The Sweetest Taboo

By Carole Matthews

Book Overview

A story of love, life and going completely la-la in LA, from the internationally bestselling author of Bare Necessity and For Better, For Worse, Carole Matthews.

One girl in love with two guys...
Isn't that the sweetest taboo?

Sadie Nelson knows that falling in love can be big trouble - especially when she discovers that the best things in life are never free. Her heart starts causing trouble when she first lays eyes on Gil McGann, the sexy and powerful Hollywood producer at the London Book Fair. In no time, Gil is whisking her away from her dead-end job and drizzly old England to join him in the land of the perfect suntan. Then there's Tavis Jones, an irresistibly endearing -- and criminally good-looking -- actor who's soon pulling her heartstrings in a different direction. Suddenly the choices facing Sadie in the home of the famous and the desperate-to-be-famous are enough to drive a good girl insane -- especially when no-one is quite what they seem to be. It's not great to find out that Gil has a sticky ex who won't let go or that Tavis's uncertain orientation may permanently cast him in the role of good friend. With her real life turning rapidly into a mad movie plot, what does a slightly crazed woman two much in love do?

Lights, camera, action...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060595620
• ISBN13: 9780060595623
• Release Date: May 2004
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Loved it!

Another great Bridget Jones-esque novel! I loved Sadie, because I felt like I could really relate to her. I was bothered by the fact that the author wrote a gay man that was falling for a woman... until I found we'd been tricked the whole time. This book had a brilliant ending. I was really pleased with it, and it put me in a cheery, happy mood when I finished.

Interesting twist on a trans-atlantic love triangle

At 32, Sadie is still experiencing the angst of a revolving door of bad jobs. She currently hands out leaflets at a London book fair, and runs into Gil, a Hollywood producer. The two hit it off, and after talking on the phone for a couple weeks (during which she has had several more "jobs"), he offers to send her an open-ended airplane ticket so that they can get better acquainted and see if this relationship is worth pursuing. She is in a dead end job, has no real ties, and so figures what the heck. Faster than you can say "mush," she has arrived in LA, and Gil is no where to be found. At least not at the airport... he is too busy rescuing his alcoholic / drug addicted / philandering wife (from whom he has been separated for two years since she ran away with the pool boy). When Sadie discovers that not only is Gil still married, but he caters to his ex-wife's every need (and said wife plans to stay with him indefinitely), Sadie finds other living arrangements. A series of mishaps, miscommunication, and machinations on the part of his ex, Gina complicates the unconsummated relationship, while Gil tries to make it up to Sadie by buying her expensive gifts. Meanwhile, Sadie has started a job at a talent agency specializing in body doubles. There she works with up and coming actor Tavis, and after spending extra-curricular time with him and his gay roommate, assumes they are a couple (and Tavis makes no effort to steer her into a different conclusion). After helping him with a scene from "Romeo & Juliet," she starts to feel a little more than friendship for him, especially after some racy kisses make her pulse to race, but he takes the time to assure her that it was acting, and they can never be more than friends. Her friendship with Tavis has Gil jealous. But does he really have a right or a reason? Matthews does a good job working with an interesting premise, though Sadie seemed a bit whiny and hard to like at times (and lets face it, good things fell into her lap with no effort a bit too often). At some point, the reader says UNCLE. How many times can Gil disappoint Sadie and expert her to turn the other cheek? She does a good job of adding tension and making the reader wonder what path Sadie will choose.

just ok

i really like carole matthews's books, but a little dissapointed when i ended this book it didnt have the same "this was a great book" feeling.

Not a "deep" book, but fun.

I enjoyed this book, even if it is total fluff. The main character, Sadie, is down on her luck. She meets a film producer who invites her to go to Los Angeles. What follows is the unrealistic fantasy most romantics have when they think of "Hollywood." True, it is nothing more than a bowl of frosting, but it isn't masquerading as something more either. It's a good book to read when you're having a bad day - sweet and lighthearted.

A can't stop reading it kind of Book!

I thought this was a truely unique, but great read from this author. The book is set in LA, but Sadie the main character is from London. Carole Matthews greatly emphasizes on the differences of the two worlds and brings along a love affair of many angles. Again, I highly recommend this book!