📝 What is The Villain Edit about?:
Romance novelist Jacqueline Matthis, whose career has tanked, returns to her South Carolina hometown and dreams up a comeback plan: competing on the world’s most popular reality dating show. As Jac becomes a front-runner for bachelor Marcus’s heart, she discovers her last one-night stand, Henry Foster, is a producer on the show, complicating everything. When Jac starts getting the villain edit and her secret plan unravels, she faces the possibility of both career ruin and personal heartbreak.
📚 Genre: romance
🎧 Format: ARC E-Book
💞 Feels: ⭐⭐⭐
I enjoyed the premise and seeing Henry meet her before Jac started the dating show. I wish we’d been able to see them together more before they were thrown into the awkward situation of him producing her. It was hard for me to believe they had any chemistry, based off of their interactions through the lens of the show.
I didn’t really believe the romance between them would result in anything. I didn’t believe either of them were being honest when she was part of the show. There was so much lying and “editing” going on I didn’t know what to believe. I only believed the “real” villain because I believed he was being honest about what he wanted to get out of the show. He was just trying to be famous and looking for someone to “match his freak,” as the kids say.
I found everyone unlikeable because of the way they were treating Jac. It made me happy I don’t watch The Bachelor shows. I did watch UnREAL for a little bit, though, and this reminded me of that show. Seeing the behind the scenes of what the producers are doing to manipulate a storyline.
Once Jac started playing the game too, I was lost. I know she was just trying to survive, but I didn’t agree with the choices she was making. It was like she doubled down on the villain edit to keep some part of herself intact, but it was making her feel worse about herself.
I wanted to like Charlotte, but of course she was a producer, so couldn’t know how honest she was being with Jac. In my estimation they were all villains by the end…which unfortunately, wasn’t interesting to me. Since I was sold a different experience.
Getting technical
I think it’s ironic that Jac’s books are miscategorized and therefore aren’t successful, because readers expected a different outcome. I feel that this book is also miscategorized. On Bookshop.org the book is categorized as Romance: Romantic Comedy, Workplace, Contemporary; Women, Satire, Feminist, Performing Arts. This book wasn’t romantic to me past the first chapter, it felt more like a Dark Comedy; light on the comedy.
You’ll like this book, if…
You’ll like this book, if you’re a fan of the tv show UnREAL and possibly a Bachelor Stan.
✅ Spinoff novella nomination:
I want to see the season where Marcus was a contestant on Shailene’s season.
What are you reading? Let me know in the comments.