Isha Unscripted is for anyone who’s ever felt on the brink of ruin. Where you’re staring your dreams down and realize that the end of the road just might be near. That you might have to give up. Keep reading this book review for my full thoughts.
Summary
Isha Patel is the black sheep of the family. She doesn’t have a “prestigious” degree or a “real” career, and her parents never fail to remind her. But that’s okay because she commiserates with her cousin, best friend, and fellow outcast, Rohan.
When Isha has a breakthrough getting her script in front of producers, it doesn’t go according to plan. Instead of letting her dreams fall through the cracks, Rohan convinces her to snag a pitch session with an Austinite high-profile celeb: the one and only Matthew McConaughey, who also happened to be her professor at the University of Texas years ago–he has to remember her, right?
Chasing Matthew McConaughey isn’t easy. Isha needs a drink or two to muster up courage, and she gets a little help from the cutest bartender she’s ever encountered. But when the search for the esteemed actor turns into a night of hijinks and unexpected–albeit fun–chaos, everything falls apart. Isha’s dreams seem farther than ever, but she soon realizes who she really needs to face and that her future may just be alright, alright, alright.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
TW: alcohol abuse
I am loving this recent trend of celebrities who are appearing in romance books. Isha Unscripted immediately made me think of How to Marry Keanu Reeves in 90 Days. But back to the book at hand, one of the immediate things I loved was the relationship between Isha and her cousin. The ways in which you’ll protect them at all costs and, especially Isha, wonder if you’re being a good mentor to them. If you’re being someone they can look up to, be themselves around. If you love those kinds of family relationship, a banding of two black sheep together, then you have to read Isha Unscripted.
Their relationship remains close knit and entirely endearing and only becomes even more so as the book continues. But let’s talk about Isha. On the one hand, she’s having a truly rough go of it. Yet on another, entirely too relatable note, she’s struggling. She not only feels the intense disappointment of her parents, but the reality that the dream she has, the things she loves to do, just might not be in the cards for her. As anyone who has had to go through a career change, Isha Unscripted is for you.
She is flawed, complex, and messy. But she’s also passionate, determined, and caring. My heart could not help but weep at her feelings of vulnerability and own heart break. Because I think that feeling of our dreams not working, of having to give up what makes us tick, is a very real fear we all have. Combined with the pressure and guilt she feels from her parents, Isha is a character who you may not agree with, but one who you understand.
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Isha Unscripted is a book that crept up on me. At around 30% something clicked for me and I fell in love with Isha. It manages to be intensely emotional and is entirely focused on Isha. Her insecurities, doubts, and fears. It’s one of those books which stresses that, at the end of the day, we need to be happy with ourselves. Accepting of ourselves. Find Isha Unscripted on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org, & The Book Depository.