Not Here to Make Friends, by Jodi McAlister

This is not a terrible cover, as cartoon covers go, but I requested an ARC of this because of the author, whom I knew slightly, and whose work has been recommended to me more than once.

Full disclosure: back when I was on twitter (see footnote ¹), I was friendly with the author. We weren’t particularly friendly, mostly we both followed several of the same people, from back when blogs were much more of a thing.

Beware: enough swearing to make me proud; sex on page; disordered eating; racism; alcoholism; death of a spouse; grief; guilt; mental health issues.

Not Here to Make Friends, by Jodi McAlister

It’s probably not the best idea to start reading an author with the third book in a trilogy, especially a trilogy about a reality show, when you have strong negative opinions about reality shows, but who says I follow any sort of Earth logic?

I was hooked from the first scene.

The story is narrated in first person, past tense, in alternating chapters from both the lead characters’ points of view: Murray, the showrunner, as he produces the current season of a reality show, and watches impotently as what was supposed to be a sure-fire success implodes, thanks to the machinations of the evil Lily–last minute contestant, his former co-producer and best friend, and whose chapters help fill in some of the blanks of their long and intimate backstory..

Here’s the blurb in my NetGalley ACA (see footnote ²):

Murray O’Connell is standing on the greatest precipice of his career. As showrunner of the reality dating show Marry Me, Juliet, Murray is determined to make this season a success.

Nothing and nobody will stand in his way.

Except perhaps Lily Fireball, the network’s choice for this season’s villain. Lily has classic reality TV appeal: She’s feisty, dramatic, and never backs down from a fight. She also happens to be Murray’s estranged best friend and former co-showrunner.

What was once a perfectly planned season turns to chaos as the two battle for control. Working in reality television, they’re used to drama, secrets, and romance. But what happens when suddenly they’re at the center of the storyline?

First things first: I don’t watch, and have never watched, reality tv. In fact, I have always had a visceral negative reaction to it, ever since the first season of Survivor was all everyone could talk about, back in the dark ages of 2000.

So when I tell you that I inhaled this book, please note that it was almost against my will.

Second: the events of the three books in the series happen simultaneously during the shooting of the 2021 season of the fictional Marry Me, Juliet show, which means that I am now technically spoiled for the other two–but not much more really than if I had read the blurbs for the three novels before starting to read this one.

However, this means that the other two couples’ relationship shenanigans take up quite a bit of page space; this is done within the framing of shooting a show about romantic relationships, of course, but if you are not into dating shows, this may feel intrusive or excessive.

On a related note: I am sure I missed at least some of the nuances of the story due to my ignorance of shows such as The Bachelor; there were some conversations where the characters seemed to be speaking in a kind of shorthand, the full meaning of which escaped me, but which is sure to increase the enjoyment of readers who are also fans of these shows.

What is spelled out in the text is how much of what is aired at the end is fully scripted, and how the participants’ emotions are manipulated as much as those of the audience. The producers coach the contestants–“do this, and you’ll look good to the audience; do that, and you’ll win points with the season’s Romeo; mention your charity or cause here”–in order to get footage that they can edit and splice together to fit whatever storyline they’ve mapped out for the season.

The narrative assures us that Murray–and Lily, when she was still his partner–actually wants what’s best for the contestants; if it were up to him, he’d ensure that every couple at the end of every season actually loved each other and had a good shot at a lasting relationship.

Of course, being aware of the power of mass manipulation inherent to reality shows such as the fictional Marry Me, Juliet, he plans to use the success of this, the very first season where he’s been allowed to cast diverse aspiring Juliets and a non-white Romeo, to sell the fantasy of equality and inclusion; maybe, if he does it well enough and if enough people watch the season, maybe the world could become at little bit less racist, a little bit less bigoted.

Bonus points: this was one of Murray’s professional goals from the start of his career as a very junior production assistant, before meeting one Lily Ong, the fiery Vietnamese girl and fellow P.A. who would become his best friend.

As the story proper starts, the COVID pandemic is ongoing, and the production of this latest season of the show is subject to a number of strict health safety protocols, which have increased the difficulty of shooting such a production. Not only is the crew allowed in the production’s “bubble” severely limited in number, thus creating a much heavier work load for everyone and especially Murray, but a change in government regulations means that anyone entering said bubble at the beginning of filming is now forced to remain within it for the duration. In a show where contestants are eliminated every episode, and usually sent home forthwith, having the discarded Juliets sit around is bound to create tension.

And boy, is there tension enough already.

The conflict between Lily and Murray is that they have been each other’s person essentially since the moment they met; for a good dozen years prior to the beginning of the book, they saw each other through the thick and thin–until her husband dies in an accident, and Lily falls apart.

It is now a year later, and the Lily who shows up–as a contestant, rather than as a co-producer–is carrying a year’s worth of unresolved grief, guilt and regrets, and is set on a path of professional self-destruction, aimed squarely at Murray’s plan for this season.

And so, naturally, they clash.

While Murray sees Lily as going through an emotional breakdown (and she is), she sees him half-killing himself through overwork; he barely eats, sleeps even more rarely, and absolutely never stops working. He wants to protect her from herself, which she resents, and she wants to take care of him, which he won’t allow.

This is not a cuddly or comfortable relationship; for one thing, there’s so much history between them, most of it is emotionally tangled with their relationships with other people. For another, they are both ruthless professional manipulators, and they know exactly where the other’s weak spots are. And when they go for blood, they don’t miss.

A couple of times, i felt that the push and pull between Lily and Murray was dragging a bit too long, apparently for no reason, but the reveal for this puts everything in perspective, while breaking the reader’s heart.

There is a last act separation, but it’s actually fairly short in page space, and not too long in duration, given everything else. And the climax and final reconciliation are suitably dramatic and satisfying; I believe these two will work their problems out and be happy and fulfilled together.

Not Here to Make Friends gets 8.75 out of 10, and it would get a higher rating if I could have enjoyed the setting of the story more.

* * * *

¹ As I mentioned in this post, back at the end of January, twitter locked me out. There may be updates to this? (yeah, not sure)

² I mean, it’s not bad, but I prefer this version (found at FantasticFiction, here)

Reality TV producer Murray O’Connell is the showrunner for reality dating show Marry Me, Juliet, and that means he’s the boss: he controls the cast, the crew and the story. Until Lily Fireball turns up.

Lily is everything viewers love to watch: she’s feisty, dramatic, and never backs down from a fight. Her villain narrative should be easy to pull off, but Murray keeps getting in her way. Because before she was Lily Fireball, she was Lily Ong – Murray’s best friend, and he’s determined to stop her blowing up her life on television.

As the season unfolds, Lily and Murray go head to head. Lily just wants to have some fun with her role, and Murray just wants to film the show he planned. Why won’t she listen to him? And why can’t Murray focus on the job, instead of the woman he thought was just a friend?