Skip to main content

Member Reviews

This ripped-from-the-headlines story satires a celebrity influencer, in the style of "Inventing Anna," who defrauds the rich and famous to fund her lavish lifestyle. Full of camp, cutting commentary on America’s fascination with fame, and the dark spiral of obsession, this book is a witty wild ride with a dash of murder and romance.

Was this review helpful?

This book is fast, fun and ridiculous. We follow our hot mess narrator, Rose, who is a journalist that is obsessed with an influencer and con-artist Poppy. Rose has become convinced that Poppy is not only a con-artist but is also a murderer, and a serial one at that. Unfortunately, Rose is also completely unhinged and between drug-fueled stalking episodes, manages to get herself fired and alienate her few friends.

Rose meets an undercover FBI agent and what follows is a very typical enemies to lovers type romance. For me, this is where the book really started to become a bit confusing, is it a thriller? Is it a romance? A mystery? It was unclear, at times reading like a detective novel and at times like a angry blog. I enjoyed the over-the-top plot but would have loved to see more Poppy as she was the most important character in the book and didn't really have much time "on screen."

Overall, I think this book would be great for fans of romance where the main character is messy. Or readers that like multi-media books about influencers and conspiracy theories.

Was this review helpful?

Heck yes! This was such a fun read. I love an influencer novel and this nailed it. This was a fast paced read which hooked me from the hilarious first sentence. The friendship between Rose and her besties was so relable. Rose was super annoying at times but Hariri-Kai wrote such an excellent unreliable narrator. There is some spice in this one too that was a suprise but a real treat. The ending though? Mind. Blown.

Was this review helpful?

I really enjoyed reading this book. The main plot showcases the dark side of celebrity obsession and how we as a culture have sometimes praise criminals as celebrities. I thought the cat-and-mouse of the story was so interesting and fun! I don't love it when substance abuse is used to make a character unreliable, but I can see how it pushed the plot. The main thing is that I wasn't expecting so much of it to be based on Rose's romance, and that bit seemed a little unnecessary to the story and character growth, in my personal opinion

Was this review helpful?

Rose is falling apart on literally every level. She's been a hot mess ever since her article put pop culture scammer/socialite behind bars. Now that Poppy is being released, Rose is worried her life will go to hell once again, and with good reason. When some men Rose interviewed for her profile on Poppy start dying mysteriously, Rose teams up with an FBI agent to nail Poppy for murder.

This book was witty and really voicy. I wouldn't say that Rose is a likeable character, but I think that was the point. The pacing was good, and it was a quick, fun read. I love when things from pop culture show up in books, and the timing of Anna Delvey going on Dancing with the Stars right when this book came out really hit.

Overall, a fun read!

Was this review helpful?

Who doesn’t love a scammer story? I for one find them, fiction and nonfiction, to be downright fascinating.

Hariri-Kia delivers her version of this story with a cat-and-mouse vibe featuring Rose as our main star. Rose has been obsessed with Poppy Hastings, our resident scammer a la Anna Delvey vibes, since she was first given an anonymous tip. That tip led to an article that brought Poppy fame and Rose a mental health crisis. Now Poppy’s out of prison and Rose is seconds from another breakdown. The tension is just so good!

Rose is lucky to have a brilliant cast of secondary characters, from her two besties to an enemies-to-lovers potential to a wild roommate, who are all there to support her quest to prove the internet’s new favorite celebrity is hiding some dark secrets. There’s a bit of romance and spice in this one, but it wasn’t too much to put my non-romance reading heart through too many palpitations.

The ending!!!! Someone please tell me we’re going to get a sequel to this one because I’m not ready to be done with these characters!

Was this review helpful?

Wow!! This was fun! I loved our protagonist and her unique voice. I never felt bored, I laughed out loud several times, I was on the edge of my seat. And that ending!!!

Was this review helpful?

This is the PERFECT book to read when you are sad and want to laugh, happy and want to stay happy, cozy and want to read something light. Literally no matter what this book will put you in a good mood. So honored to have received a copy of this to read because it is so perfect. Great for the chronically online zillenial. Enjoy!!

Was this review helpful?

I gotta say, this book got pretty unhinged, but I think intentionally so? Rose Aslani made her career breaking the story about Poppy Hastings, a socialite/con-artist. But Rose believes Poppy has committed crimes worse than theft, and it literally drives her insane. When we meet Rose, Poppy has just been released from prison, and Rose is on the brink of losing everything thanks to her obsession. She goes on a wild goose chase with a rogue FBI agent, Simon, who also ends up being her love interest, all while trying to convince her job and her friends that she's turned a new, Poppy-free leaf.

Once I accepted that Rose wasn't necessarily intended to be a likeable main character, I enjoyed this book a lot more. But with the way she interacted with Simon, and even with her closest friends (my gosh, the "pranks"), I still kind of had to hold myself apart and couldn't get too invested. I also read the last chapter at least three times and still have no idea what happened, and I can't tell if that was the point or not.

I was able to read an ARC of this book through NetGalley, and appreciated the chance to get out of my reading comfort zone with this wild ride.

Was this review helpful?

Kept me on my toes, but something was missing that made me truly love it. Hovered between a 3 and 4 star read for me!

Was this review helpful?

I would recommend "The Most Famous Girl in the World" if you like pondering the ethics of Anna Delvey being on Dancing with the Stars , conspiracy theories, and "How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days." I wasn't expecting this novel to have elements of satire, thriller, and romance, so I was pleasantly surprised and thoroughly enjoyed reading it, I finished it in one day. At first, it struck me as almost too similar to Anna Delvey's story, but I loved the unexpected direction Iman Hariri-Kia took it in, and it ended in a totally different way than I thought it would. Excited to read more of her work!

Was this review helpful?

This book was such a wild ride 😮‍💨 I went into the book expecting unhinged literary fiction which it was but also thriller/romance/comedy vibes.

I love an unhinged main character and Rose was so fun to follow through this batshit story. From her friendships with Steph and Fern, relationship with Simon and her obsession with Poppy - each chapter was chaotic and entertaining.

I don’t know if I even want to talk about the epilogue or simply pretend it doesn’t exist and never happened because what the hell was that? 😩😂 My brain was hurting trying to figure out what I just read and I’m still not even sure I understand. Regardless, I loved this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

Was this review helpful?

cat and mouse chase type murder mystery, between a reporter, an FBI Agent and a socialite grifter/influencer. Rose’s big break came from an expose of Poppy, who was released from prison. Then people started ending up dead.

Was this review helpful?

What can I say about this book?! I wholeheartedly believe (unless I missed it from somewhere and stated already) that this was based off of Anna Delvey. A socialite defrauding influential people who are wealthy which in turn made her famous. I love it, but might be biased because I do love reading about the way people can deceive other people with higher influence.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you Sourcebooks for The Most Famous Girl in the World. I loved this take on what happens when we try to take down Anna Delvey types and it ends up... (well I mean just look, somehow Anna Delvey is on DWTS with her ankle monitor... come on world). Iman Kariri-Kia captures this messy world we live in, one in which being famous is what matters, regardless of the reasons for fame/infamy, and the satire here works in the form of a murder mystery. At times the main character is a bit too much in terms of self-pity/whining and the story might also be too smart, too spot on/tongue in cheek but I also think the writing and style, the plot, really come together to offer an engaging and timely story. I loved the point of the story, the writing, and a shout out to the excellent cover art as well.

Was this review helpful?

In the vein of Anna Delvey, The Most Famous Girl in the World is an eccentric, fast paced satirical story about the grifter Poppy Hastings who is catapulted to fame after her arrest and an exposé by Rose Aslani. After Poppy’s release from prison her fandom continues to grow as does Rose’s obsession with bringing her down. This was funny and thrilling to read. I think fans of The Fake by Zoe Whittall would also enjoy The Most Famous Girl in the World. Hariri-Kia’s, satirical take of today’s internet culture and obsession with celebrities was by far my favorite part of this novel. I will say that the humor in this book won’t be for everyone, but I personally liked it. Shout out to Hariri-Kia for the content warning in the beginning of the novel I really appreciated it. A solid 4 star read! Many Thanks to NetGalley & the Publishers for an advanced copy.

Was this review helpful?

This was a hilarious, wild ride of a book. Sexy, smart and full of twists I didn't see coming. A loose Anna Delvney esque story has Iranian American reporter Rose, clawing her way back from rock bottom determined to prove that Poppy Hastings, a popular social media con artist is an actual murderer caught up in a dangerous secret society.

Fired and with everyone thinking she's crazy, Rose finds herself teamed up with an undercover FBI agent who might be the one person who also thinks Poppy is a criminal. Suspenseful and great on audio this was an adrenaline fueled read with a jaw dropping ending that I absolutely LOVED! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Steam level: some open door scenes

Was this review helpful?

So many thoughts with this read! While, I haven’t watched the Netflix show based on Anna Delvey, I’ve seen enough Tik Tok edits to guess that this read is a similar take on her…or at least a character like her.

I was immediately pulled in by the first sentence and chapter and it was hard to put my kindle down! I enjoyed reading a Persian character and liked Rose’s anecdotes of struggling between her American and Persian identities. I did question their purpose - it didn’t feel like it carried the story forward but was rather was a separate storyline.

I must end with the question of - what in the actual hell happened in that ending!? It’s been several days since I’ve finished reading but I’m still not sure what I read! I need more information of where the author is going with this and hope to get some answers soon.

Was this review helpful?

super fun super fast paced read, I honestly went into this book blind. I requested it because of the cover and im glad I did. it was giving me Anna Delvey vibes. quick read def recommend

Was this review helpful?

This book immediately sucked me in! I read this right around the announcement that Anna Delvey would be on Dancing with the Stars, which felt serendipitous. I enjoyed the tone and pacing of this story--I was immediately sucked into the murder mystery element. The romance plot felt a little unexpected and out of place, but I may just feel that way because I am not a romance reader. I enjoyed the character relationships nonetheless and the dialogue and banter between everyone. The ending also definitely caught me by surprise!

Was this review helpful?