Act Like It by Lucy Parker

Narrated by Billie Fulford-Brown

Lucy Parker’s début romance, Act Like It has been on my radar since one of my fellow reviewers at All About Romance rated it very highly at the end of last year. As often happens, I never find the time to squeeze in all the books I want to read alongside the ones on my review TBR, so I pounce on them when and if they come out in audio format instead. Set among the world of West End Theatre, Act Like It is a thoroughly enjoyable, feel-good Rom Com which revolves around the fake relationship engineered between a bad-boy actor and his likeable, popular co-star. It’s well put-together, there’s plenty of wry humour and digs at celebrity culture; and although the author isn’t British (she’s a New Zealander) her English is idiomatic so that the whole feel of the story – language, tone and rhythm – is naturally British and not located three thousand miles West of Galway Bay.

Byronically handsome star of the West End stage Richard Troy has recently been living up to his bad-boy image rather too much for the liking of his agent, his publicist and the manager of the theatre where he’s currently performing. Never one to suffer fools gladly, the gossip columns gleefully report that his latest tantrum involved a shouting match with a notable chef and a full-scale offensive on the tableware at a posh London restaurant – and there comes a point at which the public’s good will towards the antics of a likeable jack-the-lad turns into dislike. And Richard has passed it. Although he is undoubtedly a hugely talented actor, his reputation is causing a drop in bums-on-seats, so it’s time for a concerted PR campaign to try to restore some of the good faith his recent behaviour has lost.

To do this, his agent and the theatre management come up with a plan straight out of the 1940s movie industry. Elaine – Lainie – Graham is a rising star and currently playing a lead role in the play in which Richard is cast as the villain. She’s got a bubbly personality and is well liked by fans and the media… what could be better for Richard’s image than to be seen ‘stepping out’ with a reigning sweetheart of the London stage?

Lainie is utterly opposed to the idea. Not only is she sure Richard doesn’t even know her name, she has recently ended a relationship with another member of the company, Will Farmer, and doesn’t want to seem as though she’s bed-hopping amongst her cast mates. Not that “Richard” and “bed” are ever going to be parts of the same train of thought in her mind. Nope. Not. Ever. Richard is similarly unimpressed by the idea, but, reminded that his aspirations to the Chair of the Royal Society of the Performing Arts are likely to be affected if his name keeps generating negative publicity, and with promises to Lainie of a large donation to her favourite charity, they agree to the scheme. For a month, they’ll make a show of being an item. Assuming they don’t kill each other first.

The fake-relationship trope is one I generally like, although it’s sometimes difficult to buy into as there aren’t that many situations which call for it. Not so here though, as the idea of a PR-engineered romance in order to sustain or improve public image is 100% easy to believe. And Lucy Parker doesn’t fall into the trap of having our two antagonists immediately take advantage of the necessary physical closesness to cop a feel or act out on long suppressed fantasies of each other; no, their initial ‘dates’ are awkwardly hilarious as they try to look like a loving couple for the paparazzi while simultaneously snarking at and insulting each other. Lainie is a sympathetic character right from the start and I love that she is so ‘normal’. She gets the tube to work, she feeds her landlady’s cat and she’s got a large, loving family who obviously care about her a very great deal. She’s witty and sarcastic and one of the few people who isn’t intimidated by Richard’s lofty persona and ability to deliver a well-aimed set-down at fifty paces.

I also appreciated that the author doesn’t use Richard’s difficult background – the only child of extremely wealthy parents who had little time for him – to excuse his arsehole-dom. Because there’s no doubt he can be a complete dickhead; he thinks most people are idiots and has a very quick temper. But he’s also funny and sexy and oddly endearing; and as more is revealed about his recent past and his motivations, he becomes easier to like and understand.

The romance develops at a good pace, allowing time for Richard and Lainie to get to know each other a little and I liked the way that Lainie’s growing awareness of Richard as a person rather than an image matches her growing awareness of her attraction to him and his effect on her. We spend most of the time in Lainie’s head, with only a few parts of the story being told from Richard’s PoV, but Ms Parker does such a great job with showing (and not telling) him falling in love that it works, even without the insight into his thought processes.

Billie Fulford-Brown is a narrator whose name I’ve seen around but haven’t listened to before, so I’ll admit to the usual trepidation before listening to a new-to-me narrator for the first time. Fortunately, she’s a very good fit for this particular story; her voice is appropriately youthful and she excels at bringing out the humour and in her delivery of Lainie’s brand of quick-fire wit. Her pacing is good in both narrative and dialogue, and she differentiates effectively between all the characters, mostly by use of a variety of timbre and accent. Her portrayal of Richard fits with the description of his having a plummy, upper-class accent, but the drop in pitch she attempts sounds a bit strained and is sometimes in danger of being monotonous (as in – speaking in a monotone and lacking expression). As with the plummy accent, I can put a lot of that down to Richard’s personality; he plays his cards close to his chest and is wary of letting anyone in, so a tendency to be guarded in his speech is matched by the delivery to an extent. Therefore, while I’m not wild about Ms. Fulford-Brown’s interpretation of him, it does work within the context of the character, and as the audiobook progressed, I found it growing on me.

Act Like It is so strongly written, it’s hard to believe it’s a début novel. The author’s style is extremely engaging, it makes great use of the “fauxmance” trope and it’s guaranteed to raise a smile. Grab yourself a copy – I promise you won’t regret it.

Caz

Narration: B+

Book Content: A-

Steam Factor: Glad I had my earbuds in, but at the tame end

Violence Rating: None

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Harlequin Audio

Act Like It was provided to AudioGals by Harlequin Audio for a review.