By Melissa Barbuzzi
Content warning: murder, sexual assault
The Disappearing Act follows British star Mia Eliot, who seems to have it all: an incredible lead role and a boyfriend whose celebrity status is quickly growing. When all of that comes crashing down, she decides to travel to Hollywood in order to reset and try to take her career to the next level. Mia arrives eager and excited for the potential new opportunities coming her way. She is doing back-to-back auditions, waiting for her big break to come. While waiting outside for her last audition, she meets a fellow actress named Emily. Emily seems to be in distress, so Mia offers to help her out by doing her a small favour. That small favour quickly starts snowballing, and all of Mia’s fun Hollywood plans start to take a turn for the worse.
I really enjoyed The Disappearing Act and all of the twisty-turny mystery that came with it. It was one of my most anticipated reads of the year, so I was very excited when it ended up being a page-turner that I could not put down! Throughout the entirety of the book I was constantly guessing who was trustworthy, and what was going to happen next.
I went in to this book completely blind which I think played a role in my enjoyment of it—if I had known more about the plot and premise I don’t think it would have been as much of a hit for me. Steadman’s experience as an actress added some authenticity to the writing and made it feel like I was actually getting an inside look at Hollywood. As a huge fan of all things Hollywood, this was a really neat piece and definitely brought the book to the next level for me.
Although the plot was fun, it felt incredibly implausible, and the main character Mia was very naïve time and time again. After the first few naïve decisions I decided to give her a pass. She was in a new city, a new environment, and we all make some questionable decisions sometimes. But after multiple decisions that made me think “what the heck is she doing?”, enough was enough.
The ending was my biggest gripe with this book. There was so much build up and anticipation for an ending that just felt “meh.” It left me feeling super unsatisfied and it was a let-down compared to all of the excitement throughout the beginning of the book.
If you’re looking for a fun, fast-paced mystery, I would definitely recommend The Disappearing Act. As I mentioned, there were some pieces that I did not love, but it was a fun plot that kept me engaged throughout.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review!