REVIEW: The Villain Edit by Sarah Brenton

The Villain Edit by Sarah Brenton: Ashley Foley is known for being Hollywoods favourite villain and for the most part she is okay with the reputation that she has created over the years. So trying to seduce the groom at her own cousins wedding isn’t too off brand for Ashley, but getting caught coming out of a hotel room with golden boy Gabriel Sinclair looking disheveled, is well less than ideal… However this could be just what both Gabriel and Ashley need to redefine their public images, being seen with Ashley can help give Gabe a bit of a darker edge that he needs for his new movie role, while he can help her clean up her disastrous image. The only problem with fake dating Ashley is that it would mean that Gabe has to bring her along on his cross country road trip and being stuck in a car with his biggest temptation is definitely less than ideal. If fighting temptation day in and day out was not bad enough how is Gabe supposed to cope when he begins to realise that just maybe the Ashely Foley that the world knows is not actually such a villain?

LOVED!! The Villain Edit was pure romcom perfection! This book needs to be made into a movie asap!! Sarah Brenton has done a tremendous job in crafting this opposites attract, fake dating turned real, Hollywood romance. There was absolutely nothing that I did not love about this book so much so that I was disappointed when it ended. I just wanted more! It has been a really long time since I have read a romance where the angst factor had me at the edge of my seat, but with Gabe and Ash I just could not help myself but want to read more and more of their story in the hopes that they finally figure out their story.

Gosh did Ashley just break my heart, this girl has been through it all and in the face of everything she just puts on her armour to try and protect herself while maintaining her bad girl facade. Under all the snark and sass Ash is actually a real sweetheart that loves hard and cares for her friends. It just broke my heart seeing her receive all the backlash and hate from people that really don’t know her. Her character growth and redemption through this book was just beautiful, I loved getting to see her open up to Gabe and letting go of the demons holding her down. As for our hero Gabe, well he really is not the golden boy that everyone sees him to be. As much as my heart goes out to Gabe for trying to balance his past while trying to achieve his dreams and not mixing his two worlds I could not help but want to shake him a bit. Especially toward the end of the book there were a few moments that just made me want to slap him but thankfully he gets his act together.

I just loved Gabe and Ash together, these two made one incredible couple. Even though on paper they were polar opposites they could not have been better suited for each other. I loved getting to see them open up to each other and share a part of themselves that no one else is privy to. They were both being held back by their pasts, where Gabe was trying to not let his past define him, Ash couldn’t help but feel that her past defined her. Aside from helping each other heal and truly break free from their respective bonds, they had insane chemistry! The sexual tension between these two had the pages burning up! There was not a moment that their attraction did not pull them together. There was something magnetic about them but at the same time there was also this soft sweet connection.

There were loads of supporting characters in this book, David and Lea were both great assistants and truly helped Ash and Gabe. Though I will say that I was not a huge fan of their one of their PR teams. As for the Foley’s, well I did not care much of either of them, they had no regard for Ash or the way they made her feel. I will say that I liked getting to see her mend her relationship with her aunt as well as Jessie. As for Gabe’s aunt Cora, well she was just a sweetheart, I loved that she helped give these two the much need push on both occasions.

The Villain Edit was absolutely incredible, this book is exactly why I love reading romance novels. There was angst, drama, passion and love in this captivating opposites attract romcom. A definite must read from me!!

Book Info:

Publication: January 16, 2024 | Sarah Brenton |

Ashley Foley is the bad girl everyone loves to hate—a role she embraced long before a series of betrayals branded her as one of reality TV’s all-time greatest villains. But now she’s too toxic to get work and worse, she just watched the man she loves walk down the aisle with the wrong woman—again.

What’s a bad girl to do?

Seduce the groom at the reception, of course.

But when the wrong man walks into the room, her plans blow up in her face.

Hollywood Golden Boy Gabriel Sinclair should have left that room the moment he sensed the trap. But getting caught with TV’s bad girl might give him the edge he needs to hold onto his gritty superhero role in the face of a fandom that sees him as too much of a do-gooder to play their beloved morally-gray superhero. And Ashley’s reputation could use his shine.

But fake dating means bringing Ashley on his cross-country road trip. She’s a temptation he can’t afford, especially once he realizes she might not be that bad after all. Because Gabriel Sinclair isn’t the good boy he’s been pretending to be.