The View Was Exhausting

Their kisses write headlines and their fights break the internet. Nobody needs to know it's not real.

'Absolutely the last word on the fake dating trope' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ reader review

'The celebrity fake dating book I was waiting for' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ reader review

'I felt breathless' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ reader review

'I absolutely loved this story from cover to cover' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ reader review

'Come for the kissing and the razor-sharp commentary on privilege and fame... stay for the great fake movies and grumpy old cat' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ reader review

'It's impossible not to be drawn into the whirlwind of emotions' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ reader review

---

Everybody's talking about Whitman 'Win' Tagore and Leo Milanowski. Their on-off romance is the greatest love story of our time.

As a woman of colour in Hollywood, Win knows she must work harder than everyone else to control her public image. Whenever she nears scandal, she calls in Leo to divert attention - and the cameras - with their earth-shattering chemistry.

Nobody needs to know it's a lie.

But the truth about their relationship isn't the only secret Leo's keeping. And, as the line between performance and reality begins to blur, can Win risk taking a chance on real love?

The View Was Exhausting is a bold, wickedly observant modern love story about truth, fame and privilege - and how we love now.

---

'Effortlessly cool, razor-sharp and crazy fun' Taylor Jenkins Reid

'The complex, Hollywood love story we've all been waiting for' Emily Henry

'SEXY and GLAMOROUS and ROMANTIC and CELEBTASTIC and such UTTER, GLORIOUS FUN' Marian Keyes

'Smart, sexy and genuinely insightful' gal-dem

'Deft, funny and tender... as smart as it is swoon-worthy' Julia Armfield

'A perfect summer read' Vogue

'You will devour this' Prima

'I loved the chemistry' Francesca Cha

'Fun, sexy and totally gripping' Laura Kay

“A pure delight! Effortlessly cool, razor sharp, and crazy fun - I couldn't put it down. It is Notting Hill for 2021, an absolute crowd pleaser Escapist, suspenseful, razor sharp and very unusual. I loved the chemistry between the two protagonists and flew through the book because I was dying to know what happens An absolutely stellar debut with tension that crackles and prose that sings, The View Was Exhausting is the complex, Hollywood love story we've all been waiting for. Clements and Datta have crafted a book that's as heartfelt and earnest as it is sharp and surprising - I couldn't get enough Deft, funny and tender , The View Was Exhausting is as smart as it is swoon-worthy - this is exactly the book you should be reading right now A glittering, swoon-worthy love story that's also about the intersections of power, representation, fame and privilege. It's funny and warm and gorgeously written and I'm calling it now as the beach read of the summer or, if we're all stuck inside, the escapist read of the summer, because reading this I was totally swept awayA book to read in the sun with a glass of wine and nothing else to do all day. Fun, sexy and totally gripping A sexy, scorching treat - fresh and ultra modern, I devoured it I read it all in one morning and couldn't put it down once . . . The View Was Exhausting is enormously sophisticated, tension held like a net, as it slowly holds the reader closer and closer to a fire, and I laughed many times. It's an absolute tour de force , and Win is now one of my new favorite protagonists ever”

A pure delight! Effortlessly cool, razor sharp, and crazy fun - I couldn't put it down. It is Notting Hill for 2021, an absolute crowd pleaser -- Taylor Jenkins Reid
Escapist, suspenseful, razor sharp and very unusual. I loved the chemistry between the two protagonists and flew through the book because I was dying to know what happens -- Frances Cha
An absolutely stellar debut with tension that crackles and prose that sings, The View Was Exhausting is the complex, Hollywood love story we've all been waiting for. Clements and Datta have crafted a book that's as heartfelt and earnest as it is sharp and surprising - I couldn't get enough -- Emily Henry
Deft, funny and tender, The View Was Exhausting is as smart as it is swoon-worthy - this is exactly the book you should be reading right now -- Julia Armfield
A glittering, swoon-worthy love story that's also about the intersections of power, representation, fame and privilege. It's funny and warm and gorgeously written and I'm calling it now as the beach read of the summer or, if we're all stuck inside, the escapist read of the summer, because reading this I was totally swept away -- Jane Healey
A book to read in the sun with a glass of wine and nothing else to do all day. Fun, sexy and totally gripping -- Laura Kay
A sexy, scorching treat - fresh and ultra modern, I devoured it -- Victoria Gosling
I read it all in one morning and couldn't put it down once . . . The View Was Exhausting is enormously sophisticated, tension held like a net, as it slowly holds the reader closer and closer to a fire, and I laughed many times. It's an absolute tour de force, and Win is now one of my new favorite protagonists ever -- Tamsyn Muir
Sweeps you up into the tilt-a-whirl of Hollywood relationships, and what happens when the line between fake and real begins to blur. This richly drawn romance is, crucially, also a journey through the unjust rules forced upon women - especially women of color - who dare to play the fame game. It's timely, touching, and a tantalizing love story -- Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan (aka The Fug Girls)

Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta have been writing fiction together since they first met in 2013. They are now married and live in Berlin, where they write and study. Originally from Australia, Mikaella was highly commended in the 2019 Bridport Short Story Prize and shortlisted in the 2019 Galley Beggar Press Prize. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian, the TLS, and the LA Review of Books, amongst others. Onjuli is British and was longlisted in the 2020 Desperate Literature Short Fiction Prize, as well as publishing non-fiction in the Billfold and Daddy Magazine.

Their kisses write headlines and their fights break the internet. Nobody needs to know it's not real. 'Absolutely the last word on the fake dating trope' reader review'The celebrity fake dating book I was waiting for' reader review'I felt breathless' reader review'I absolutely loved this story from cover to cover' reader review'Come for the kissing and the razor-sharp commentary on privilege and fame... stay for the great fake movies and grumpy old cat' reader review'It's impossible not to be drawn into the whirlwind of emotions' reader review---Everybody's talking about Whitman 'Win' Tagore and Leo Milanowski. Their on-off romance is the greatest love story of our time.As a woman of colour in Hollywood, Win knows she must work harder than everyone else to control her public image. Whenever she nears scandal, she calls in Leo to divert attention - and the cameras - with their earth-shattering chemistry.Nobody needs to know it's a lie.But the truth about their relationship isn't the only secret Leo's keeping. And, as the line between performance and reality begins to blur, can Win risk taking a chance on real love? The View Was Exhausting is a bold, wickedly observant modern love story about truth, fame and privilege - and how we love now. ---'Effortlessly cool, razor-sharp and crazy fun' Taylor Jenkins Reid 'The complex, Hollywood love story we've all been waiting for' Emily Henry 'SEXY and GLAMOROUS and ROMANTIC and CELEBTASTIC and such UTTER, GLORIOUS FUN' Marian Keyes 'Smart, sexy and genuinely insightful' gal-dem 'Deft, funny and tender... as smart as it is swoon-worthy' Julia Armfield 'A perfect summer read' Vogue 'You will devour this' Prima 'I loved the chemistry' Francesca Cha 'Fun, sexy and totally gripping' Laura Kay

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.