How to Be a Movie Star

This book is really cute and sweet and lovely and warm and fuzzy. It talks a lot about mental health, queer representation in media, love, friends, consent, friends who don't push you to do stuff you're not comfortable with, and just generally a lot of sweet stuff. There's no angst in this. Lots of hand holding and hugging and stoned conversations. And weed, lots of it. But in a good way.

TJ Klune is my new favourite author.

I should also mention that audiobook was perfection. The narrator sounded stoned, the writing was stoned. Was this book written while the author was stoned? Because it was awesome. Also, I keep hearing Gustavo in my head going ‘Oh my God! What the hell.'

I actually postponed writing this review for about a day in the hopes that it would be a little less word-vomit-y. It probably won't be, because the fact is, I have a lot of feelings about this book.

First of all, I personally feel that this is pretty excellent demisexual rep. I'm always on the look out not just for romances novels that aren't barely concealed erotica but for ones that allow demisexual and ace characters and their partners to feel fulfilled without having to have sex. I personally feel a lot of books fail on this and I often turn towards fanfiction. However, I was really, really happy with the demi rep here. (And will be reading the first in the series eventually to get what I am sure will be awesome ace rep.)

What else I think this book did right: Consent - one of the pair is high when they confess their mushy feelings and the other does not want to kiss them until they are sober. Mental health - I personally can see some of myself in Quincy and his words, as well as other people's in the story that have depression and/or anxiety, makes me feel very warm and fuzzy. A lovely take that to the people that think because a man is sexually attracted to another male for the first time in his life after being exclusively into women that he must be gay (of course he's not gay, you biphobic creeps). A wonderful slow build friends to lovers romance. Humor that actually works for me.

(I listened to this audio book over the space of five days, most of that time being taken up walking outside and cleaning two houses (almost completely alone for both jobs). I do not recommend reading/listening to this book around others. I laughed a lot during my walk that first day and was feeling extremely warm and mushy during my walk that fourth day.)

Now, all this might have been enough for this book to wrangle out a five star review. Because there were so many things it did well, so many things that I love in my romance novels and so many things that just make me so happy. However, it took about a third of the book, I think, before Josy and Quincy were really sharing much page time. Also, it took a surprisingly long time before Quincy was even introduced. There is a lot at the beginning of the book that it just Josy being...Josy. It's funny, but I much prefer when the people involved in the romance meet early, early in the book. (First ten pages? Yeah, I'm good with that.)

Final note:

This book is solely narrated by Josy. Usually I would complain about that. Here, I think it actually works because it let's us see Quincy loosing it over Josy being so unaware of everything he's doing to that poor boy. Also, it keeps the book from falling into the first meeting sexual attraction thing that happens so often when a romance is narrated by an allosexual character. I also do not think I would have handled Quincy's anxiety well if we would have had to be in his head during several moments (though, specifically, his introduction) in the story.