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The Body Double
The Body Double: A Novel | Emily Beyda
5 posts | 4 read | 4 to read
A dark, glittering debut novel, The Body Double is the suspenseful story of a young woman who is recruited by a stranger to give up her old life and identity to impersonate a reclusive Hollywood star. A strange man discovers our nameless narrator selling popcorn at a decrepit small-town movie theater and offers her an odd and lucrative position: she will forget her job, her acquaintances, even her name, and move to Los Angeles, where she will become the body double of the famous and troubled celebrity Rosanna Feld. A nervous breakdown has forced Rosanna out of the public eye, and she needs a look-alike to take her place in the tabloid media circus of Hollywood. Overseen by Max, who hired her for the job, our narrator spends her days locked up in a small apartment in the hills watching hidden camera footage of Rosanna, wearing Rosanna's clothes, eating the food Rosanna likes, practicing her mannerisms, learning to become Rosanna in every way. But as she makes her public debut as Rosanna, dining at elegant restaurants, shopping in stylish boutiques, and finally risking a dinner party with Rosanna's true inner circle, alarming questions begin to arise. What really caused Rosanna's mental collapse? Will she ever return? And is Max truly her ally, or something more sinister? With echoes of Hitchcock's Vertigo,The Body Double is a fabulously plotted noir about fame, beauty, and the darkness of Hollywood.
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HiMyNames_Alyssa
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Panpan

I hate giving bad reviews. But this is just not well written. Very long winded and predictable. Held out for a twist that never came. Weird vibes and infuriating ending - and not in a good way.

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Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
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Mehso-so

🌟🌟🌟 This would've been a great novella. Started off creepy but by 1/3 of it, you can guess the underlying situation and it starts to fall apart. The end didn't shock me or make the slog through worth it. Our MC agrees to be an actress's body double for 3 years with no questions asked, so desperate for a better life. It isn't a Hollywood story or mystery, but more of a character study of mental illness. Had potential but it just petered out.

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Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
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I've got an ambitious stack this month but I'm optimistic that I'll get to all of them.

TheAromaofBooks I kind of accidentally collect editions of Little Women - I really need to get that one as it is gorgeous!! 4y
Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick @TheAromaofBooks I have Heidi and Anne of Green Gables in this series, too. They look so pretty together, but this one is a chonkster! 4y
35 likes2 comments
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kyraleseberg
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Mehso-so

The more I think about it, I lean more toward pan than so-so. A woman is hired to be a body double for a reclusive celebrity. She never meets the woman she's impersonating but is groomed by the celebrity's handler in a creepy/obsessive way that makes it obvious there is a lot going on under the surface.
This was a slooooooow burn that fizzled out for me. I liked the idea, just not the delivery.

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kyraleseberg
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The reviews aren't great so far but I'm diving into this #ARC tonight.