Today, I am beyond excited to be bringing you my review for Burning Bright by Michele Kwasniewski. Thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for my invitation to the tour and Michele Kwasniewski for my copy of this brilliant book. All views and opinions in this review are my own.
Fresh off the debut of her EP, sixteen-year-old Dani Truehart is flying high on a string of number one hits. After locking down her first full-length album in record time and furiously preparing for her world tour, Dani is torn between leaving her loved ones behind and embracing her burgeoning stardom.
Dani’s fame and fortune explode as her tour moves across the globe. Elated when two of Hollywood’s hottest young actors, Kayla Spencer and Trey Connors, befriend her, Dani finds herself living life in the fast lane and recording her second album as she tours.
Constantly dogged by the paparazzi, Dani basks in the adoration of The TrueHart Nation, her loyal super-fans who are ready to follow her around the world and go to war with anyone who dares dis their favorite pop star, whom they’ve dubbed “The Queen of Harts.”
With her ego growing as fast has her fame and fortune, a string of platinum hits and her jealous mother desperate for a piece of her wealth, sixteen-year-old pop sensation Dani Truehart navigates the glamor and perils of stardom as scandal threatens to ruin her and everyone who helped make her a star.
The second book of The Rise and Fall of Dani Truhart. The first was Rising Star, a book that allowed the reader to get to know Dani, who is on the brink of discovery. We joined her journey through burgeoning stardom.
Burning Bright expands on her journey and shows us everything Dani has to experience, and we see how fame can alter someone along the way. You can read this book as a stand-alone easily, but I think it adds more by seeing Dani grow as the series expands.
The gruelling schedule that Dani has to follow at 16 years old gives us a down-to-earth, eyes wide open view of the realities of the music world. Michele Kwasniewski shows her knowledge of this life. We see Dani attempting to navigate the world she lives in, fit studying, family, and friends in as well.
As her grip on reality starts to waver, we see her getting swept up in the adoration of fans, the fame, and the toxic world she lives in. The loss of remembering what is really important to her and the change in how she treats people around her results in her experiencing several personal difficulties, and we see how this affects her and the people around her.
Again, Michele Kwasniewski has vividly brought Dani to life. I was so wrapped up with Dani’s car crash life that I got to the end of this instalment way too quickly. As I was with Rising Star, I felt like I was with Dani. I hated seeing her make so many bad moves along the way. The brutality of growing up in the harsh spotlight of the music world is laid bare. This gives me a feeling that if any young girls particularly read this, it would surely put them off!
Burning Bright has a cliffhanger conclusion that left me desperate for the next book already! Michele Kwasniewski has brought a warts and all story of a teenager who grows up in the harsh light of stardom. I do hope we get more books from Michele after Dani’s story is told.
Author Bio
Michele Kwasniewski, is an entertainment industry insider who has seen what the Hollywood machine can do to people – having worked for many years in film and television production on such films and TV shows as Primal Fear, Independence Day, Evita, Face/Off, Big Brother, and many TLC, HGTV, and Discovery series including Meet the Pandas, Adoption Story, Wedding Story, and Extra Yardage.
With her book, she shares the glamour and excitement of fame as well as the hard work it takes to achieve success and the price of living life in the public eye. Everyone wants to be famous, but most people have no idea what that really means. Michele has seen it firsthand. She is an active member of the Producers Guild of America.
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