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Nora’s been writing formulaic scripts for a romance TV channel for ages, and it’s paid the bills. Mostly. (Something her ex-husband never deigned to do…) After he decided he was done being married, Nora used the experience to write a different kind of movie script. And it was picked up by a major Hollywood director. Now it’s actually filming for a couple of days at her own old house in New York state, where there’s a very cool “tea house” in the backyard.
Two of the biggest stars in movies are playing the roles inspired by Nora and her ex. That means ridiculously handsome Leo Vance is actually staying in a trailer in her front yard. She knows most of the smiles he’s perfected for his different roles — and that smolder.
But Nora is actually quite happy for everyone to leave after filming wraps up, so she can get back to normal life, writing another canned TV romance. She’s more than a little dismayed when the day after everyone else is gone, she finds Leo Vance sitting on her front porch. He has a proposition for her. He’ll pay her a thousand dollars a night to stay at her house for the next week. She has no interest in this disruptive notion — but the money would help with the old gutters. He just wants to be somewhere real for a while, and the need is clear in his eyes. So Nora relents.
Thus begins a surprisingly comfortable day-to-day routine with Leo sitting in for dinners and breakfasts, and coffee on the front porch to watch the sunrise. He gets along well with Nora’s two kids and starts to become a fixture in their lives and even the small town.
But Nora knows a Hollywood star can’t just fit there in her normal life forever. How will she respond when it inevitably goes sideways? She was fine when her ex left, but this time her heart may take it badly.
I hadn’t read Nora Goes Off Script yet, even though I’ve read three of Monaghan’s books since this one. So as soon as I finished the really satisfying Dolly All the Time a couple of months ago, I put Nora on hold on Libby. It took a while for it to become available, but as soon as I got it, I dove in. And I read it all in one evening! (yeah, clock, I know you said 2:30 a.m.) While there’s the element of “unreality” of a major star falling for a nearly-40-year-old suburban mom of two, the rest of the book is very grounded. There are bills to pay, an old house to keep up, kids to parent, and emotional baggage to dig through. Nora’s been through some stuff but has kept her whole life afloat, being the responsible one for decades.
The romance is sweet, and I just felt invested in all of it: Nora’s successes, her kids, her potential happiness with Leo. As I said, I read Nora Goes Off Script all in one sitting; I just wanted to devour it. I so enjoyed it.
Rated: Moderate. Profanity includes 5 uses of strong language, 15 instances of moderate profanity, a dozen uses of mild language, and about 20 instances of the name of Deity in vain. Sexual content includes kissing, and some removal of clothing but little past that, when scenes go closed-door.
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