Picture Perfect By: Lucie Simone *Guest Post & Review*

(Click the Tour Logo To Check Out The Full Tour Schedule! You'll see more Reviews, Guest Posts...And More!)

Hello Everyone! Thanks for stopping by today! I am very happy to be hosting Lucie Simone's Novel: Picture Perfect! You will see a wonderful Guest Post by Lucie, and my Review is below too! Also, thank you so much to both Lucie and CLP Blog Tours for letting me participate in this tour and for a copy of the book!


Book Description

For Lauren Tate, a high-powered TV producer, sex, lies, and scandal make for a great movie-of-the-week, but when she becomes the target of a smear campaign, even the most salacious of Hollywood’s tales can’t compare to her real life drama. With her soon-to-be-ex-husband leading the effort to sully her reputation, and her former assistant threatening to snatch her hard-earned position at Timeless Television out of her hands, Lauren’s perfectly planned life quickly begins to unravel at the seams.

Clawing her way back to the top of the TV food chain is no easy task, especially in an industry where backstabbing is a sport and gossip is a full time business. But Lauren learns just how cut-throat showbiz can truly be when the hottest scandal in Tinsel Town turns deadly and the Hollywood hunk who’s stolen her heart is missing in action. Can she salvage her career, her reputation, and her love life? Or will Hollywood be the death of her?

Guest Post

Behind The Scenes
By Lucie Simone

Picture Perfect started life over a decade ago as a screenplay. Well, the first ten pages of a screenplay. I’d gone to film school and I figured a great way to break into the business was to write screenplays. And I wrote several. But by the time I started Picture Perfect, I’d become quite disillusioned by Hollywood. I’d seen how my friends were killing themselves to get agents, to get contracts, to get a job. And I put Picture Perfect and my dreams of working in entertainment behind me. I got a day job that paid well, but offered no creative outlet whatsoever, so I started writing my first novel, Hollywood Ending, in my spare time. It took six long years and lots of hard work to bring Hollywood Ending to the light of day.

One of the reasons it took me so long to write my first novel was because I kept writing all sorts of other stuff. I wrote short stories, novellas, bits of other novels and occasionally tinkered with my old screenplays. But when I finally decided to focus my efforts on finishing one project at a time, I knew it had to be Hollywood Ending, a romantic comedy about life in Hollywood for the not-so-rich-and-famous, because it was my story. My frustration with trying to find a career, follow my dreams, and fall in love with a good man. There’s a lot of me in that book, and I just had to get it out. Once it was finished, I was ready to move on. To tell someone else’s story. And that’s where Picture Perfect came in.

After sharing a story about being on the outside looking in, I knew I wanted to focus on those inside the bubble next. The movers and shakers in Hollywood. Having lived in Los Angeles a long time, having gone to film school, having worked in and around the entertainment industry for years, I knew that showbiz wasn’t just about glitz and glamour. It was also about sacrifices, politics, gossip and back-stabbing. And I wanted to explore the world behind the cameras and red carpets. Where everything isn’t quite as picture perfect as it seems.

From lowly receptionists to the heads of film studios, everyone in the entertainment industry is susceptible to scandal. And all it takes is a bit of bad press to ruin a career. With Picture Perfect, I was able to delve into the side of the business that most don’t see – from the boardrooms to the bedrooms. The dealmakers, the star-makers, and the dream-takers. They all have a role to play in Picture Perfect, where everyone is just one big box office flop away from getting their heads lopped off. And what better arena to play out the dramas of this high-stakes world than at a cable television network? Once I’d decided on that, it all just came together in true movie-of-the-week fashion with rumors, lies, betrayals,  and even a little murder thrown in for good measure.  It’s juicy good fun! 

Review

Picture Perfect really revolves around a portion of the Hollywood industry, and it was really interesting, especially reading it from Lauren Tate’s POV. She was a great character that could be perhaps seen as relatable, is in her mid thirties, and within a few weeks faces so much including keeping her high power but demanding Job, deceit and lies from her now soon to be ex-husband who happens to be a cheater, a conniving ex assistant that wants Lauren's job, a hot romance with a leading actor...but wait, there’s MORE including a scandal, murder, very big surprises that just makes this Chick-Lit Novel an astounding and desirable read! 

Some of the characters were really wonderful ones including Lauren’s BFF, Justine, who has a knack for Poetry and just seems like a great friend. Then there’s the Actor, Jack, and he was a very nice and sexy character to read about, and you can just tell from the first few chapters that Lauren and him have a crazy and good connection. This quick passionate romance has some obstacles though and you will read what they are. 

What I also enjoyed was the writing as everything flowed very well, and by the end, I really wanted to read more, but I’m pretty satisfied! Also, I loved that it was of course in Los Angeles, with a few New York perks, and there was a slight mention of my hometown, so I liked relating to some of the locations mentioned. 

Lastly, I just want to say that this is a lovely story! I really enjoyed it! This is one where I just kept on reading and I couldn’t stop and I hope you read it! :)

My Rating: 4.2/5

I say Mildly R-Rated

Author Bio

Lucie Simone has a passion for travel, yoga, and writing. She has a degree in Journalism, a Master of Fine Arts in Television Production, and is a certified yoga teacher registered with Yoga Alliance. Her love of comedy (and living under the delusion that she might one day be an actress) resulted in a stint studying improvisation, which, ironically enough, taught her to be a better writer.

Her short story, A Taste of Italy, won the New York Book Festival competition for best ebook and is a bestseller at Amazon UK. The release of her debut novel, Hollywood Ending, a romantic comedy about life in Hollywood for the not-so-rich-and-famous, marked the launch of her small press, Simon & Fig, which publishes Chick Lit, Lad Lit and Women’s Fiction exclusively.

Lucie lives, loves and writes in the City of Angels, but considers New York City her second home and visits as often as her bank account will allow. 

Blog/Website/Simon & Fig/Twitter/Facebook/Pinterest

E-Book/Print