Reviews with content warning for Sexism - Romantic Comedy

Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

31 reviews

mraddd's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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amyvl93's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I love Curtis Sittenfeld so I was quite sad that this didn't hit as much as I was willing it to.

Romantic Comedy follows Sally, a resolutely single woman in her late 30s who writes for the regular comedy sketch show The Night Owls (aka SNL), who meets very famous pop singer Noah Brewster when he is the host and music guest one week in 2018. They appear to connect until they don't; before reconnecting during the pandemic. But famous hot men don't date normie women...right?

The normal person/famous person couple is a trope that is hugely popular in romcoms, and one that I usually enjoy but unfortunately for this book I just didn't feel the chemistry between Noah and Sally until fairly late in the novel. This may be because we're in Sally's head, but I also didn't feel that their conversations and even emails felt that flirty and romantic. Also whilst Sally was a times irritating, she did feel like a nuanced character - Noah had no shades of grey to him, which made him a slightly uninteresting character to root for.

There's also a whole lot of inside baseball about the making of comedy sketch shows which did feel a bit too detailed for my tastes, and whilst Sittenfeld definitely captures the anxiety of Covid-19 very well, there were a lot of topical references that felt a tad on the nose, although that may be because we're still very close to these events.

What worked well for me was the supporting characters; the rest of the writers & performers at The Night Owl, Sally's stepfather and beagle, and the entirely believable celebrity universe that Sittenfeld creates that sits around the characters.

I could see this being a, ahem, romantic comedy fluffy film but it didn't work overly well for me as a novel.

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kcarney86's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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lillyreadstoomuch's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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reading_diaries's review against another edition

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adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book loses a star for me just because of the pandemic - if it didn't have the pandemic, it would be a 5 star read for sure.

The way I think of this book is in 2 parts - 1st part being in 2018 before the pandemic and the 2nd part being 2020 in the pandemic. The first part of the book was incredibly strong. It was hilarious and had me laughing for hours. The second part of this book really hit the ground for me. It was just so slow and I was just waiting for it to pick back up again. I think the pandemic could have been completely removed from the second half and each story beat would have still worked.

I thought that while Sally was a bit "pick me" and annoying at times, she was a good character. I will say that while she's a writer, she still has some issues communicating. I wish she would have spoken her mind more and not shut down her feelings or ideas because of others.

The fact that she pulled the "Danny Horst Rule" from TNO really gutted me because if the roles were reversed, no man would have pulled an incredibly controversial and sexist skit - no matter how long he'd known or been friends with the woman it was about. Not to say that Danny would've had the skit go through but there are several male comedians that would have had no issue with continuing the skit and it stings that Sally felt the need to pull the skit.

Noah is cute. I also think he has some problem communicating but overall he's a golden retriever guy. I think the biggest problem I had with him was his lack of awareness for his privilege.

While I thought it was cute that he redecorated his office so that Sally had somewhere to work, the idea he had of her just quitting her job so she could live in his house for free and write really bugged me. I loved that he was thinking of her career but him not acknowledging that the reason she was angry was because he thought she would be find quitting her job for no real reason. Sally has stability at TNO and that's her income, she cant just quit that to be a fully time writer without a backup plan. And no staying at your booty call's mansion FOR FREE is not a backup plan. It just rubbed me the wrong way that he thought she'd be fine just giving up everything in New York for him.

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shannonnrosss's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

There was too much telling rather than showing, especially when it comes to Sally’s internal dialogue and character development. The romance was fun but not incredibly convincing, both Sally and Noah are kind of lukewarm. The political commentary felt one dimensional and performative while the pandemic plot took me out of the story. The epilogue felt like reading the conclusion paragraph to that college essay you wrote at 11:58 PM before it was due.

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penandpaper's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Interesting premise - disappointing execution. There are a few annoying tropes (insta love, miscommunication, and a perfect love interest who ever makes the wrong move) and particular disappointments (the attempt to be politically correct without any self-awareness). But on the whole, it’s just disappointing. I can’t say there’s any of the growth you expect, nor can I say the romance was particularly gratifying when it’s just awkward until the very end. Realistic, maybe, but frustrating, definitely. The final pages made me happy, but I almost DNFed the book multiple times. I wish this had been just a little bit different because it had potential.
For me, COVID is also a trigger, so the explicit illness was too almost much.

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kaymichelle's review against another edition

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funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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chaos_and_chapters's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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kelly_e's review against another edition

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hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Title: Romantic Comedy
Author: Curtis Sittenfeld
Genre: Romance
Rating: 2.75
Pub Date: April 4, 2023

T H R E E • W O R D S

Observant • Light • Clever

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Sally Milz is a sketch writer for "The Night Owls," the late-night live comedy show that airs each Saturday. With a couple of heartbreaks under her belt, she’s long abandoned the search for love, settling instead for the occasional hook-up, career success, and a close relationship with her stepfather to round out a satisfying life.

But when Sally’s friend and fellow writer Danny Horst begins dating Annabel, a glamorous actor who guest-hosted the show, he joins the not-so-exclusive group of talented but average-looking and even dorky men at the show—and in society at large—who’ve gotten romantically involved with incredibly beautiful and accomplished women. Sally channels her annoyance into a sketch called the "Danny Horst Rule," poking fun at this phenomenon while underscoring how unlikely it is that the reverse would ever happen for a woman.

Enter Noah Brewster, a pop music sensation with a reputation for dating models, who signed on as both host and musical guest for this week’s show. Dazzled by his charms, Sally hits it off with Noah instantly, and as they collaborate on one sketch after another, she begins to wonder whether there might actually be sparks flying. But this isn’t a romantic comedy; it’s real life. And in real life, someone like him would never date someone like her...right?

💭 T H O U G H T S

Well, well, well if Romantic Comedy isn't the first 2023 release where I fell complete victim to an intriguing title, catchy cover, and false marketing. This book was not on my radar until it started to pop up absolutely everywhere and was selected as a BOM pick. And I'll be the first one to admit it sounded promising - not the case!

What I like:
• characters in their 30s. It was a breath of fresh air to be introduced to more mature, thriving adults.
• a healthy romance. Sally and Noah's relationship felt mature with open communication, and a mutual respect and understanding for one another.
• the email corresponding. I am here for epistolary (in this case emails) novels every. single. time. As someone who communicates better in written form, I appreciate this aspect in a new relationship.
• the friendships. There are some seriously strong friendships sprinkled throughout and I liked these better than the actual romance.

What I didn't like:
• the chemistry. I definitely wasn't convinced. Maybe it was the structure. Maybe it was my lack of caring about the two characters involved. I'm really not sure. The romance definitely takes a back seat.
• the structure. There's a prologue, three 'chapters' and an epilogue divided over 300 pages. Even without doing the math, it's easy to tell those aren't really chapters! Each section jumped in time and it felt scrambled and rushed at times. It just didn't seem to work.
• it's not all that funny. A couple of funny lines from characters with cameo appearances and that's about it.
• the extensive detail. There's so much detail on the creative process and behind-the-scenes of working in the industry that I just didn't need or enjoy.

A solid plot idea but very poorly marketed and executed. Additionally, at this point in time I am just not sure I'm ready for novels with a focus on the pandemic as a central theme and plot. If you're looking for a book with romance and/or comedy this likely isn't it.

**Reminder to self: falling victim to the buzz surrounding books not already on your radar rarely works out.**

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• SNL fans
• readers looking for a take on modern love

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"It was a belated realization to have, but it occurred to me that perhaps this was how grown-up conversations worked—not that your communication didn’t falter, but that you both made good-faith attempts to rectify things after it had."

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