The Critic

by Joanne Schwehm

[Lynn]

What drew me to this book was the title. The hot guy on the cover helped to endorse my pull towards this particular book too. The title conjures up a certain kind of male protagonist in my mind, and not only has the author written him as I expected, she's exceeded my expectations about him too.

Bentley Chambers is an award winning journalist with the critically acclaimed trade newspaper the Edge. He's revered for his theatrical reviews by industry professionals who respect his honest opinion. His words carry considerable weight. He's responsible for endorsing or ruining a production or career within the theatrical world. He's the one who's opinion counts.

Andrea Jordan grew-up knowing her parents wanted her to attend an Ivy League college, marry a rich professional man and then become part of the country club set. Andrea had different plans and longed to tread the boards of Broadway. Her parents refused to fund any potential theatrical study, so Andrea attended a community college and distanced herself from her family, whilst learning her trade. With a leading role in an off-Broadway production, Andrea is close to reaching a career ambition. That is until Bentley Chambers wrote another scathing review of her latest performance.

I love that Andrea takes ownership of her problem and seeks out the person who seems hell-bent on ruining her career. That she takes on-board the advice he gives:
“A critic doesn't slingshot you into stardom. You need to control the pull and release. The sling can only go back as far as you decide to draw it.”
At the same time Andrea made me scream in frustration as she repeatedly jumps to the wrong conclusion without sticking around long enough to hear Bentley out. Causing herself and those around her unavoidable distress.

Bentley has been fascinated by Andrea Jordan ever since he saw her on stage for the very first time. Back then he observed her to write his very first review. Whilst he is captivated by her looks, he is less than complimentary about her acting ability. Not that it isn't good, it just lacks that certain je ne sais quoi. But there are more facets to Bentley's personality and you soon begin to realise that his harsh critiques are far from malicious. He just needs to show Andrea how to let go of repressed emotions and to pour her passion to her theatrical performances.

I've not read any of this authors work before but I'll definitely seek her out from now on. This is a well thought out and written book, with a plot setting I haven't come across before which increases the overall appeal of the book. The characters are well developed and identifiable making it easy to empathise with them throughout the storyline. The secondary characters add interest only where necessary, especially Gina, Seth and Brett. To begin with I had no idea if this book would be part of a series , so I'm very extremely happy to learn that we'll see more of Brett, Gina and Seth in the future.

4½ stars

***arc received courtesy of the publisher***