Headliners is the fifth book in Lucy Parker’s London Celebrity series, and it is not an exaggeration to say that I have been a squatting like a goblin in the corner, waiting to pounce on this book. I LOVE Parker’s style, and it’s absolutely worth picking this book up for her snark and wit alone.

All the books in London Celebrity work as standalones, but for those who have been following the series, you’ll have met Sabrina and Nick in The Austen Playbook. Sabrina Carlton is Freddy’s sister, and Nicolas Davenport is Griff’s close friend. They’re both incredibly charismatic television hosts. With their own shows. In the same time slots. In the same network. As you would imagine, this was more conducive to feuding than friendship, all the more so when their network decided to reduce their evening news commentary programs down to one. But before the battle royale of sparkling teeth and camera charm can properly commence, Nick made a dastardly decision to break a generations long scandal involving Sabrina and Freddy’s family. The Carltons have long been theatre royalty, and the subsequent scandal would have been enough to knock her out of the running for sure…until Nick’s diatribe, detailing the 10 things he hates about the CEO of their network, was leaked online.

This doesn’t just result in them both being kicked off primetime, but with their executive head of programming cuffing them together in the morning program, the same program with tanked ratings that has been, as Nick describes, “Egregious rubbish for years.” They have from the start of December until Christmas to raise the ratings of the show. The show is theirs if they succeed, and if not, they watch someone whom they think is even more insufferable than they find each other walk off with the job instead. This insult is nothing to sniff at when the injury would be their careers left flapping in the wind. And because the universe sometimes likes to laughingly out itself as a sadist, Nick and Sabrina also have to contend with a clever saboteur trying to boot them off their show. Not only do they have less than a month to yank a flopping show over the finish line, and work out whodunnit, they’ll have to do it all without killing each other on live broadcast.

You can see why I turned into a goblin in the corner, and let me tell you, this story didn’t disappoint. For many of the same reasons their network thought sticking them together in a live broadcast program wasn’t just a good idea, but a goddamn money tree, I loved seeing them together. Individually, they each have their own brand of panache that gained them their own followings. Together they have enough chemistry to power a city. Under their years of professional rivalry and mutual verbal eviscerations, there’s also an underlying attraction that magnetize them towards one another. (Pretty literally. They had trouble keeping their hands off each other from the get go.)

Their chemistry was wafting around even in the previous book, and another major draw for me was how the dastardly thing Nick did is properly rat-bastard-y. I don’t know about you, but if I’m promised a redemption arc, I want a REDEMPTION arc. One where the character ACTUALLY fucks up. Not a miscommunication, with no Reasons, and definitely not, “It’s my fault, it’s my fault, it’s completely my fault~~~ (even though it really isn’t) but I’ll keep saying it so pointless misunderstandings continue. I’m so unworthy of the looooooove I need to be saaaaaaved.”

Ew.

Happily, we get to come along for the ride as Nick works through reconciling his actions and what his values really are. What Nick did made the road to reconciliation, let alone love, between him and Sabrina look more like a mountain than a hill to me. The interest I had was sustained and deepened as I got to know Sabrina and Nick.

Sabrina is a knitting glamour queen who, for all her temper, is a forgiving person. Once she works through her anger, she doesn’t bother with grudges. She makes a point of letting go, moving on, and being clear where she stands. No matter what you’ve done, she’ll still see the good in you, but respects herself enough to be selective about who to let back in. (To any peeps out there struggling with forgiveness, remember it often takes time and to be kind to yourself!) And Nick, for all the dastardliness of his dickery (no, I will not stop alliterating) is a genuinely kind person who cares deeply about his friends and family. If you’re someone he cares about, he’ll always speak up for you, lend you a dog for petting when you’re down, and will give you the support you need. His people care about him in return, enough to still keep him close while they tell him to his face he fucked up. When he ultimately apologizes, he does exactly that – no shifting blame, no groveling, no sly wording. He just says he’s sorry, and means it.

Too often, people act like apologizing to each other is the equivalent of thanking a fairy – putting yourself under the other’s thumb. Or they go too far the other way, and aren’t able to get over their own mistakes. Neither is healthy. The process of learning to forgive ourselves and others can be more fraught than how it happened for Sabrina and Nick, but they show that it can be done. Plus, I can’t imagine someone trying to manipulate Nick just because he admitted to being wrong. Please, he’d eat them for breakfast. And if someone tries to do the same to you, you can, too!

Redemption arc aside, Sabrina and Nick’s relationship was just so healthy. It progressed quickly, and when one needed to draw back a bit, they still made a point of maintaining a connection with the other. There were no jumping to conclusions or pointless, jealousy-fueled rampages. When one needed space, the other gave it while still being present and supportive. Neither let their egos mislead them. Even when Life intruded in the middle of a fight, they practiced the old “Don’t go to bed angry” adage – they were okay, and they’ll talk later. Seeing two confident people adulting in a healthy relationship is extremely catnippy for me!

Another thing I really enjoyed about the book was how family, loss, and grief were explored and layered together. Sabrina and Nick had both lost a parent at different points in their lives, Sabrina as a girl, and Nick as an adult. Nick’s was also close with his maternal grandparents, who have both passed on. The way the book explores how memories of loved ones shape their grief was beautiful, as was the way family ties can continue to cross over beyond death.

Hanging out with two witty, caring, and charismatic people on their various adventures is exactly as fun as it sounds, and overall, I only have two complaints.

First, I felt like I didn’t see enough of how Nick and Sabrina came to love working on the morning segment, which they both profess to in the last quarter of the book. Even though they were specific about the things they enjoy about it, I felt like I didn’t see enough of what drew them to the show to understand what they meant. It always felt like the show was more of a backdrop to everything else, even though it sounded like their relationship with the show was a love story in itself. Sabrina and Nick, the highly capable and ambitious duo. The morning show, the frumpy step down from primetime with shit ratings to boot. Collectively, they’re forced together by sheer circumstance. See where I’m going with this? They even talk about giving the set a makeover. It’s like a potential romance, but their feelings shifted too easily.

It just felt like I didn’t get to see enough of what made working on the morning show special to them, to the point that making it a success became a goal in its own right. It could be because I don’t watch English TV, but I didn’t understand what made them enjoy things like the morning show’s pacing vs the evening programs, or why the guests they had on the show would be notable to them, especially since the evening and morning shows had overlaps in the guest lists.

The mystery saboteur portion of the book was fun and seamlessly knitted into the story with its own satisfying resolution. It underscored the futility and dangers of trying to be ruthless in furthering one’s career, but it didn’t need to be there. I felt like maybe it took up space that could have otherwise been used to explore how Sabrina and Nick came to love the morning show.

The second bone I have to pick is how race and racism is basically left out of the story. It’s not made clear whether Nick is a Black or biracial person, or if he is part of a biracial family after his mom remarried. While I appreciate the lack of trite stereotypes and how skin tone wasn’t made any character’s defining trait, a person’s racial identity and how they navigate the ways they’re racialized by society and by their interpersonal relationships deeply impacts who they are. Whether Nick is biracial or not would be a core part of his identity, and whether his family is biracial or not would have an impact on their relationships and how they operate as a family.

For the same reasons, race not even coming up in conversations between Nick and Sabrina seems impossible to me. Honesty has been a key part of Nick and Sabrina’s relationship, even when they were rivals, and they don’t strike me as the sort of people who would pretend race is non-existent, especially with an intimate partner. (If there’s someone in your life that tells you they dOn’t SeE CoLOuR, they JuST sEE YOu – RUN. It means your relationship with them is contingent on a fundamental part of you being erased so they feel comfortable. Note: this is not what happens in Headliners at all, but it’s an important point for me.)

I liked learning that Nick’s maternal grandparents are from Guyana, and how this part of his heritage is underscored through food. The problem is it doesn’t go beyond that. In my experience of dating and being friends with White people, racial dynamics doesn’t stop at saying what my background is, or sharing food from my culture. It’s also explaining why certain things are important to me, understanding what’s important to them, realizing the many different ways we approach the world, and working through my frustration when I comprehend on more visceral levels the things I’ve been made to work for that White people just don’t have to think about. Dating a White person when you’re a person of colour has complexity, and it’s dishonest to show interracial dating without any of the messiness. That we don’t even know if Nick or his family is biracial means we can’t even guess what fundamental experiences he’s going into his own interracial relationship with.

Racism is alive and well in the UK (go go, Megxit Ranger!), and London is at once a city so vibrant because of its multiculturalism, yet also deeply steeped in racism. The book doesn’t really convey how diverse London is, and skips racism entirely. For there not to have been any instances of racism seen or acknowledged in a story that otherwise accurately reflects the world doesn’t feel honest to me. Not only is it statistically impossible, it’s especially jarring for me because it feels like I’m being asked to view the story through a ‘colour blind’ lens, which then comes off as erasure instead of fantasy.

Nick, being a celebrity in the entertainment/broadcasting business, would have a heightened experience of racism that comes with how exposed he is, on top of the systemic racism of his industry. While Nick’s struggles with racism do not need to be central to the story, I think they do need to be seen and acknowledged the way Sabrina’s experiences with sexism and misogyny are. We see Sabrina dealing with an odious guest who talks down to her, ogle her, and reduce all women’s financial abilities to alimony almost all in the same breath, while in her place of work, with her colleague standing right next to her. It wasn’t the only time something like this happens in the book, and we know from Nick she’s even been harassed while on the air. These moments belong in the book because they’re honest, and it would have been a disservice to both Sabrina and the readers to pretend misogyny doesn’t happen. I would have liked to see racism handled in a similar way in the story. It is an equal disservice to Nick and readers for the story to proceed as if racism doesn’t exist.

How race and racial identity are portrayed in stories is a sticking point for me, because I’m someone who doesn’t get to forget how I’m racialized. Like all people of colour, my racialization is not something I choose. It happens to me constantly, impacts my life immensely, and I have absolutely no control over it. Despite it being done to me, I’m also constantly being gaslit about whether it’s really happening or manipulated to believe it’s my fault how I’m othered and marginalized. When a story leaves out racism and race entirely, it clangs like a dissonant chord, because book-world is now reinforcing the gaslighting I experience in the real world, all the more so when major characters are people of colour.

Overall, this book is a B for me. I think other returning fans of the series will enjoy this book at least as much as they did the previous ones and newcomers will easily be roped into reading all the other ones. There were cameos of characters that I loved and loved to hate from earlier in the series, plus there was more Freddy and Griff, the couple from The Austen Playbook. I love all the characters in this series, and it’s always fun to see what they’re up to, doubly so to see how they interact with each other. It’s another solid installment in this feel-good series, but racial dynamics and identities needs to be portrayed honestly for me to be able to fully sink into a story.

I first jumped into Lucy Parker’s London Celebrities series earlier this year when reading The Austen Playbook, and fell in love with Sabrina then, as the sister of the heroine from that book. It was pretty obvious that she and rival TV presenter Nick were going to get their own story, but it was also obvious that Nick was going to need one hell of a redemption arc after doing something which was pretty much morally bankrupt near the end of The Austen Playbook, something which has had pretty far-reaching consequences for Sabrina.

If you’re jumping in cold to start the series here, I don’t think it’ll matter; the author does an excellent job of setting the scene and explaining just why Sabrina and Nick are at daggers drawn without infodumping. Or at least… I understand why Sabrina’s murderous. It’s never quite clear why Nick dislikes her so much, unless it’s professional jealousy, which seems somewhat unworthy of him. But then, that stunt he pulled which tipped things over into all-out war was pretty terrible. I started the book very much not on his side, but along with Sabrina, he slowly grew on me, and not in a like-mould kind of way. With the pair of them thrown into close proximity as they’re forced to work together on a new breakfast show, there are some absolutely hilarious scenes which play out - I laughed out loud any number of times - and they slowly start to come to like and respect each other, first on a professional level and then personally and romantically.

Nick does give an appropriate apology to everyone hurt by his past actions, and not only that, he shows by his actions that he’s changed. It’s Darcy-esque level self-realisation, remorse and redemption, beautifully written and very believable, and by the end of the book I was absolutely satisfied that Nick was indeed the kind of guy Sabrina needed and deserved.

This is such a fun read, but with some deep underlying truths about the decisions we make and the unseen, far-reaching consequences they can have when karma comes back around. Nick recognises and atones for his mistakes, but there’s a delicious comeuppance for at least one antagonist who doesn’t learn and change.

I don’t know much (anything, really) about the inner workings of a TV studio or the real lives of celebrities off-camera, but Lucy Parker writes it so believably, there’s certainly nothing here I read and thought ‘unlikely’. I’m hoping for a romance for Nick’s brother Iain (with adorable plot moppet daughter Pippi) next in the series! Five stars for a terrific read.

Lucy Parker truly knows how to deliver a fabulous enemies-to-lovers romance. I was eager to see how the redemption arc would work for nefarious Nick from The Austen Playbook which while not 100% necessary to read before Headliners WILL make you appreciate this story all the more.

The slow-burn and almost cozy romance (with steam, you just have to wait) combined with the details about Nick and Sabrina's new day time TV talk show gig was a perfect way to while away some reading time in bed. The dialogue sparkles and the little details like Nick falling in love with Sabrina AND knitting are lovely and perfect.

The "mystery" sub-plot about who is sabotaging the show was not important to me but may be attractive to readers who appreciate the small intrigue it offered. This book is also a "holiday" romance if you consider the time period leading up Christmas and some holiday partying and a hunt for a scary "tickle me Elmo meets a Furby" type gift for Nick's niece to be Christmassy.

I also adored that both Sabrina and Nick were clear on their desire to be child-free!

Love Lucy Parker! Her London series has been wonderful, really love this one in particular about two warring talk show hosts. Great read!!

Loved this story! Sabrina and Nick were such a great couple and I really enjoyed how all the other couples in the series were incorporated too!

4.25 Stars / 2 Steam Fans

I love good enemies to lovers' stories, and this story is everything I LOVE!! Sabrina and Nick are rival TV Show hosts thrown together to rebuild their images and careers. The banter and sexual chemistry is off the chart between Sabrina and Nick, and everyone sees it but them.

Video review available in Week 3 Jan 12 – 18 weekly book reviews.

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Buy This Book
In Headliners, the fifth book in her London Celebrity series, author Lucy Parker shifts her focus from London’s Theatreland to the world of television, to bring readers a wonderfully sharp, funny, sexy and grown-up romance between a pair of rival TV presenters who profess to hate each other’s guts, but who, of course, doth protest too much.

[Unlike the other books in this series, Headliners isn’t really a standalone and readers would benefit from reading The Austen Playbook first, as part of this story deals with the fallout of events which took place in that book. ]
The sparks flew fast and explosive between current affairs presenters Sabrina Carlton and Nick Davenport when we met them in The Austen Playbook. The pair have been trading barbs on screen for years, the jabs and jibes at each other made on their respective shows starting off relatively light-hearted and encouraged by their production teams as a way of generating publicity. As time has passed, those jabs and jibes have become sharper, and what had begun as contemptuous amusement has soured into actual antipathy. But things reached an all-time low after (at the end of the previous book) Nick broke the story of a decades-old Carlton family secret in the most damaging way possible, and even though the story and ensuing scandal had absolutely nothing to do with Sabrina, her popularity has taken a dive and her career is hanging in the balance.

So her gleeful reaction to the news of a massive faux-pas by Nick is hardly surprising. He’s been caught on video bad-mouthing the CEO of the network, who – naturally – is pissed as hell. Nick is promptly removed from the nightly show he’s hosted for the past four years, The Davenport Report, and he and Sabrina – whose contract is up for renewal – are given Hobson’s Choice; they’re out unless they agree to team up throughout December to present the network’s flagging breakfast show, Wake Me Up London. They have until Christmas Eve to improve the show’s embarrassingly shit ratings – and if they deliver (without actually killing each other in the process), then their immediate boss will agree to discuss the renewal of their contracts.

Of course, neither Nick nor Sabrina is thrilled with this idea, and not just because of their mutual dislike. The early-morning show is a bit of a joke, not at all the sort of serious-minded, current affairs material they’re used to dealing with. But both of them have worked incredibly hard and made a lot of personal sacrifices to get where they are in an exceptionally cut-throat business, and neither of them is willing to throw that away. They agree to the deal.

Thus, the scene is set for a sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant but always entertaining romance between two characters with scorching chemistry who simply light up the pages. Lucy Parker captures the frenetic behind the scenes energy of live television just as well as she depicted the backstage shenanigans of the theatre scene, and the scenarios she dreams up for the breakfast show – from blind biscuit decorating, to interviewing the creator of that year’s must-have (really bizarre) toy, to a Christmas-themed whodunit aboard the Murder Train – are all ridiculously plausible and entertaining as we watch Nick and Sabrina realising that the morning gig is not as easy to pull off as they’d thought. I liked the way they come to admit to themselves – and then to each other – that they were wrong in their assumptions about it. There’s also an intriguing sub-plot in which it becomes apparent that someone is trying to sabotage the show, and while this remains firmly in the background for most of the time, it’s another of the things which serves to bring Nick and Sabrina together, as they agree to work together to try to find out who it is.

Nick and Sabrina are multi-faceted, complex characters who feel like real people, and their romance is really well done, the move from animosity to partnership to love evolving naturally and organically. Ambitious and career-minded, they’re alike in many ways, and have a – grudging – respect for each other on a professional level, but when forced to work together, they also have to face up to the fact that there’s something else going on that they’ve been supressing for quite some time. Nick actually realises he’s in love fairly early on, and is completely honest with himself about it (which I loved), and although Sabrina takes a bit longer to connect the dots, once they’re together, they’re together; there’s no dithering or second-guessing, and the way they support each other through some difficult times is just lovely to see. One of the things I so love about Lucy Parker’s romances is that her protagonists behave like mature adults; they communicate well and are honest with themselves – and each other. Things could have veered into Big Mis territory a couple of times, but instead, Nick and Sabrina confront the problems head on, talk about them and resolve them together, showing clearly that trust and respect are the strongest of all foundations for love.

As always, the writing is top notch, the dialogue sparkles with wit and humour, the pop culture references are spot on and most of all, I love knowing that I can pick up a Lucy Parker book and feel instantly as though I’m in a place I recognise. It’s an idealised version of the London I know and love perhaps, but it’s completely recognisable and the author captures the British idiom incredibly well. I enjoyed catching up with other characters from the series – Richard and Lainey, Lily, Freddie and Griff (and Charlie – I hope he’s going to get his own book soon) – and I did adore watching the awful Sadie Frost get a well-deserved comeuppance! In fact, I have only one quibble with the story. It’s hard to say much without spoilers, but I did find it just a little bit difficult to believe that someone like Nick, with a background in hard-hitting investigative journalism, would make the transition to an essentially fluffy ‘lifestyle’ show so easily. (It would be like Jeremy Paxman presenting The One Show. Just – nope.) That said, the author does make it work, and once we know the backstory of his difficult relationship with a demanding father, it’s perhaps easier to understand. Like Nick, Sabrina has a difficult relationship with her father, feeling he’s dismissed her because of her career choices (among other things), so both characters have to confront those relationships in order to reach some important realisations and decisions about themselves and who they want to be.

If you’ve enjoyed the other books in the London Celebrities series, you won’t be surprised when I say that Headliners delivered everything I wanted and expected. It’s warm, funny and gorgeously romantic, the characters are rounded and engaging, the writing is terrific and everything about it works on every level. It’s the sort of book that wraps you up in a big cuddle and leaves you smiling.

I really, really enjoyed this. This is the fifth book in the London Celebrities series, and if you've read the previous installments, you've come across our leads before - Sabrina is the sister of Freddy, the heroine of the previous book, and we saw Sabrina's combative professional relationship with Nick come to a head at the end of The Austen Playbook.  Now while you don't have to have read the rest of the series to enjoy this, it will completely spoil the plot of The Austen Playbook if you haven't read that one first.  Lucy Parker seems to specialise in enemies-to-lovers tropes and this is another really good one.  What I particularly liked about it is that once they've got over their issues with each other, they move on as a team and the rest of the plot is not about people constantly trying to sow doubt in each of their minds about the other or silly misunderstandings between them that could be solved with a conversation.

As with the other books in the series, the dialogue is great - there is so much witty banter, and not just between the leads - the supporting characters get their share too. And I loved the situations that Nick and Sabrina found themselves in on the TV show - they're exactly the sort of thing a ratings-obsessed editor might come up with and they're funny but not in a cringey hide-behind-your-hands way.  And if you have read the rest of the series, there are some nice callbacks for you.  Obviously Freddy is in it, because she's Sabrina's sister, but there are also appearances from previous leads - and antagonists.  It was a real treat - I even made myself slow down and go away and read something else to make it last longer at one point because it was that good.  And don't be put off by the fact that this is set in the run up to Christmas and it's January, because it's not that Christmasy - the Christmas deadline is just that, it's not really the centre of the plot.

<blockquote>At their worst, the two of them could do a cracker impression of circling warplanes. She came in as the Spitfire, all weapons blazing; Nick was the Avro Lancaster, biding his time and then suddenly dropping the high-damage bombs.</blockquote>

Former late night news rivals Sabrina Carlton and Nick Davenport are both in the doghouse. Sabrina is still dealing with the scandal exposed (by Nick!) in The Austen Playbook. Nick was caught on camera saying unflattering things about the boss. Their last chance to stay on the air will be to take on hosting duties on the network’s morning program. Together.

Fans of Lucy Parker are going to enjoy the latest installment in her London Celebrities series. While each installment stands alone, this one in particular would benefit from being read after The Austen Playbook. We get a little bit of Freddie and Griff--not enough--and everyone’s favorite villain returns to wreak her special brand of havoc on our couple.

Once again, Parker does a wonderful job of building a relationship in a believable way. Sabrina and Nick both sting a bit with the new job: not only having to host it together, but also that it’s a morning show (aka, not the realm of serious journalism). But they pull themselves together like the professionals they’re supposed to be. The fact that things start going hilariously awry from the beginning helps cement their growing sensibility of being in it together. However, as the mishaps increase in frequency, the pair join forces to discover the culprit.

While Act Like It remains my favorite in this series, Sabrina and Nick might be a close second. I continue to appreciate Parker’s skill in drawing characters who feel like real people I would want to spend time with. This time, I feel like Parker put in quite a bit of extra effort in building the world around the characters as well. We see both Sabrina and Nick deal with baggage from their families and exes. Those struggles barely intrude on their own dynamic, but nonetheless, it's nice to see them as people with depth and not just through the lens of the incipient relationship.

I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley in order to facilitate this review. (And you'd better believe I pre-ordered it as soon as it came up on NetGalley!)

The moment Sabrina and Nick showed up in THE AUSTEN PLAYBOOK, I knew Lucy Parker was going to give them their own story.

Then Nick did a Terrible Thing near the end of TAP, and I wondered if my romance series instincts had failed me. It’s mighty hard to build a believable relationship on a foundation like THAT.

And yet, Parker does it! Her leads don’t immediately spring back from the Terrible Thing. They build trust through honest, adult communication that first centres on their new job as morning show hosts and slowly expands to include personal matters—including genuine apologies accompanied by explanations that aren’t excuses. It’s beautifully done. Before I knew it, I was rooting hard for them.

Highly recommended, but be aware it thoroughly spoils a major plot point from THE AUSTEN PLAYBOOK.

I love Lucy Parker. I have at the very least enjoyed every one of her books because her writing is so smooth and (feels) effortless. But this book just about took over my life as I immersed myself in her words. The hints in The Austen Playbook about these two - the whole rivals, enemies vibe - had me excited for the book, but I had no idea just how perfect it would be. It hit all my top notes, had the writing that makes life around you disappear, and I simply could not put it down. Until I realized I was getting close to the end, and then I would set it down periodically because I never wanted it to end. It made me wish Lucy was a new-to-me author, and I could indulge in a binge. Because I know whatever I read next will pale in comparison.

Enemies-to-lovers who are forced to work together to salvage a morning show that's been receiving low ratings - sure, this will be no problem for Sabrina and Nick. They're professional, right? They know a whole country is watching so they'll be on their best behaviour, right? Well ...


It's a tall order to ask especially of Sabrina who's always had a competitive and antagonistic relationship with Nick but especially after he revealed her family's darkest secret to the public. It was a scandal of epic proportions that she'd only just learned about herself and barely had time to digest when Nick pulled that trick and upended her world and that of her sister's, famed stage actress, Freddy Carlton whom we met in book 4. When the dust settled, Sabrina's integrity as a journalist was called into question. That's not easily forgiveable. Nick also managed to get himself into trouble when he was caught maligning their new boss live on the air. Yep. Their careers are in dire need of help but when their boss calls them in and tells them that they only way to dig out of the mess is to co-host a failing morning show, even they're hesitant to take that on. Two sworn enemies working side by side is a nightmare scenario for them but a potential ratings bonanza for the show as it would reel in viewers curious about their on-air dynamic. They're given a short period of time to turn things around and come deadline day, a decision will be made about who will get to see their career shine on.


By working in such close proximity you know they won't be able to help themselves and will get to each other. Every day on the show brings some ridiculous mishap that finds them embarrassing themselves or fanning the tabloid flames that they're actually an already an item and that they have this act going simply for ratings. The mishaps come often and it's like watching a physical comedy show. (Just wait til you meet a certain stuffed animal!) I couldn't help but laugh a few times. In between the work, Sabrina and Nick start to thaw towards each other. At some point they set aside their issues when they start to suspect that someone is sabotaging their morning show. Nothing like a bit of sleuthing to have them join forces.


Sabrina and Nick are not a cutsie couple like Freddy and Griff. (I think Griff might have a word with me about referring to him as "cute".) I got the impression that they're more the rough and tumble type that would have it out on a wrestling mat if it came down to it. I didn't think that there was as much witty humour in Headliners as there were in previous books, however, whenever Sabrina delivered zingers they were more biting than funny which conveyed her still blistering fury at Nick. Nick could deliver a few punches, too. Despite their strained history, there was also a lot of heat between them though they'll deny it until they're blue in the face. Nick came off as smooth and generally put together (except for that one incident that landed him in hot water). A man who has a distinct picture in his mind of his career path and what he wants his legacy to be. Like all Lucy Parker's heroines, Sabrina is impressive for her confidence and ambition. She's someone who knows her worth and doesn't suffer fools. Though he initially finds the morning show beneath him, he begins to appreciate his time on the show. It has him reconsidering his career plans and eventually calls his loyalty in to question. I liked that their individual ambitions were equally important and neither were given short shrift. Establishing trust between them is the crux of the the plot that's also filled with funny moments and loads of sexual tension that's sure to please.


This is the fifth book in the London Celebrities series and it's just as enjoyable as the rest of the books. I liked that we moved away from the stage and ventured into a different venue with television though there are lovely appearances by some fan favourites. I lit up when they came on the page remembering how fond I am of them. I adore this world that Lucy Parker has built and how she continues to creatively expand it. The fact is, I can count on her to deliver deliciously sweet, sexy and funny stories that make me feel so happy when I'm done. If there's ever a reason to escape from reality for a bit, it's this series, for sure!

I adore the chemistry between Sabrina and Nick. If you're a fan of an enemies to lovers trope, Headliners may just be the book for you. I'm not big into romantic suspense, so the entire part of the plot where someone is out to sabotage their show (who could it be?!) fell a little flat for me. Thankfully, the sparks between Nick and Sabrina were amazing enough to keep me invested in this book.

Nick's got that Mr. Darcy ala the 2005 Pride & Prejudice movie thing going on - you know that part where he helps Lizzie into the carriage and then flexes his hand as he walks away? That whole interaction is basically the vibe. Sabrina despises Nick because he's a dick who caused trouble for her family, but Nick was just stupidly doing what he thought was best and actually is over there making subdued heart-eyes at her.

Nick and Sabrina have to do some actual WORK to move beyond their pasts, and I really like Lucy Parker's very realistic depiction of how two people can go from hating each other to becoming friends and lovers. Then again, Lucy Parker excels at writing very realistic moments that make her characters seem like real people in real situations. (Exhibit A: the shower sex scene in The Austen Playbook that reads like what two people trying to bang in the shower actually is like, instead of some romanticized version of it where nobody is in danger of drowning from getting shower water up their nose...)

This is the fifth book in the London Celebrities series, but can be read as a stand alone. There are major spoilers for the fourth book, The Austen Playbook, as well as some continuation from plotlines from that book. You don't *need* to have read the prior books to fully enjoy this one, but I do recommend reading at least The Austen Playbook first as they are pretty closely entertwined. No need at all to read the first three books before these ones, though, as there are no or only very minor spoilers/links to the first books.

Rating ~ 4.5 stars
This was sooo so good!! My first read of 2020 and its a win! I’d have read some of the other books in the series but when I saw the blurb, I wanted to read this bad. Cause we all know I adore a good enemies to lovers/hate to love trope book.

In Lucy Parker’s headliners, two rival TV presenters with their own shows are forced to work together to save the channels sinking morning show or they can kiss their careers goodbye. Sabrina Carlton and Nick Davenport have had rocky relationship, with what started out as a mild pretend snark has turned into full out war and hatred. Now they have to very reluctantly work together to save their jobs, which they have both worked very hard for.

Theres are a lot of shenanigans happening in this book, I just had so much fun reading it. Not only because Sabrina and Nick have such a wonderful chemistry but because the whole of their corner of the world is filled with drama, angst and craziness (the whole shebang). The drama and angst aren’t over the top, they balance really well with the romance and the relationship developing between Nick and Sabrina. I don’t know ,it had been a while since I felt this so engrossed in a book, I read it one sitting. This could totally be made into a movie and I’d watch it.

Sabrina and Nick are opposites of each other and that’s pretty obvious from the get go, but they come together and learn from each other. I loved how their relationship developed, with the anger to sparks to understanding, passionate and sweet love (still full of starkness and teasing though)! I also really liked Sabrina and Nick's relationship with their siblings. There is a little focus on their families and it made the characters more fleshed out. There's also some cutes scenes of Nick (and Sabrina) with his niece. There is also quite a bit banter in the book (an enemies to lovers book without banter would just not do really) which I also enjoyed immensely.

We also get cameos of the other couples in the series, which was also lovely!!

There was a lot of funny stuff in the book, with Sabrina and Nick having do stuff they’d rather not, things going absolutely wrong. The falling in love and them growing closer to each other while the career aspirations they have might go down the drain, if they don’t achieve the success demanded of them while dealing with the sabotager added a bit of an extra oomph to the story.

I don’t want to give away lots, just because I went in there pretty blind and really enjoyed it. Overall, (I'm just saying the same things again but!!) this was really lovely, the ridiculous things are balanced with the more mature stuff and the romance with the humour and drama. It worked really well, also the festive seasons in the book made it all the more I don’t know sweeter and perfect for a cozy winter night read. It felt me feeling very happy, warm and satisfied. I want more books from the author!!!

My first Parker novel won’t be my last!

This is the fifth book in Parker’s London Celebrities series with Carina Press. Additionally, it has one of my favorite tropes, though when I did a little research about Parker’s series it appears that enemies to lovers is her speciality with multiple books in the series featuring the same trope. As they often say, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it and Parker highlights how good she is at the trope and creating characters to sustain it.

The story itself was easy to get roped into. With two rival television personality’s and their careers on the line. The only way Nick and Sabrina can save their jobs and future with their television network is to work on the same show together and attempt to improve the ratings. With one month to get the job done they have to put aside their differences and focus on the new morning program they are responsible.

This book is pure fun, from the banter and scathing retorts to the scandals and constant one-ups that happen. Honestly, whatever can go wrong does, from sabotaged cake to guest interviews that skim the horror stories of Sabrina and Nick’s past. It’s a never-ending question about what’s going to happen this time. The best part is how Sabrina and Nick figure out that their animosity is hiding a major case of attraction. The plot is seamless with continuous wind up of the stakes, the developing romance due to close proximity, and the way Parker allows the characters to stay true to themselves and communicate their feelings.

One thing that threw me off… the lack of big conflict for the romance aspect in the second half of the story. There’s a certain point in the book where both Sabrina and Nick really have nothing holding them back from each other, except a bunch of small problems that could be the disaster and don’t. I credit the author for pulling this off and keeping me interested. I kept waiting for the horrible thing that would split them apart, but our H/h are damn adults and proudly act like. I was satisfied and someone how a teensy big let down. Still not one hundred percent why, but I found extra respect for Nick and Sabrina in how they didn’t jump to conclusions. Preferring to have grown up conversations instead. In a way that is nearly as refreshing as the pair falling in love.

Overall, this was a great book and even though it’s set in the month of December, so technically a Christmas book, I enjoyed getting back into the spirit of the season. For readers who enjoy Lauren Layne.

~ Landra

Enemies to lovers at its finest. While each book in the series has had a play on the this trope, this was probably the most true to theme. There was great setup in the previous book [book:The Austen Playbook|42279630] for this showdown between Nick and Serena, and this story delivered on its delicious promise.

Nick and Serena are rival broadcasters vying for prime time at their recently merged network. Having known each other for years, they knew the competition would be fierce because they knew the other was talented. Going into this story, Nick had a leg up having broken a story months earlier that had hurt Serena’s credibility. However, at the start of this book, Nick had hurt his own chances by being caught on camera talking disparagingly about the big boss. So both are in the dog house, but due to their popularity, they are given a chance for redemption — co-hosting the network’s dismally-rated morning show. Once on the same team, things begin to change for both of them. After a series of mishaps throws them more intimately together, they find they have a chemistry unlike they’ve previously felt.

I thought this was a fantastic addition to the series. It was fun, funny and romantic. It was also fun seeing several of the previous couples/characters, and there was plenty of Freddy and Griff. I do think this can be read as a stand-alone, but it is probably best to read [book:The Austen Playbook|42279630] to get the full feel on why they start out as foes.

<I>*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title. This is my honest opinion.

I sincerely doubt that my review and rating for Headliners will come to anyone's surprise, especially with the hero being called Nick. Reading Lucy Parker's books is equivalent to coming home for me. They are warm, comforting, and pack some powerful emotions. Headliners is another excellent novel from a massively talented author!

Sabrina and Nick's love story began in The Austen Playbook. I think it's important to check out that book (and all of Lucy's books for that matter) to see the relationship build up between the two. They had some major enemies/rivals vibes going on in that book that led to a big blow up towards the end of The Austen Playbook. Nick was a bit of an ass previously, so my man had some serious work to do to convince me that he was worthy of my name love. Fret not, friends! Lucy Parker is an absolute genius at genuine character development and writing gratifying grovel. I have to say, Nick is probably at the top of my favorite heroes of all time list. I had these expectations about the kind of person he was based on the previous book and Lucy's writing style in general, but they were blown out of the water. I really enjoyed getting to know the surprisingly softer side to his character. I think there is something to be said about a romance hero who can make you laugh and melt constantly. His heartfelt apology to Sabrina in particular had me wanting to shout my love for him from a rooftop. Then, there was his relationship with his family members. Clearly, this is a man who respected and loved them. Oof, my heart is just fluttering writing about him. :) If you're wondering if Sabrina is a good fit for him, the answer is a resounding yes. They were made for each other. Sabrina is an equally brilliant protagonist, who was fierce, passionate, and very kind. We see her deal with the aftermath of Nick's betrayal in the previous book with her head held high here and I could not have been prouder of her. How she faces her hurdles in moments of vulnerability is particularly admirable and you'll find yourself easily wanting to defend her with your everything. You know how there are characters whose personality traits you wish you could simply absorb because you love them that much? Sabrina is that kind of character for me.

Both Nick and Sabrina are very headstrong characters, which makes their romance just perfect. Watching them lovingly dance around each other and slowly become acquainted with each other in the process was an experience for me as a reader. Despite their mutual attraction, they had obstacles to work through and Lucy Parker takes her time with building up their relationship. And the communication between these two? Perfection! Their romance truly was a work of art! Undeniably, the chemistry and constant banter was a strong element of Headliners, but it's watching them open up emotionally during their low moments that's the most rewarding part of this book. When I ask for good satisfying romances, this is exactly what I expect. The backdrop of the morning show and their careers as talk show hosts forced to work together was an excellent idea on Lucy's part because it brought about so much humor and just the right dose of drama. Of course, I also have to mention just how much I loved all the cameos from characters in the previous books. I just love all of them so much that even a mere mention of them has me squealing in utter delight.

If you're a romance fan, I sure hope you religiously read Lucy Parker's books. Headliners was a book after my heart and I have no doubt that it will completely enamor readers who love a good enemies-to-lovers story.

Sabrina checked the stats - over one million people. It was the number two trending video in London. On the laptop screen even with the grainy resolution couldn’t disguise the sculpture of Nick Davenport’s face. The camera loved him and he had the regular paparazzi to prove it. She glanced her eyes to the in-the-flesh Nick. The only sign of life was the muscle moving in his jaw. Than his eyes locked on hers. Nick and Sabrina are in his dressing room at Davenport Reports studio. Way to force a career change - verbally slamming the big boss while still on company property. Sabrina happened to agree with Nick about Lional Grimes- the big boss. Likely for the first time in his life, he had now become as silent as his frozen image on the screen. Hania the executive head of programming said” Not the wisest move in your career, Nick.” sabrina had worked very hard to get where she was. It had taken years to earn a lead presenter contract. They devoted hundreds of evenings to their work, sacrificed a certain amount of social life, and invested heavily in many of the guests they interviewed and the stories they had. Sabrina had been with her sister Freddy as they stood together watching their family scandals being splashed across blog after blog. It had been Nick’s choice- his deliberate personal choice- to break the news on his show in the most damaging way possible. Sabrina’s own career was taking a hit for a bad decision her grandmother had made decades ago. Than hania suggested Nick and Sabrina co host a morning show called Wake Me Up London. Nick said he had worked for the studio since he was twenty one, and headlined alone for almost four years and did a good job of it. Hania agreed he was excellent at his job. But he also humiliated his boss ina a public forum. She added happily for them the public is fascinated with your obvious feud. Wake Me Up London is losing in the ratings now but she felt Nick and Sabrina could salvage the situation. They had from the beginning of December until Christmas Eve to prove Hania right.
This was a funny romantic read and I loved it. I loved the pace. I loved Nick and Sabrina together. I advise you to read this series in order for a smoother read. I laughed at times while reading this book. I really enjoyed the progression from enemies to more. I loved watching Nick and Sabrina grow. I felt this was well written. I loved the characters and the ins and outs of this book and I highly recommend it.

Headliners reeled me in from the first pages. Filled with great banter, ridiculous morning show antics and romance that develops at just the right pace, I fell in love with Headliners straight away.

Sabrina and Nick end up paired on a network morning show after Nick gets caught on video badmouthing the network’s head honcho. To add insult to injury, Nick also broke a plagiarism story that devastated Sabrina’s family. But if there are two personalities on this network who need one last shot at renewing their contracts, it’s these two. Their trial period runs from Dec. 1 to Christmas Eve, but things start going haywire as soon as they’re on-camera.

I read Act Like It, the first book in the series a couple of years ago, and sort of dropped off after that. But no worries, Headliners can be read standalone, and if like me, you weren’t totally drawn in by the London theater scene stories, this switch to morning TV was spot on.

Headliners is enemies-to-lovers done right. Biting but never mean-spirited, funny, romantic and sexy… I absolutely adored it.

the london celebrities series just keeps getting better and better. sabrina carlton and nick davenport were secondary characters that literally sparked off the page in the delightful the austen playbook, headliners is fully their story. and just utter perfection.

this enemies-to-lovers story works because at the deepest level, both nick and sabrina are so similar. they understand each other's actions and motivations so well, it's why when they strike out at each other they know how to cut deeply.

nick is still in the doghouse for selling out sabrina's family laundry, even though when he finally does get to really apologize for it, he didn't really intend for things to go down the way they did. and there were mitigating factors. he still feels bad about it, and sabrina forgives him because by that point she can see that he regrets it. and while she says she wouldn't have crossed the line he did, the reality is that under certain circumstances, she might have.

but when they are forced to work together. their ambition isn't going to let their petty differences get between success and new contracts at the television station. they are too professional and too driven for that. but the more time they spend together, the walls they'd drawn up over their soft gooey centers come down and then they are nothing but piles of goo to each other. and it's swoony and way less gross than i just described and i love this series. and this one might be my favorite even though i also adore grumpy griff.

**headliners will publish on january 20, 2020. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/carina press in exchange for my honest review.