Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee by Jeff ZentnerMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another ARC I've gotten at work, and here it's Jeff Zentner's third novel. He really wowed me with The Serpent King a few years back, getting five stars for feels alone just like Adam Silvera does with all his books thus far. Now, we get a good spiritual successor to Zentner's debut in Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee, which plays out like a sort of cross between The Serpent King and iCarly, if you can believe that.
Down in Tennessee, we get to see a couple of girls - best friends Josie and Delia - who have their own struggles in life, up to and including serious future anxiety brought on by the impending end of their high school careers. But what's not about to end soon, we hope, is their career in entertainment - together, they're the stars of a local creature-feature late-night show that's gotten syndicated to a number of other markets around the South and Midwest. And they may just have their chance at a big break at an upcoming con in Florida where they may get to meet a producer who could take them national.
Oh, but you kid. This is Zentner we're talking about. And far from the usual stereotype of male writers getting female leads wrong with all that "breasted boobily" crap, Zentner, to my eye, writes a very sensitive portrayal of Josie and Delia both. He also writes in a lot of skewerings of male fans for their constant criticism of any and every little thing Josie and Delia might get wrong in terms of fandom knowledge. And the producers. Dear God, the producers. I was reading this morning, drinking a Mayan Mocha, and I was sorely tempted to pour my drink over the book while reading about the producers just to disinfect it of their presence. They're that bloody disgusting.
So yeah, it's not a smooth ride, not by a long shot. But it's got a lot of moments of sweetness too. Especially when Lawson figures into the picture, a most awesome blend of brains and brawn. An MMA fighter with a massive geekboy side, so I totally picture him resembling the guy who's gonna be my tattoo artist this coming weekend.
For sure, when this book comes out in a few months, I'll be happily adding it to my hand-selling repertoire. Along with The Serpent King, whenever we get that one in stock again. :D
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