WRITERS WRITE... WRITING PARTNERS FEUD ~ Review UNSCRIPTED, Duty Bound I by J. S. Marlo

Another alter-ego review by Dona Penza Rutabaga Tattle, Esq. and Associate Wrye Balderdash !

Off the two go into UNSCRIPTED, Duty Bound I by J. S. Marlo, a contemporary woman’s suspenseful romance.

“My oh my,” exclaims Tattle. “This book truly is a brew of deception, manipulation, courage, honor and intense love.”

“That it is m’literary prowler. “With a backdrop of arson, murder, tragedy and romance, the two main characters are tossed and tousled between their dramatic personal lives and dynamic careers.”

Tattle scans pages with dedicated intensity. “When Blythe Huxley, skip-a-heart-beat attractive with sigh-worthy charm, meets Riley Kendrick a close friendship evolves. Both are married, both have endured hardships, and both become entangled in suspenseful mysteries. They become each others’ support and confidantes.”

“Blythe, an actor for the Canadian show, Wild Rescue, must manage his career along with daily visits to his wife, Claire, who languishes in the hospital in a vegetative state.” Wrye’s face is a mask of compassion. “She had been shot while trying to help a young boy. Blythe must, also, decide when and if to take Claire off of life-support. Something her parents refuse to even consider. Adding to his already tremulous life is Isabella Neuville, a gorgeous, gotta-fan-yourself, co-actress, who makes her desire for Blythe obvious. It isn’t easy to keep his distance when Riley’s “winning” script developed a lovers’ relationship between their characters on the show.” 

“Yes, indeed, Riley won the contest, Martin had contrived, which brought Riley into this exciting new endeavor. However, W. H. Martin, producer-director, sees something in her writing and takes her on as a staff writer. Andy, the lead writer, thinks she is inspiring and she quickly meets his demands. Paul, a co-writer, alternately hits on her or sabotages her. Either way he is obnoxious.” Tattle wrinkles her nose in distaste and sticks her tongue out at the character. “Meanwhile, Riley flies back and forth from her country hometown to the glamorous set while her second husband Ollie, once a firefighter, now a fire investigator, works on uncovering the arsonist responsible for multiple fires.  Riley must also deal with her daughter, Rowan being in Iceland studying volcanoes and her son, Hunter, wanting to follow in his step-father and birth father’s legacies to become a firefighter. The latter had died while trying to save a child, leaving Riley a young widow.”

Fully impressed, Wrye adds, “With each page turn, you become hopelessly attached to the characters while truth becomes increasingly rather than less evasive. Nothing is safe. No one they love is safe. Neither are Blythe and Riley.”

“I believe Marlo deliberately doesn’t want you to take a single breath from tale’s beginning to end. The story is that intense.”

“I hear you, m’sister-in-review.” Wrye gives an approving nod. “As a reader, I followed a tangled story that I thought could never be resolved, nor could I figure out the true persona of the villains. The story is a splendid mixture of suspense, thrills, drama and hot-to-the core yet tasteful romance. The author sets a new standard for women’s contemporary romance. It is edgy; engaging yet still harbors the spicy sweetness that originally drew romance readers.”

Tattle flips the book’s last page and offers an exaggerated sigh. “I was completely hooked, not just on hunky, dreamy Hux (Blythe), but on the building pace of the story and the multifaceted characters from the main cast, to the secondary characters, to the antagonists, that I absolutely adored hating. The plot had been well-developed and I kept expecting it to be over-complex causing problematic resolutions, but each scenario resolved itself smoothly and believably. Congratulations on a job well-done, J. S. Marlo!  I would highly recommend UNSCRIPTED, Duty Bound I and look forward to reading the next two in the Duty Bound series.”

Hope you all enjoyed our reviews! Until next month, keep reading.

Dona Penza Rutabaga Tattle, Esq. and Associate Wrye Balderdash

of Blather City, Wannachat

Created and written by:  Angelica Hart and Zi

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