Review: Scoop

As I mentioned yesterday, Scoop was a book that I had a little trouble pigeon-holing into a genre. By the time I finished it last night, I decided it was a truly fun read that's best classified as a Rene Gutteridge original. Add a cup of comedy, a pinch of mystery, a dash of romance, and wha la (or however you spell it) you have Scoop.

The book focuses on Hayden Hazard and the impact she has on her colleagues as a Christian, former homeschooler in a newsroom. I have to admit I cringed when I first saw she had been homeschooled. I ducked and waited for all the tired, old stereotypes to fly. But Rene didn't rely on them. Instead, she painted Hayden as a young woman who was comfortable in her own skin, had a gut-level faith that flowed from her naturally (even as it made her colleagues uncomfortable), and had a basic level of common sense and wisdom that much of the world misses these days. Collective sigh of relief.

One interesting handling of Hayden as the focal character is that only the first and last chapters were in Hayden's point of view. The rest were told from various colleagues points of view. There's Gilda, the slightly long in the tooth anchor; Ray, the aggressive, hiding his light Christian reporter; Hugo, the pill popping executive producer; you get the idea. The story picks up as sweeps week descends on the station with the main anchor AWOL, Hayden suddenly sitting in her chair, a sewage plant exploding, and much more. Add Ray's desire to date Hayden and it makes for quite a mix. The characters were interesting, but almost stereotypes yet it worked in this comedy.

If you're looking for a funny read, I think you'll enjoy this book by Rene. If you're looking for suspense, ala her Storm series, this one isn't for you.