Don't Believe the Hype

Ahhhhh this BOOK. I could not put this down. What a character. What a voice. I absolutely swallowed whole Lewis' masterful wit and hilarious storytelling. I hoovered up the glamorous, insane world of fashion PR and will now think twice before I purchase a piece of clothing that I happen to have since absolutely everywhere. What a joy to read!

One of the best books I’ve read in a LONG time!

Hilarious, stressful and an eye opening glimpse into the crazy world of Fashion PR.

I know Natalie says this is completely fictional and not necessarily based on her own experiences in fashion PR, but you can tell it’s a world she’s lived in. The little details that one would normally miss are impressive. But now I’ve finished it, I want to know just how much of it is true - or at least based on truth - and how much is exaggerated for entertainment. Because it is all wholly 100% believable.

The world of fashion PR in this book is manic, fast paced, crazy, difficult and sometimes insulting, but it’s also dazzling and magical and a world I am fascinated by.

It mainly reminded me of The Devil Wears Pravda, especially with how Frankie’s friends and boyfriend act around her and how they don’t understand her. It meant i was 100% on Frankie’s side. I like that she’s the Everyman. Desperate for a job linked to her degree, but having to take on an internship somewhere she’s initially reluctant about, just to have it on her CV. We’ve all been there. Or we’ve all thought about it. She’s doing her best, learning, and climbing her way up the corporate ladder.

I’ll tell you know, I am obsessed with this book. I was obsessed whilst I was reading it and I’m obsessed having finished it. It is absolutely addictive. You just want to talk to everyone about it like it’s the latest TV series. It’s just so juicy, funny, interesting, informative, entertaining, fun, loving, sad, stressful, enjoyable and gorgeous. I really didn’t want to put it down. I would have read it in one sitting if sleep hadn’t taken over.

I love how she’s shown the industry’s imperfections. It’s clearly a dog eat dog world. Whilst on the surface it’s a glamour industry full of celebrities, free clothes, parties, dinners etc. it’s clearly very hard. Not everything goes right, priorities are shifted and relationships suffer.

It shows the highs and lows of the industry. And I now want to turn my designs into a globally successful fashion line, like it’s that simple 🫤

It’s the perfect mixture of Ugly Betty + The Devil Wears Prada + Project Runway + Emily in Paris + Next Top Model + Queer Eye, all packaged up together in a deliciously addictive tale.

I wish more people wrote books about their industry. It gives you a front row (and we all know how important the FROW is) look into their world, knowing it’s based on real experiences, but with. Some pizzazz thrown in. I just want her to write more books like this please.

I loved this extremely entertaining novel based in the world of fashion PR. Frankie is fun and deeply likeable and all the supporting characters are well developed. You can tell the author is deeply knowledgable about how the industry works. Brilliant narrative with lots of hilarious developments.

I've caught distant glimpses of the fashion world before, but Don't Believe The Hype is a full-throttle, super-charged stellar trip that brilliantly bizarre outpost of the universe – Planet Fashion.
I absolutely loved it - and Frankie's own journey as she turns from a bemused faux-pas-making outsider to a Super PR. Working in the world of fashion is definitely not good for her relationship - and she also has a best friend who tries to keep Frankie's feet on the ground - but she's soon swept off to the totally absorbing (and self-absorbed) land of fashion freebies, fashion-speak ('a shoe', 'a culotte', never the plural, darling), parties, events and outrageous celebrity demands. Papaya, peeled and thinly sliced? Check. Prawns. Small. M&S only? Check...
We also get an inkling of how the industry works, ie how they create 'a buzz' about, say, next season's boot, the way that only certain magazines are allowed to borrow a top designers' pieces for photo shoots and how it is an unmitigated disaster if an unsuitable 'sleb is spotted wearing a design destined for higher beings.
I absolutely loved the mini press releases that divide the chapters - hilarious and a whip-smart motif - and the smoke and mirrors tricks employed on fashion shoots. Well, across the board really. So, as Natalie Lewis says, Don't Believe The Hype - but definitely enjoy this non-stop ride to Planet Fashion.

This book is absolutely addictive. I raced through the fashion world of London alongside Frankie, learning not to wear sparkly socks to interviews at fashion PR houses, how long a London fashion show actually is (8 minutes) and that people will nearly come to blows over being seated on the front row.

The pace is brilliantly fast, the character development seamless. I adored it, and will happily recommend it far and wide! Thanks for the early copy.

An absolutely fantastic book! I feel in love with Frankie from the first page (I'm.going to love anyone who deep.dives into their sock drawer) and I thought her character development was absolutely spot on. You really root for her as a character. It was also so interesting to read more about the world of fashion PR. Those parts read so easily, you can tell that the author really knows her stuff, even if I did feel very seen on a number of occasions. I was expecting to draw parallels between this and the Devil Wears Prada but honestly this is so much better. Highly recommend!

I absolutely loved the way Natalie Lewis portrayed the unfolding of Frankie's PR career in the world of fashion. She's a great character, it's a fun read, yet packed with juicy insider info about the ups and downs behind the scenes, which feels like/is reality. It's an easy read and one I looked forward to sinking into every evening. Definitely one for budding fashion PRs.

Good. Nice easy story. The hustle and bustle of the fashion world shines through on every page and you feel like you are in the thick of it. The characters feel real and relatable.

A fun, irreverent look into the PR world of fashion. I could have done without the press release bits, they annoyed me and I was dissatisfied by the ending but understand why it went that way. Fashion really is as shallow as it appears sadly.

Thank-you to Hodder & Stoughton for sending me Don’t Believe the Hype in exchange for an honest review. I would never in a million years chosen this book for myself but as the publisher sent it I thought I’d just have a quick look… 5 minutes later, I’m totally hooked!

Natalie Lewis was a Fashion PR, she lived this stuff - not sure how she lived through it, but live through it she did and now she’s turned her hand to writing and is bringing us into her world. Don’t Believe the Hype is a work of fiction but it has the stamp of authenticity about it. It’s manic, stressful, chaotic and oh, so funny. I loved it and highly recommend it.

Brilliant, laugh out loudly funny. Frankie loves her new job, but her partner, James and best friend don't. Will they come round to her way of thinking? A good insight into how we are persuaded to buy fashion items.

Frankie is a great character, fresh air in a world where appearances is what matter. This is a very entertaining story, I laughed and rooted for Frankie.
Good storytelling, lots of humour, well developed characters.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine