Lucy Parker never fails me. When I need a warm hug of a book I know I'll find one in Parker's London Celebrities series. That said, Headliners doesn't start out all warm and cozy. The protagonists (introduced in The Austen Playbook) are rival TV presenters who pretty much loathe each other. And with good reason.
Sabrina Carlton and Nick Davenport have been on rival news shows and have up until recently merely had a work rivalry (albeit a very strong one). But when Nick broke news that devastated Sabrina's family and derailed her career, her antipathy for him grew to epic proportions. Nick, who is privately not very proud of the choice he made, isn't in much better shape professionally due to a rant about his boss being caught on video. With both of their careers on the rocks, Sabrina and Nick have no choice but to accept when they're offered a last opportunity. The two will have to become co-hosts on the lowest rated morning show and will have a month to improve ratings or be out of a job. To say that they're not thrilled is a serious understatement. But the one thing they have in common is a deep sense of professionalism (with a healthy dose of ambition) and so this very unhappy, unwilling pair start to work together. When a series of small mishaps start to add up, the two have to become investigating as well as on-screen partners.
As with all of her novels Parker delivers with her characters and the sharp, funny dialogue they share. And that's a big part of why I read Parker. But I also read her for the heart and charm that permeates each of her novels. If you've been feeling like you need a break from the news of the world (and who among us doesn't at this point?) you can't go wrong with this or any of the London Celebrities series which are all set in and around the theater/performing worlds of London. I do suggest you read The Austen Playbook first if you can as events in that one have a big impact on this one.