Jen’s review of Love on Location by Claire Baxter
A deliciously fun rom com about a girl who has big dreams and just can’t stop herself from falling in love.
Shayna is this close to getting her dream job as a location manager for a new TV soap, she just needs to find the right house to film it in, and the job is hers.
Luckily, she’s found the perfect place. Unluckily, the owner – who is tall, dark and more handsome than is fair – is stubbornly refusing to let her use it unless she goes to dinner with him. No harm in that, right?
Lachlan swore he’d never go back into show business – not after his heart was broken – and the last thing he wants is a film crew traipsing through his house, but there’s something about Shayna that’s making it hard to say no . . .
He won’t let anyone near his heart, and she’s not looking for love – what could possibly go wrong?
Love on Location is a novella about Shayna, a film location scout for a company in Australia. Her boss has promised her that if she can secure the location for an upcoming TV mini-series, he will promote her to the position of location manager, her dream job. She is ecstatic when she finds the perfect property; the only problem is the owner, Lachlan, wants nothing to do with the production. Lachlan is actually a former child star. He hates all things celebrity, so the last thing he wants to do is allow his home to be used for filming. Eventually Shayna convinces him, securing her new position in the process and ensuring she has to spend a lot more time around Lachlan’s home. Lachlan is attracted to her and despite her knowledge that it would look unprofessional, they eventually begin a relationship.
I thought the setting and details were fascinating. First, the descriptions of Lachlan’s property and of Brisbane were great and made me want to visit. I also loved learning more about the business of setting up movies/TV. I’d heard of location scouts, but the story provided more details about what they do and how they do it. I also enjoyed learning about location managers and the challenges they face. I have no way of knowing if the portrayal was 100% accurate, but it felt real and added a lot to the story.
The romance was lackluster, though. I didn’t feel much chemistry between Shayna and Lachlan. The sex is all behind closed doors, which is ok, but it does rob the story of some intensity. And their non-sex activities don’t do much to add to the tension. They weren’t an unpleasant couple, but neither were they very compelling.
I also found Shayna pretty frustrating. She supposedly really, really wants her dream job, but then she does something impetuous and irresponsible that she knows could get her fired. I understand she had the hots for Lachlan, but why wouldn’t she just wait until filming was over before starting a relationship? It made her “dream” seem petty and temporary rather than some sort of driving ambition. Add in a cliched meddling mother and shallow villain, and the story really fell apart.
Overall, this novella was just “meh.” The characters and plot were pretty forgettable, and even with the shorter length I still struggled to find the motivation to finish it.
Grade: 2.25 out of 5
This book is available from Random House Australia. You can purchase it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
