Catch a Falling Star

March 10, 2014
Carter Moon loves stars—the kind in the night sky, not the ones that crash and burn to the delight of the media and the celebrity-obsessed masses. But this summer, while Carter is working at her family’s diner, the manager of one of Hollywood’s most notorious young actors, Adam Jakes, enlists her to pretend she is Adam’s small-town sweetheart to help restore his fallen image. Carter would never normally agree to such a thing, but her brother is in trouble because of unpaid gambling debts, and the faux-girlfriend gig pays well. Culbertson (Instructions for a Broken Heart) is a capable writer, and she gives Carter a good heart that shines through in the way Carter handles her friendships and that also catches Adam’s eye. Fans of recent “Hollywood Blvd. meets Main St.” novels like Cherry Money Baby and This Is What Happy Looks Like will enjoy following Carter and Adam through the familiar cycle of the rom-com relationship, from dislike to like, complication to realization, and finally to love. Ages 12–up. Agent: Melissa Sarver, Folio Literary Management.

September 1, 2014
Nothing ever happens in Little, Calif.—nothing, that is, until a famous movie star comes to town to shoot a film. Much to Carter Moon’s dismay: she would much rather have her small town back and be done with all the Hollywood nonsense. It means nothing to her. Unlike her best friend Chloe, who knows all about young Adam Jakes, a child star gone wrong who has infiltrated the town, and soon Carter’s life. Adam’s people want to clean up his battered image, and a young, wholesome girlfriend from town seems like just the thing to accomplish it. They offer Carter an obscene amount of money to pose as Adam’s girlfriend while he stays. Carter needs the money, and doesn’t care a whit about Adam until they start spending more time with each other. Is he just another pretty Hollywood face or a real guy Carter could actually fall for? Spencer has an excellent voice for Carter—young and innocent yet mature and skeptical. There are occasions when Spencer misses an opportunity to realize Carter’s utter disdain for the celebrity lifestyle that would have resulted in a laugh and deeper insight to Carter’s dilemma about becoming a cog in the Hollywood machine. A Scholastic hardcover. Ages 12–up. A Scholastic/Point hardcover.

February 1, 2014
When a movie company comes to shoot in a picturesque California town, the movie star's manager pays a local girl to pose as the star's girlfriend in this heartfelt romance. Seventeen-year-old Carter happily works in her family's small cafe in Little, Calif. Although she's a talented dancer, she has no ambition to leave her beautiful town, and she certainly doesn't care about movie stars. Carter's brother, John, has become a compulsive gambler, plunging the family into debt, so despite her disdain for Hollywood, Carter can't resist the large sum of money troubled teen star Adam Jakes' manager offers her. Naturally, as they spend time together on their mock dates, Carter begins to fall for Adam, who turns out to be a nice guy despite his drop-dead-handsome looks and Hollywood background. As an actor familiar with the trials of artists, he gives her some insight into the reasons she stopped dancing. Meanwhile, Carter's star-struck good friends, who don't know about the ruse, struggle to understand her emotions and actions as they gaze on stars in the night sky, with one friend writing a stargazing blog that integrates Carter's experiences with both types of stars. Culbertson writes with sensitivity and sympathy, crafting an entertaining but perceptive character study. Written with a sure hand and keen insight. (Romance. 12-16)

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April 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-When a Hollywood movie production invades the sleepy town of Little, California, Carter Moon is one of the rare local girls who is not entranced by the movie's troubled teenage star, Adam Jakes. Distracted by her concern for her brother, who suffers from a gambling habit, Carter is content to avoid the mayhem and limit her interaction with the world of glitz and glamour to making sandwiches and drinks for the production company from the comfort of her parents' small cafe. The protagonist also enjoys teaching a dance class at the local retirement home and stargazing with her two best friends. Her plans to maintain this simple lifestyle are disrupted by a pressing financial need to guarantee her brother's safety and recovery. Presented with a secret, lucrative deal to pose as Adam Jakes's wholesome, small-town girlfriend, Carter suddenly has a solution to her family's money issues. Unbeknownst to anyone other than her parents and Adam's manager, the teen follows the scripted three-week relationship but winds up learning that she may have more in common with Adam than she thought. While the development of a genuine relationship may be expected, readers will enjoy every minute of Carter and Adam's revelatory moments and conflicts. The narrator's struggles with decisions about leaving home and the next steps after high school will resonate with many teens. The resolution is realistically open-ended but also satisfies those thirsting for a fairy tale ending.-Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School, Marriottsville, MD

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2014
When small-town girl Carter is hired to pose as a movie star's girlfriend for the summer, she finds it more and more difficult to determine where the false relationship ends and real emotion begins. A predictable plot is kept fresh by tight writing, an evocative setting, and warm, relatable characters. Carter's relationship with her compulsive-gambler brother is especially well rendered.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)