by Elissa Sussman
On my summer romcom kick I came across Elissa Sussman’s first novel, Funny You Should Ask, and I remember hearing her interview with Bianca Marais on TSNOTYAW (For those of you who aren’t in the know that is “The Shit No One Tells You About Writing”). I loved the premise at the time and put it on my TBR pile, then this summer came, and I added it. Once I was done, Audible let me know she had a second one out so I then jumped onto that one. Once More with Feeling came out about a month before I read it!
This book does involve a celebrity (a common romcom trope) but this time it is between TWO celebrities. It was a refreshing change. Katee Rose became a Britney-esque pop starlet who performed with her boyfriend who was in the equally famous boyband CrushZone. After their breakup, she was essentially ostracized from the entertainment world. (Re)Enter Cal Kirby into her life. He was in the boyband with her ex but has now become a director and choreographer. Her best friend from Theater Camp growing up has written a new musical and has Cal slated to direct, with her best friend as the lead. Now, this is something Katee is not keen on as Cal is the reason, she was so publicly disgraced 10 years before and he did nothing to help her. After some bumps, they get the show off the ground and make it to Broadway where it becomes a smash hit. Katee and Cal grew closer in that time but then her ex shows up again, hoping to get back into her good graces. Does she fall back into the trap of celebrity or follow her heart? You’ll have to read to find out!
This book time jumps all the time, but it is done expertly, flashing back right when the backstory is necessary. I think many authors would benefit from reading how Sussman pulls it off. I love the characters she creates as well. Katee is a big celebrity, yet she is written to be completely relatable. I feel that is why so many authors slide into the normal-girl-and-a-celebrity trope; so that the protagonist is relatable to the average person. But Katee’s celebrity downfall and the embarrassment she felt about it is something that many people have had to deal with, and you cheered her on as she took new steps in her professional and romantic life.
Elissa Sussman is a delightful read, and I would highly recommend reading both of her novels, especially if trope-y romcoms aren’t really your cup of tea. She writes in such a refreshing way and makes her stories engaging and unpredictable.