Sometimes, all that glitters is rather deadly. Young people are forced to ‘glitter’ according to others expectations, forced to keep anything ‘gold’ or real, hidden out of fear of what those with power will do to them, or how they’ll be exploited further, as their will is mended to their will and take advantage of, especially in Hollywood.
Omni, an evil entertainment empire will go to any lengths to gain fame, viewership and fortune, even if they have to get their hands dirty, or blood red. Young actor Abel Miller, also undercover journalist, is determined to take Omni on and expose them for good. He knows they killed his brother and covered it up as a sucuide, who was working as assistant director on the second reboot on Omni cursed teen show, Sunset High. Omni’s shady history of going to finger lengths to maintain their ‘squeaky clean’ yet tantalising image at any cost, makes Abel certain they’re the real monsters, taking it out on their casts and crews. Abel gets himself cast in the latest reboot of Sunset High to go undercover and solve the mystery for good.
Will Abel find justice for his brother, betray his fellow cast mates or will Omni take him out too. These are the risks that must be taken in Benjamin Dean’s heart pounding LGBTQA+ Hollywood set thriller, How to Die Famous.
I absolutely devoured this book in no time. Just when you think you’ve solved the case, a curveball is thrown at you, meaning no one is safe; as Abel navigates the exploitative homophobic way of life as a celebrity actor and as as undercover journalist, and just as a person with a heart, as he’s determined to find justice for his brother at any cost. Theres no need to discover the killer in this mystery, it’s clear it’s Omni, how and why they did it, the motive, that’s the beating heart of Albel and later the rest of Sunset High’s cast, Ryan, Ella and Lucky’s mission to take down Omni and take back control of their lives, identities and relationships.
It’s an incredible mystery and poignant essential statement on childhood exploitation, the darkness of Hollywood and discrimination, forced closets and attacks against the LGBTQ+ community for simply being who they are and finding someone they love, and wanting to be free and accepted. Abel and the rest of the Sunset High cast are tormented and explicated by Omni and even the general public, for fear of being outed, and exiled from Hollywood. Ryan is being stalked and threatened into a fake relationship, forced to hide her relationship with co star Ella. Ella is exploited and abused by her fame fortune hungry mother. Lucky has turned to alcohol after Omni killed his mother by calling the paparazzi on them, and forced into fake relationships with Ryan and then Ella, even though the one persons he actually has feelings for his new cast mate Abel, who is tortured by his brothers death and struggles to betray and lie to his cast mates and thrown himself into danger to hold Omni accountable for what they do to his brothers, and others like them.
Aside from Benjamin Dena dealing with other important issues such as childhood exploitation in the entertainment industry, trauma and mental health; he delivers intelligently written, heartfelt love and relatable experiences, and raises awareness of the experiences of LGBTQA+ youth, as they are forced to stay in the closets, pretend to be in straight presenting relationships and being outed against their will by the media. They’re not only cast mates, but found family and soulmates, as Abel & Lucky, and Ryan & Ella, support and accept each other, even when they are being hunted by Omni, the public and their own trauma and mental health struggles, and do not shame or dismiss the other’s feelings and experiences.
It’s so incredible to see more LGBTQA+ representation, especially for younger people, in an age of entertainment, news and social media, and in the crime, thriller and mystery genre. Benjamin Dean is an inspiration for how intelligently, understandingly and amazingly has included and represented gay relationships and experiences through Abel, Lucky, Ella and Ryan, that is not the only important thing about them but it still apart of who they are, as they fight to be seen and to love.
Although, Abel’s pov is largely prominent, there are multiple pov chapters from Lucky, Ryan and Ella, along with surprise appearance from the povs do those closely connected to Abel’s case against Omni. It allows us to get not only all the clues and revealing details, but also understand and live the fears, hopes, and experiences of Abel and the cast, making it all the more impactful on us as the readers. This is especially the case as Abel, Lucky, Ryan and Ella deal with suspicious and suspenseful clues and events in the case and their relationship shops with each other n other and themselves, as the ever powerful haunting presence of Omni makes their own moves and counter moves.
The sheer volume and intensity of all the twists, reveals and cliffhangers enhance the fats laced tune and unpredictable outcomes, that makes for the perfect thriller. New clues mean new problems and new dangers, that add to the increasingly difficult double life of lead ‘crime solver’, undercover journalist and actor Abel Miller. It’s made all the more real as Dean draws upon his background in celebrity journalism for Abel’s character, and the role of the media in entertainment and celebrities, making any of the red herrings and plot twists of the book’s mystery all the more intriguing and shocking with a level of realism to it.
If you’re looking for an fast paced murder thriller full of suspense and mystery, with well developed characters and LGBTQA+ representation, How to Die Famous is an one of the best books you will ever read.
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