I received a gifted copy of FAMOUS by Blake Crouch for an honest review. Thank you to Ballantine Books / Random House!
Rating: 3.5 / 5
FAMOUS is a reissue of a Blake Crouch backlist title, originally independently published in 2010. This new edition ties into an upcoming movie starring Zac Effron!
FAMOUS follows Lancelot, a man without a lot going for him. He is 38, living with his parents, working a job he doesn’t like. The only thing really interesting about Lance is that he looks like movie star James Jansen in a nearly identical way. When he loses his job, he takes all of his savings to invest in a new wardrobe and move to New York, stepping into James Jansen’s shoes.
I never really know what to expect from a Blake Crouch backlist title, but this one was very interesting. I had to turn off some of my questioning brain because how (in the modern day) does one pose as someone famous without social media calling them out? But remembering this originally was written in 2010 helped with this.
Through some flashback-like passages, we get to see Lance’s longtime preparation for the day he will become James Jansen and it is rather impressive how he steps into the role. There are definitely some awkward and tension filled moments, also one scene I could have done without, but I found the overall course of Lance’s mental health throughout to be very interesting! I will definitely be interested to see how this is all accomplished in a movie!
DG Reads 