Revising Romance

Theresa Paltzat is the Smart Search librarian at the Edmonton Public
Library.

For many readers, protagonist Elaine Salter will be the woman next door
or the woman sitting at the next desk at work. She juggles the daily
challenges of being a single mother and a busy editor in a small
publishing company. She drinks too much coffee, worries that her
10-year-old watches too much TV, and wonders if she’ll ever have a
love life again.

In Revising Romance, Salter is having a stressful, life-altering
weekend. She has just been promoted to senior editor and handed the
monstrous task of editing a highly anticipated novel by the
publisher’s most prolific author. The manuscript is a disaster, and
her boss wants the job done by Wednesday. The company’s precarious
financial future and Elaine’s job rest on the success of this book.

Dugan draws on her own experience in publishing for the story. Because
the novel takes place entirely between Thursday morning and the
following Wednesday, there is a rushed feeling as the reader follows
Salter’s hectic life. Between pressure-filled editing sessions with
the author, Salter reminisces about her marriage and her troubled
relationship with her mother. Adding to the excitement and uncertainty
is the possibility of a new romance with the owner of a used-book store
who has his own tense history with the author.

Revising Romance is a fast-paced, entertaining read.