Unscripted

by Natalie Aaron and Marla Schwartz

[Leah]

When I requested Unscripted on NetGalley, it was mainly because I really enjoy books that are set behind the scenes, particularly behind the scenes of reality TV. I’m pleased to report that a lot of Unscripted is indeed about a producer for TV and there’s a lot of fascinating goings-on (although at this point, I think we’re all aware that “reality” TV is no more real than Gossip Girl). For that, the book totally wins because it very much fulfilled everything I ask for in a novel about TV. Where the book falls down, is pretty much the simple fact that the book is, to all intents and purposes, plotless.

If you asked me what Unscripted was about I’d be pretty stumped. It’s not about Abby’s job as a producer, it’s not (as the blurb will have you believe) about Abby getting over the fact her ex write a movie about her (in fact, it takes ages for that to even happen, and, sure, Abby does freak out a bit, but it’s not a life-changing event). There’s nothing you can point to and say “that’s what it’s about.” I enjoyed reading it, and it only took me a couple of days, but it’s the kind of book that leaves you wondering what it is you’ve just read. The romance (and I use that term in its loosest sense) isn’t even a major part, either. It could have been – oh, boy, could it have been; the prospect for some flirting and banter was there, but no one took advantage of that, so instead, the romance we DO get is shoe-horned in on the final page, almost as an afterthought. Like “Woops, we forgot to get them together, we must rectify that.”

I’m loathe for this to be a “bad” review, because I did enjoy the book and I did like the look into Abby’s job. Abby, too, is a really likeable character. But again, something good is ruined, as Abby’s (supposed) best friend Zoe is one of the most spoiled, selfish characters you will ever have the displeasure to meet. She’s the type of person who dumps her boyfriend/fiance because he takes a paycut for a job. Because “$1500 a week isn’t enough” of a salary. She’s the kind of character you want to punch, because right after dumping her lovely boyfriend (who deserved better, really) she shacked up with a 60-something restauranter, and wanted us to believe she was with him because she loved him, not because of his money. Abby is the sap who enables Zoe to be like that, if I’m honest. She regularly keeps her gob shut for the purpose of keeping the peace, when a good talking to might have done Zoe some good. She ruined a massive portion of the book; basically, every scene she was in had me gritting my teeth in anger over her antics.

Unscripted did have bright spots – Abby, Will (Abby’s boss), the whole behind the scenes look was really well done (as it should be since both authors are producers in TV) but it didn’t really have a plot and Zoe really, really, really annoyed me and I just kept waiting for her to get some kind of comeuppance, but no, Princess Zoe gets away with being a total and utter cow. The writing was really good and it kept me reading two nights in a row, much longer than I usually like to stay up reading, and there’s definitely something there that tells me these two authors have talent, but you can also tell it’s a debut novel as I’ve said above, with all those issues. It left me on the fence, I liked it, I really did but it also left me with the feeling that it could have been done better, much better.