This program features a bonus scene and an author's note—both audio-exclusives—and acknowledgments read by the author.
"[Patti] Murin's portrayal of Emma is captivating—a blend of sass, humor, and empathy with impeccable timing and nuances."—AudioFile
She's rewriting his love story. But can she rewrite her own?
Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She's spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies—good ones! That win contests! But she's also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates—The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!—it's a break too big to pass up.
Emma's younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don't meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn't want to write with anyone—much less "a failed, nobody screenwriter." Worse, the romantic comedy he's written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn't even care about the script—it's just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme.
But Emma's not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter—even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they're writing breaks all Emma's rules—and comes true?
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin's Press.
4 of 52 copies available
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Creators
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Publisher
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Awards
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Release date
June 11, 2024 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781250344793
- File size: 335841 KB
- Duration: 11:39:39
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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April 8, 2024
Center (The Bright Side of Disaster) botches a clever premise about an aspiring writer too trapped by family obligations to have a career and an established writer too trapped by his career to have a family. Emma Wheeler put her Hollywood dreams on hold to be a full-time caretaker to her father, but when her manager, whom she shares with “screenwriter’s screenwriter” Charlie Yates, suggests Emma become Charlie’s live-in ghostwriter to fix his appalling rom-com script, Emma gets a second chance at the career she always wanted. Unfortunately, Center has Emma rhapsodically explain rom-com tropes but doesn’t deploy them effectively herself. The meet-cute is more of a meet-ugly, with Charlie calling Emma an “unproduced, underachieving, failed nobody writer off the internet.” This would be fine if Charlie underwent the necessary character arc to become a worthy hero, but instead he’s shoved through the standard beats of a romance novel before he’s developed at all, making scenes like the one in which he carries a fainting Emma bridal-style into his home feel forced, rushed, and out of character. It doesn’t help that Emma is incapable of taking no for an answer, especially when it comes to physical intimacy and Charlie’s reasonable concerns about consent. Additionally, Emma’s boundary-smashing, superfan approach to everyone she meets in L.A. veers from rom-com heroine awkwardness into cringeworthy nonprofessionalism that makes it tough to root for her. Readers will be better served elsewhere. Agent: Helen Breitwieser, Cornerstone Literary. -
Patti Murin captures the wit and warmth of this uplifting romance. Emma Wheeler, an aspiring screenwriter, receives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity when her manager asks her to rewrite a disastrous rom-com by her idol, Charlie Yates. Charlie, an acclaimed action-adventure screenwriter, is taken aback by Emma's sudden appearance at his home to "assist" him in reworking his script. Murin's portrayal of Emma is captivating--a blend of sass, humor, and empathy with impeccable timing and nuances. This plot of forced proximity blossoming into romance is layered with compelling characters. Also, listeners won't want to miss Katherine Center's reading of a deleted scene from Charlie's perspective and the Author's Note. S.K.G. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine -
September 13, 2024
Emma Wheeler is a struggling screenwriter who gets the chance of a lifetime when living legend Charlie Yates, known for his adrenaline-packed action films, needs a rescue for his rom-com fiasco. Though she is hesitant to leave her ailing father, Emma reluctantly hands over the caretaker reins to her younger sister and heads to Hollywood. When she arrives, however, she finds that Charlie not only knows his script is terrible, he has no desire to improve it and even less desire to give love the limelight. She'll have to convince him that romance is real, or her big break will be over before it even begins. Center (Hello Stranger) presents a playful relationship fiction rom-com. The humorous, heartwarming story is not a sequel, but fans of Center's The Bodyguard will appreciate the Jack Stapleton cameo. Narrator Patti Murin gives an upbeat, engaging performance of the likable Emma. Murin's conversational air is especially absorbing when Center blithely breaks the fourth wall to address readers directly. VERDICT This audio will appeal to listeners seeking a fun, fast-paced romantic comedy about the film industry and fighting for love. Recommended for fans of Falon Ballard, Alisha Rai, and Samantha Young.--Lauren Hackert
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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