“Josie Bradford feels stuck. After being moved against her will to New York City and losing her father in the span of a year, the aspiring screenwriter dreams of escaping back to small-town Ohio where she can attend college and go back to some version of normal—if only she could afford it. Enter Hollywood teen heartthrob Rowan Adler, an overnight celebrity thanks to the viral streaming sensation in which he stars. Ever-reckless Rowan is bored, sheltered, and desperate to escape the limelight. The lives of the two teenagers collide one fateful autumn night when Josie finds an escaped Rowan asleep in the middle of the greasy burger shack where she works, leading her to wonder: How much would this exclusive sell for? What follows is an absurd, heartfelt, romantic twenty-four-hour descent into chaos. The unlikely pair slowly learn what it means to embrace the plot twists life throws their way and how sometimes, getting lost is the only way to find out what you really want.”
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Content Warning: Graphic bullying, violence, grief. Moderate death of parent, misogyny, sexual assault. Minor sexual content, abandonment.
That Wasn’t in the Script was such a fun book to read, and as a fan-fiction veteran, I can safely say that this book read like one, and I’m not saying that that’s a bad thing. Sometimes you just need a sweet, easy read to get you through when you don’t know what you want to read. It did take me a little while to get into it, but once I did get into it, it was a speedy read that I honestly couldn’t put down.
This book tells the story of Josie Bradford as she finds herself pretty much babysitting Rowan Adler, a Hollywood heartthrob after he makes an escape from his usual life of shelter and security. While this story isn’t the most realistic, it serves as a form of escapism for those reading, and while, yes, it may be aimed at readers younger than me, I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy it. I probably loved it even more as a 13 year old as opposed to a 23 year old!
Both Josie and Rowan are the typical characters that you expect to find in a book like this; one that follows a set of certain plot points leading to an overdone but still popular ending. They didn’t stick out for me as individual characters even though they couldn’t be any further apart life and personality wise. I didn’t actually expect them to end the way they did for some reason even though I had the feeling throughout the whole book. I thought it would have one of those last minute turns and it would end totally different.
I’ve not read anything else by Sarah Ainslee before, but from this book, I can confirm that she has a unique writing style that is easy to read and is never confusing. She doesn’t feel the need to over exaggerate her story telling much like some other authors I’ve read from before.
Thank you to Bow’s Bookshelf and NetGalley for the ARC!
All the love,
Jade x
Tea Stains and Book Spines 