“the plot signposts are made of heavy lead, and this reader was hoping there would be some more twists and turns revealed in the development.“
“The authors write strong women characters, but the men are less defined”
“One must suppose that romances need happy endings; even predictable and predetermined ones.”
– Felicity Burke
Evie, in her thirties feels she has made a mess of things. Personally she is trapped reliving mistakes in relationships, obsessed with a celebrity writer and actor and professionally she is going nowhere. Enter a fairy godmother… well the character of Maximilian is just such a device to allow her to go back and relive her twenties, but with an extra ten years of knowledge and maturity behind her.
Perhaps it is comforting for some readers to know exactly how a novel will play out. Jane Austen does it with such finesse that it is exquisite torture to read when you are certain of an inevitable conclusion. Here the plot signposts are made of heavy lead, and this reader was hoping there would be some more twists and turns revealed in the development.
A warning. Perhaps this genre is not my cup of tea. Don’t read past here unless you are happy with spoilers!
The element of someone having a “redo” of a part of their life had all sorts of possibilities. The character of Evie uses some of these time-travelling advantages. She harnesses her obsessive fan knowledge to track down and begin a relationship with Hugo, (the celebrity she obsessed over in her thirties) before he becomes famous. Her future knowledge is used for little else and it seems a lost opportunity. The professional setting in the world of writers, movies, podcasts and technology in London could have injected some fun date related advantages for Evie and the story.
The majority of the novel takes place with Evie reliving her twenties, making better choices and growing as a person in self worth and knowledge. She also becomes a better writer and student and takes her future into her own hands, again, this time with gusto. The authors write strong women characters, but the men are less defined. Hugo definitely reads like the characters Hugh Grant played (when he was younger) and Evie’s best friend Ben is such a nice guy that he becomes a bit of a snooze.
Forgive this cynical old reader when she says the nice guys never get the girls in real life. One must suppose that romances need happy endings; even predictable and predetermined ones.
Felicity Burke, On The Page
Author: Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus
Publisher Allen & Unwin
Published November 2021.
RRP: $29.99
