Love Unscripted by Tina Reber

Sometimes you find love where you least expect it. Ryan and Taryn meet by chance and what starts off as an unlikely friendship between two people from very different walks of life, blooms into something much more. But with love comes a whole lot of obstacles that stand in the way of their happiness.

Ryan is a movie star - one of the biggest on the planet. Think Robert Pattinson at the height of his Twilight fame.  I'm pretty sure that was what Reber was going for when she wrote his character. He's filming a series of movies based on a series of bestselling books, and the fandom is out of control.  One day, while trying to escape his legions of fans, he stumbles into Taryn's pub. She lets him hide out for a bit, treats him like a normal guy, and the two start a friendship - a friendship that of course is mired in attraction. Although it takes them awhile, they eventually succumb to their feelings and start a relationship.  

This is really where the book takes off and Reber probably could have gotten the reader to that point a lot quicker.  In fact, most scenes in the book are drawn out and slow.  The reader is taken on ALL of their adventures - including the adventures of laundry and doing the dishes.  Reber describes it all. While I did remain interested in the ups and downs of the relationship - and trust me, there are plenty - I think Reber could have sped things up a bit and/or taken out a couple hundred pages.  Forgive me for saying this, but sometimes an editor is a very useful tool.  I'm pretty sure that Reber is a self-published author so I don't think anyone was there to guide her in this way.  I listened to the audiobook of this novel and it was over twenty hours.  That's too long for a romance novel! Unless you're Diana Gabaldon - and then you can do no wrong.

In the end, after some thought, I did enjoy this novel and would recommend it - albeit for the patient reader.  But bear in mind - there is a sequel.  And the audiobook of that is over fourteen hours long. God only knows what more these two characters can go through - but perhaps I will find out one day.  After I do a few loads of my own laundry.