Recently, I have finished the Secrets of my Hollywood Life series. Well, actually a week ago. I promised you guys I'd write a review for the entire series and today, I finally decided to get around to it. Basically what I've done is I've separated the series by book and given you a short paragraph about what I thought about it and then at the end, an overall series review.
First, some basics on the Secrets of My Hollywood Life series. The series centres around Kaitlin Burke who is a teen actress who has had much success in her acting career. She is on a show called Family Affairs (FA) and the story is told from her perspective. Throughout the books, she shares with us various secrets about working in Hollywood.
Secrets of My Hollywood Life
The first book of the series and very cute! Kaitlin decides to disguise herself to attend Clark Hall, the school her best friend Liz goes to, to see what being "normal" is like. Add in some drama with Austin, the super cute boy, Lori, his girlfriend, and Sky, Kaitlin's co-star on FA and enemy and you have an awesome first book! It's light and funny - definitely a book to cozy up with! However, the idea of a celebrity disguising herself and risking everything just to see what "normal" is like is kind of ridiculous, in my opinion but the secrets were super fun and I enjoyed looking into the life of a Hollywood star!
On Location
And now we're on book number two! Kaitlin has signed on to a new movie directed by her all-time favourite director, Hutch Adam starring her nemesis, Sky and her gross ex-boyfriend Drew. Seems like the perfect recipe for drama, right? Totally! At some points though, it seemed a bit repetitive, especially with the Sky-Kaitlin drama. It was cool, though, to see what producing a movie is like. The secrets were just as fun as they were in the first book - they really opened up some new ideas about Hollywood for me - but I found it a little disappointing that the only thing that made me commit to the next book were the secrets. On a side note, please start making cooler covers - this one was kind of tacky.
Family Affairs
Family Affairs introduces a new character, Alexis Holden who joins the Family Affair cast. She brings some new drama to the show and shakes things up between Sky and Kaitlin. This book follows in the footsteps of the the first two books which, judging from how much I liked them, is a good thing but I definitely wondered whether the only thing these books are going to about is mean girls. I did like that we got to see a different side of Sky and that the cover is much better than the last two. I also enjoyed that while reading this book, I gained a better understanding what being a celebrity means.
Paparazzi Princess
In this book, Kaitlin deals with a MAJOR bombshell (shh, I won't say) which leads her to hang out with Hollywood's baddest girls, Ava and Lauren. Of course we all know what happens when you get caught up in the Hollywood party scene... Yay! I actually liked this book the most out of all the books so far! One major aspect of Hollywood and being a celebrity is the publicity you get and I think it's great for Jen to have one book focus solely on paparazzi. For me, that is one topic I am very interested in and this book really taught me a lot. I also really liked seeing Kaitlin's wild side. The past three books have all shown the picture-perfect Kaitlin and that's great but it's not realistic. As someone gets older, it is not uncommon to find them going a bit wild. Awesome book!
Broadway Lights
After getting into some trouble with the media, Kaitlin is back on her feet and on Broadway! Of course, like in all the other books, there is drama! This time with a new leading man, the super cute and British, Dylan and rival, Riley. Drama drama drama! I think this book was the first time I fully swooned since Kaitlin met Austin and it was awesome! I mean, I know Kaitlin and Austin are like perfect for each other but Dylan...he's British and he can act!!! What more could you want? Annnd...Broadway! Broadway! Broadway!
There's No Place Like Home
The final installment of the Secrets series! Kaitlin has just gotten off Broadway when something happens that changes her life forever! Dun dun duunnnn. I really won't tell you any more but I will say that this book was really cool! I was confused for a while but once I got it, I thought it was so smart! This book really saw Kaitlin grow up and work out some problems that should've been solved a long time ago! Kaitlin has grown into a very strong woman and I feel so proud! Though I'm kind of weirded out by the fact that Kaitlin is doing another production with Sky... and also the cover... a bag, seriously?
Overall Thoughts on the Series:
This is one of my favourite series and wow! I kind of sighed because the journey to get to this position was so long! It took me around a year and I feel so sad that I finished! The books weren't the greatest but I felt so connected to Kaitlin and I really did care for her. Jen's power to create connections is so strong and I enjoyed watching her grow and flower. At some points, Kaitlin seemed mature beyond her age (like in the first book...fourteen? No way!) and that threw me off at some points. Overall, though the series is very good and you should definitely give them a shot!
