One of the pieces of advice often given to writers is that they should write the book they want to read, and that’s exactly what I did when I wrote Better than the Real Thing. I wanted to read fun, emotionally layered, smart, escapist Australian fiction with characters in their forties who were still trying to work it all out. I wanted to be taken to London at Christmas time and be swept up in a celebrity romance that felt relatable and messy and magical. I wanted a heroine with agency, intelligence, strength and vulnerability and a love interest with a few edges around his green light.
When I wrote the story of Netta and Mo, I set out to create something that had the same feeling as a nineties romcom, with a cast of characters that felt like friends, settings that would whisk readers away and themes that would tug on their emotions. I wanted to balance levity and humour with reality and all its imperfections and shadows, and tell the story against the backdrop of iconic settings in Melbourne and London.
I adore movies like Notting Hill and Music & Lyrics for the way they treat the celebrity romance trope with humour and sensitivity, giving real depth to the celebrity character as they’re revealed on the screen. A famous character creates so much opportunity for tension and fun and raises the stakes in everyday situations. Celebrity culture also offers a magnified lens through which to examine issues like privacy and the accuracy of media reporting. Fake dating is another trope I’ve bounced off in Better than the Real Thing, and when Netta and Mo are hiding out in the cottage together, forced proximity gets a run too.
Underpinning the romance arc in Better than the Real Thing is another kind of love story—friendship. Freya is a soulmate for Netta—someone who knows her completely, cheers her on, helps her get out of her own way and shows up for her at the hardest times. Rhona is Mo’s manager, but she’s more like family. She loves him unconditionally and offers him a sense of belonging that was missing in his childhood. She’s also a very blunt voice of reason when Mo is doing himself no favours!
The story is told using a dual POV third-person narrative to really invite readers in behind the curtain—to allow them access to information about Mo before Netta is, and vice versa. Readers are privy to their back stories, deepest feelings and darkest fears and I hope that makes them feel as through they’re there alongside Netta and Mo as they find their way to each other.
I really loved writing this story, and I hope readers enjoy the trip to London and St Kilda alongside Netta, Mo and the whole gang.
Notting Hill meets Bridget Jones Baby in this whip-smart, funny, emotionally charged contemporary fiction about messy pasts, second chances and future families from a sparkling new voice.
Melbourne teacher Netta Phillips is staring down the barrel of her fortieth birthday with months’ worth of negative pregnancy tests behind her, her relationship in the bin and a mortgage she can’t afford. Things really aren’t going to plan.
When she unexpectedly finds the childhood diary of notoriously private celebrity musician Morrison ‘Mo’ Maplestone, things get even messier. Mo’s desperate to keep the diary’s dark contents hidden from the tabloids and well away from his beloved younger brother, and he’s willing to pay Netta handsomely to personally return it to him in London. The financial reward he offers would would mean Netta could keep her apartment and try assisted conception treatments; after all, the clock’s ticking. Loudly. But she can’t go. After what happened there twenty years ago, she vowed never to return to the UK.
Not for anything.
When necessity bites, Netta reluctantly accepts Mo’s offer and life quickly becomes even more complicated. There’s paparazzi to contend with, a fake date that feels all too real and a Christmas Day confession that changes everything.
Amongst the chaos, Netta and Mo forge a rare connection, and discover that facing up to the past might be the only way to find the real thing. Or maybe something even better.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Brooke Crawford
Brooke Crawford is an emerging author of feel-good contemporary fiction, whose work has been recognised in writing competitions in Australia, New Zealand and the United States.
Brooke won the Romance Writers of Australia’s Opal Award in 2024, has post-graduate qualifications in professional writing from Deakin University, and studied novel writing under the guidance of Australian author Josephine Moon. Having previously worked in public relations, creative account management, advertising and education, she now runs a successful copywriting business from her home in Melbourne, where she lives with her partner and their three children.
Better than the Real Thing is her first novel.