Nora Goes Off Script

Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan (2022) 260 pages

Nora usually writes for sappy tv movies that have holidays and romance in them. But her latest script is based on her life and her failed marriage, and doesn't have a happy ending. Except that it does: the script is being be made into a movie for the Big Screen.

Her story's outcome depended on the peace that she found while writing in a charming outbuilding on her property in upstate New York. The movie director wants to film part of the movie at her place. Nora meets the cast, including Leo, the actor who's playing the role of her ex-husband, and while he's very famous, she's not sure what she thinks about him: he helps himself to her beer and hangs out on her porch where she watches the sunrise every day.

After the movie wraps, he asks if he can stay in her little outbuilding for a week, and offers to pay her well. She really needs the money, so she agrees. What she doesn't expect is how Leo melds into her life with her kids. Can a relationship with a man who's famous and has 3 homes last?

The writing style flows and the conversations feel real. In spite of one misdirection by the author which was never addressed, I definitely enjoyed the novel.

The Rom-Commers

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center, 321 pages

For the past decade, Emma has put her life on hold, caring for her disabled father while her younger sister finishes her education. Now, however, she has a chance at a dream job: writing a romantic comedy screenplay with her writing idol Charlie Yates. Unfortunately, as much as he can write just about anything else under the sun, Charlie can't write a romantic comedy to save his life...nor is he particularly interested in trying. But Emma didn't fly halfway across the country and put her dad in her sister's willing but unexperienced care just to churn out a lackluster screenplay.

The setup of this novel is not the greatest, but it feels like a good old fashioned rom-com. Just the right amount of slapstick, a few tears, and some decent meaningful kisses, and there you have it. I have a few quibbles with the relationship (Emma lets him get away with SO MUCH casual rudeness — but then she also goes into it with a "I can fix him!" mentality, so...) and I think they're both too dramatic to have a long-term relationship. But this is a rom-com in book form, so I'll let it slide.

Fay Wray and Robert Riskin

 

Fay Wray and Robert Riskin: A Hollywood Memoir by Victoria Riskin (2019) 416 pages

The author is the youngest daughter of the actress Fay Wray and writer Robert Riskin. I've been noticing a trend of many dual biographies being published, and I was curious to learn more about these two entertainers. The author also provides brief biographical details about a handful of people living and working adjacent to the title figures such as John Monk Saunders, Frank Capra, Merian C. Cooper, Jo Swerling, and, of course, the author herself and her siblings. I appreciated the supporting photos throughout rather than limiting the photos to a few glossy pages right in the middle. Fay is so linked to her one role in King Kong (1933), in which she is wearing a blond wig, that I don't think I recognized her in the couple other films from her filmography that I have seen. I am intrigued to watch more of her performances. The films Frank Capra directed are thought to be stamped with his style, but this book makes the case for Riskin's screenplays sharing authorship for the films so many love. The witty dialogue and values of rooting for the little guy are definitely something I enjoy, and now I know how much of Riskin is contained in what he wrote. 

Ayoade on Ayode

 

Ayoade on Ayoade: A Cinematic Odyssey by Richard Ayoade 320 pp. audiobook read by the author

Anyone familiar with the British sitcom "The IT Crowd" will know Richard Ayoade as the character Moss. After watching that show I was expecting . . . I'm not exactly sure what from this book, but it wasn't this. There are many moments of humor, often subtle. However, much more of it is rambling commentary about Ayoade's life, and his attempts at screenwriting and filmmaking which I think is intended to be humorous but falls flat. Surreal but disappointing. 

Mrs. Rochester's Ghost

 Mrs. Rochester's Ghost by Lindsay Marcott (2021) 283 pages

Jane loses her job when the television series she writes for is canceled. After months of being unable to find a new job, she's feeling severe financial hardship, when she gets a call from a guy she used to work with at a bar years ago. Otis now cooks for his cousin, Evan Rochester, who's wealthy and in need of a tutor for his teenaged daughter. If Jane agrees to come, she'll have her own cottage on the grounds of Rochester's property on the California coast.

An alternating storyline is the story of Evan Rochester's wife, Beatrice, a former super model who walked into the sea several months ago, if one believes Evan's story. Some people, including Beatrice's brother, say that Evan killed his wife, having tired of living with her severe mental illness, and needing cash from their joint assets to fund his business proposals. In chapters told from Beatrice's point of view, her mental illness is profoundly on display, and it's fascinating to see how she views her husband ("my jailer") and his household employees.

Meanwhile, Jane's interactions with the brusque Rochester are improving after an awkward first meeting, making her‒against better advice‒fall for him.

I enjoyed this modern re-telling of Jane Eyre, maybe even more than Brontë's original story.