Only Say Good Things
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4.0 • 149 Ratings
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- $19.99
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A JANUARY 2024 APPLE BOOKS STAFF PICK AND AUDIBLE EDITORS SELECT
NAMED A BEST BOOK TO READ THIS JANUARY BY THE GLOSS
A raw and unflinching look at the objectification and misogyny of the Playboy mansion, a woman’s stolen young adulthood and her journey to self-acceptance, and a rare look inside Hugh Hefner’s final days.
At just twenty-one years old, Crystal Harris’ life changed forever when she attended a party at the notorious Playboy mansion. Picked out of the crowd by Hugh Hefner, she became one of his infamous “girlfriends,” attending glamorous Hollywood parties and traveling the world. Yet this seemingly alluring lifestyle had a dark side. Hef controlled his girlfriends with strict rules regarding everything from their hair and makeup to their curfews, and Crystal was forced to compete with other women for her spot in the highly hierarchal system. Living at the mansion, she felt more like a fixture than a resident.
She quickly rose to the top, but being Hef’s number one girlfriend came at the cost of Crystal’s identity outside her role in the Playboy universe. Her fate seemed sealed when Hef surprised her with a marriage proposal she could not imagine refusing. But as Crystal Hefner, she grew increasingly restless to understand who she truly was away from what she saw as Playboy’s toxic culture.
In ONLY SAY GOOD THINGS, Crystal offers a vulnerable and clear-eyed look at how her experience with Hugh Hefner catalyzed her transformative journey from someone who prized external validation over all else to a person who finally recognizes her true worth. This candid memoir provides a fascinating look behind the scenes at a powerful cultural icon and brand, and an equally empowering perspective on hard-won lessons about who we allow to determine our value.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
We’ve heard stories about life in the Playboy Mansion, but we’ve never gotten such piercing insights into the darkness that underscored Hugh Hefner’s fantasy world. In her penetrating memoir, Hef’s late-in-life wife, Crystal, talks about the painful childhood experiences that left her desperate to seek validation by joining Hef’s harem of live-in girlfriends and submitting to the media mogul’s controlling rules about money, curfews, and group sex. Despite its title, Only Say Good Things is full of bombshells, from Hef’s drug addiction to the dilapidated mansion’s staggering black mold problem. Hefner narrates the audiobook with a matter-of-fact style that’s downright moving. This may be the first time a Playboy insider has fully opened up about the brand’s dark side.
Customer Reviews
A surprising read.
I didn’t know what to expect with this book. By the time Holly left the mansion I stopped paying attention to Playboy life. But as people were coming out with their different stories about the secret life of the mansion my fascination grew and I had to read this book. I’m so glad I did. Crystal is really insightful about how she got to the place she found herself. She doesn’t blame anyone for her choices, but does help you see that some people’s childhood and early adult lives set them up for the negative choices they make in the future. Also, THANK YOU to Crystal for speaking about mold toxicity and Lyme disease, both of which I have. These are two highly misunderstood and under-discussed ailments and she reached a lot of people in this way. It’s a good read.
Loved it
I knew nothing about Crystal Hefner before listening to her audiobook. I was fascinated from the beginning. She comes across as a very honest and real individual, candid and telling her truth without seeming like she is (or was) in it just to make a buck. Hearing her backstory explained a lot. She seems like a genuine, likeable person who has come a long way from an early life of trauma and heartbreak.
I feel badly for her.
She slept with Hef within 30 minutes of meeting him, then complains about being trapped, controlled, and coerced into staying at the mansion. She courageously leaves and finds…… Dr. Phil’s son (another rich guy) only to go back and marry Hugh. lol!!
This is a book about a girl who was poor, failed out of college, and sought out an old rich guy as a way to succeed. She plays the victim throughout the book and makes Heff out to be a sexual predator and drug addict. Which is true, but hard to sympathize a girl who willingly stayed with him and married him. Too funny