Review by Booklist Review
Cléo Louvent, a French American singer, is desperate for celebrity, and she will stop at nothing to achieve and maintain fame. Starting from a young age, she devises a plan to achieve fortune and recognition, and takes readers with her as she seeks her goal into her teens and twenties. Her calculated efforts pay off when her music and persona become a global sensation, catapulting her to stardom. But Cléo is nearly sociopathic in her pursuit of fame, and when she gains it, she grows even more coldly ruthless, leading to a downfall that rushes toward a startling twist ending. Make Me Famous, Ventura's second novel to be translated into English after the unnerving and thrilling My Husband (2023), showcases the author's keen ability to craft a psychological drama rife with sharp social commentary. Cleverly playing off societal obsessions with glamour and celebrity, Ventura crafts a tale that is both a subtle thriller and a mirror of our culture. Readers of Mona Awad or Ottessa Moshfegh will enjoy Ventura's new offering. Make Me Famous is brutal and thought-provoking, a rare page-turner that also invites the reader to consider deeper meanings of public images and private personas.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In the smashing sophomore novel from Ventura (My Husband), an amoral singer reflects on her tortured past and trouble with stardom. Raised in Paris by intellectual parents, Cleo Louvent knew at four years old that she wanted to be "as famous as Celine Dion." Now, at 33, she's determined to escape the endless demands of life as a worldwide pop sensation. She sequesters herself on an exclusive island retreat in the South Pacific to work on her fourth album. Alone at last, Cleo ruminates on her early determination to be successful and adored like her female idols and remembers how she self-harmed when she felt she deserved punishment for her early failures. After her TikTok video of a Billy Joel cover had gone viral several years earlier, she seized the moment, sending her songs to managers and producers and hanging out in trendy clubs. Taking measure of her determination to stay on top of the charts no matter the cost, she reflects, "Extreme notoriety unleashed in me a beast, merciless and cruel.... Fame is a war trophy, and no one is ever ready to give it up." Cleo's voice is bracing and undeniable, and Ventura pulls it all together with a shocking and deeply satisfying ending. This is unforgettable. Agent: Marlene Seegers, 2 Seas Agency. (May)
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