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A Novel
by Samantha Allen
Book Reviewed by:In this A Midsummer Night's Dream-inspired romcom, Puck is a reality show producer and agent of chaos with a talent for bringing people together ... and tearing them apart.
Meet Puck: the nonbinary, thirty-year-old mastermind behind Homewreckers, a dating show that puts troubled couples through hell—with a little help from their exes. Used to being the one pulling the strings, it shocks Puck when their life undergoes a plot twist of its own and their college roommate Mia announces her engagement to her ex's best friend, Damon. Having only recently broken up with longtime-boyfriend Zander, and never having had much in common with Damon (who lovesick Lena has always pined after), Mia's news leaves her friend group reeling—and Puck's mind whirling.
When they arrive for a week of wedding festivities at an upscale resort in the Appalachian forest, Puck immediately sees that Mia's marriage will lead to misery, and takes it upon themself to save their friends by rearranging the couples—without anyone finding out. But as Puck comes up against a type-A maid of honor hell-bent on making this wedding happen, it becomes clear that they will have to deliver the greatest stunt of their career. If only they can take their eyes off the bridesmaid. After all, the course of true love never did run smooth…
Written with Samantha Allen's signature charm, wit, and an irresistible dose of Shakespearian mischief, Puck is the ultimate romcom for our chaotic era, and a celebration of the friendships that carry us through it all.
Unlike the Puck in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream who is a mischievous servant of the Fairy King, Samantha Allen's Puck is a producer on a reality show. Puck is good at what they do. They seem to love and live for their job, and have devoted nearly a decade to it since graduating from college. Now, for the first time in years, they are taking a break to attend the week-long wedding celebration of their best friend from college. The problem: Puck believes their friend is marrying the wrong person. The novel has a tendency to overexplain Puck's moments of growth and learning. Insights and emotional revelations are often repeated, especially in the final chapters, long after readers have already grasped them. Still, Puck remains a light and entertaining read. Allen clearly knows and enjoys Shakespeare's play, and the novel is full of clever references. But rather than expanding on A Midsummer Night's Dream, it is simplified into a lighter romance. The result is a modern, fast-paced, and fun retelling.
Ashley Herring Blake, award-winning author of Delilah Green Doesn't Care
Full of mischief and romance, this book is everything you'd want in a Shakespearean retelling. A joyful, riotous romp! Farah Heron, author of Accidentally Engaged
So much fun! Unique and heartfelt, Puck by Samantha Allen balances humor and swoony spice with a thought-provoking story.
Happiness belongs to the self sufficient
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