{Review} NOT WITHOUT YOU by Harriet Evans

ISBN #: 978-1476746036

Page Count: 448

Copyright: February 11, 2014

Publisher: Gallery Books; Reprint Edition

Book Summary:

(Taken from Amazon)

HOW CAN THE WHOLE WORLD KNOW YOU WHEN YOU HARDLY KNOW YOURSELF?

Sophie Leigh’s real name is Sophie Sykes. But she hasn’t been called that for years, not since she became an A-list movie star. Living in Los Angeles, she can forget all about the life she left behind in England. But she’s lost something of herself in the process, too.

Glamorous 1950s starlet Eve Noel had none of Sophie’s modern self-confidence. She didn’t choose her name. A Hollywood producer did. In fact, he made all her decisions—what to wear, when to smile, who to love. Right up until the day she simply vanished from the spotlight. No one knows where she went, or why.

As Sophie’s perfect-on-the-outside world begins to crumble, her present col­lides with Eve’s past. She must unravel the mystery around her idol’s disappear­ance before it’s too late for them both.

Mandy's Review:

We never know how what we do will affect others in the future. What if our career echos throughout the years and something we created inspires someone else? That's kind of what happened here. Eve Noel is a famous Hollywood actress admired by Sophie Leigh. Sophie knows all of Eve's movies, where she lived in Hollywood, and that Eve lost her sister in death when she was young. What Sophie doesn't know is that her life will collide with Eve Noel's in the near future.

Sophie is an actress stuck in the same dippy-girl rom/com roles that people seem to either love or hate. She's eager to break out of the mold and do something with more heart ... and acting ability. Her manager, Artie, thinks Sophie changing her style of acting is a bad idea and tries to convince her to do one more rom/com. Sophie is pretty adamant about doing a more serious movie and travels to England for the filming.

Around the same time, Sophie's experiencing some scary events. Someone's threatening to kill her on social medias. Someone's been breaking into her house and leaving white roses ... which gives Sophie a creepy feeling, but she's not sure why. It turns out white roses are something Eve Noel passionately dislikes, and with good reason.

The chapters are mainly concerning Sophie and her present-day life. At the end of some of the chapters, Eve's past story is told. The similarities between the two coincide more often than not. What differences there are become defined by Eve's submissive nature and Sophie's determination to change her life.

Eve's story tore at my heart. She gave in way too much and lost much of her life to others and what they wanted for her. Will she ever find the happiness she has wanted for so long?

I really liked this novel. Eve's story drew me in more than Sophie's, even though Sophie's life involved threats and stalking. I think it's because Eve's story was more of an internal struggle. If you're a fan of fiction where past and present come together in a beautiful, heart-wrenching story, then Not Without You needs to be added to your personal library.


*A physical copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.