Not How I Pictured It by Robin Lefler was a win from Goodreads and my first book by the author. It is marketed as romantic comedy, but this is a mistake. This is a mystery plain and simple.

The premise is one that will have mass market appeal, former stars of a young adult reality, aka scripted, series reunite twenty years later. There is nothing unexpected about this, there is the washed-up star, the “recovering” addiction star, the endlessly bickering former couple, the “A-list” star, the up-and-coming star, and the middle of the road star. It is utterly predictable and filled, anxiety riddle, self-loathing, and miserable characters.

The book also opens up with blasphemous language and far too much swearing. It was out of place with the remainder of the book to be honest. There are also these weird parts of the book that are obsessed with the lifestyle choices of the former owner of the island upon which the characters get stranded. I get it, said former owner was the self-professed “Prince of Porn” and he had fetishes and kink galore. None of it is described in the book, thankfully, so why is it mentioned so frequently.

I didn’t hate the book, in fact I finished it in one sitting. However, would I recommend it? Nope, not going to sugar coat it folks. While I had to know the ending, and yes, I guessed it from the beginning, I had to see how the author got the readers there. Overall, a disappointing read that is an unusual choice for Kensington to publish and is far too concerned with scoring hits with aging millennials than writing a decent book.