" You get word before the show has started
That your favourite uncle died at dawn
Top of that, your ma and pa have parted
You're broken-hearted
But you go on" - "There's No Business Like Show Business."

[b:Shooting Martha|58326152|Shooting Martha|David Thewlis|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1623826749l/58326152._SY75_.jpg|91452875] by [a:David Thewlis|751623|David Thewlis|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1280036666p2/751623.jpg] gives metafiction a new level of storytelling as it contains wit, humour, and a lot of strange moments that I loved! I found it hard to believe that this wasn't Thewlis' first novel but his second. You can tell that he has advanced his storytelling skills with much praise from other authors and fans (including myself).

A successful and famous director Jack Drake is in a stalemate to finish his most exciting and personal movie due to his beloved wife, Martha. When he discovers that actress Betty Dean resembles his wife so much, he employs her to impersonate Martha until he completes his movie.

There's a slight depth of surrealism to the idea of doppelgängers (between its actors and real-life characters) as if it were a homage to Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York or a Hitchcock thriller. It's darkly comic (the opening scene is a vast example), yet devastating to imagine it as a (fictionalised) film. To conclude, I did enjoy this book with its rich storytelling and powerful themes which come together to create a story that gets you thinking.