Rehab – A Novel

Some Promises Are Too Hard To Keep

Author: Randi Reisfeld

Kenzie Cross never thought she’d vault to insta-fame on the hit TV action drama Spy-witness Girls.   A virtual unknown, she’s the show’s breakout star —  and the lead in a major new movie.   It’s like it’s Christmas and her birthday every day, and Kenzie has every reason to let loose and party hard, especially after nonstop press interviews, photo shoots, publicity, and promotion.

But when her partying goes a little too far, Kenzie is given an ultimatum by her director: Go to rehab, or get cut from the film.   Kenzie agrees to the stint and really kind of enjoys her posh quarters, not to mention her daily swim, her horseback-riding lessons, and her private massages, which are all part of her “therapy.”   But then it finally hits her why she’s really there, and she begins to wonder if she’s even ready to leave….

Kenzie, 19, seems to have it all.  Since rocketing from obscurity to fame in a breakout role on a huge new TV show, she’s been enjoying all of the perks of a Hollywood starlet, from free clothes by the hottest designers to VIP access to elite nightclubs.  But sustaining an endless schedule of work, parties, appearances, and nonstop fun proves to be too much for the teen, and her world begins to spin out of control when handlers and hangers-on ply her with drugs and alcohol to keep her going.  When her inebriated exploits threaten a big film role, Kenzie is summarily bundled off to a posh, private rehab facility, where her initial resistance to treatment begins to melt away as she finally decides to explore the issues that have brought her there.  Reisfeld’s novel is paper-thin and feather-light, with all the depth of characterization and plotting found in a celebrity gossip rag.  Teens obsessed with the twists and turns of the latest Hollywood scandals may be drawn to the obvious parallels between the fictional Kenzie and her real-life counterparts, but the book’s weak story line, nondescript characters, and often clumsy writing will fail to hold their interest. — Meredith Robbins, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School, New York City