Title: Farewell To Hollywood Series: Red Carpet Romance Series Book 3 Genre: Adult Contemporary Christian Romance
Age Category: Adult
Blurb:
Kate Sullivan wants revenge, but how far will she go to get it?
Successful corporate lawyer Kate Sullivan still carries scars from the car accident that killed her little sister. Five years ago, she fled Los Angeles to the East Coast to escape the memories of the man who was driving the other car. But now that she is back in LA, now that she has seen his face, she won’t stop until she finds him, even if that means breaking the heart of the man who has information she needs.
Movie director Chris Johnston wants to do more than make films about explosions and aliens. He puts his career and his reputation on the line to make a documentary about human trafficking. He had planned on making the film alone, until a feisty and stubborn East Coast lawyer offers to help. But he risks more than his career when Kate joins his production company…he risks his heart as well.
From the beaches of Malibu to the studios of Hollywood, Farewell to Hollywood is a story of forgiveness, love, and the power of God’s grace.
My Review:
I was was so excited for this book and it was well worth the wait. After reading Ben and Lily's story in book 1 and Noah and Hannah's story in book 2, I was looking forward to continuing the journey with the Shaw family and get to know more about Kate and Chris.
Kate Sullivan is Lily Shaw's lawyer best friend who has a tough exterior but who is also very broken inside. She uses anger to cover up her pain and all she wants is to avenge the death of her younger sister who was killed in a hit-and-run accident.
Chris Johnston is a famous Hollywood director who is also one of the big names in the industry. When he gets inspired to make a documentary on human trafficking in Los Angeles, it takes a lot of faith and trust in God for him to pursue this without compromising his beliefs.
When Kate hears about Chris' plans, she agrees to help him, but only for her own selfish reasons. Chris on the other hand has always been smitten by Kate from the very first time he saw her. The more time they spend together, the more their feelings for each other develop, but there are so many obstacles standing in their way--the biggest of them being that Kate doesn't believe in God.
I have to commend the author for tackling big topics in this book such as human trafficking. I loved following Chris' journey from when he came up with the idea of the documentary, to the planning, filming, editing and also the challenges he faced with distribution. The book highlights some of the challenges creatives face such as having to choose between sticking to the original message and vision God gave and tweaking the message 'a little' so it can be suitable for a wider audience and so you can eventually make more money. It stresses on the fact that when we choose God first and keep Him at the centre of our work, he gives us everything else that we need. I related to that so much being a creative myself and it made me feel seen.
I loved Kate's character growth in this book. I've always suspected there's more to her tough exterior and I will say, there is A LOT. Kate has a lot of suppressed anger, frustration, and hurt which she pours out on everyone around her including her parents. I loved following her journey of faith and her struggles were relatable in many ways. I also loved watching how the truth of the gospel eventually brought about her transformation and healing.
I did however find that this book was a little slow for me and it took me a while to get into it and through it. I didn't find it as fast-paced as the previous books in the series but that's just me personally. The other thing I didn't care for in this book was the fact that the relationship between Chris and Kate started off immediately as a romance even though Chris knew Kate didn't believe in God. I knew there was obviously going to be a transformation in Kate's character because the book is Christian romance. However, in real life, it doesn't always end up with the atheist believing in God so they can be together. I think Chris was knowingly putting his heart out to be broken. He was treading on dangerous grounds from the beginning and personally, I would have preferred if Chris and Kate had started out as friends before pursuing anything romantic. But again, that's my personal opinion.
That being said, I still enjoyed this book and I would recommend it if you enjoy Christian romance which tackles deep topics such as betrayal, hurt, and forgiveness.
Read Ben and Lily's story here: https://www.amazon.com/Mission-Hollywood-Red-Carpet-Romance/dp/1620209306/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=mission+hollywood&qid=1633169196&sr=8-1
Read Hanna and Noah's story here: https://www.amazon.com/Made-Hollywood-Red-Carpet-Romance/dp/1620207141/ref=pd_sim_1/138-7860278-6090930?pd_rd_w=d0cht&pf_rd_p=ea2ff367-bd36-4ec5-aee4-94c2aa42287d&pf_rd_r=FJBCYNG3P0KN2BVSW55Y&pd_rd_r=37e563ef-eb1f-462d-b93c-cdcce0a62d5b&pd_rd_wg=H0HDW&pd_rd_i=1620207141&psc=1
Thanks so much for reading
Lots of love
Joanny 💕