Whilst getting off to a slow start, this turned into a very easy read.

The storyline keeps you interested the entire time, and the characters are well developed and likeable.
I'm definitely looking forward to more from this author.

It was a nice and quick read, however I‘m sure I outgrew my ya time since I did struggle to get through and not get distracted all the time.
I used to love these types of books but I‘m no longer the target audience.
Can still recommend tho if you like ya!

Great book! I loved following along with Rowan and Josie’s adventures. I didn’t love the ending. I want to know what happens next with Josie and Rowan after they go back to their lives.

This book was cute. I love a good regular girl and celebrity story. And Josie and Rowan are no exception. This was the perfect quick read that got me out of my reading slump!

I have heard of quite a few books on this theme. I only have read one or two before this one. I will start off by saying that the majority of my rating is for the author's writing style. The characters came across as mature but not incongruous with their age. They still held on to their feeling of being too young to have control over their lives, however rich they were.
Josie is a good girl. She is an excellent daughter and a responsible older sister. She has big dreams, ones that she has cemented in her mind and continues to work towards. The job that she has to do to keep their family afloat involves interacting with some unsavoury people. One night, she ends up feeling bad for a boy who passed out at her table and takes him home to keep him safe. What she doesn't know is that he is a famous movie actor.
Once he wakes, with no way of making a quiet exit, he starts to get to know the sisters (the mother is away from home). Rowan and Josie have just the day together, and they decide to make the most out of it. There is a lot they learn about each other, but it shakes both of them out of the rut they have been in for a while now.
The relationships between the people were so well established that I did not find this single-day romance odd. Josie, in particular, was a very interesting person to cheer for. Also, as I mentioned earlier, the simplicity in the language and the way things happened made it feel more like a young adult book than several I have previously seen labelled as such.
I would highly recommend the author to readers of the genre, and I would definitely want to read another book by her.
I received an ARC thanks to Netgalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

🎞️ This Wasn’t in the Script by Sarah Ainslee 🎞️

⭐⭐

CW
🔴 Parent Death

That Wasn’t in the Script is a dual POV following Josie, a high school student that wants to be a filmmaker, and Rowan, a teen heartthrob on a popular streaming series, as they spend a day going through New York City after a chance encounter.

I really wanted to like this book. I think it had the potential to give really positive messages to young adults struggling with similar issues, like deciding the direction they want their life to move in or the death of a parent. I am usually a big fan of books that include a "common" person meeting a movie star, but there was something about this one that didn't work.

I can’t necessarily put my finger on it, but when I finished reading, the story didn’t feel complete. While some deep themes were touched on, nothing ever dipped below the surface, leaving everything feeling pretty superficial. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I do think it was a missed opportunity.

That said, I liked the characters, or what we got from them. They had dynamic personalities, so it’s a bummer we didn’t see more of that. While dynamic, the chemistry between them felt forced, so I wasn’t rooting for them in the end. Again, not a big deal, but when they are set up as the romantic journey of the book, it was a bit of a letdown.

3.5 stars
Content Warning: Graphic bullying, violence, grief. Moderate death of parent, misogyny, sexual assault. Minor sexual content, abandonment.

That Wasn't in the Script was such a fun book to read, and as a fan-fiction veteran, I can safely say that this book read like one, and I'm not saying that that's a bad thing. Sometimes you just need a sweet, easy read to get you through when you don't know what you want to read. It did take me a little while to get into it, but once I did get into it, it was a speedy read that I honestly couldn't put down.

This book tells the story of Josie Bradford as she finds herself pretty much babysitting Rowan Adler, a Hollywood heartthrob after he makes an escape from his usual life of shelter and security. While this story isn't the most realistic, it serves as a form of escapism for those reading, and while, yes, it may be aimed at readers younger than me, I can't say that I didn't enjoy it. I probably loved it even more as a 13 year old as opposed to a 23 year old!

Both Josie and Rowan are the typical characters that you expect to find in a book like this; one that follows a set of certain plot points leading to an overdone but still popular ending. They didn't stick out for me as individual characters even though they couldn't be any further apart life and personality wise. I didn't actually expect them to end the way they did for some reason even though I had the feeling throughout the whole book. I thought it would have one of those last minute turns and it would end totally different.

I've not read anything else by Sarah Ainslee before, but from this book, I can confirm that she has a unique writing style that is easy to read and is never confusing. She doesn't feel the need to over exaggerate her story telling much like some other authors I've read from before.

Thank you to Bow's Bookshelf and NetGalley for the ARC!

This book was a fun read with some very serious moments sprinkled throughout. As well as some very funny moments and girl power moments. We meet Rowan as he’s escaping his life of fame and finds himself at a basic food joint where Josie works. She doesn’t recognize him which is great even though his show is playing on the TV around them. This book was one of those once in a lifetime meeting, the kind you wish or dream about. A bit of a mishap happens and somehow Josie now must help Rowan after finally realizing who he was.

I don’t want to give too much of the plot away but the random adventures these two have together were fun and entertaining and ended with some serious conversations about their lives, how they are doing, the people they have lost, the things they want to do. It’s quite amazing how much you can open up to someone who you feel like you have such a strong bond with but know you will probably never see them again.

I really enjoyed the book and was sad when it ended. I wanted so much more for them but the way it ended was sweet and just perfect. This is a definite must read, especially for those who love to create stories and fantasies about meeting famous people and the things that would happen. I think everyone has had those dreams.


Life is hard. Losing a parent is hard. Dealing with this is hard.

A fun, fast-paced contemporary novel about acceptance and love.

I really liked the writing and the main characters were developed really well. The dialogue and banter was fun to see unfolding, and this was just a quick read with a unique premise. i would highly recommend it!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an e-arc!

This was a quick and easy read, loved Rowan and Josie. Really loved the characters and the storyline, Sarah did amazing with the writing style of this book and I can't wait to see what she comes out with next.

When Rowan Adler, a teen actor, fleas from his hotel room one night, he has a brief encounter with Josie Bradford and not only wakes up in her bed the next day but also goes on a 24 hour adventure with her through the streets of New York.

I loved reading the book. Told in dual POV the book takes you along for the ride through the Big Apple. Both POVS are snarky, funny and well written. I especially enjoyed Josie’s voice and loved her character development. Plus a quirky cast of side characters helps to ground the reader in both worlds. Shut out to Josie’s (only) friend and co-worker.

It’s an easy read and just an overall feel-good love story.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This book was a cute adventure! I loved how two people’s lives could change so drastically from one chaotic Halloween adventure through New York. While I had some issues with the plan between Indio and Josie, I thought that both Josie and Rowan’s motivations to escape their lives for a day were so relatable and fun to watch. I also thought that the author did a great job at making them sound and act like 17 year olds.

This book was pretty cute. It really worked well as Dual POV, because without both perspectives, I know that I wouldn’t have liked it nearly as much. I think both characters make decisions exactly like 17 year olds that are trying to rebel would make, which was really refreshing to read! I also thought that this book felt more mature than most YA novels, but I really liked that because it made it feel more realistic without trying to hard to be darker.
Honestly, my favorite part of the book was how both Rowan and Josie are obsessed with older movies. (I especially loved the comparison between The Shop Around the Corner and You’ve Got Mail with the former being the far superior movie)
The writing style didn’t really work for me at times, because the present-tense writing took me out of the story every once in a while, but that’s more of my preferences with writing style. I also didn’t really like her moral dilemma and how Rowan never got to know her plan.
Overall, this was a cute, short romance. I really rooted for Rowan and Josie throughout, not only their romance, but in their lives in general!

3.5 stars
Over the course of 24 hours, Josie Bradford, aspiring screenwriter, finds herself on an adventure in New York City with teen heartthrob Rowan Adler. Books like these are always so fascinating to me because, when done well, they showcase how much meeting one person on what appears to be a random day can just change on your entire life.

This Wasn't in the Script does that pretty well, showcasing both Josie and Rowan's growth over the course of these 24 hours. There were some things in the book that I wasn't a fan of, especially how at the start, the same scene was shown through two different perspectives. I felt it made reading it kind of tedious. But overall, this was a really fun read and I thoroughly enjoyed every part of it!

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

First let's talk about the book cover because I am OBSESSED. The details are amazing and you really appreciate it more once you've read the book because you'll understand the references. I will almost ready anything about a teenage girl who was obsessed with films and the golden age of hollywood because I was that girl!
When I saw that "That Wasn't in the Script" is a "Roman Holiday" retelling, I immediately thought, I need to read this. "Roman Holiday" is literally one of my favourite films ever. This was like "Roman Holiday" meets Disney Channel's "Starstruck." And I say that as a compliment because both movies are great in their own right. This is a YA book and so immediately everything and everyone was fun. It wasn't too heavy about the sensitive subjects of Josie and Rowan's parents but they had enough depth to make our main characters feel more real. I also loved Josie's sister, Pru. She literally loves Josie so much. Unfortunately, it's not that common anymore to see a healthy relationship between two sisters but this is one of them! Josie and Rowan's NYC adventures got me giggling the whole time. I love that they didn't strictly go to tourist sites. They literally went wherever their hearts take them. I loved the ending but it ended too soon. I need more!!!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this book!

I LOVED THIS BOOK! This story was so cute and I wish I could read it again for the first time.

I loved the overall plot of this novel. I thought Josie and Rowan were very thought-out characters and both had a lot of depth. I loved how spontaneous the whole book felt and I thought Josie and Rowan had really great chemistry!
There were a couple things I didn’t like about the book however. Like I said— I loved the spontaneity of the book, but I found that it also had a tendency of making the book feel like it was dragging on with no real end in mind. The other thing I wasn’t a fan of was Indio and Josie’s subplot ( for spoiler reasons I won’t go into detail about it) when it was first revealed, I was excited to see how the plot would be affected by it, but in the end I felt like it didn’t add much to the plot. I think the book would have been just as good if that subplot had not been included. The last thing I didn’t like ( and this is just personal preference) but I felt that there was a lot of unnecessary swearing in the book. I normally don’t have an issue with this when the swearing is used in tense situations, arguements, etc— but I felt like the characters were swearing just to swear.

Even with the things I disliked about the book, I still enjoyed reading about Rowan and Josie’s adventures in the Big City!

Josie's family move to New York from Ohio for her father's new job but shortly after the move, he falls ill and dies leaving the family struggling for money in a city that Josie does not consider home. She has a plan: study hard at school and work evenings at King Kong across the road so that she can apply for a screen writing course back home in Ohio.
One evening at the end of a shift, she finds Rowan, a very famous face from a viral streaming sensation, asleep in the corner. Thinking that the reason he looks familiar is because he is from her school, she takes him home to sleep it off. The next 24 hours are a crazy adventure around NY city by two people who have lost their sense of direction in their lives.
I liked the balance between Josie and Rowan's characters; Josie is a school swot and rule follower, Rowan is creative and spontaneous. Can Josie learn to let go a little and embrace all that New York has to offer and can Rowan get back some control over his life? This book is a fun, romantic and life affirming read in which Josie and Rowan come to terms with the past and find a way to go forward. I also loved Pru, Josie's little sister, whose character and story weaves into the plot in a delightfully unexpected way.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

That Wasn’t in the Script
shot to the top of my TBR when the Andrew Garfield/Amelia Dimoldenberg interviews were going viral, and the author, Sarah Ainslee, said she basically wrote that.

If you were also expecting that dynamic, you’ll probably be disappointed. Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman is more of what you’re wanting.

Only when my ARC was approved did I see that this is YA, and a retelling of Roman Holiday. Which I’ve seen exactly once and cannot remember the plot of.

I enjoyed the first chapter and getting to know our FMC Josie, but when the MMC Rowan was introduced with their meet cute, I was already rolling my eyes. Unfortunately, I’m no longer of the target age range for this. That Wasn’t in The Script reminds me a lot of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, which I loved as a teenager. If I’d never read that, and wasn’t now in my late twenties, this book might have hit the spot. But sadly, it wasn’t giving what the author promised and I don’t have it in me to read another version of a story that’s been done multiple times.

DNF at 47%

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC, all opinions are my own.

A whirlwind romance steals the show in this captivating debut, perfect for fans of the movie star/normal girl trope.

This was such a cute book!! Rowan is such a sweetheart and might be one of my new favorite book boyfriends. He and Josie are really sweet together and although they barely had any time together, they really formed an emotional connection. I’m not a huge fan of books where the characters meet and fall for each other in a short period of time, but this was done so cleverly that I couldn’t help but fall in love.

Although— as much as I love Rowan, my favorite character has to be Pru. She’s so adorable and I love how she and Rowan became BFFs right away. Props to Rowan for his actions at the end (no spoilers!!)

Anyway I could go on and on about this book but I’ll just tell you to read it. 5 stars. 10/10 recommend. <3

Advanced copy received from the author/NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Congrats Sarah on your debut, and I can’t wait to read more from you 📚