3 Binge-Worthy Celebrity Memoirs That Surprised Me

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I recently realized my reading preferences shift with the seasons — and with warmer weather and an uptick in road trips on the horizon, I've found myself craving quick, engaging books that don't skimp on personality. Enter: my latest hyperfixation, celebrity memoirs. As a self-proclaimed pop culture enthusiast, this obsession feels inevitable. Covering everything from noteworthy scandals to the high cost of early fame, these three memoirs stood out to me for their honesty, heart, and headline-worthy moments.
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Paris: The Memoir by Paris Hilton
Amazon | Bookshop.org
This memoir was, without a doubt, the biggest surprise for me. I went in knowing the basics of Paris Hilton's life — the fame, the money, the iconic style — but what I didn't expect was the depth of vulnerability she shared. Far beyond the glitz and glamour, Paris recounts her struggles with ADHD and exposes the 'troubled teen industry,' which left me with a newfound admiration for her strength and resilience.
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From Here to the Great Unknown by Lisa Marie Presley & Riley Keough
Amazon | Bookshop.org
I strongly recommend the audiobook version of From Here to the Great Unknown, as it includes actual audio clips of Lisa Marie Presley recorded during interviews for the book. As the only child of Elvis Presley, Lisa Marie reflects on her upbringing at the legendary Graceland, the deep grief that followed her father's death, and how becoming a mother reshaped her perspective. She passed away before the book was completed, which makes hearing her daughter, Riley Keough's, reflections and memories even more poignant. It's a heartbreaking, reflective listen — and one that lingers long after it ends.
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I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
Amazon | Bookshop.org
This memoir made major waves when it first debuted in 2022 — and for good reason. As someone who grew up watching Jennette McCurdy play cheerful, silly characters on Nickelodeon, I was floored by the reality she reveals behind the scenes. I'm Glad My Mom Died is dark, emotional, and unflinchingly honest, unpacking the childhood abuse she endured, the complexities of toxic family dynamics, and the long-term effects of childhood fame. It's a tough but extremely powerful book.
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About the Author Brianna Goebel
Brianna is StyleBlueprint's Associate Editor and Sponsored Content Manager. She is an avid fan of iced coffee and spends her free time reading romance novels.

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State of the Game: ‘Marvel: Crisis Protocol'

I've made no bones about the fact that I'm a big Marvel fan. From growing up with Marvel Comics in the 80's, to enjoying the X-Men Animated series in the 90's, to the MCU, you can always 'Make Mine Marvel.' So it's no surprise that one of my earliest reviews at GeekDad was my review of the then-new Marvel: Crisis Protocol miniatures skirmish game from Atomic Mass Games. Fellow contributor Robin Brooks also chronicled his first game with MCP here on GeekDad in 2022. Since that first review, Atomic Mass Games has been going strong with releases for Marvel: Crisis Protocol . Thanks to our friends at Atomic Mass Games, I recently received a few of the newer kits to share with our readers. What Is Marvel: Crisis Protocol ? Marvel: Crisis Protocol is a miniatures skirmish game for 2 players, ages 14 and up, and takes about 90-120 minutes to play. The easiest way to get into the game is with the current starter box, Marvel: Crisis Protocol – Earth's Mightiest CORE Set. This box retails for $119.99, and is available on Amazon or at various games stores. It basically is a completely reworked version of the original core box, containing new miniatures and terrain, and different versions of the same characters from the core set. If you still want the original core set, that is still available and retails for $99.99. As with the Earth's Mightiest CORE Set, the original core set is available on Amazon and at your local games stores. Even though both core sets contain rulebooks, the rules are also available online, and are periodically updated when changes are made to the game. Everything Atomic Mass Games sent over. Image by Paul Benson. Catching Up With Marvel: Crisis Protocol Atomic Mass Games sent over a variety of character packs to take a look at, as well as a piece of terrain. I assembled all of the kits, though didn't have time to paint them (AMG also sent along a big box of Star Wars: Shatterpoint squad packs, which I'll be covering in future articles). The Inhuman Royal Court box. Image by Paul Benson. Inhuman Royal Court Character Pack While most Character Packs in Marvel: Crisis Protocol tend to contain one or two characters, as the game has matured, some older characters are getting repackaged into larger boxes containing 4 characters of the same affiliation. In this case, these 4 figures are all part of the Inhumans affiliation. (Characters that share an affiliation will often get bonus abilities when they team up together). Here's a look at everything inside the box: Everything in the Inhumans Royal Court box. Image by Paul Benson. Here's a look at the 'healthy' side of the Stat Cards. As you can see, Maximus has a leadership ability, 'Call Me Maximus the Magnificent', which can only be used if other characters in his squad share his affiliation. As all of the characters in this box have the 'Inhumans' affiliation, he's good to go! A look at the Inhumans' various stats and abilities. Image by Paul Benson. Like all MCP Stat cards, when a character takes a certain amount of damage, they become injured and you flip their card to the 'injured' side. The characters then become stronger, but if they take too much damage, they'll be knocked out and removed from the game. The 'injured' side of the Inhumans stat cards. Image by Paul Benson. The Character Pack also comes with 6 Team Tactics cards, which are one-shot abilities chosen when you build your roster for a game. There are 4 affiliated cards, and 2 unaffiliated. The included Team Tactics cards. Image by Paul Benson. Here are the assembled miniatures, as well as painted versions courtesy of Atomic Mass Games: This slideshow requires JavaScript. The Inhuman Royal Court Character Pack retails for $49.99, and is available on Amazon or from your favorite games store. The Immortal Hulk Character Pack Yes, Marvel: Crisis Protocol already had a Hulk, but the Immortal Hulk is meaner, and greener. The Immortal Hulk box. Image by Paul Benson. Here's everything that comes in the Character Pack: Immortal Hulk box contents. Image by Paul Benson. The Immortal Hulk is not simply a new sculpt for the Hulk, but he actually has different abilities and stats. Here is the original Hulk's Stat card: The OG Hulk from 2019. Image by Atomic Mass Games. And here is the Immortal Hulk's card: Immortal Hulk smash! Image by Atomic Mass Games. As you can see, there are many differences between the two characters. For your games, you could choose to have both Hulks in your 10-character roster, but when you build your squad, you can only use one of them. The Immortal Hulk Character Pack also comes with 2 Team Tactics cards, both unaffiliated: Immortal Hulk's Team Tactics cards. Image by Paul Benson. Here's the completed miniature: The assembled Immortal Hulk. Image by Paul Benson. And here's what he might look like painted up: A professionally painted Immortal Hulk. Image by Atomic Mass Games. The Immortal Hulk Character Pack retails for $39.99, and is available on Amazon or at your favorite games store. Mephisto Character Pack One of Marvel's more powerful villains is the demonic Mephisto. The Mephisto Character Pack. Image by Paul Benson. Here's everything that comes in the box: Mephisto Character Pack contents. Image by Paul Benson. Like many of the newer releases, Mephisto comes with Stat cards and Team Tactics cards in multiple languages. This simplifies production as Atomic Mass Games can use just one sku for multiple countries. Mi nombre es Mefisto. Image by Paul Benson. Mephisto comes with 4 unaffiliated Team Tactics cards: Mephisto's Team Tactics cards. Image by Paul Benson. Here's a look at the assembled miniature: Mephisto, assembled. Image by Paul Benson. And here's what a professionally painted version looks like: Painted Mephisto. Image by Atomic Mass Games. The Mephisto Character Pack retails for $34.99, and is available on Amazon or at your favorite games store. Gwenom & Scarlet Spider Character Pack This character pack has 2 members of the Web Warriors affiliation, the Venom symbiote infused Gwenom, and the Peter Parker clone Scarlet Spider. The Gwenom & Scarlet Spider box. Image by Paul Benson. Here's everything that comes in the box: Contents of the Gwenom box. Image by Paul Benson. Here are the Stat cards: Scarlet Spider and Gwenom Stat cards. Image by Paul Benson. And here are the Team Tactics cards. There are two affiliated cards, and one unaffiliated. The 3 Team Tactics cards included with Gwenom & Scarlet Spider. Image by Paul Benson. Here are the assembled miniatures, as well as a look at Atomic Mass Games' painted versions: This slideshow requires JavaScript. The Gwenom & Scarlet Spider Character Pack retails for $39.99, and is available on Amazon or at your favorite games store. Tomb of Dracula Terrain Pack Finally, Atomic Mass Games sent me a beautiful terrain piece. Terrain in any miniatures game is important, but in Marvel: Crisis Protocol, it is doubly so as characters can interact with buildings in various ways, including, if they're strong enough, tossing them at other characters! The large box for the Tomb of Dracula. Image by Paul Benson. As this is a terrain piece, the box consists primarily of sprues: All the parts needed to assemble the Tomb of Dracula. Image by Paul Benson. The one other addition to the box is two One-Shot cards. These can be used optionally in a game to add flavor to the match. The Tomb of Dracula One-Shot cards. Image by Paul Benson. Here's a look at some of the assembly of the Tomb of Dracula: This slideshow requires JavaScript. And here is the completed model: The assembled Tomb of Dracula. Image by Paul Benson. And of course, so you can see what it can look like painted, here's a professionally painted Tomb: A painted Tomb of Dracula. Image by Atomic Mass Games. The Tomb of Dracula Terrain Pack retails for $119.99, and is available on Amazon or from your favorite games store. Marvel: Crisis Protocol – State of the Game A picture is worth a thousand words, and I think you can tell from the photos in this article just how detailed and dynamic the miniatures and terrain are. While the models looked great in the original core box, the sculptors have definitely stepped up their game since then. This is especially evident when you compare the sculpts from the newer Earth's Mightiest CORE set to the original core set, as both sets have different versions of the same characters. Assembly of the models is quite easy, with minimal mold line cleanup, and no fussy little bits to fumble with as with the original Baron Zemo model. Just looking at the models makes me want to get a game together, and examining each character's abilities definitely makes the gamer in me want to take them for a test drive. Part of the fun of a game like this is in building your roster, and figuring out which characters will work best with each other. And can we talk about the Tomb of Dracula? That terrain piece is stunning. My only regret is that Atomic Mass Games didn't send along the Monsters Unleashed Character Pack to go with it, but they had a very good reason: that item is so popular right now, that it's currently sold out! The Monsters Unleashed Character Pack figures. Image by Atomic Mass Games. Overall, I think things are very bright for Marvel: Crisis Protocol moving forward. There's still a deep well of untapped characters from Marvel Comics, and Atomic Mass Games has a planned a steady release of them. At this year's Adepticon convention, they announced several products that extend well into 2026, including some new Starter Packs that will each have an entire 10-character affiliation roster included right in one box. In the immediate future, I'm really looking forward to dynamic releases like the Phoenix & Phoenix Unleashed Character Pack. If you've never played Marvel: Crisis Protocol, or used to play and put it on hold, this is a great time to get into the game. For more information on Marvel: Crisis Protocol, visit the Atomic Mass Games website. Click here to see all our tabletop game reviews. To subscribe to GeekDad's tabletop gaming coverage, please copy this link and add it to your RSS reader. Disclosure: GeekDad received a copy of this game for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!