Mr. Famous

by Carol Wolper

An aging action star attempts reinvention as a serious actor, and the result is pure comedy in this dead-on Hollywood novel from the author of the national bestseller The Cigarette Girl.

After a couple of notable box-office bombs, a former megastar of action flicks finds his career has taken a downturn. Following a period of mourning (and binge-eating), he heeds the sage advice of his personal chef/nutritionist and embarks on a journey of self-discovery and reinvention, hoping to get in touch with his sensitive side and re-create himself as a serious actor.

Meanwhile, Lucinda the chef has problems of her own: It seems someone is stalking her (ex-boyfriend? crazed, hungry fan? rival shopper at the farmers' market?). At the invitation of her boss, Mr. Famous, she moves into his Mulholland mansion, taking up temporary residence in "the bunker," and makes the most of her bird's-eye view of the madness that trails in the wake of a movie star: the ex-wives and girlfriends, teenage offspring, therapists, agents, lawyers, cosmetic surgeons, managers, studio execs, assistants, life coaches, personal trainers, flacks, and fans. In just a few brushstrokes, Carol Wolper captures her "creations" with aching clarity and a little dollop of compassion.

Fast, furious, and funny, Mr. Famous will put a smile on your face from the very first page-the perfect literary counterpart to the action movie season.

Genres: Fiction

272 pages, Hardcover

First published May 24, 2004

Reviews

[Brandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Not the worst book ever (I think I read that one last night; after reading a certain unnamed book, I handed it to my mother and told her to burn it) but it is quite cliched, jumpy and formulaic. On a positive note, it does move quickly (especially for a 272 page book). There is little character development, so it pretty much jumps right into the story.

I think Cigarette Girl was a better story than this one. I actually started reading this one a year or two ago and just got around to finishing it as it did not grab my attention like Ms. Wolper's previous novels did. The characters of Lucinda and Victor were rather bland, which is a shame since the plot was interesting enough, though suspiciously similar to the plots of the previous novels.

Overall, I don't feel like my brain wants to self-destruct from reading it, but I can't say I'd run right out to by a sequel, either, so I chose to give this one a middle rating, or a 3.

[Kat A · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was definitely not as good as The Cigarette Girl. I couldn't really relate to the over sexed, kind of full of herself main character. Granted, she was the personal chef of a faded Hollywood action star with the same personality traits, but they both seemed underdeveloped. The ambiguous ending didn't fit with the rest of the book and the back and forth point of view to a supposedly significant incident didn't seem necessary to the development of the plot. Give it a miss.

[Jend · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I knew nothing about the author and happened to pick the book up on sale for a dollar so I couldn't resist reading it. Once I started reading this, I couldn't stop. For a horror, crime, mystery addict like myself, this book would not normally have found itself into my collection, however, I am happy it did. A fun read!

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book because I remember liking Cigarette Girl but in retrospect, I only remember reading Cigarette Girl, and I may have hated it. At any rate, this is a fun, light read, but unlikely to change your life.

[Jenni · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was a good story, but hated how it skipped back and forth from past to present. Could have been written better.

[Stefanie Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

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