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Number One Fan
Imogen Reilly wants two things in life: to take care of her adult brother, Austin, who has Down Syndrome, and to meet movie star, Dolian Crawford. She has been his biggest fan for his entire career.
So when luck comes her way and Imogen wins a chance to attend his movie premiere as a celebrity gossip blogger, she jumps at the opportunity. Personalities clash on the red carpet, however, and two people wind up dead. She definitely catches Dolian’s eye when she becomes the prime suspect.
Desperate to prove her innocence, Imogen investigates the murders on her own. Only what she uncovers throws Dolian in a whole new light. Can she find the killer and maintain Dolian’s A-list celebrity status? Or does obsession trump all?
So when luck comes her way and Imogen wins a chance to attend his movie premiere as a celebrity gossip blogger, she jumps at the opportunity. Personalities clash on the red carpet, however, and two people wind up dead. She definitely catches Dolian’s eye when she becomes the prime suspect.
Desperate to prove her innocence, Imogen investigates the murders on her own. Only what she uncovers throws Dolian in a whole new light. Can she find the killer and maintain Dolian’s A-list celebrity status? Or does obsession trump all?
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Published August 16, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
August 8, 2024
This isn't my favorite genre to read. I typically find the stories written with similar formulas without a whole lot of imagination. I feel like they are often written with more effort in trying to 'throw you off' than putting the creativity towards just writing a good story.
However, Number One Fan is written extremely well! It's short, so it's not filled with a bunch of nonsense. I literally had no idea what was going to happen and best of all I didn't feel as if I was being coaxed in the (obvious the entire time) wrong direction!
Better yet, the twists at the end didn't piss me off with blatant regard to common sense (like a certain book I just finished for Book Club lol)
Even though I had a slight hunch with what was (potentially) going to come about with one of the characters, I truly didn't see the corkscrew twists at the climax. Nor could I have even dreamed the conclusion of the story!
Number One Fan is a very well rounded, very thoroughly written thriller... ESPECIALLY with it being so short!
I actually don't even have anything negative to say or even constructively criticize.
Job well done Samantha Gail!
However, Number One Fan is written extremely well! It's short, so it's not filled with a bunch of nonsense. I literally had no idea what was going to happen and best of all I didn't feel as if I was being coaxed in the (obvious the entire time) wrong direction!
Better yet, the twists at the end didn't piss me off with blatant regard to common sense (like a certain book I just finished for Book Club lol)
Even though I had a slight hunch with what was (potentially) going to come about with one of the characters, I truly didn't see the corkscrew twists at the climax. Nor could I have even dreamed the conclusion of the story!
Number One Fan is a very well rounded, very thoroughly written thriller... ESPECIALLY with it being so short!
I actually don't even have anything negative to say or even constructively criticize.
Job well done Samantha Gail!
August 7, 2024
Sam is going to turn me into a thriller reader, I swear.
This book was fast paced and I seriously could not keep up with the twists and turns.
We follow Imogen, a celebrity blogger who lives at home with her mom and brother who has autism, who has been obsessed with actor Dolian Crawford her entire life.
After winning an online contest, she gets the opportunity to go to the red carpet premier of his new film. However, she definitely did not expect to find herself as the prime suspect in a murder case.
This book was fast paced and I seriously could not keep up with the twists and turns.
We follow Imogen, a celebrity blogger who lives at home with her mom and brother who has autism, who has been obsessed with actor Dolian Crawford her entire life.
After winning an online contest, she gets the opportunity to go to the red carpet premier of his new film. However, she definitely did not expect to find herself as the prime suspect in a murder case.
August 17, 2024
This book is fast-paced. There is a lot of action going on. I literally read this book within a few hours. The ending gave some unexpected turns. I love that it kept you guessing. Who doesn't want to be swept off their feet by a hunky actor? I really like all the different diversity in characters, especially bringing light to people with disabilities. The mystery and suspense this book brings 😚. If you are looking for smut, this is not it, but if you want to ride the mind game ferris wheel, go ahead and open this book.
August 5, 2024
4 1/2 stars rounded up to five.
I was not expecting that ending! Normally, I am so terrible at looking ahead in books and finding out certain things that happen. With this being a psychological thriller, I knew I needed to let everything build and let myself be surprised. The anticipation to find out what was going on and my curiosity to see if my theories were correct led to me devouring this book. The writing was so smooth and flowed wonderfully. I was completely sucked in!
I'm kind of scared to say too much about this book because I don't want to give anything away. I will say that I did like how this book made me think. In today's day and age, I think everyone has had a celebrity crush at one point, and if a person hasn't, they've probably observed the obsessive behavior of others as they support their favorite artists. A certain level of support and love is okay, but where is the line when it becomes dangerous? Even outside of supporting celebrities, obsession on any one thing can destroy someone's life. It was really interesting to see this concept be explored and how people can make excuses for the things they love even when there are red flags all around.
I also appreciated the inclusion of people with disabilities and recognizing the impact their care has on their families / caretakers. I felt the push and pull of loving someone and wanting to take of them, but also feeling the pain and burden of not having the freedom to live the life they may have dreamed of.
Excellent read!
Thank you to the author for allowing me to read this ARC! I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I was not expecting that ending! Normally, I am so terrible at looking ahead in books and finding out certain things that happen. With this being a psychological thriller, I knew I needed to let everything build and let myself be surprised. The anticipation to find out what was going on and my curiosity to see if my theories were correct led to me devouring this book. The writing was so smooth and flowed wonderfully. I was completely sucked in!
I'm kind of scared to say too much about this book because I don't want to give anything away. I will say that I did like how this book made me think. In today's day and age, I think everyone has had a celebrity crush at one point, and if a person hasn't, they've probably observed the obsessive behavior of others as they support their favorite artists. A certain level of support and love is okay, but where is the line when it becomes dangerous? Even outside of supporting celebrities, obsession on any one thing can destroy someone's life. It was really interesting to see this concept be explored and how people can make excuses for the things they love even when there are red flags all around.
I also appreciated the inclusion of people with disabilities and recognizing the impact their care has on their families / caretakers. I felt the push and pull of loving someone and wanting to take of them, but also feeling the pain and burden of not having the freedom to live the life they may have dreamed of.
Excellent read!
Thank you to the author for allowing me to read this ARC! I am leaving this review voluntarily.
August 17, 2024
Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Spice: 🌶️
POV: 3rd person
Tropes: psychological thriller, twists & turns, stalking, obsession, movie star, murd3r, disability/caregiver rep, different worlds, celebrity gossip blogger/aspiring influencer
Psychological thrillers are not my first choice genre but this was written fantastically! A perfect, shorter length that was able to keep me guessing with what was going to happen next! I’ve always said that if there is romance the suspense can be meh and still be a 5⭐️ read but if there’s little to no romance, the author has to absolutely knock it out of the park. Samantha did NOT disappoint and absolutely knocked it out of the park!
The story follows Imogen, an up and coming celebrity gossip blogger. Living at home with her mom who works 3 jobs, Imogen is the primary caregiver for her younger brother who has Down syndrome. Thinking she’s won the opportunity of a lifetime and a way to kickstart her blog, she finds out she is the winner of a competition to be a part of the media team for the summers biggest blockbuster featuring her childhood crush Dolian Crawford!
The night doesn’t go at all how she imagined it and ends up running out after meeting her dream man and being confronted by someone she once looked up to. The next morning she awakes to find out there’s been a double murder with her at the centre of the investigation.
The ending was amazing and I could not wait to have everything come together!
Spice: 🌶️
POV: 3rd person
Tropes: psychological thriller, twists & turns, stalking, obsession, movie star, murd3r, disability/caregiver rep, different worlds, celebrity gossip blogger/aspiring influencer
Psychological thrillers are not my first choice genre but this was written fantastically! A perfect, shorter length that was able to keep me guessing with what was going to happen next! I’ve always said that if there is romance the suspense can be meh and still be a 5⭐️ read but if there’s little to no romance, the author has to absolutely knock it out of the park. Samantha did NOT disappoint and absolutely knocked it out of the park!
The story follows Imogen, an up and coming celebrity gossip blogger. Living at home with her mom who works 3 jobs, Imogen is the primary caregiver for her younger brother who has Down syndrome. Thinking she’s won the opportunity of a lifetime and a way to kickstart her blog, she finds out she is the winner of a competition to be a part of the media team for the summers biggest blockbuster featuring her childhood crush Dolian Crawford!
The night doesn’t go at all how she imagined it and ends up running out after meeting her dream man and being confronted by someone she once looked up to. The next morning she awakes to find out there’s been a double murder with her at the centre of the investigation.
The ending was amazing and I could not wait to have everything come together!
September 3, 2024
I deviated away from the dark and romantic comedies and read Number One Fan. This book is so different from the previous book I read by Samantha, and it shows her fluidity in the writing world!
This book is a suspense and sort of romantic thriller with a twist. And then another twist. And then a few more twists added in. It took me on a ride.
Imogen lives in poverty with her mother and younger brother who she cares for. His Down Syndrome makes it necessary that he have 24 hour supervision, and even though Imogen has no problems at all with taking care of him, she struggles to get her desired career off and running.
Imogen wants to be a writer/blogger for the entertainment industry. She has the opportunity to meet up with her long time screen crush, Dolian Crawford and of course she's going to make the best of it. That might sets a series of events into motion and without spoiling anything, it's love and obsession and lies from that night on. People are murdered, Imogen is a suspect, Dolian is always there to help. Help?
The writing was good but I would have really liked to get a little more depth in the characters. Things seemed kind of surface level with them.
For a thriller, it hit the mark.
Story: 4/5⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 0/5
Characters: 2/5 🌶️🌶️
Thrill factor with twists: 5/5 🎢🎢🎢🎢🎢
This book is a suspense and sort of romantic thriller with a twist. And then another twist. And then a few more twists added in. It took me on a ride.
Imogen lives in poverty with her mother and younger brother who she cares for. His Down Syndrome makes it necessary that he have 24 hour supervision, and even though Imogen has no problems at all with taking care of him, she struggles to get her desired career off and running.
Imogen wants to be a writer/blogger for the entertainment industry. She has the opportunity to meet up with her long time screen crush, Dolian Crawford and of course she's going to make the best of it. That might sets a series of events into motion and without spoiling anything, it's love and obsession and lies from that night on. People are murdered, Imogen is a suspect, Dolian is always there to help. Help?
The writing was good but I would have really liked to get a little more depth in the characters. Things seemed kind of surface level with them.
For a thriller, it hit the mark.
Story: 4/5⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 0/5
Characters: 2/5 🌶️🌶️
Thrill factor with twists: 5/5 🎢🎢🎢🎢🎢
August 17, 2024
I received an ARC of this book. All thoughts are my own.
WOW. I have to say this book kept me guessing. Right to the very end. Through all the twists and curves and absolutely insane twists, I really enjoyed this book! At times I wanted to just reach in the book and shake Imogen - but then I remembered how sheltered her life was, and I just wanted to give her a hug.
After winning a contest to attend the movie premiere of Hollywood's hottest actor, Dolian Crawford, Imogen takes it as a sign that her entertainment blog is finally going to take off. But when she gets into a tiff with a news reporter and two people are dead after the premiere, what else could possibly go wrong? As Imogen is thrust into the life of Dolian Crawford, she starts to see just how things can get twisted. Man. I honestly can't explain how surprised I was at the ending. I won't spoil 'cause that's not how I roll.
The tension at times had my muscles flexing, and seeing everything through Imogen's eyes helped amp up the suspense. She was so naïve that she legit had zero clue who to trust. The end wasn't exactly a happy ending, but it was honestly the best outcome.
I love books that take me on a rollercoaster of emotions. This one checked off all the boxes!
WOW. I have to say this book kept me guessing. Right to the very end. Through all the twists and curves and absolutely insane twists, I really enjoyed this book! At times I wanted to just reach in the book and shake Imogen - but then I remembered how sheltered her life was, and I just wanted to give her a hug.
After winning a contest to attend the movie premiere of Hollywood's hottest actor, Dolian Crawford, Imogen takes it as a sign that her entertainment blog is finally going to take off. But when she gets into a tiff with a news reporter and two people are dead after the premiere, what else could possibly go wrong? As Imogen is thrust into the life of Dolian Crawford, she starts to see just how things can get twisted. Man. I honestly can't explain how surprised I was at the ending. I won't spoil 'cause that's not how I roll.
The tension at times had my muscles flexing, and seeing everything through Imogen's eyes helped amp up the suspense. She was so naïve that she legit had zero clue who to trust. The end wasn't exactly a happy ending, but it was honestly the best outcome.
I love books that take me on a rollercoaster of emotions. This one checked off all the boxes!
August 15, 2024
Despite her young age of 22, Imogen is the main caretaker for the brother, Austin, who has Down Syndrome. Due to the care that he needs, Imogen is trying to become an influencer via her Hollywood Unmasked blog so that she can support both of them while working flexibly.
All her life, she has had a crush on celebrity actor Dolian. So when she finally meets him, it is like a dream come true. However, as she gets to know him better, her instinct tells her to be wary. Though he treats her well, is he doing this at the expense of others?
Read this with an open mind as this is not a typical romance novel. In fact, it veers more towards a dark romance so do check out the content warnings before you start reading!
Overall, the pace was quick and the buildup towards the ending was done such that it is believable. My favourite part though was when it was Imogen and Austin against the world. Caregiving is not easy and Imogen has indeed done an amazing job being one to Austin.
All her life, she has had a crush on celebrity actor Dolian. So when she finally meets him, it is like a dream come true. However, as she gets to know him better, her instinct tells her to be wary. Though he treats her well, is he doing this at the expense of others?
Read this with an open mind as this is not a typical romance novel. In fact, it veers more towards a dark romance so do check out the content warnings before you start reading!
Overall, the pace was quick and the buildup towards the ending was done such that it is believable. My favourite part though was when it was Imogen and Austin against the world. Caregiving is not easy and Imogen has indeed done an amazing job being one to Austin.
August 9, 2024
Imogen has an obsession with celebrity movie star, Dolian Crawford. She’s been following him since she was a teenager and he was her inspiration for starting her celebrity gossip blog. When Imogen wins a contest that allows her to meet Dolian, she’s elated… until she’s not. There’s red flags that appear regarding his behaviors, but she’s so infatuated that she’s willing to look over them. Until Dolian does something almost unforgivable.
I teetered between 3 and 4 stars for this read. I wanted to initially give it 3 due to small plot items I had trouble understanding and a personal book ick at the end. BUT THEN THE PLOT TWIST HAD ME GIVING IT 4!!! And when I reframed how in my mind how Imogen was obsessed with Dolian, I was willing to forgive the ick. Samanthas writing kept me hooked and it was a fast read (which I love for thrillers). Planning on reading more of her in the future!
I teetered between 3 and 4 stars for this read. I wanted to initially give it 3 due to small plot items I had trouble understanding and a personal book ick at the end. BUT THEN THE PLOT TWIST HAD ME GIVING IT 4!!! And when I reframed how in my mind how Imogen was obsessed with Dolian, I was willing to forgive the ick. Samanthas writing kept me hooked and it was a fast read (which I love for thrillers). Planning on reading more of her in the future!
August 7, 2024
Number One Fan delves into the darker side of celebrity obsession.
We follow Imogen, a celebrity gossip blogger who gets the chance to meet her favorite actor Dorian at the premier for his new movie. Things take a turn when two people at the premier get murdered and Imogen is the primary suspect.
I liked the concept of this book, but the delivery just fell flat for me. The plot felt very predictable. The characters felt one dimensional and I didn't understand most of their motivations. The dialogue in the book felt quite stilted. I did like the nuanced way the author handled Imogen's relationship with her brother Austin, who had Down Syndrome. That depiction felt very real and I liked seeing an accurate portrayal in a book.
2 stars
We follow Imogen, a celebrity gossip blogger who gets the chance to meet her favorite actor Dorian at the premier for his new movie. Things take a turn when two people at the premier get murdered and Imogen is the primary suspect.
I liked the concept of this book, but the delivery just fell flat for me. The plot felt very predictable. The characters felt one dimensional and I didn't understand most of their motivations. The dialogue in the book felt quite stilted. I did like the nuanced way the author handled Imogen's relationship with her brother Austin, who had Down Syndrome. That depiction felt very real and I liked seeing an accurate portrayal in a book.
2 stars
September 2, 2024
What a crazy read about obsession and the lengths one might go to in order to get their ultimate prize. Who would not love to be the object of a celebrity’s attention. Of course this book shows to be careful what you wish for. There were many red flags about Dolian but because Imogen did not have a very good childhood it was easy for Dolian to show up and sweep her off her feet. And even when she was concerned about his behavior she tried to excuse others concerns. Only when it was to late did Imogen decide that Dolian was not a good match. I was impressed with the authors writing. The story flowed really well and some scenes were pretty scary. A ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read.
August 17, 2024
This book was suspenseful. The work up to the 🤯 moment had me on edge.
Imogen is a girl with a lot going on in life who is trying to make her way in gossip blogging. Dolian Crawford is a Hollywood celebrity that Imogen has had her eye on for a long time. Imogen’s world collides with Dolian’s and a lot of crazy things start happening. Imogen is trying to figure out what is going on as if it’s a story she’s reporting on.
There is a lot to this book but I don’t want to give away too many details. Thrillers are hard to write up about because so many details may seem innocent but might actually mean something big…
Samantha is a new up and coming author! Check out her work!
Imogen is a girl with a lot going on in life who is trying to make her way in gossip blogging. Dolian Crawford is a Hollywood celebrity that Imogen has had her eye on for a long time. Imogen’s world collides with Dolian’s and a lot of crazy things start happening. Imogen is trying to figure out what is going on as if it’s a story she’s reporting on.
There is a lot to this book but I don’t want to give away too many details. Thrillers are hard to write up about because so many details may seem innocent but might actually mean something big…
Samantha is a new up and coming author! Check out her work!
August 17, 2024
What a fun thriller! NUMBER ONE FAN delves into the world of Hollywood glamour and obsession, all while showing the different nuances of living in that world. Gail’s writing is truly immersive, and I felt like I was living a different life.
I also especially enjoyed Austin’s character and Imogen’s relationship with him. It was a beautiful ode to those with Down Syndrome and their caregivers.
Read if you like:
🎥 Hollywood celebrities
🍿 Fast-paced entertainment
💻 Gossip blogs
🫣 Obsession
💀 Murder mystery
I also especially enjoyed Austin’s character and Imogen’s relationship with him. It was a beautiful ode to those with Down Syndrome and their caregivers.
Read if you like:
🎥 Hollywood celebrities
🍿 Fast-paced entertainment
💻 Gossip blogs
🫣 Obsession
💀 Murder mystery
August 8, 2024
ARC read.......WOW! This was a masterpiece. Once you think you have things figured out, another twist throws you off. The ending had me reeling with a range of emotions. You will never see it coming. I think we can all agree after reading that we need to keep Austin safe at all costs.
September 20, 2024
I was one of the lucky arc receivers for this book and goodness I was obsessed! I literally could not put it down, Imogen is such a complex character and I love how this author pulls you in with the details.
August 9, 2024
This book was a wild ride from start to finish. The twists and turns kept me guessing during the whole book. I figured out part of the story, but by the end I realized I'd only figured out one piece of the puzzle. Overall, a good read!
April 26, 2025
This had me on my toes for sure ! I thought everyone was it 🤣🤣 the confession at the end had my jaw on the floor !
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