Owen Nicholls

A film-obsessed romantic rewrites the script to understand why his "picture-perfect" love story crashed and burned in this wonderfully clever debut. Ellie had the quizzical eyebrows of Broadcast News-era Holly Hunter and the neon-red hair of Kate Winslet in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. At least, that's what caught Nick's attention when he met her on the night of 2008's historic election. A cinema devotee and lover of great love stories, Nick always fancied himself the Tom Hanks of his own romantic comedy, and when sparks flew with Ellie that night, he swiftly cast her as the Meg Ryan of his story. For four blissful years, Nick loved Ellie as much as he loved his job as a film projectionist: wholly, earnestly, cinematically. But now Ellie has moved out, convinced "the fire's gone," and Nick is forced to sift through his memories to figure out where it all went wrong. The fallout from Ellie's declaration that she "doesn't love Nick the way she used to" throws him back into recollections of their first night together. Their shared jokes, her wry smile, the "hope" that filled the night air--his memories are as rose-colored as the Hollywood love stories he idealizes. That night was a perfect meet-cute, yes, but was their romance as destined for a "happily ever after" as he'd thought? Is he really the rom-com hero he believes he's been? Or did this Harry let his Sally down? Peppered with references to beloved movies, Love, Unscripted explores how even a hopeless romantic can learn that in real life, love isn't, and shouldn't be, like what we see in the movies.

Love, Unscripted

From the author of Love, Unscripted....They're perfect for each other. But what happens when you meet the right person at the wrong time--over and over again? Up-and-coming musician Tom thinks he met the love of his life one night a year ago, but thanks to a made-up girlfriend, he's pretty sure he's never going to see her again. If it weren't for the painkillers the doctor gave him for his dislocated shoulder, he could've explained what really happened; but now the moment for explanations has gone, so he just keeps writing obscure songs about her in the wild hope that she'll hear one on the radio and understand. Jess thinks she met a cheating liar one night a year ago, but much to her chagrin, she can't seem to stop thinking about him. When she finally decides to take it upon herself to tell Tom's girlfriend what really happened that night, she finds out that the truth isn't quite what she thought it was. But by then it's too late--she's headed to the other side of the world to launch her comedy career. As the years go by, Tom and Jess are never far from each other's thoughts. But every time it seems there might be a way for them to move forward, something else conspires to tear them apart. In life and in love, timing is everything--but will Tom and Jess ever manage to get it right?

Perfect Timing

Året är 2012 och Nick älskar Ellie. Han älskar henne lika mycket som han älskar sitt jobb som biografmaskinist, så när hon en dag säger att hon inte känner likadant rasar hela hans värld ihop. Nick försöker tänka sig tillbaka till när de först träffades, men minnena är lika romantiserade som de Hollywood-kärlekssagor han avgudar. Han hemsöks av hennes leende, deras privata skämt, och av hur allting bara föll på plats när de träffades. Nu, fyra år senare, står han i stället oförstående och lamslagen av att Ellie lämnar honom. Han kollar konstant mobilen i hopp om att hon tagit kontakt, skriver utkast på meddelanden som aldrig skickas och tröstar sig med Hal Ashbys filmer. Vad menade hon egentligen med att hennes känslor förändrats? Kan de någonsin ta sig tillbaka till den där perfekta natten 2008? Men Nick kommer snart lära sig att kärlek i verkligheten kanske är ännu bättre än kärlek på film. Owen Nicholls är brittisk manusförfattare och bor i Norwich med sin familj. Hans debutroman Kärlek utan manus [Love, Unscripted] har sålts till Kanada, USA, Australien, Tyskland och Italien. »En skarpsinnig romantisk komedi, jag skakade av skratt och torkade bort tårar om vartannat. Total njutning.« Empire Magazine

Kärlek utan manus

The Heart-Warming Romantic Comedy You Won't Want to Miss This Year

“Nostalgic, tender, and achingly cool.”—Josie Silver, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Day in December A film-obsessed romantic rewrites the script to understand why his “picture-perfect” love story crashed and burned in this wonderfully clever debut. Ellie had the quizzical eyebrows of Broadcast News–era Holly Hunter and the neon-red hair of Kate Winslet in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. At least that’s what caught Nick’s attention when he met her on the night of 2008’s historic presidential election. A cinema buff and devotee of great love stories, Nick always fancied himself the Tom Hanks of his own romantic comedy, and when sparks flew with Ellie that night, he swiftly cast her as the Meg Ryan of his story. For four blissful years, Nick loved Ellie just as he loved his job as a film projectionist: wholly, earnestly, cinematically. But now Ellie has moved out, convinced that “the fire’s gone,” and Nick is forced to sift through his memories to figure out where it all went wrong. That night was a perfect meet-cute, yes, but was their romance as destined for a “happily ever after” as he’d thought? Was he really the rom-com hero he believes he’d been? Or did this Harry let his Sally down? Peppered with references to beloved movies, Love, Unscripted explores how even a hopeless romantic can learn that in real life, love isn’t—shouldn’t be—like what we see in the movies.

Owen Nicholls

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