Scared Scriptless by Alison Sweeney

Sometimes the stories behind a book are as interesting to me as the book itself. Scared Scriptless, which in itself was an amusing read, turned out to be a "story behind the story" book. The basic set-up centers ib Maddy Carson, originally from a quaint mountain ski village, but now a script supervisor of a hit television series called The Wrong Doctor. Maddy's incredible organization and attention to details make her excellent in her work, and also include her own set of internal rules on dating to keep her life smooth. Things get complicated when her new boyfriend, who is not an actor (top taboo on the dating list) but is in the industry, and technically her boss, gets Maddy involved in the idea of pitching a reality show, this one based on the very town where she grew up. As a bonus to the plot, a new actor has joined the cast of the The Wrong Doctor, and seems to like what he finds in Maddy.

The plot is not all that complicated. It's pretty easy to predict who is going to end up being the good guy, and who the jerk, but the process of getting there is nice. Alison Sweeney has created some very likable, realistic characters, good at their jobs, at being friends, and supporting each other. As she acknowledges in a note at the end of the book, she drew many of the characters from people she has known in her time in the industry. She is both the host of the NBC hit-reality show The Biggest Loser (at this writing, in the 7th season), but has played Sami Brady for over 15 years on the long running NBC soap, Days of our Lives. It is this background that makes this book so different from others with somewhat similar setups. This award winning actress has taken the world she knows so well, and used that knowledge to give attention to details that make the scenes more real for her readers. I like a book where I learn something, and this one taught me a lot about television production. Plus, it had me cheering several likable characters on. And it kept me cosy on a rainy summer day. In my book, that's a wrap.

I received this book as part of the Hachette Showcase Bonus Batch batch over at LibraryThing. I've been following the literary showdown between Hachette and Amazon this summer with interest, and it has made me re-examine my book-buying habits, for while I generally purchase from indie bookstores, I would go to amazon occasionally, as well.  I didn't own an e-reader at all when the battle began, but was gifted one shortly after. It is not a kindle. I hope that the outcome is one that is supportive of the authors caught in the clash.

Tags: early-review-librarything, i-liked-it, made-me-look-something-up, read, sometimes-fluff-is-good, taught-me-something, what-s-another-name-for-chick-lit, will-look-for-more-by-this-author