Contemporary Romance published by Jay Crownover LLC 27 Dec 20
I discovered Jay Crownover when I happened upon her first book in the Loveless, Texas series. She hooked me right off the bat, and I devoured each book in that series as they released. I’ve been wanting to go back to start on her backlist, but time just keeps getting in my way. So with this new release of A Righteous Man, I was able to keep reading one of my new very favorite authors.
While enjoyed reading about Salinger and Maren, I have to say their story doesn’t have the same impact as those in the above-mentioned series. Now, don’t get me wrong, this is still is a good book. Especially when it comes to Salinger, who we meet as a sixteen-year-old superstar who everyone caters to, as well as takes advantage of. Maren is ten years older, has a very successful career as an actress, and when she tries to save Salinger from himself and his destructive ways, she loses everything. Hollywood only wants the dollars rolling in, so don’t mess with their Golden Boy.
Now ten years later Maren as remade herself, again at the top of her game. That’s when Salinger once again re-enters her life, and she’s having none of it. She doesn’t believe he’s changed. But he has been through rehab, after overdosing a time or two, and he’s trying to make amends to those he hurt over the years. He has a new project in the works through his new company and wants Maren as the star of his next film. Thus is the beginning of the growth of these two characters throughout the book.
They each have to let go of the past, easier for Salinger than Maren since he’s not holding the grudge. Maren is quite stubborn, has her own rocky past to get through aside from the one with Salinger, and has a way to work down the road to finally believe in this new man he’s become. He had a crush on her way back when, and now he has a man’s view of the woman he’s not been able to forget. Slowly they get to know each other better, realize people can change, and they begin to work together on the film, taking them places in the past but also showing them what their future could be.
I like that we don’t get a whole lot of the movie business thrown in – just enough to get the flavor of how it would work. I’m not a huge Tinseltown fan, so that would have turned me off quite quickly. Jeno, Salinger’s stepbrother, is one who has always stood by him, but it’s interesting to see how trust works in different relationships. I’m not sure why this book didn’t draw me in as the previous books I mentioned did. Maybe because the Loveless series was my first read by Ms. Crownover. Sometimes follow-ups don’t work quite the same. But I still had a good time with these two and enjoyed watching them grow and love.
Grade: B
Summary:
Salinger Dolan.
You know his name.
You’ve seen his face.
You’ve spent money on the endless amount of useless crap he endorses.
Of course, you’ve heard the stories.
You know the ones…
The one that claimed he was hard to work with and totally unprofessional on set.
The one where he got caught doing drugs on the set of the most popular, family-friendly show in America.
The one where he ruined the reputation—and career—of America’s sweetheart.
There’s more truth to those stories than his fans want to believe because Salinger is the kind of thoughtless, careless, dangerous Hollywood bad boy the paparazzi and fame-hungry starlets can’t get enough of.
Eventually, the shine of his flashy lifestyle started to fade, and Salinger realized the only thing he’s famous for nowadays is his bad behavior and well-documented struggle with addiction.
The former golden boy is beyond tarnished, and the only person who can help him get his glow back is the one woman who wants absolutely nothing to do with him.Maren Copeland.
You might recall her name.
It’s possible you vaguely remember her face.
You’re probably wondering where she went. After all, you’ve heard the stories…
The one where she exposed Salinger Dolan’s drug use all those years ago.
The one that said she tried to ruin his career because she was envious of his popularity.
The one about how she went from being everyone’s favorite to a pariah overnight.
Maren Copeland is now known as the comeback queen. After years of hard work and purposely avoiding entanglements with problematic heartthrobs like her first co-star, she’s on track to revitalize her career and rearrange her priorities after a very messy and very public divorce.
For the first time in both her professional and personal life, she’s the one calling all the shots.
Unfortunately, the path to get her where she wants to be leads directly to none other than Salinger Dolan.
He’s the one and the only person she swore she would never work with again.
Once upon a time, he cost her everything. He’s back to make amends and promised to give her anything she wants if she’ll just give him a chance to prove he’s grown up.
She doesn’t trust him.
She knows she’d be a fool to believe he’s changed.
After all, what are the odds that a spoiled, entitled brat like Salinger Dolan could become a righteous man?
No excerpt available.
