Another Rave Review for Love Is the Punch Line

Love is the Punch Line is a quirky romance that follows the career of stand-up comedian Josh Steinberg. I’d have to say what I appreciated the most about this story was that as much as I might have disagreed with his treatment of Holly Brannigan and their ups and downs throughout the story, everything that took place was very realistic. I even appreciated that Holly’s friends and family all felt that the situation with Josh was dysfunctional at best. We have all had that friend who made choices that made us shake our heads and make our bets on its success but somehow they work everything out, Love is the Punch Line is that kind of story.

Josh has been unlucky in love on every level, the main reason being that the only women he ever met were the kind who were looking to trade in on his fame. Of course, it was not like Josh was looking for anything beyond the glitz of Hollywood either. Now he is on the downward slope of fame and has been having one reality check after another and he is struggling not to end up as a washed-up comedian. It was during one of his comedy routines where he was feeling rather angry at the world and in particular women when he came across Holly. Although their first meeting was not love at first sight, in fact Josh had rather insulted Holly and she retaliated by throwing a drink in his face (you go, girl).

Holly had not had the best of luck with love and went to a comedy club one night in order to try and cheer herself up. She had no idea that the comedian was going to be Josh Steinberg and although she had never found him to be attractive on TV, in real life she found that she rather liked the look of the comedian. Unfortunately, his routine didn’t cheer her up at all, she found it rather upsetting to consider how hurt he had been by women. Though, when an incident occurred that brought Josh right to her, she immediately reconsidered her stance on him because he was a class “A” jerk. After their very loud and very public argument Holly pulled herself together and was preparing to leave. What she did not expect was that Josh would seek her out to offer her a slice of humble pie and apologize for his behavior. Holly herself felt that she could have handled things better as well and they both made amends and this started a conversation which would lead to a more intimate encounter.

Although both Holly and Josh were looking for love, Josh was not willing to trust that Holly was sincere in her interest in him. His self-esteem was so low that he could not conceive that someone as beautiful and kind as her could really want what he had to offer. Even though he may not have had faith in her, he did not want to let her go either. Holly for her part was willing to go to great lengths to prove to Josh that she was not like all the others, but she too had a certain point in which she felt that enough was enough. While trying to explore a serious relationship, Josh was also trying to salvage his career. With ups and downs and meltdowns in-between, Josh would learn that there was more to life than the adoration of Hollywood and that maybe, just maybe, there was more to him that he had never appreciated before.

For me, this was not a romance that would ever make me swoon. I am just not into male characters who are very sensitive and struggle with self-esteem issues but I did find Love is the Punch Line to be a refreshing romance because the choices these characters made and the issues they struggled with are very real for many people. No relationship is perfect and sometimes things can get ugly and chaotic but then there are those moments where it can be almost magical and that is what keeps the relationship going. It was also nice that this was a romance between two older adults and that careers, children, and family did come into play, especially Josh’s career which was also how he identified his success in life. A lot of times real life and every day struggles are not realistically portrayed in fiction but in Love is the Punch Line, it does not hold back the punches and I think that many readers would appreciate the ups and downs that occur on this rollercoaster of love.

This review is based on a complimentary book I received from Author, Kathleen Jones. It is an honest and voluntary review. The complimentary receipt of it in no way affected my review or rating.