The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre is a charming queer theater rom-com. It’s full of laughs, theater mishaps, and romantic tension. If you’ve been searching for a sapphic rom-com full of singing, then you’re in luck! Keep reading this book review to find out all the stage notes!
Summary
Melody McIntyre, stage manager extraordinaire, has a plan for everything.
What she doesn’t have? Success with love. Every time she falls for someone during a school performance, both the romance and the show end in catastrophe. So, Mel swears off any entanglements until their upcoming production of Les Mis is over.
Of course, Mel didn’t count on Odile Rose, rising star in the acting world, auditioning for the spring performance. And she definitely didn’t expect Odile to be sweet and funny, and care as much about the play’s success as Mel.
Which means that Melody McIntyre’s only plan now is trying desperately not to fall in love.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Edelweiss. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
TW: slut shaming
I’ve only been exposed to the theater world at a glance, having done a few plays in high school, but there’s a lot that goes on for a production. We never even had half as many special effects as the productions in the book! It’s a love letter to drama, the power of belief, and figuring out our priorities.
The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre is, as you might expect from a theater book, dramatic. Structured like a play, if you’ve been intrigued by the behind the scenes of theater, then you will enjoy the blocking diagrams and lighting cues. What I enjoyed the most about this book was the discussion of belief. How much do we let our beliefs, fears, and superstitions control our life? Do we spend our lives looking for signs of these curses coming true? Does that stop us from living?
Overall,
While I really enjoyed the characters, there were moments where I felt like the chemistry felt a little forced? I also wish there had been more discussion about Melody and her friendships throughout the book. The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre is pretty focused on the romance story line, which isn’t a bad thing. I just wish there had been a few other side conversations about these situations because I think they would have been very satisfying, considering the tension.
Overall, The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre was a charming sapphic rom-com. For fans of musical theater and Les Miserables there are plenty of Easter eggs and little touches. Sometimes we may think we have our priorities figured out, and then in a moment everything changes. We have to focus on what we can control and realize the ones we cannot.
Find The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.