0
0
As Pat Benatar once sang, love is a battlefield. It’s about ups and downs, romantic dinners and disagreements that seem irresolvable. And in Been There, Married That, author (and former Hollywood wife) Gigi Levangie explores the battle that begins when two people fall out of love.
The story begins as novelist and Hollywood wife Agnes Murphy Nash returns home from a book signing to find the security codes changed and a security guard stationed at the door, armed with a taser. And that’s how her husband, big-time producer Trevor, informs her that he wants a divorce. Suddenly, everything about Agnes’s glamorous life begins to fall apart. Her credit cards are canceled, she’s turned away from hot spots and events, and she’s forced to hire a lawyer that she can’t afford to battle Trevor’s cutthroat legal team in order to keep from losing custody of their tween daughter, Pep.
What follows, then, is the dishy and often laugh-out-loud story of a frazzled woman who struggles to keep it together for her daughter, despite the increasingly outrageous situations that her soon-to-be ex continues to put her through. Trevor doesn’t just want a divorce, he wants everything—and he and his ruthless lawyer set out to make Agnes’s life miserable. They demand. They threaten. They take away her options. They make ridiculous accusations. And they leave her with little more than certain areas of her house (which she’s allowed to use at specified times—but only until it’s sold), a heartbroken child, and the support of her ex-con sister and three spunky Salvadoran staff members who remain fiercely loyal.
Of course, as the ex-wife of a big-time Hollywood producer (Brian Grazer), the author is well acquainted with the situation. She knows first-hand what it’s like to be a Hollywood wife—and what it’s like to be a Hollywood ex-wife. Although some parts of the story may seem too ridiculous to be possible, there’s most likely a touch of reality—some snippet from the author’s own life or the life of someone she knows—in each outrageous scenario. And as Agnes’s story plays out, you’ll wonder which actors and directors and other big-name power-players make appearances as characters in this amusingly over-the-top rom-com.
More than just a fictionalized Hollywood tell-all, though, Been There, Married That is an entertaining and sometimes entirely cringe-worthy story of the end of a high-profile relationship in a place where image is everything. It’s a light and fun-filled read for anyone who enjoys both humorous chick lit and Hollywood gossip.
Listen to the review on Shelf Discovery:
