Make Me Famous by Maud Ventura, translated by Gretchen Schmid, is a gripping, sharp character study of Cléo Louvent. The daughter of two academics living in Paris, Cléo knows from childhood that she is destined to be a famous singer. The novel follows two timelines, one of Cléo’s early life and rise to fame, and one years later, in which she has achieved soaring stardom and has escaped for a three-week solo vacation on an isolated Pacific island, an elite escape for the world’s biggest celebrities. We follow her transformation from a nameless young woman, obsessed with becoming famous, to a rising star obsessed with her image, to a world-famous celebrity who has reached a breaking point. Her rise to fame did not come without a price, and she finds that she must be ruthless in the competitive world of stardom, and that becoming a public figure is an isolating experience. The entire book, Cléo hurtles toward a breaking point, where she makes a potentially life-altering decision that could up-end her life.

Told from the first-person perspective, we spend this entire book inside of Cléo’s head. It is clear that she has sociopathic tendencies, which are expressed through her thoughts and actions throughout the book. Self-obsessed and lacking any ability to feel sympathy, she holds scathing opinions of every single person around her. Although she is objectively a bad person, readers can understand her thought process, because the author is so effective at portraying her as a real person. The character development in this novel is meticulous, and although we know Cléo is a horrible person, we can’t look away, and we can almost understand her cynical, selfish understanding of the world. Despite the character-forward focus of the book, there was no lack of plot, with a solid storyline propelling Cléo’s self-image, desires, and fame toward her breaking point. Maud Ventura has written an incredible, extremely hashed-out character study of an unlikeable, manipulative, selfish narrator, but I still fell in love.

This book touched heavily on how artists often compromise their art in favor of commercial success, and the commodification of the self (especially for women) in the entertainment industry. Cléo refuses to compromise her artistic process of self-writing her music, but she must constantly sell herself as a branded persona. Multiple times, she comments on how she is the reason anyone around her has a job (her manager, her assistant, etc.), seeing herself as a money-making business more than a person. What makes her perspective interesting is her self-awareness; she knows that she is commodifying herself and her art, but her obsession with becoming and staying famous is worth that to her.

My only complaint about this novel is the abruptness with the ending; the book reaches a tipping point, then immediately shifts to the epilogue. Although I feel satisfied with how Cléo’s character arc and plot line ends, I wish we could have seen more aftermath. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed immersing myself in the awful, selfish mind of Cléo Louvent. This book sucked me in and did not let me go; the prose was propulsive and meticulous. Major props to Gretchen Schmid, the translator, for her work in bringing this story to English-language readers. Thank you to HarperCollins for providing an advanced copy of this book – I am so excited to share this recommendation!

Absolutely fascinating!

Cléo is a French-American child prodigy with an insatiable drive for fame, encapsulating everything required to climb the treacherous ladder to stardom. Every detail of her life is calculated: her movements, her songs, her outfits, and even her relationships. Make Me Famous by Maud Ventura is a captivating exploration of ambition and the cost of chasing celebrity, told with precision and dark undertones that linger long after the final page.

Written in an intimate first-person narrative, Ventura pulls readers into Cléo’s mind, giving us a front-row seat to her meteoric rise. From the innocent beginnings of a young girl with dreams to the razor-sharp focus of a woman willing to sacrifice everything, Cléo’s transformation is as thrilling as it is unsettling. Ventura masterfully unpacks the price of fame, laying bare the vulnerabilities, manipulations, and compromises required to stay in the spotlight.

What sets this book apart is Ventura’s ability to infuse the narrative with deeply personal and sometimes chilling moments. As Cléo’s journey unfolds, we see not only the public persona she carefully crafts but also the private toll of her decisions. Dark twists punctuate the story.

Make Me Famous is both a cautionary tale and a gripping character study. Ventura’s writing is sharp and unflinching, seamlessly blending the glitz of celebrity with the shadows that lurk behind the scenes. Cléo’s story is a comet trajectory—dazzling and destructive—and readers will find themselves unable to look away.

A must-read for fans of psychological depth, fame-centered dramas, and richly layered storytelling.
Translated by Gretchen Schmid
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