The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa FergusonMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Two years ago Bryony Page attended a rom-com workshop/conference to try to get an agent for her book, which is a genre-defying fictionalisation of her grandmother's work setting up an ESL school, where Bryony also works. She never got any interest in her book (she's still trying), but the last agent she met, Jack Sterling, offers her a job as ghost-writer for Amelia Benedict, a successful rom-com writer, famous for being the daughter of one of the wealthiest men in the US.
Two years on, Jack hasn't been able to get even a whiff of interest in Bryony's own book, but she has proved herself a brilliant ghostwriter, successfully increasing Amelia's sales and critical acclaim. Bryony has tried to walk away from the contract many times, but she is paid handsomely for her work (including a percentage of sales) which she uses to anonymously donate to her grandmother's school, and Jack can talk her out of anything, she's such a pushover.
Jack and Bryony have become friends, maybe even best friends, over the past two years. They eat together once a week and play on the same bowling team. If it weren't for Bryony's boyfriend Parker (also an ESL teacher in Aukland, Russia) and Jack's girlfriend Chloe (or is it Claire) ...
Amelia is a nightmare. She only wrote the first book and since then has relied upon a series of ghostwriters, but Bryony is so good that over time the others have been let go. Amelia doesn't even read her own books and has made some truly awful gaffes about characters and scenes when being interviewed or when talking to fans.
Bryony wants to complain about the ever-shortening deadlines and pressure to write two books a year, on top of her dayjob, with Amelia's mindless twittering about how she wants the books to be written, but instead she gets railroaded into going on a two week book tour with Amelia and the rest of the team to perform damage limitation after saying things like she based one of her characters (a murderer) on her father.
Two weeks on the road with Jack and feelings are starting to develop, but when a multi-millionairess relies on you to write the books that get her fame and publicity she has a vested interest in forcing you to stay.
I wanted to like this because I loved Meet Me in the Margins, but sadly there were too many flaws with this. Firstly, the convenient boyfriend who's been overseas for 27 months - puhlease that relationship is so dead. Second, to have become a successful writer and not realise that your original story was an overblown, confusing mess? Smacks of one of my favourite films Teacher's Pet (amazing film starring Doris Day). Third, the way in which the conflict was resolved was pure end of the film Singing in the Rain. Fourth, Bryony was just so wet. And finally, Jack said something to Bryony which I imagine was supposed to be sweet and romantic but came across as slightly alarming and a bit of a red flag. (view spoiler)
As above, I liked it but I didn't love it.
I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.
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