MADreads

Whacked and then some

June 24th, 2008 Molly - Central

I picked up Whacked, the new novel by E! News alum Jules Asner because I remember her fondly from the old days of E! (prior to the Ryan Seacrest invasion) and I enjoy reading Hollywood insider stories and the plot sounded fun and it’s summer.  And I was curious.  Once I picked it up, I could not put it down.

The novel centers on Dani Hale, a writer for a popular forensics crime show who has taken to investigating the subjects of her love life a little too thoroughly.  Beautiful, smart and highly likable, Dani is making her way in the competitive, shallow world of Hollywood where a girl can’t be too careful.  The reader follows her through the lows of a painful and ultimately nasty break-up with a long time boyfriend.  It’s not all bad news, though.  Her job writing for the crime show Flesh and Bone is really taking off and after the break-up, she dedicates herself 110% to her job with tremendous success. 

Her mind works in a creepy way, but that is what makes her such a great writer.  Maybe she drives by her ex-boyfriend’s bungalow a little too often, but break-ups are hard.  OK, the fact that she makes up a pretend friend at work to divert her real friends is odd.  Then we discover that Dani has a knack for sabotaging every new relationship that follows.  What’s going on here?

Does Dani have reason to be paranoid? Or is she just whacked?

Entry Filed under: Mystery, Recreational Fiction