It’s been twenty years since everyone watched the original episode of Girl on the Verge, the popular teen show about Honor St. Croix, teen tennis star, and her family and friends. Now, there is a reunion show coming, with rumors of a possible reboot of the series. But can the on-screen drama take center stage over what happens when the cameras aren’t rolling? Everyone will want to know.
Liv Latimer grew up onscreen, as the star of Girl on the Verge and the daughter of famous actor Patrick Latimer. The show had been a huge hit, running for years and creating superfans all over the country. When the show ended, Liv stopped acting for a while and eventually started taking on small, meaningful projects, earning critical success. Now she’s back for the reboot and there is one big question from the original show that still lingers in her head. Will she still have feelings for Ransom Joel?
Ransom had played her best friend and love interest in the show. Behind the scenes, they were best friends. Liv knew that she could count on him, no matter what happened. Especially in the second season, when her father had been killed in a car accident. Ransom had been there to hold her up in a way that no one else could, and Liv thought that that friendship would last forever. But years later, Ransom had confided in her that he was interested in someone else, and he was worried that their close friendship would make any potential dates for him or for her question their true feelings.
So Liv did the only thing she could. She let him go. She had been in love with him for years, but if he wanted to back off from their friendship so he could pursue romantic relationships, she would give him that.
He’d gone on from the show to make a series of successful action movies and possibly an even more popular kitten calendar for the ASPCA. He had been seen with girlfriends through the years before finally settling down with the girl next door, his neighbor from when he’d grown up, Gemma Gardner.
But the first red carpet event, Ransom shows up alone. Sasha-Kate Kilpatrick, who played the middle sister in the family, shows up with her Hollywood entourage and her resentment that she hadn’t been cast as Honor originally. Millie Matson, who played the youngest sister and wasn’t even in grade school in the original series, has grown up and become a pop star. And the drama is on, even before all the paparazzi and gossip columnists get started stirring things up for the online fans (and trolls).
Through all this, Liv has to figure out what it is that she wants. Does she want to be a part of a Girl on the Verge reboot? Does she want to go back to her quiet life making indie films? Does she still love Ransom? And is she willing to put everything on the line for a chance to be with him?
The Reunion is a sweet romance set in the crazy world of modern Hollywood. With the reunions and reboots, agents and publicists, emotions and egos, social media and superfans, the struggle to find the real moments underneath all the extra drama takes on a genuine gravitas for these characters. But the story is broken up by online news articles and gossip that breaks up the serious moments with the absurdities of the modern media, adding another layer of drama to a story that is packed with backstage drama.
I really enjoyed The Reunion. I thought that author Kayla Olson did an amazing job of keeping the story about Liv and her struggles as an actress, as a woman, and as a human. I thought that there might be more frothiness to this, especially with the online gossip popping up between chapters, but Olson kept her eye on the weight of Liv’s decisions and her feelings, giving this romance some weight. This has a bittersweet edge to it, especially when some of the reporting brings back some bad memories for Liv, but overall, this is a lovely second chance romance that just happens to be set in a crazy setting.
Egalleys for The Reunion were provided by Atria Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
