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Marriage Scandal, Showbiz Baby!
Seduced by Matteo, a world-famous actor, the once-innocent Jennifer marries the superstar and starts her own acting career. But at the height of their popularity, their busy lives tear them apart and they go their separate ways. They thought it was over, until they bump into each other on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival. Although at first tempers flare, in a moment of passion in the elevator they make love once more. A few weeks later, Jennifer starts to notice changes happening within her body...
151 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 10, 2016
About the author
Sharon Kendrick
1,293 books462 followersI was told off as a child for making up stories—little did I know that one day I’d earn my living by writing them!
To the horror of my parents, I left school at sixteen and held a bewildering variety of jobs: I was a London DJ (in the now-trendy Primrose Hill), a decorator and a singer. After that I became a cook, a photographer and, eventually, a nurse. I waitressed in the south of France, drove an ambulance in Australia, saw lots of beautiful sights but could never settle down. Everywhere I went I felt like a square peg—until one day I started writing again and then everything just fell into place. I felt like Cinderella must have when the glass slipper fit!
Today, I have the best job in the world, writing passionate romances for Harlequin. I like writing stories which are sexy and fast-paced, yet packed full of emotion—stories that readers will identify with, laugh and cry along with.
My interests are many and varied—chocolate and music, fresh flowers and bubble baths, films, cooking and trying to keep my home from looking burglarized! Simple pleasures—you can’t beat them!
I live in Winchester, one of the most stunning cities in the world, but don’t take my word for it—come see for yourself! I regularly visit London and Paris. Oh, and I love hearing from my readers all over the world…so I think it’s over to you!
To the horror of my parents, I left school at sixteen and held a bewildering variety of jobs: I was a London DJ (in the now-trendy Primrose Hill), a decorator and a singer. After that I became a cook, a photographer and, eventually, a nurse. I waitressed in the south of France, drove an ambulance in Australia, saw lots of beautiful sights but could never settle down. Everywhere I went I felt like a square peg—until one day I started writing again and then everything just fell into place. I felt like Cinderella must have when the glass slipper fit!
Today, I have the best job in the world, writing passionate romances for Harlequin. I like writing stories which are sexy and fast-paced, yet packed full of emotion—stories that readers will identify with, laugh and cry along with.
My interests are many and varied—chocolate and music, fresh flowers and bubble baths, films, cooking and trying to keep my home from looking burglarized! Simple pleasures—you can’t beat them!
I live in Winchester, one of the most stunning cities in the world, but don’t take my word for it—come see for yourself! I regularly visit London and Paris. Oh, and I love hearing from my readers all over the world…so I think it’s over to you!
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 5, 2020
** You own in Secret Baby Box set**
Don’t let the dumb title fool you, this was an angsty, enjoyable read with both MC’s acting like mature adults (after the first couple chapters) as they worked through their troubled marriage. This one was shorter than usual, which was a major bummer, because it had 5-star potential. I was gobbling it up, until we got to the abrupt, almost unfinished- feeling ending.
Matteo and Jennifer have been married a number of years, and are super-duper famous actors. They’ve allowed their demanding careers to cause distance (physical & emotional) in their marriage, and have been slowly drifting apart. Matteo filmed a movie with a super sexy model turned actress (Sophia) and their on-screen chemistry had been so smoking hot that it sparked rumors (picturing Mr. & Mrs. Smith) which caused Jennifer to become a jealous nag, and Matteo to pull further away. It all exploded when a paparazzi caught them kissing in NYC with a long-range lens (picturing K. Stew & that Snow-White director) this blew up their marriage, and Jennifer filed for divorce. The book starts with the couple seeing each other at a film festival 6-mths after the split.
Bottom Line I liked that this one had dual POV’s, because you really have to get both when dealing with anything cheating related without it the remorse is not validated. I also LOVED that the couple went there… ripped the scabs off… asked the tough questions… and got honest answers. There are no blind-spots, and at times it was heartbreaking. My only real complaint (besides the ending) is that with the shorter length I thought there were some loose ends that I would have liked more info on. Like, more on the relationship (not just the sexual part) between Matt and Sophia, because she just drops off… maybe they had already broken up by the beginning of the book?? I was digging this… the couples struggle was believable, and they did the work that so many cheating books gloss over, but then it ended abruptly.
* I think Matteo and Dante from A Scandal, a Secret, a Baby are related but I don’t recall seeing either in each other’s books.
**part of the secret baby box set
Don’t let the dumb title fool you, this was an angsty, enjoyable read with both MC’s acting like mature adults (after the first couple chapters) as they worked through their troubled marriage. This one was shorter than usual, which was a major bummer, because it had 5-star potential. I was gobbling it up, until we got to the abrupt, almost unfinished- feeling ending.
Matteo and Jennifer have been married a number of years, and are super-duper famous actors. They’ve allowed their demanding careers to cause distance (physical & emotional) in their marriage, and have been slowly drifting apart. Matteo filmed a movie with a super sexy model turned actress (Sophia) and their on-screen chemistry had been so smoking hot that it sparked rumors (picturing Mr. & Mrs. Smith) which caused Jennifer to become a jealous nag, and Matteo to pull further away. It all exploded when a paparazzi caught them kissing in NYC with a long-range lens (picturing K. Stew & that Snow-White director) this blew up their marriage, and Jennifer filed for divorce. The book starts with the couple seeing each other at a film festival 6-mths after the split.
Bottom Line I liked that this one had dual POV’s, because you really have to get both when dealing with anything cheating related without it the remorse is not validated. I also LOVED that the couple went there… ripped the scabs off… asked the tough questions… and got honest answers. There are no blind-spots, and at times it was heartbreaking. My only real complaint (besides the ending) is that with the shorter length I thought there were some loose ends that I would have liked more info on. Like, more on the relationship (not just the sexual part) between Matt and Sophia, because she just drops off… maybe they had already broken up by the beginning of the book?? I was digging this… the couples struggle was believable, and they did the work that so many cheating books gloss over, but then it ended abruptly.
* I think Matteo and Dante from A Scandal, a Secret, a Baby are related but I don’t recall seeing either in each other’s books.
**part of the secret baby box set
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 8, 2021
Reviewed another edition.
Shorter review: he’s a cheater who was already happily moving on from her before the divorce was finalized. Without the secret baby, he would’ve let the lawyers wrap up their divorce and never talked to her again. He was arrogant and unloving with her in multiple ways.
Don’t believe for one minute that he’d be faithful.
Ending was so abrupt, I was convinced pages were left out of the book.
No romance in this story.
Shorter review: he’s a cheater who was already happily moving on from her before the divorce was finalized. Without the secret baby, he would’ve let the lawyers wrap up their divorce and never talked to her again. He was arrogant and unloving with her in multiple ways.
Don’t believe for one minute that he’d be faithful.
Ending was so abrupt, I was convinced pages were left out of the book.
No romance in this story.
October 9, 2020
I can block out the Italian Stallion and the love juice reference bc it is HP after all but I just don’t think the horny bastard loved the wife enough. He cheated too early on and never chased her.
June 15, 2017
Just as I had hoped, this was a fantastic story! The comics/manga adaptation of this story was true to the story, but to be honest, the novella had a lot more oomph, tension (albeit all-too-easily resolved, but fair enough given their history) and passion.
Imagine:
A young woman, who after 6 months of separation, suddenly runs into her soon-to-be-ex-husband at their movie premier during the Cannes Festival. One chance encounter when he's trying to spirit her out of the after-party venue leads to further complications, and from there, we get to witness how they overcame mistrust and emotional abandonment.
While it was short, I felt that given their past, it was all adequately expressed and resolved.
Imagine:
A young woman, who after 6 months of separation, suddenly runs into her soon-to-be-ex-husband at their movie premier during the Cannes Festival. One chance encounter when he's trying to spirit her out of the after-party venue leads to further complications, and from there, we get to witness how they overcame mistrust and emotional abandonment.
While it was short, I felt that given their past, it was all adequately expressed and resolved.
October 12, 2018
Loved it! Angst and Passion? BOOM!
March 20, 2026
Scintilla sul red carpet è un romance autoconclusivo di veloce lettura che sinceramente non mi ha lasciato molto.
La storia vede protagonisti Matteo D'Arezzo, un famoso attore italoamericano che dopo alcuni mesi di separazione incontra durante il Festival di Cannes la sua ex moglie Jennifer, anch'essa attrice famosa. I due stanno divorziando a causa del tradimento di Matteo (con Sophia un'attrice conosciuta su un set) ma in realtà si scoprirà ben altro.
L'idea di base non era male, due attori famosi troppo concentrati sulle loro carriere perdono di vista il loro matrimonio, allontanandosi. Peccato però che il problema reale della coppia non viene realmente affrontato. Tutto si risolve in maniera sbrigativa e superficiale. Probabilmente la brevità non aiuta ma sinceramente si poteva fare di più.
Per quanto riguarda la caratterizzazione, Matteo è un uomo alpha ma non troppo e non ha un vero e proprio cambiamento nel corso della storia (io non l'ho percepito) mentre Jennifer mi è parsa un po' troppo sottomessa.
Sophia l'attrice che ha causato la rottura in realtà non apparirà mai, o meglio si limiterà a far uscire un articolo sul giornale. Mi meraviglio che non fosse anche lei a Cannes.
L'unica nota positiva è che è scorrevole.
Piccola curiosità: Esiste il manga in italiano tratto da questo libro con lo stesso titolo.
La storia vede protagonisti Matteo D'Arezzo, un famoso attore italoamericano che dopo alcuni mesi di separazione incontra durante il Festival di Cannes la sua ex moglie Jennifer, anch'essa attrice famosa. I due stanno divorziando a causa del tradimento di Matteo (con Sophia un'attrice conosciuta su un set) ma in realtà si scoprirà ben altro.
L'idea di base non era male, due attori famosi troppo concentrati sulle loro carriere perdono di vista il loro matrimonio, allontanandosi. Peccato però che il problema reale della coppia non viene realmente affrontato. Tutto si risolve in maniera sbrigativa e superficiale. Probabilmente la brevità non aiuta ma sinceramente si poteva fare di più.
Per quanto riguarda la caratterizzazione, Matteo è un uomo alpha ma non troppo e non ha un vero e proprio cambiamento nel corso della storia (io non l'ho percepito) mentre Jennifer mi è parsa un po' troppo sottomessa.
Sophia l'attrice che ha causato la rottura in realtà non apparirà mai, o meglio si limiterà a far uscire un articolo sul giornale. Mi meraviglio che non fosse anche lei a Cannes.
L'unica nota positiva è che è scorrevole.
Piccola curiosità: Esiste il manga in italiano tratto da questo libro con lo stesso titolo.
August 20, 2018
Location: Pantelleria - the black pearl of the Mediterranean
A sweet novella about a marriage in the midst of divorce, an cheating husband and some love in an elevator. The story had the MCs maturing and handling the unexpected pregnant like adults, and winning because of it.
A sweet novella about a marriage in the midst of divorce, an cheating husband and some love in an elevator. The story had the MCs maturing and handling the unexpected pregnant like adults, and winning because of it.
October 9, 2020
Book 2 in anthology, not as good as book 1.
May 9, 2018
Ho letto la versione a fumetti che qui non ho trovato, la storia non mi è piaciuta e nemmeno i disegni mi hanno fatta impazzire
April 20, 2025
Jennifer and Matteo
I hated it. The MMC cheated on FMC, they were both actors and marriage was breaking down from a lot of different factors. He was still married and not broken up when he kissed the other woman and he did sleep with the other woman once he was actually seperated from FMC.
FMC of course did not sleep with anyone else since she first laid eyes on him years before. He however was very attracted the the other woman while he was married the FMC.
They only got back together because FMC got pregnant, he was not interested in even going to see her when she called to try and meet him in person to tell him about the pregnancy. They had so many issues that I don't see a baby keeping them together for life.
They were both actors and that profession puts them in constant situations with others intimately, and since he already strayed and while married was very attracted to another woman, I don't foresee that he would be faithful when they encounter issues down the line. MMC didn't have that honorable streak in him that wedding vows are sacred and at least wait til the divorce was final before sleeping with other woman.
It was a terrible story, I don't want a character to sleep with other people after meeting each other and if one of them does, I don't want the other to stay faithful. P.
I hated it. The MMC cheated on FMC, they were both actors and marriage was breaking down from a lot of different factors. He was still married and not broken up when he kissed the other woman and he did sleep with the other woman once he was actually seperated from FMC.
FMC of course did not sleep with anyone else since she first laid eyes on him years before. He however was very attracted the the other woman while he was married the FMC.
They only got back together because FMC got pregnant, he was not interested in even going to see her when she called to try and meet him in person to tell him about the pregnancy. They had so many issues that I don't see a baby keeping them together for life.
They were both actors and that profession puts them in constant situations with others intimately, and since he already strayed and while married was very attracted to another woman, I don't foresee that he would be faithful when they encounter issues down the line. MMC didn't have that honorable streak in him that wedding vows are sacred and at least wait til the divorce was final before sleeping with other woman.
It was a terrible story, I don't want a character to sleep with other people after meeting each other and if one of them does, I don't want the other to stay faithful. P.
April 14, 2023
It was short yes but was it interesting? Absolutely
October 2, 2023
The ending needs more.
April 14, 2024
it starts with their meeting in a premier after 6 months stranged from each other. They were both actors with busy schedules and growing apart. He had insane chemistry with other actress. She got super jelous. Their marriage was on the rocks and suddenly someone took pictures of the cheating asshole and his paramour kissing. They broke up. In this premier they got stucked in the elevator where she asks him if he slept with the OW after they broke up and he confirms it. I felt cold.
He starts remembering th past, how he strongly wanted the OW but that it was normal, he wouldn't have acted on those impulses wasn't for his wife distrusting him and being overjealous (Excuse me, I guess she had something there...). Then she asks him (we are still in the elevator scene) how it was with OW, provoking him, and he tells her he did it once, was very underwhelming and saw her face throughout all the ordeal 🥴.
One thing leads to another and they have sex. The elevator resumes working and he tells her to pretend being fainted so they have an excuse for her disheveled state. He takes her to the place where he is staying and leaves her a note saying to keep their divorce amicable.
Next, we are moved to her appartment in London and her memories of their marriage and how hard it was to build something, since they both had such packed schedules. How she had changed both phisically ("from being rounded and healthy to stick thin") and emotionally.
After some time, she discovers she is pregnant and eventually calls him to tell the news. He is a jerk saying they have nothing to talk about and so on. She feels humilliated, says she is preggo and hangs up.
Matteo goes to her and bla bla about she getting stronger and healthier for the baby. They move to I don't know where and restart their relationship. Eventually the OW gives a press conference about how great of a lover was the asshole, that they were having a parallel affair while he was married, and at the time Jennifer reads that she gets sick (we are meant to think it was distress but no, food poisoning was). He feels ashamed and anguished when he gets the news Jenny is in the hospital. Runs to her side thinking "this is it", but OH NO, Jenny now believes in him. He said they slept once and after they were separated and no OW will make her doubt him. Now she will raise their baby and quit her career as an actress so everything should be great oh so great.
FIN
He starts remembering th past, how he strongly wanted the OW but that it was normal, he wouldn't have acted on those impulses wasn't for his wife distrusting him and being overjealous (Excuse me, I guess she had something there...). Then she asks him (we are still in the elevator scene) how it was with OW, provoking him, and he tells her he did it once, was very underwhelming and saw her face throughout all the ordeal 🥴.
One thing leads to another and they have sex. The elevator resumes working and he tells her to pretend being fainted so they have an excuse for her disheveled state. He takes her to the place where he is staying and leaves her a note saying to keep their divorce amicable.
Next, we are moved to her appartment in London and her memories of their marriage and how hard it was to build something, since they both had such packed schedules. How she had changed both phisically ("from being rounded and healthy to stick thin") and emotionally.
After some time, she discovers she is pregnant and eventually calls him to tell the news. He is a jerk saying they have nothing to talk about and so on. She feels humilliated, says she is preggo and hangs up.
Matteo goes to her and bla bla about she getting stronger and healthier for the baby. They move to I don't know where and restart their relationship. Eventually the OW gives a press conference about how great of a lover was the asshole, that they were having a parallel affair while he was married, and at the time Jennifer reads that she gets sick (we are meant to think it was distress but no, food poisoning was). He feels ashamed and anguished when he gets the news Jenny is in the hospital. Runs to her side thinking "this is it", but OH NO, Jenny now believes in him. He said they slept once and after they were separated and no OW will make her doubt him. Now she will raise their baby and quit her career as an actress so everything should be great oh so great.
FIN
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 5, 2016
Disappointed
Really disappointed in this book. I got to location 1330 or 62% and then it went onto another "story" - signature select bonus features.
I have no idea what happened to the ending of the original story.
Really disappointed in this book. I got to location 1330 or 62% and then it went onto another "story" - signature select bonus features.
I have no idea what happened to the ending of the original story.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews