Everyone I Kissed Since You Got Famous

February 1, 2024

Former best friends reconnect and fall in love during a whirlwind Christmas in Wisconsin. Katie Price was a talented high school graduate on her way to drama school when she was "discovered" by an A-list actor and whisked off to Hollywood. Ten years and one Oscar later, she returns home to Green Bay to work on a professional project that she hopes will bring her out from her ex's shadow for good. Wil Greene has been living in Green Bay ever since her father died and is unwilling to move forward with the plans and dreams she previously held, even as her TikTok devoted to kissing new people every week has brought her growing notoriety. Katie and Wil were inseparable in high school and then never spoke again for a decade--for reasons neither of them quite understands. When they meet again at this pivotal moment, sparks fly and make them rethink everything that came before. VERDICT This first novel from Marvel (the pen name of Ruthie Knox and Annie Mare, coauthors of the forthcoming mystery Big Name Fan) is compellingly written, with a light touch on serious subjects and strong chemistry between the main characters. Recommended for readers who enjoy sapphic friends-to-lovers and celebrity romances.--Sierra Wilson

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2024
Ruthie Knox (Ride With Me) and Annie Mare, writing as Marvel, send 30-something movie star Katie Price back to her hometown for a month to relax and write her first screenplay, in this cute contemporary. Instead, Katie gets swept up in reconnecting with her high school best friend, TikTok star Wil Greene, under the guise of investigating the secret life of one of their high school teachers, whom they suspected as teenagers of adultery. The pair agree that if the teacher is just cheating on his wife, Katie wins, and Wil has to get her life together and reapply to law school. If, however, the teacher also has a secret second family, Wil wins, and Katie has to appear on Wil’s TikTok where she posts videos of herself kissing different strangers for one minute. Despite 13 years apart, the women quickly fall back into their slightly flirty friendship, but before they can begin to deepen their relationship, they must both consider how Katie’s fame will affect their future. The framework of the bet is fun, but goes out the window pretty quickly as the heroines’ love story takes shape. Meanwhile the limited, quick glimpses of Katie and Wil’s past don’t do quite enough to ground their present connection, making the relationship development feel a bit rushed. Once the women are together, however, it’s easy to see their chemistry. This is heartwarming.

May 15, 2024
A movie star returns to her hometown and realizes her feelings for her high school friend are more romantic than platonic. At 31, Katie Price has won every acting award Hollywood has to offer and is looking to make her move into directing. Desperate for some downtime to work on a script she's adapting, she heads home to Green Bay, Wisconsin, to spend Christmas with her parents. While there, she sees her high school best friend, Wil Greene. Wil deferred law school and stayed in Green Bay after her father's death, and instead of returning to academia, she's found satisfying work as an insurance adjuster. In the past year, she's become famous for a TikTok channel where she kisses strangers, a sexy and insightful exploration of intimacy in the age of social media. When Wil and Katie see each other at a Christmas party, they instantly fall back into their old friendship like no time has passed, even resuming their teenage investigation into the personal life of their least favorite teacher. Wil and Katie slowly realize that their strong bond was actually romantic attraction, and they inch toward declaring their love for each other. The novel is beautifully written, exploring Wil and Katie's evolution from friends to lovers as twin journeys of self-awareness. Katie's reputation has been tainted and smeared in the press by an abusive ex-boyfriend for the past decade, and she's wary of pulling Wil into the media maelstrom that is her life. Wil realizes she's been hiding in Green Bay, afraid to take emotional risks after losing her dad. They've been friends for a lifetime, but only now do they know themselves well enough to understand they were in love all along. A methodically told story of longing and belonging.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2024
Wilifred Greene is stuck in a rut. Her goal of becoming a lawyer never panned out after her dad died, and she's just going through the motions while living in her hometown in Wisconsin. However, Wil is internet-famous, and for a rather unusual reason: each week, she kisses two strangers on her channel. Wil's old friend, Katie Price, is real-life, red-carpet famous, but the two haven't spoken in over a decade. Katie may be known by everyone in the world, but she couldn't be more alone. After enduring an emotionally abusive relationship with the man who helped launch her acting career, she keeps to herself. Yet, she is also stuck in a rut. A writing rut. Katie decides to head home to Wisconsin to try and dig herself out. When Wil and Katie reunite at a holiday party, they pick up exactly where they left off during their senior year of high school; except now, their chemistry and desire for each other is palpable. This sexy and heartfelt friends-to-lovers romance is intricately written, and readers will soak up every word.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.