Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

I'm 50/50 on Curtis Sittenfeld books. I loved "Rodham" and "American Wife" - I felt they both captured something so special about two very real women, however fictional the stories. "Prep" and "The Man of My Dreams" both were 1 star reads for me. Her latest, "Romantic Comedy" sits at a solid 3 stars.

Sally Milz is a writer at The Night Owls, a long running late-night live Saturday show....*ahem. She's resigned to the occasional hook up, career success, a close relationship with her stepfather, Jerry, and her friendship with two of TNO's stars, Viv and Henrietta.

One week, Noah Brewster, a pop musician, is both the host and musical guest. During the pitch meeting, Sally doesn't let his status intimidate her and they seem to hit it off. During the week, they write together and seem to have a few moments during the week. It all implodes at the after-after party and Noah leaves without another word.

Then Covid 19 happens.

Noah then emails Sally and the rest of the story happens.
------------------------
Here's what I liked:
--I liked the "inside baseball" look at "The Night Owls" As a lifelong fan of Saturday Night Live, I clearly 'got it' and recognized the references. The writing schedule, the pitch meeting, the peeing in jars.
--I liked the email exchanges between Noah and Sally. It showed a lot growth and the development of a relationship between the two. I could see the stress that the pandemic had the on the both of them.
--The friendship between Sally, Viv and Henrietta. This was fun to read and watch how each developed over time.

And here's the bad part....
At the start of book, I actually went to google if Curtis Sittenfeld had some connection to SNL. The vitriol that Sally had about Danny dating a beautiful actress was so severe that it felt personal. Was there a connection to Dave McCary or Colin Jost? Surprisingly....none that I could find.

Then...post emails, the book turned into chick lit. It felt shallow and a bit....predictable. I can't say that I would have wanted a different ending but it just felt....easy.

All in all, it was still an enjoyable read, but it's not on the "Rodham" level for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.