This is a feel good novella with virtually no conflicts. It ended rather abruptly which was disconcerting. Phred is a writer, journalist, scriptwriter who is dumped by her boyfriend in Dublin, Ireland, so chucks everything and spends her entire savings to go to NYC and begin again. OK, that I can believe. Fast forward to real time and she is working in a newspaper office as a writer but is given a paparazzi camera and the opportunity to take that photo of gold dust that will give her recognition, never mind the fact that she has no interest in being a part of the pap. She gets the photo but the recognition is more for the way in which she maneuvered her position than for the photo itself. My question was why a writer would be given a camera and made to take pap photos. She has über writing talent, proven in the storyline. In fact I was hoping she would write a piece about her initial observations of stressed out actors jockeying position and pasting on the award winning fake smiles to be seen and photographed. Instead she befriends an actor by being ordinary, falls in love with an agent, leaves her newspaper job and a boss whose character should have had more substance. There is a lot of between-the-line reading to be done while Phred continually lands on her feet, no matter the circumstance. Then there was the abrupt ending with very little resolution. I gave this story a high rating because I was pulled into the storyline so easily. It is a quick read which is wonderful for a summer read poolside, but I'm afraid the story has very little substance and leaves the reader waiting for an actual ending. When I finished "OOPS!..." my first thought was there must be a sequel coming out. There is not. De-ann Black has become one of my favorite feel good authors because her stories are entertaining. She creates stories that feature way over the top heroines and the supporting cast drive her heroine's serial relationships. These guys always display interesting if not attractive personal traits, goals and skills which contribute to the enjoyment of the story. In this story the heroine's exceptional multiple talents are beyond the pale but who cares that is the cornerstone of the fun of this piece. Her heroine's flawless execution of her many skills drives the story to its conclusion.There is little reality here, the heroine is flawless in every endeavor but what the heck who is seeking reality in this novella? Most of us are just looking for enjoyment and isn't it enjoyable to see our heroine overwhelm all the odds and succeed. I must admit I was just settling in and expecting a convoluted tricky ending to this story when De-ann abruptly end it. I wasn't satisfied when De-ann pulled the plug;I wanted more and felt she had at least five to ten story lines yet to be expanded upon. I'm thinking that De-ann is grinning right now with the knowledge that her readers are hoping that she is busy preparing a sequel which will explain how all these interesting characters will meander through their futures.
What do You think about OOPS! I'm The Paparazzi (2000)?
This was as awful and ridiculous as the title!
—monik_40
