First published 2023
Lily watches Hollywood celebrities descend on her quiet coastal town of Pippi Beach for the summer. While her mother Lydia gets swept up in the excitement, Lily finds the movie stars shallow and self-important, particularly the famous Dorian Khan. A charming backpacker named Alex reinforces her judgment by sharing damaging stories about Dorian's character. When Lily travels to Los Angeles, family friend Wilson introduces her to the movie industry's power players, including producer Stacy Black. The Hollywood machine both fascinates and disgusts her with its excess and artifice. Then Dorian Khan unexpectedly seeks her out, challenging everything she believed about him. As Lily navigates between her small town values and the glittering world of fame, she must confront an uncomfortable possibility: that her quick judgments may have made her exactly the kind of person she never wanted to become.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, coming-of-age, contemporary, young-adult, contemporary-romance
Vibes: character-driven, emotionally-complex, introspective, romantic, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water, misjudgment-corrected, second-chance
Setting: Pippi Beach, Los Angeles, Hollywood
384 pages · Paperback · Walker Books Australia