Even though it's written as a standalone, Steal, the third book in the Seaside Pictures series is part of a much larger universe, since that series itself is a spin off of the original Seaside series. Throughout all of those books, the many times that Angelica Greene has made an appearance, she's come across as ... less than sympathetic. Okay, so she's the villan.
Entitled, self-serving, manipulative, egotistical. She's the Hollywood diva that sets the standard for how obnoxious others might aspire to be. Only now, with much deserved bad press, failed movies, and a long running battle with addiction, she's one movie role away from B grade obscurity.
That's where Will Sutherland comes in. Once the lead singer of teen boy band sensation Adrenaline, these days, having left all of that way behind, he's an agent. Angelica's new agent who's managed to get her a part working with a crew, almost all of whom she's burned some time in the past. Long after she burned Will himself. Her ex-boyfriend.
I love redemption stories, yet I often struggle to see the protagonist with a sympathetic eye. Knowing the kind of acts they've performed in the past, the things they've said, seeing them as anything other than a villan is hard.
That's one of the reasons I loved Steal so much. With just a few short sentences, in the first few chapters, Rachel Van Dyken had me reevaluating everything I'd ever known about Angelica. Every action, every word reexamined under the new light shone on her past.
From this new vantage I was almost tempted to see Will, ostensibly doing her a favor as the bad guy. The one who failed to see what the reader had suddenly become privy to. The one who, from this new perspective was behaving like an insensitive jerk even as he risked his own reputation and career betting on someone who'd only ever let him down.
Of course, being Seaside, included among the cast of characters are many favorites for fans of previous books, and that couldn't happen without accompanying shenanigans, not the least of which push Will and Angelica together, time after time, in what at least initially is the most uncomfortable of pairings.
I laughed, I smiled, I giggled like a little girl. My heart clenched, my throat constricted, my eyes leaked (like a little man). I found myself wavering between Will and Angelica. Sympathizing with each, wanting each to find closure for the pains each has kept close for far too long, wanting each to extract satisfaction from the other regardless of the cost or the fallout.
And I was reminded once again why I love Rachel's writing so very very much.
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Top reviews from other countries
susane alves
Loved
Reviewed in Brazil on 2 February 2020Verified Purchase
Voracious Reader
Amazing
Reviewed in Canada on 9 July 2017Verified Purchase
bunny banes
Will stole my heart!
Reviewed in the United States on 3 July 2017Verified Purchase
Danny J
I loved it!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 July 2017Verified Purchase
A Step
Oh Rachel, you make good books!! Lol
Reviewed in Canada on 16 July 2017Verified Purchase
