Previously published as Starlet by Cora KenbornHollywood. Mafia. Love. Lust. Secrets. Corruption. Romanov.From USA Today Bestselling Author Cora Kenborn comes a dark and twisted enemies-to-lovers retelling of Anastasia.They call me America’s Sweetheart.Hollywood royalty. The last of an era.Sole survivor of LA’s most infamous crime.I’m not any of those things.He forced me into the spotlight…… crime.
I’m not any of those things.
He forced me into the spotlight…
Dominic McCallum, a torn page from my tainted past.
The liar with the perfect smile and cold blue eyes.
We’re playing a high-stakes game.
Resurrect an icon and share a million-dollar payout.
One wrong move and history will repeat itself.
But Alexandra Romanov’s fate won’t be mine.
I’ll speak her lines. I’ll hit the mark. I’ll strike a pose.
And when the past and present collide, I’ll become their worst nightmare.
After all, wrath is the sixth of the seven deadly sins…
They told me to preserve the legacy.
Be careful what you ask for…
You just might get it.
*Please be aware this book contains dark themes and sensitive subject matter that may bother some readers.
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Rating:
One, Two, Three, Four, Five Stars!
I had some small issues with this one at the beginning but it was so compelling and twisty that they didn’t end up detracting from the whole. Sometimes in a book, I can ignore some missing background information, but when it keeps coming to mind that if it were real life, something could never happen like it is portrayed, then it begins to bother me. This is a retelling of Anastasia, a story reminiscent of My Fair Lady, where a con man is trying to pass off an imposter as a lady, or in this case the long lost heir of murdered Hollywood Royalty.
Dominic McCallum is the owner of an entertainment news website and his business is in jeopardy of going under. He wants to save it by producing Alexandra Romanov to the public. Alexandra Romanov was the eight year old daughter of Hollywood royalty and when her family was murdered the little girl was not found with them. Speculation over the 15 years since the crime is at an all time high and there have been several girls that have claimed to be her, all have been disproved.
Dominic meets a waitress in a bar named Angel who looks just like the age progressed picture of Alexandra. Angel is struggling to make ends meet and agrees to come forth as the lost heiress. Angel is a failed actress and Dominic is the reason for her situation. Since he wrote a story years ago that outed a famous Director who was abusing women. At the time, Angel (under a different name) was set to be the lead actress in that Director’s upcoming film, and Hollywood assumed she got the role on her knees.
What kept bothering me at the beginning of the book was that there weren’t really any Henry Higgens/Eliza Doolittle moments. By that I mean, there seemed to be no preparation before they went live with the story. Dominic didn’t even ask Angel about her background. I mean if you were going to try to get a million dollar reward for the return of a lost heiress using an actress, wouldn’t you at least ask if the girl has relatives, friends, former school mates, that will come out of the woodwork and say they’ve known her all her life and she can’t be Alexandra? Dominic puts out a press release and has Angel in front of Paparazzi before he even asks about her background.
Though like I said, as the book progressed and got better and better, I just shoved those thoughts out of my head. I think in the end the stuff I thought was missing was just inconsequential in the greater scheme of things. The book wasn’t about how they perpetrated the crime, but what happens after the world believes Angel is really Alexandra. That story was brilliant.
There were so many characters and storylines that it seems like it would be complex, but it is always so great how authors can take a bunch of different and complicated storylines and have them weave their way through a book and tie up coherently in the end. This was one of those books that all came together so well and everything I thought was predictable was turned on its tail by the end. I mean, some of those things turned out as I expected, but some didn’t and even things I predicted ended up blowing me away because they were surrounded by other surprises.
The romance between Dominic and Angel was killer. It was super steamy and I would give it five out of five flames . There were just the right amount of intimate scenes to add to the book without taking it over. This one was more story focused than romantic and the storylines were so good. Angel’s past, Dominic’s criminal past, the Romanov murders, Dominic’s reason for going after revenge on the studio executives, Angel’s acting career, and more. I was really actually surprised at how much I liked this book.
I voluntarily read & reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts & opinions are my own.
This one completely took me in all directions. I went into this one blind and no idea where things were going. The darkness, the spice, the twists were an amazing ride. The characters surprisingly made me hate them but love them all at the same time.
Mollie and Tanner does an amazing job as the narrators!
I received an ALC from Pink Flamingo Productions
This book will have you dizzy. The characters are all so intertwined with one another, you really need to pay attention to all the details.
Angel, a waitress with a dream to be a movie star, ends up being the long lost missing member of a slain crime family.
Dominic, a gossip reporter on a hunt for the missing little girl he has a connection to from his past.
The story has so many elements to it, enemies to lovers, mafia ties and dark parts.
My first Cora Kenborn read and I am kicking myself for waiting so long. I enjoyed her writing and I enjoyed the twists and turns as the story went on.
Narrated In Dual POV by Mollie Stark and Tanner DeBruyne, they did a great job of bringing the characters to life and hitting the emotions that needed to be portrayed.
I received an audio ARC and I decided to leave an honest review.
*The verison I have is under the new title – Sixth Sin
Let me start by saying if I could rate this book higher than a 5 star, I absolutely would. I finished it in three sessions over the course of two days only because I had to work in between. Prior to opening this book I was in a reading slump. Another series left me emotionally drained and nothing I picked up kept my interest.
With each page I tried to find a misspelled word, a loop hole, a tear in this perfectly stitched world I was suddenly consumed with. There was not one blemish in this work of art.
The first few chapters suck you in and you crave to know more about Dominic and his sexy, dominate, closed off ways. His secrets he keeps in his closet start to seep under the door. Was he really the monster in the dark or the angel sent to save? You get rapped up in the heiress coming home. You live the excruciating memories that haunt her, consuming her daily life. She’s torn between what she knows, what she feels, and what she believes. The brain is a beautiful tool. With the turn of each page you play a brilliant mind game trying to put all the pieces together as you mentally watch their words unravel. Every time you think you have things figured out Cora Kenborn pulls the rug out from under you making you come up with a new theory for her Starlet.
Though I am more emotionally drained, from an epic push and pull tortuous read I already have my next book by this Author chosen. Highly recommend.
I am all about Cora’s words but this book brings out ALL the feelings too. Just wow. The story begins tugging at your heartstrings and dishing out the attitude and just never stops.
There are tough emotional issues but they have built the extraordinary characters that Cora shares with us. I suggest reading this story cover to cover because I couldn’t put it down
4.5 stars
This was my first book by this author and I loved it. A twisted retelling of Anastasia which is the perfect addition to this collection. A crazy wild ride with lots of twists and turns.
*First time reading author
Starlet is part of the Sinister Collection and a retelling of Anastasia. I have to admit it did take me a couple of chapters to get into this book, but once I did, the pages flew by. Cora brings Dominic, who is a real a$$, to begin with, but you get to watch him grow throughout this story. While he is falling in love you are falling for his character. I loved that.
Angel, is strong from the very beginning. Her and Dominic’s back and forth is what kept me going from the beginning of this book. Thank goodness or I wouldn’t have known what such a gem this is.
I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this book but I loved it. It was a little dark for me but I still kept with it and am glad that I did. I knew nothing about the original story about Anastasia but I still loved it.
I enjoyed this one quite a bit and was excited to read this as its a contemporary retelling of one of mine and my daughter’s favourite films Anastasia.
Loosely based on the story of the tragic Romanov’s this by-line captured my imagination and attention instantly.
This really was a fascinating web of intrigue and mystery with threads entangled so deeply it all seemed to be built on an empire of misdirections and half-truths.
A dark tale that deals with broken pieces and fragments this showcases the rotten underbelly and corruption of success.
Its told in dual POV so we get to see both of these imperfect individuals and learn what makes them tick.
Angel is the girl who has agreed to step into the spotlight and be the face behind the tragedy.
She has no idea the media storm shes now stepping in to and unleashing and Dominic is the one leading this sacrificial lamb to the slaughter.
He’s perfectly aware of what he’s setting in motion with his actions but due to his own life unravelling the end for him justify the means even if his pesky conscience is whispering otherwise.
Angel herself did seem collected and together and all attitude originally but beneath this sass lies a fragile and damaged psyche one that starts to gradually emerge once her new life takes a hold and digs its claws in peeling back the layers to reveal the truth underneath.
Dominic did at first seem such a selfish out for himself douche but the more we dig under his skin the more we learn and there is so much going on beneath with him.
At his core, Dominic is hugely protective his armour may be a lot tarnished but deep down he cares greatly.
So my one complaint here was that this did seem to take a while to get to the point.
I felt this was much longer than it needed to be and could have done with some condensing.
I loved the start and the finish but the middle did drag slightly.
I still enjoyed this a lot this was fabulously written and the flow was great I also had no trouble connecting to the story itself.
I also appreciated how all this was tied-up neatly and loved the finale.
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of Starlet.
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
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Wow, so twisted and good!!!! This retelling of Anastasia is pretty darn good. It has all the dark components that I enjoy in a good twisted fairly tale but also has all the steamy delicious sexy moments between the two characters that heat you up all over. Dominic is the con artist trying to pass Angel off as someone worth a lot of money, together they become such a compelling team that you are hooked on them. Not to mention the chemistry between the two makes steam come from the pages. I loved the whole story and the fact that just when you think you have it figured out, another twist happens and you are baffled all over again. The only thing I would add to have made this a five star was more of a history as to how Angel grew up. We know she doesn’t remember much but a little housekeeping to how she got to where she was when Dominic found her would have been amazing. Again though I loved the story and recommend not this book but all the stories in the Sinister Fairy tale Collection.
Starlet is a standalone novel by Cora Kenborn. Based on the SINISTER FAIRY TALES ANTHOLOGY , this is one of the best work of that series!!
These novels of the sinister fairy tales wold are becoming more and more interesting as more books get published!! Starlet was one such masterpiece that I had the pleasure of reading. I absolutely loved the way the author twisted a simple contemporary romance to give us a sinister fairytale storyline.
In this novel we get to meet Dominic and Angel. Dominic is the owner of a business website and his career is in jeopardy. He wants to highlight the story of long lost daughter of famous personalities, named Alexandra. In his search for the girl , he stumbled across Angel , who is a waitress and a past actress . She is failing to meet her daily needs and is working hard for her life. Dominic sees that she resembles the grown up Alexandra very much and decided to take her as his muse.
There was just one part of the story that i found a bit dis connected to the rest of the story, and it was that there was very less communication between the main characters. Like the male lead just picked up a girl from the streets to make his muse, he had no qualms to ask her about her past and all. However that is just my opinion. Apart from that , this book was perfection and I absolutely loved the chemistry between the main leads of the book.
This book is recommended to all the dark romance Anthology lovers!!!
When Dominic McCallum, who runs a tabloid style site, brings forth the newly found Alexandra Romanov to the world, he sets off a chain of reactions that nobody could have seen coming.
Angel was just a lowly waitress when Dominic plucked her from the diner and told her to be Alexandra. She didn’t know what he was getting her into. Or did she? Is there something else going on that Dominic has no idea of? Or is it someone else pulling the strings?
Woo boy, this dark retelling of Anastasia is twisted! I have to first say I’ve never seen or read the original Anastasia story. I know, I know… anyway, that did not lessen my enjoyment and I was able to enjoy this crazy story as it is, on its own. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is because it drags in the first part and I felt it could have been trimmed down by a good quarter or so and it would have made the story tighter and would have given the twists even more impact. Aside from that, though, this twisty, crazy fairy tale is entertaining af.
Omg, let’s talk about this book if you love Anastasia you’ll love this version of it. Dominic is down on his luck and up to his eyeballs in debt so he comes up with a plan to find a girl that could be Alexandra collect the money and then leave easy enough right expect every pimp, hooker, and lowlife have the same idea. Enters Angel the only problem she hates him for ruining her acting career many years ago, and now she’s working in some low life bar trying to make ends meat just to be able to pay rent for her crappy apartment! What does no one count love, and this book just made me want to go back and watch Anastasia and Demetri all over again.
Holy… wow I don’t even know what to say. This book is a roller coaster ride that you can’t get off of. Angel’s life has been full of chaos, pain, loss, and a lot of unknown. Her story will have you gasping, crying, and raging. Then will do it all over again. There’s shocks and twists and all of that is done so well! Great read. The story has a great mix of darkness without being overly graphic with certain things. Loved it!
What a read! I always knew that this author could do justice to the dark themes, but this!?!? It was an amazing way to retell Anastasia’s story with quite a few points that made it let’s say triggering.
I will stay vague about the story as I don’t want to spoil anything.
We start with Angel, who works in a bar. She’s not happy about it, so when a chance knocked on her door she will have to take it. What will happen after this turn about? it will be one hell of a ride!
Dominic – I didn’t know if I even liked him until I loved him. The connection is palpable and mesmerizing for both sides.
What will happen in the big world? Especially if big players will decide to join the game? Who is who? Are friends true friends in this madness?
I totally recommend this one!
Wow! I just finished rereading Starlet and I loved it! Yes, I said reread, it was that good. This is a dark, twisted retelling of the fairy tale Anastasia and I loved it even more than the original. This author is one of my favorites and I have read every one of her books, but this one is now my favorite. The writing is descriptive the characters are well developed and the story had me captivated reading nonstop for hours. Hubby even had to make dinner because I couldn’t put this book down. If you love dark, twisted, angsty reads then I highly recommend you get this book. If not I still highly recommend you give this book a try you will not regret it.
HOLY SH*T!!!! WOW!!!!
Sit down and hold on tight because Starlet is going to take you on a wild ride, full of ups and downs, twists and turns. This book had me on the edge of my seat, not wanting to put it down.
Anastasia has always been one of my favorite movies. Starlet is a modern day, mafia retelling of the story. It follows Dominic and Angel/Alexandra as Dominic gets Angel to “pose” as Alexandra 15 years after her disappearance and her family’s murder.
These characters are so incredibly well written. There is so much depth to each of them. The memories trying to break free from Angel’s mind. Every thing is so vivid. So real feeling.
There is so much I want to say about this book, but I don’t want to spoil it for anyone. This book is a must read, and quite possibly my favorite out of the entire Sinister Fairy Tales Collection
This is the first book by Cora Kenborn that I have read and boy was this book was over the top amazing!!!
This book was full of emotions and also twists that had my head in a mess because I never saw them coming! Also, this book sucked me in from the very first sentence and held me until the end.
Angel and Dominic’s chemistry is off the charts!!
Dominic is a true Alpha male. Even though this is the case he has a past that he wants to keep hidden as long as he can. The only thing is his past isn’t just his.
Angel is not really sure who she is because she can’t remember her past. That however in my opinion is a very good thing. When her memories start to come back all H*** breaks out in her world.
Can Dominic save Angel from herself or will she be the ruin of her world?
This book was the dark retelling of Anastasia can a d**n good one at that.
This addiction to the Sinister Fairytale collection had and Anastasia like quality to it. I’m new to this author and I was blown away. Like the rest of the collection it does have some taboo and dark themes in it. Nothing too out of my comfort zone. Angel is a great sassy heroin and Dominic is such a d-bag but oh so hot. The chemistry between the pair was sizzling and undeniable. Not a surprise this was a great addition to the collection and a close counter for one of my absolute favorites. Looking forward to reading more from the author. Five stars.
By Tiffany
Cora Kenborn has been a favorite writer of mine for a while, but after reading Starlet she just jumped to the absolute highest of highs. Being an avid reader of all genres I love a good mind twisting story and she has pasted all expectations I had going into this story.
Turning a modern day fairytale into a dark, tortured, depraved and twisted tale, that takes you on a ride so wicked it will leave you feeling stunned, drained, and emotionally rung out. There were times I had to stop close my kindle and walk away only to come right back and start again. At every turn I came across a new mind blowing revelation and the chemistry between Dominic and Angel is off the charts. This was everything it was promised to be and so much more.
If you want a story that will pull you in and push you away only to grab you back again twisting and turning your mind into an emotional mess and leave you wondering what just happened and how in the hell everything was going to be okay again, this is it. Cora has absolutely out done her self with this Starlet. As soon as i can get over all the emotions and feels I have for this story I will definitely be reading it again.