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Perfect Switch    by Lisa Plumley Amazon.com order for
Perfect Switch
by Lisa Plumley
Order:  USA  Can
Zebra, 2004 (2004)
Paperback
* *   Reviewed by Martina Bexte

Meredith Madison has gone to great lengths to make sure she's the polar opposite of her talented twin sister Marley. Marley is the certified 'star' of the family and has a hit sitcom under her belt to prove it. She also has the love and admiration of a brand new husband and stepson. Meredith keeps telling herself she's quite content keeping her nose buried in her research books, the perfect escape from all the glamour, glitz and excitement of Hollywood. But when an invitation arrives for Marley to participate in an 'Actor's Fantasy Camp' care of Valentine Studios, 'brainiac' Meredith decides it's time to grab her fifteen minutes of fame. How hard could it be to pose as her identical twin? As kids they switched identities all the time.

Dot.com entrepreneur Tony Valentine has spent his entire life avoiding Hollywood and his family's deep showbiz roots, not to mention his relatives' constant reminders that he should 'come back home where he belongs'. He's perfectly happy making oodles of money running his Internet company in New York. But when it becomes clear that Valentine Studios is in big trouble, Tony rides to the rescue with his idea for an Actor's Fantasy Camp. From the moment he meets Marley Madison, Tony knows something about her just isn't right. She might look like the sitcom star, but her delivery is way off. It doesn't take Tony long to put two and two together, and when he does, he's not a happy camper. Reminding Meredith she's signed an unbreakable contract, and that the show must go on despite her subterfuge, he oversees her transformation from bookworm to sparkling starlet. Soon he's got her talking the talk and walking the walk. But the one thing neither counts on is the sizzling attraction that develops between them, once Meredith really lets her newly highlighted hair down.

Lisa Plumley charms with another breezy tale and two very appealing main characters in Meredith and Tony. A strong and likeable secondary cast (especially the elder Valentines, one of whom insists that 'porn' is the only way to save the studio) add even more fun to the plot. Another nifty touch is the insertion of short and often amusing advertisement vignettes or celebrity quotes at the start of each chapter like: 'If you keep late hours for society's sake, Bromo Seltzer will cure that headache', or 'just learn your lines and don't bump into the furniture (Spencer Tracy)'. It's clear that Lisa Plumley loves the showbiz world and delights in bringing it to life in her own special way in Perfect Switch.

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