Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Chase Soria

Every budding actor knows acting is a difficult gig. There will be grueling auditions and punishing rejections. If you’re lucky, there’ll be roles that pay the bills and even roles that won’t.

Roles we don’t believe in.

But that’s what acting is—acting as if we do believe in them.

So when the semester’s production project is announced and I’m cast as one of the leads, I’m ecstatic. A lot of responsibility, a lot of work, but I’m up for it. Even when I find out what my role is and who my partner is. Amos, the brooding James Dean wannabe, is my on-screen boyfriend. Which is great, except for the fact he hates me.

I can do this. It’s just acting.

Nothing more.

Amos Beddington

The 90s are back, apparently. 90210 and Friends, but with a reality TV spin, which means cameras following us around as if they’re capturing the everyday lives of Franklin U students.

Me, but not me.

Me, with no more than a character description, no script or screenplay. Method acting, being the character 24/7, not just when the cameras are rolling. With a campus boyfriend.

Method acting is immersive and intense, and it can be confusing if the lines begin to blur. I mean, I’ve dreamed of being with the irritatingly gorgeous and annoyingly popular Chase Soria, and now I have to be his on-screen boyfriend?

I’m a good actor, sure. But how can I be convincing when I’m not sure I can even convince myself?

 

Book Review

This book was a FUN read! There was humor, romance, snide comments, outright laughter, and also poignant, tender moments. There were also characters who didn’t take themselves too seriously and those who found method acting, i.e., living with their characters 24/7, to be much too complicated. Roles and feelings became fuzzy. Were the reality show characters, Dominic and Elijah, in a relationship? Or were Chase and Amos in one?

 

Right from the beginning the author engaged me in the story. During the first chapter, I

sat in the classroom with the student actors, feeling the excitement of the new method-acting project along with the rest of the class. I was interested in who would star and who would man the cameras or do costume or set design. The ensemble cast were present and I came to know some of them really well during the story.

 

The emotions between Amos and Chase and their witty banter were very notable within the first thirty pages. By then, I knew in my gut I was going to enjoy these characters, opposites in many ways, and yet both engaging and a treat to get to know. One of my favorite lines came after a misunderstanding between Chase and Amos toward the end of the book when Chase “cocooned myself up in my covers and wallowed like a sad burrito until I fell asleep.” I loved that line, as it was heartfelt, visual, and very relatable. I could see exactly how he looked as he pouted and whined.

 

I’ve always enjoyed this author’s stories but this is, by far, one of my top favorites. I’m pleased with not only the development and outcome of the romance but also with the look into reality TV and method acting. The author provided an excellent summary, learned the hard way by the cast of this story: “They [viewers] wouldn’t know the personal cost. Like all viewers of any form of entertainment. It’s a different story when the cameras stop rolling.”

 

As I said, I was caught up from the beginning and enjoyed every minute of reading pleasure. But the ending minutes also provided food for thought printed on a T-shirt: “Not everyone’s happy ever after has to end with being in love.” And then at the finale to their project: “Sometimes it’s learning about yourself. It’s about loving yourself and knowing your own self-worth and finding people to call friends. Sometimes that’s the best happy ever after.”

 

Truth!

 

I very highly recommend this to all lovers of MM romance.

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by the author via GRRT for the purpose of a review.

 

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 302 pages
Heat Level
Publication Date	19-July-2024
Price	$5.99 ebook, $18.00 paperback
Buy Link	https://www.amazon.com/Method-Acting-N-R-Walker-ebook/dp/B0CTHSHRD9