Review: Unrivalled

Unrivalled
Rating: 4/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy 
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher, Mira Ink! 

EVERYONE wants to be someone.

Layla Harrison wants to be a reporter.
Aster Amirpour wants to be an actress.
Tommy Phillips wants to be a guitar hero.
But Madison Brooks took destiny and made it her own a long time ago.

She’s Hollywood’s hottest starlet, and the things she did to become the name on everyone’s lips are merely a stain on the pavement, ground beneath her Louboutin heel.

That is, until Layla, Aster, and Tommy find themselves with a VIP invite to the world of Los Angeles’s nightlife and are lured into a competition. The prize, or rather the target? Madison Brooks.

Just as their hopes begin to gleam like stars through the California smog, Madison Brooks goes missing. . . . And all of their hopes are blacked out in the haze of their lies.

Okay, so I rarely read contemporary or books like this in general, but I am a HUGE fan of both Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars and that lured me in and man....they are so right! This book has all the glitz and glamour of Gossip Girl, and an insiders look behind the facade at Hollywood much like Gossip Girl gives us with New York! Plus it has the whole mystery elements and mystery person sending out incriminating DVD's and photos and so on like in Pretty Little Liars. Much like both of these books, this one will hook you and keep pulling you further and further in as more intrigue as added. 

I liked Layla, she was definitely my favourite, I think it's because of her personality! She was straight talking and smart! Tommy was my second favourite because he was quite laid back and I liked how he was trying to befriend Layla when she was clearly like dude no. Aster I wasn't actually sure about in the beginning, we have the acting thing in common but she could be a bit of a cow and was to Layla a lot in the beginning, but I ended up coming to like her to. I liked the blend of characters, including Madison who has quite cunning and intelligent and wasn't what I was expecting at all! I liked how Layla, Aster and Tommy reached a point at the end when they'd become friends against the odds and cared about each other, it's going to make the next book interesting to see if they keep that. Each character was so different and had their own voice in the narrative, they each wanted different things, or to be different things and they all got pulled in to the scene. 

I loved how Madison's POV cut off so you where left wondering for the rest of the book. In fact the book leaves you wondering right up until the end, and then you put the book down and you're STILL wondering and probably will be until the next book! I hope we get some answers next book! There's the Madison thing and the Aster thing and I'm so curious and I completely suck at this kind of thing and trying to work out who's the culprit so I have no clue who's behind everything! I mean I thought Madison was doing...something but now I'm not so sure! She's kind of like the Ali of this book! I wasn't too sure if this was the first in a series when I was reading, so I had to head over to GoodReads with my fingers crossed and BOOM. First in a series, a series that's going to keep me on my toes I think! 

There's drama and there's gossip and there's plenty of mystery and intrigue. There's even some romance, ill fated as some of it may be. I ship Layla and Tommy so badly, not gonna lie. I have a need for these two to end up together! There's so many possibilities however, that I'm not sure it's likely! Like with GG I was such a Nate and Serena shipper and ended up being so disappointed! 

The world of the book is so different from our normal lives that it sucks you in and it's easy to get lost in the book and what's going on there with all the drama and so on. I found myself getting more and more into the book as I was reading until I ended up completely hooked and couldn't put it down until the end. I was also wondering just how true or accurate some of the stuff in this book is to real life, and the real Hollywood...I mean...you have to wonder! I actually haven't read a book like this since I was in school, and it's actually made a refreshing change from what I usually read!