Title: The Ticket
Author: Heather Grace Stewart
Series: Love Again #1
An enjoyable if cliched story
Newscaster Pete McCarney planned to go on a long trip with his girlfriend, but after she breaks up with him, he’s stuck with a very expensive, non-refundable ticket designated for an Allison James. Using social media, he seeks someone willing to go in his ex’s place. Forced to take a vacation from her job and needing to get away in general, Allie James decides to interview to be his traveling companion—and they hit it off. But do they get along well enough to spend weeks traveling the world together?
I liked this story well enough. The characters did most of the heavy lifting, Pete with his earnest charm and lilting accent, Allie with her quirky exuberance. Allie could have easily come off as immature and reactive, but Stewart managed to keep her on this side of that line. The only problem I had with them was the marriage proposal at the very end. Throughout the book, Allie’s daughters were foremost on her mind; she nearly cut the trip short to be with them when her ex-husband’s behavior upset them. It was what I loved most about her. And Pete knew how important those girls were to her. Yet neither of them spared the girls a fraction of a thought when they decided to get engaged. It didn’t make sense on Allie’s part, and while I didn’t necessarily expect Pete to consider her daughters first, I would have had so much more respect for him if he had. One could argue that agreeing to marry Pete was the best end for Allie’s distrust-of-men arc, and that’s a valid point, don’t get me wrong. It’s not their getting engaged that disappointed me—though I would have preferred they pump the brakes—it was that neither of them considered the girls in that gigantic decision. Other than that, I enjoyed spending time with Allie and Pete.
The story’s greatest weakness was its reliance on cliches. Woman/wife discovers boyfriend/husband is a lying, cheating scumbag; brokenhearted woman swears off men; character isn’t appreciated or properly utilized at work; character is so distracted/on edge/stressed out/exhausted that they’re “encouraged” to take leave and get their shit together; supposed friend of celebrity sells them out; jaded journalist wants to cover “real” stories; ex-husband starts a new life with a younger, prettier woman; etc., etc. The premise of a man needing a woman with a certain name to use a prepaid ticket was more or less original, at least to me, but just about everything else was trite. I expect some amount of cliche in romance—in fiction in general, honestly—but this was a lot.
Despite the cliches, though, the plot was more or less solid—until the factory collapse. It’s possible I missed some subtle set-up or foreshadowing, and if that’s the case I apologize, but as far as I could tell, this event was completely abrupt and pointless. Sure, the interview thing inspired Pete’s future work, but that could have come about any number of ways. The horror and scope of the collapse, especially when unprecedented, was just too big and stark to suit the tone of a small novel that was about finding love despite life’s more common and intimate frustrations.
As for the writing, Stewart’s friendly, energetic style flowed well and kept a steady pace. Not sure the main character screaming “Motherfucker!” was an advisable first impression to give readers, but it was ballsy, and I respect that.
Overall, it was an enjoyable if cliched story with a couple of hiccups.
