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shhchar's review against another edition
4.0
I love this series. It is great for anyone who is fascinated by celebrities and Hollywood. This one focuses on Broadway too. Jen Calonita is a great writer, and I love her Secrets of My Hollywood Life. All of them have been different and unique, which can be hard considering it's book 5. This one was fluffy though.
I feel like the relationship with Austin is repeating. Not being able to make time for eachother is an old subject. I'd like to see the next and final book take on some harder issues than that, which I'm sure it does considering the bio.
Also, is it bad that I ADORE Sky? I think she's one of the most truthful characters, even if she is a b*tch. Without her, this book would have been boring. Dylan and Rylie were a nice addition, although I don't think any guy who allows the girl he supposedly 'likes' to be verbally-beaten by someone else is gentleman. The overuse of British terms were cheesy at points, but did the trick.
Any-who, I recommend reading the first book first. (Of course.) And definitely stick with the series! 4/5 stars.
I feel like the relationship with Austin is repeating. Not being able to make time for eachother is an old subject. I'd like to see the next and final book take on some harder issues than that, which I'm sure it does considering the bio.
Also, is it bad that I ADORE Sky? I think she's one of the most truthful characters, even if she is a b*tch. Without her, this book would have been boring. Dylan and Rylie were a nice addition, although I don't think any guy who allows the girl he supposedly 'likes' to be verbally-beaten by someone else is gentleman. The overuse of British terms were cheesy at points, but did the trick.
Any-who, I recommend reading the first book first. (Of course.) And definitely stick with the series! 4/5 stars.
reddyrat's review against another edition
4.0
I am a huge fan of the Secrets of My Hollywood Life series and eagerly awaited the arrival of the fifth book. Broadway Lights is just as cute, fun, and sweet as its predecessors.
Hollywood switches to New York for this installment (as you might guess from the title). Kaitlyn is starring in a Broadway play for the summer. Her entire world makes the move to NYC with her - Liz, her family, Nadine, Rodney, and even Sky. Lauren and Ava are continual crashers as well. The only missing character is Austin, who is at Lacrosse camp in Texas. The two struggle to keep their relationship going as obstacles come between them - bad phone skills; a cute Lacrosse girl; Kaitlyn's handsome co-star Dylan; etc. The Broadway scene matches the LA scene in cattiness, as Kaitlyn learns from her co-star Riley.
The book follows the same plot formula as the entire series - Kaitlyn is a sweet, normal girl who goes through life trying to be the best she can be and please everyone while still having some backbone. She loves fashion and embraces the celebrity culture without becoming status-obsessed like her mom or conceited like her brother Matty. In some ways Kaitlyn never grows in these books, other than to rediscover that she's already a great person and just needs to stay true to herself. But she's such a likable character that I don't mind at all. She needs to stay the same more than she needs to change. On the other hand, Liz and Sky both grew as characters in this book. Broadway Lights also continues with the insider information about Hollywood and Broadway culture. I love learning "how things really work," whether it's true or not. The book also has lots of information about NYC, especially the cupcake shops. I get a kick out of the script excerpts from the play at the beginning of each chapter - mostly because it's so ridiculous - I can't imagine it being a Broadway production.
My chief complaint about the series is the name-dropping of celebrities. I enjoy the detailed description of fashion and name brands; it's fun to hear about what people are wearing. But the name-dropping is rather silly - "my friend Miley...my friend Vanessa." Some is fine, but I got tired of it after awhile. More importantly, the name-dropping of celebrity and fashion brands dates the books. In five years, the celebrities and fashion will be old news. That's sad because the characters and basic plot are timeless. I'd hate to see the books disappear.
Hollywood switches to New York for this installment (as you might guess from the title). Kaitlyn is starring in a Broadway play for the summer. Her entire world makes the move to NYC with her - Liz, her family, Nadine, Rodney, and even Sky. Lauren and Ava are continual crashers as well. The only missing character is Austin, who is at Lacrosse camp in Texas. The two struggle to keep their relationship going as obstacles come between them - bad phone skills; a cute Lacrosse girl; Kaitlyn's handsome co-star Dylan; etc. The Broadway scene matches the LA scene in cattiness, as Kaitlyn learns from her co-star Riley.
The book follows the same plot formula as the entire series - Kaitlyn is a sweet, normal girl who goes through life trying to be the best she can be and please everyone while still having some backbone. She loves fashion and embraces the celebrity culture without becoming status-obsessed like her mom or conceited like her brother Matty. In some ways Kaitlyn never grows in these books, other than to rediscover that she's already a great person and just needs to stay true to herself. But she's such a likable character that I don't mind at all. She needs to stay the same more than she needs to change. On the other hand, Liz and Sky both grew as characters in this book. Broadway Lights also continues with the insider information about Hollywood and Broadway culture. I love learning "how things really work," whether it's true or not. The book also has lots of information about NYC, especially the cupcake shops. I get a kick out of the script excerpts from the play at the beginning of each chapter - mostly because it's so ridiculous - I can't imagine it being a Broadway production.
My chief complaint about the series is the name-dropping of celebrities. I enjoy the detailed description of fashion and name brands; it's fun to hear about what people are wearing. But the name-dropping is rather silly - "my friend Miley...my friend Vanessa." Some is fine, but I got tired of it after awhile. More importantly, the name-dropping of celebrity and fashion brands dates the books. In five years, the celebrities and fashion will be old news. That's sad because the characters and basic plot are timeless. I'd hate to see the books disappear.
tiffanywang29's review against another edition
5.0
This is actually the first book of the series that I read, but it got me started on all the others.
vtorialeigh's review against another edition
3.0
I remembered these books being so much better than they actually are. Three stars is probably generous.
sidneyellwood's review against another edition
2.0
[review written 2011]
I’ve tried reading Secrets of My Hollywood Life: Broadway Lights once before, but failed. I’m very interested in Broadway, and the only reason I got through it this time was because I know the locations and have been there. I’d visited the Shake Shack twice during my visit to New York.
The book, however, was like most books describing the life of the rich and famous, and frankly, not at all interesting. A lot of the book was quite realistic, but I trust the Hollywood Secrets in the books. (I do wish that I’d read this book before my visit to New York; I might have met Daniel Radcliffe, Norbert Leo Butz and Aaron Tveit if I had.)
I’ve tried reading Secrets of My Hollywood Life: Broadway Lights once before, but failed. I’m very interested in Broadway, and the only reason I got through it this time was because I know the locations and have been there. I’d visited the Shake Shack twice during my visit to New York.
The book, however, was like most books describing the life of the rich and famous, and frankly, not at all interesting. A lot of the book was quite realistic, but I trust the Hollywood Secrets in the books. (I do wish that I’d read this book before my visit to New York; I might have met Daniel Radcliffe, Norbert Leo Butz and Aaron Tveit if I had.)
sequoiawhitney's review against another edition
5.0
Kaitlin Burke is taking on an adult roll on BROADWAY!
Crushes on a guy who isn't your boyfriend! Standing up for what she wants to do with her life! I just hope she choose to go to college in the last book!
Crushes on a guy who isn't your boyfriend! Standing up for what she wants to do with her life! I just hope she choose to go to college in the last book!
skyhazzard's review against another edition
4.0
I liked this one better than the last one. Some of the drama from the last one carried over but it was much more tolerable because Kaitlin had worked through her distress over FA ending in finding this play. Also I just really enjoy the Kaitlin/Sky dynamic.