Book ~ "Down the Rabbit Hole: Curious Adventures and Cautionary Tales of a Former Playboy Bunny" (2015) Holly Madison

From Goodreads ~ A former girlfriend of Hugh Hefner describes how her years inside the Playboy Mansion went from a fairytale of A-list celebrity parties to an oppressive regime of strict rules, scheduled sex, and a total loss of identity, so much so that she even contemplated suicide.

I didn't know who Holly Madison was when this book caught my eye (apparently she's been on a few reality shows).  But I thought it would be interesting to read about what it was like being a Playboy Bunny and an ex-"girlfriend" of Hugh Hefner.

When Holly was in her early twenties, she headed to Los Angeles seeking fame and fortune.  Rather than working hard like most people would, she instead chose to move into Hugh Hefner's mansion and become one of his six "girlfriends" ... and then proceeded to whine and complain about it.

According to Holly, Hugh was a pajama-wearing old deaf man who let dogs pee on the carpets.  He provided girls with drugs that he referred to as "thigh openers".  He made her quit her job at Hooters to be with him all the time.  Her room and board were provided as were services such as spas, hair stylists, etc. and she got a clothing allowance.  There was a 9pm curfew except on the nights Hugh wanted to go clubbing.  She said that he yelled at her a lot and made her feel ugly and her self-esteem became non-existent.  She wasn't allowed to wear red lipstick.  The other girls in the house (the "mean girls") didn't like her and didn't treat her very well (it was always them, not her).  She spoke often about how smart she was and how dumb the other girls were (maybe her superior attitude is one of the reasons they hated her?).

Yet she stayed there for SEVEN years and eventually worked her way up to being Hugh's main "girlfriend".  She thought he would eventually kick the other "girlfriends" to the curb and marry her and have kids.  Seriously??!!

When she finally does leave Hugh, she goes right into the arms of illusionist Criss Angel about three seconds later.  At first, he's all romantic and loving but eventually becomes possessive and goes into terrifying rages.  She stayed with him for four months.

Where was her family during all this?  She's been verbally and emotionally abused by two men and no one tried to help her?  She's one of Hugh's "girlfriends" for seven years and they are okay with it?

She eventually meets her future husband, they have a baby, get married and live happily ever after (so far).

After she left Hugh, she said she worked hard at succeeding as "Holly" rather than being known for her connection to Playboy ... yet she kept running back to appear on their show.

I found it an entertaining book to read.  It's from Holly's point of view so who knows how much is actually true or if it's how she perceives it or how she wants us to perceive it?  As a head's up, there are a lot of typos and swearing.