It Only Happens in the Movies

Read it in a day, it was brilliant! On one page, you're having a romantic excitement. Then, you turn to the next, and find yourself sobbing. Loved the ending too, even though I expected it already from the very beginning.

No book has ever made me stream with tears at 12:26 in the morning 😂 absolutely loved it and related to it so much. Thank you so much for writing such a beautiful and real book. I felt like I was really experiencing Audrey's life x

If you haven’t already seen me ranting OBSESSIVELY about Holly Bourne and all the books she’s written so far, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? Holly Bourne writes the MOST REALISTIC TEENAGE GIRLS in her gorgeously awkward and equally hilarious and most importantly, FILLED WITH FEMINISM books that will make you sit up and pay attention because the WORLD NEEDS MORE OF THESE KINDS OF BOOKS. Yes, see, I RANT OBSESSIVELY ABOUT EVERYTHING RELATED TO HOLLY BOURNE. I hadn’t even finished the Spinster Club series when the title was revealed for It Only Happens in the Movies and without even knowing what this story was about, I knew I would be reading it. Then, as if Holly Bourne + NEW BOOK wasn’t enough to sell me on reading this book, Usborne went and put ACTUAL FOOD on the cover of this book and I WAS SO EXCITED I HYPERVENTILATED around my room (Bookworm Cave) for a long time. It Only Happens in the Movies, definitely met my expectations of what I expected my latest Holly Bourne book to be like, even though it was more mature and a little different from The Spinster Club Trilogy. Let’s break it down: THINGS I LOVED: 1. THE COVER: It’s yellow and happy and it has POPCORN on it? I honestly just wanted to eat popcorn through the entire time I was reading the book but YAY FOR FOOD ON BOOK COVERS. THEY’RE THE BEST. And so uplifting. . ALL THINGS FEMINIST AND BRILLIANT: This book analyses MOVIE TROPES FROM A FEMINIST POINT OF VIEW ALL WHILE BEING AWKWARDLY HILARIOUS. Could you really ask for more? Each chapter starts off with a movie trope that we are SO USED TO WATCHING (Eg: The Bad Boy that reforms himself JUST FOR YOU) and then breaks it apart to something that Only Happens in the Movies. It will make you think every time you watch another movie, it will make you think regardless. It is BRILLIANTLY done, even if I am overusing the word because It Only Happens in the Movies DESERVES every bit of praise I give it. 3. ZOMBIE FEMINIST BRIDES: Ever heard of them? No? I don’t blame you. I spent all the time reading this book in awe of everything about it. A zombie bride in the movie our main characters were shooting raged against the patriarchy as a zombie and it was BRILLIANT. It was funny, and even the ZOMBIES MADE YOU THINK ABOUT THE UNEQUALITY IN THE WORLD WE LIVE IT. 4. STRONG FEMALE FRIENDSHIPS: If there’s one thing that Holly Bourne’s The Spinster Club series and It Only Happens in the Movies has in common is these strong, brilliant and REAL female friendships. I love reading about these in books because I have the privilege of having them in real life and it just makes seeing them in books so much more affirming. 5. AUDREY AND HARRY: I loved BOTH of Holly Bourne’s main characters in this book. Audrey was a spectacular narrator, trying to find her own way with her family and dealing with the difference in the world that the movies show you and what she’s been experiencing. Harry, though I would have loved to also see this from his POV was your typical, charming boy and they were SO MUCH FUN TO MEET. Honestly, you guys, THIS IS THE BOOK YOU DIDN’T EVEN KNOW YOU WERE LOOKING FOR. It’s awkward, hilarious, real, filled to the brim with feminism, cute boys and girl power. It Only Happens in the Movies is perfect in every sense of the word and YOU NEED TO BE READING THIS. 5 stars.