True Life: I'm Dating a Movie Star

"He could see her, 
and it was just like he'd thought. 
It was just like being punched in the stomach." 

--Jennifer E. Smith, This Is What Happy Looks Like

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: Poppy, 416 pages

Publication Date: April 2nd, 2013

Source: Borrowed from Library

Goodreads

Goodreads Description

If fate sent you an email, would you answer?

When teenage movie star Graham Larkin accidentally sends small town girl Ellie O'Neill an email about his pet pig, the two seventeen-year-olds strike up a witty and unforgettable correspondence, discussing everything under the sun, except for their names or backgrounds.

Then Graham finds out that Ellie's Maine hometown is the perfect location for his latest film, and he decides to take their relationship from online to in-person. But can a star as famous as Graham really start a relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie want to avoid the media's spotlight at all costs?

My Thoughts

Soooo, I liked this book. After binge reading the entire Vampire Academy series I wanted a very light and fun read; and that's exactly what I got. Having read Jennifer E. Smith's previous book The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight (and loving it!) I was excited to read her latest novel. While it was very cute and a very quick read, it didn't really move me. The story is about Ellie who gets a random email from a guy she doesn't know that was meant for somebody else. They continue to email back and forth and, as fate would have it, hit it off. They are very real and honest with one another and begin falling for each other having never met. Turns out the male counterpart to these emails turns out to be a famous teenage movie star. He cons the production people to shoot his newest movie in her hometown so he can meet her. A series of unfortunate events occur and the two finally meet.

The theme of my review has gotta be the word like. I liked the characters. I liked the story line. But it just fell flat of really giving me the feels. On the surface, Ellie is a very normal teenager but her and her mother and harboring a secret about her origins. It is because of this that when Graham is finally introduced to her mother, she tells Ellie she needs to stay away from him. This really irritated me. I won't divulge the secret but the mother was a HUGE hypocrite. I mean, I know she was trying to teach her daughter to learn from her mistakes BUT she can't think every situation will turn out horrible just because hers did. And to be honest, what her mother did made me wanna yell, UH YOU CHOOSE YOUR CHOICE AND IT WAS A VERY POOR ONE...YOUR BAD!

Quinn, the best friend, was mad at Ellie for keeping the emailing a secret and stayed pissed for waaaay too long. I totally side with Ellie. What was she supposed to say? 

Ellie: "Oh hey Quinn, by the way I've met this really great guy!"

Quinn: "Really?! That is so great! What's his name, where did you meet him!?"

E: "Oh well, funny story, I got this random email from a guy who was trying to email somebody else and we kept emailing and now we talk all the time and I think I'm falling for him!"

Q: "A random guy sent you an email?...So you met him on the internet?..."

E: "Yeah! We email all the time!"

Q: "So you've never met?"

E: "No..."

Q: "So he could be a 60 year old pedophile predator and you would never know..."

E: "I mean...I guess, anything is possible but he's not, I swear!"

Q: "How do you know?"

E: "I just do and I love him!"

Q: "....."

Yeah, that conversation would have went over real well. She is mad she didn't tell her but at the same time, the situation is not that easy of a topic to broach. It kept the drama of the story but annoyed me at the same time. Quinn and the Mom...not a fan.

Graham, I really adored. I totally understood where he was coming from. Celebrity status, didn't really ask for that, and he just wants somebody he can be himself with. Not Graham Larkin the actor, the celebrity,the superstar. I can't even imagine how difficult that would be to try and weed through the phonies and find somebody to like you for you. Having potentially found that in Ellie and his desire to prove to her he is real and worth it was completely endearing. He was my favorite character. Ellie was a little obstinate at times for my liking but she was pretty good overall.

The story line was very cute and had some romantic moments. Not a kissing book per say but it was very quick, fun, and easy to enjoy. It was a little long for my taste based on the content (400ish pages). I think these contemporaries are fun but the ones that really gut me and that I love are a lot deeper than this. Fun but not life-changing.

Should You Read This? Maybe? If you like fun, lighthearted contemporaries then this is for you. If you like a little deeper emotional connection to characters then you might want to pass.