safe go awry. Now Caspian is convinced that Clara is a blackmailer, the tabloids have her pegged as Caspian’s newest girlfriend…and Clara begins to find the A-lister’s charms more irresistible than she expected.

**********

If you are looking for a fun summer romance, Summer Heacock’s “Crashing the A-List” is the book to pick up. Fast-paced and funny, this book reminds me a lot of “Notting Hill” in reverse. Instead of an American actress who meets a British bookstore owner/non-celebrity in London, you have a British actor who meets and unemployed American book editor/non-celebrity in New York.

Clara is a kind-hearted but no-nonsense woman, and I love her relationship with her best friend Cici. Their conversations are real and funny and ridiculous just like they should be between friends. Caspian is also kind-hearted but becomes “Evil Cas” as Clara describes him when he is on the verge of losing the privacy he so strictly guards.

I love Clara and Cas together, and I enjoyed the fact that their relationship wasn’t easy. It was complicated, and Clara wasn’t the doormat we see so many times in romance novels. She stood her ground with Cas even when she was wallowing in private. I did think Cas was a bit too vicious, but I am also not a celebrity with paparazzi chasing me at every turn, so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.

I enjoyed the way their story unfolded. This was a great read that I could totally see being made into a rom-com for screen.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin-MIRA for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Harlequin and Netgalley for a copy of Crashing the A-List by Summer Heacock for review. Available July 9!

Crashing the A-List is a fun romance. I loved imagining random ways a celebrity might find me to date when I was single, and I can’t say I ever imagined this one! An interesting storyline with just a hint of celeb life. My favourite part had to be the friendship between Clara and CiCi. I really enjoyed all the scenes that they were in together. I also had fun guessing which celebrity modeled Caspian after, I have a very solid guess and if I’m right, she is dead on what my impression of him is too!

Crashing the A-List is a fun summer read, perfect for vacations and the beach!

Drunk dialing is never a good idea but Clara's really blown it- or did she? Clara lost her job as a book editor through no fault of her own and now she's working for her brother's finance's uncle (got that?) cleaning out storage units. She finds info supporting the fact that big star Caspian worked as an escort (!) when he was 19. Unfortunately, her drunk dial (or is it unfortunate?) leads to a real mess (or is it?) when he arrives and insists she pretend to be his girlfriend on the red carpet and for social media. You'll watch these two move from enemies to lovers in classic style but this has the added wrinkle of fame. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A fun light read that will make you chuckle.

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. Crashing The A-List by Summer Heacock is the first book I’ve read by this author and it won’t be the last. I started reading this book around dinner time and kept reading until I’d finished it with total disregard for my long and busy day at work the next day. Clara Montgomery a book editor has lost her job when her publishing company is bought out by a giant of a company, her roommate kicked her out and she is now sleeping on her brother’s sofa and has taken on the task of cleaning out abandoned/repossessed storage units for her sister-in-law’s uncle who may or may not be connected. One of the storage units contains the paperwork from an escort service and it turns out one of the escorts is now an A-List British actor, Caspian Tiddleswich. The story is classic enemies to lovers/fake engagement as he thinks she’s going to blackmail him and she thinks he’s going to have her arrested and when a picture of them with him looking angry and her crying hits the tabloids his agents think a pretend relationship will calm the publicity waters. Fabulous banter, an awesome best friend and one of the best most heartfelt apologies make this such a fun book to read. I highly recommend reading this book. Sweet more than steamy. Publishing Date July 9, 2019 #NetGalley #SummerHeacock #CrashingTheAList #HarlequinMira #HarlequinPublishing

Crashing the A-List was pure escapism and the perfect summer read. The situation that Clara gets herself into (inadvertently blackmailing a famous actor and then fake dating him) was so clearly unrealistic and over the top that it just ended up working. Clara's snotty barbs to Caspian and her banter with her best friend were spot on!

The one area where I felt that this one didn't succeed as strongly as I was hoping for was the romance aspect. This was much more of a self-discovery story than I was expecting so the romance wasn't as strong as I had hoped for going in. The entire novel is told from the point of view of Clara, and in general, I find this less successful for a romance, since I always feel like half the story is left untold.

At the end of the day, Crashing the A-List was a funny book that entertained me, and at the end of the day, that's what I was looking for when picking this one up. The one-liners and the bizarre situations that Clara found herself in totally won me over.