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Verdict: Melissa Brayden’s beloved debut: a new musical-theatre graduate lands a role in a Broadway touring production headlined by TV star Adrienne Kenyon. Readers call it witty, romantic and a reread favourite; critics find the first half slow, the conflict unconvincing and the whole thing a little cheesy.
Best for: Theatre lovers and Brayden fans who want a romantic, feel-good classic of the genre.
Heat level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4.0/5 — a 4.16 Goodreads average across 4,835 ratings, 3.86 on StoryGraph from 650 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 1,192 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Costars, celebrity/non-celebrity, second chance, workplace romance, time jump, theatre world.
Waiting in the Wings is Melissa Brayden’s 2011 debut contemporary lesbian romance from Bold Strokes Books. Jenna McGovern has spent her life training for the stage, and a chance audition at graduation lands her a prime supporting role in the hottest Broadway touring production in the country.
It holds a 4.16 average across 4,835 Goodreads ratings, with 77% of them four or five stars, 3.86 on StoryGraph from 650 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 1,192 Amazon ratings.
What Is Waiting in the Wings About?
The show’s headliner is acclaimed television star Adrienne Kenyon — talented, beautiful, generous and utterly professional. Jenna settles into life on tour with a promising career ahead, if she plays her cards right.
What she didn’t prepare for was Adrienne. As they grow closer onstage and off, they have to fit each other into demanding lives full of difficult decisions.
What Works in This Book
- A strong debut: Readers repeatedly say they wouldn’t have guessed it was a first novel.
- Theatre world: Readers with theatre backgrounds enjoy the touring-show setting.
- Chemistry: Fans praise the connection between Jenna and Adrienne.
- Re-read value: Several readers call it an all-time favourite they return to.
Book Synopsis
A new performer joins a Broadway tour and falls for its famous star.
Love on the road is one thing; choosing it over a career is another.
My Review
This is where Brayden’s trademark warmth and witty dialogue began, and it holds up: the tour gives the romance a vivid backdrop, and the time-jump structure adds a second-chance ache many readers love.
Not everyone agrees. Some found the first half boring or the middle lagging, one called it formulaic and Lifetime-movie cheesy with everything too easy for Jenna, and one reader didn’t buy the central conflict at all. The single POV also leaves Adrienne less developed for some.
My honest note: A comfortable classic — read it for the feelings, not the plot logic.
| Element | In Waiting in the Wings |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Jenna McGovern (stage performer) & Adrienne Kenyon (TV star headlining the tour) |
| Core tropes | Costars, second chance, time jump |
| Setting | A national Broadway touring production |
| Heat level | 🌶️🌶️🌶️ |
| Length | 288 pages (paperback) |
| Series | Standalone |
| Content notes | Sexual content; few warnings submitted |
How Spicy Is Waiting in the Wings?
Fairly — there are on-page intimate scenes.
StoryGraph readers have submitted little beyond sexual content.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you love theatre and classic Brayden romance. It is on our celebrity lesbian romance list.
You may want to skip it if: career-vs-love conflicts frustrate you.
In short: A sweet debut with staying power.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 43% five stars, 34% four, 17% three, 3% two and 1% one. On StoryGraph, 72% tagged it emotional and 52% funny, and 72% found the characters loveable.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): Chemistry first. Second, the theatre setting. Third, the second chance. Fourth, how assured a debut it is.
What readers argue about and complain about: Slow first half, above everything. Second, the conflict. Third, cheesiness.
The comparison worth making first: Sparks Like Ours, a later Brayden book, to see how far her writing has come.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Waiting in the Wings Melissa Brayden’s first book?
Yes — it is her 2011 debut. Several readers say they would never have guessed, though some who read her later books first found it more formulaic.
Is it a second-chance romance?
Partly. Jenna and Adrienne get together early on the tour; the story then jumps ahead in time, and readers note they reconnect after four years apart.
Whose point of view is it told from?
Jenna’s only, which one reader felt limited how well we get to know Adrienne.
Does it have a happy ending?
Yes — readers say the couple overcome the obstacles and get their happy ending.
Is Waiting in the Wings on Kindle Unlimited?
Not when we checked; the Kindle edition was listed at $9.99. An audiobook narrated by Betsy Zajko exists, but one listener criticised the narration.
If You Loved Waiting in the Wings, Read These Next
Try Sparks Like Ours or Off Screen. Browse our celebrity list or the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
Waiting in the Wings sets out to be a romantic backstage love story, and more than a decade on, readers still adore it. What holds it back is a slow start and a conflict not everyone buys. A genre classic worth reading. Check Waiting in the Wings on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, Waiting in the Wings ranks as a strong classic pick — romantic, enduring.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ 4.16 average across 4,835 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 77% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
- ✓ 3.86 on StoryGraph from 650 reviews
- ✓ 4.6 stars across 1,192 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Chemistry
- ✓ Second chance
- ✓ Happy ending
- ✓ Quick start for some
Characters ★★★★☆ 3.8/5
- ✓ Likeable Jenna
- ✓ Alluring Adrienne
- ✓ 72% loveable on StoryGraph
- ✓ Single POV
Writing ★★★★☆ 3.8/5
- ✓ Witty dialogue
- ✓ Assured debut
- ✓ Slow first half
- ✓ Formulaic for one
Emotional Impact ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Tagged emotional by 72%
- ✓ Heartwarming
- ✓ Angst
- ✓ Longing
Heat Level ★★★☆☆ 3/5
- ✓ On-page
- ✓ Romantic
- ✓ Moderate
- ✓ Adult
Ending ★★★★☆ 4.1/5
- ✓ HEA
- ✓ Loving ending
- ✓ Wanted a sequel
- ✓ Standalone
Re-read Value ★★★★☆ 4.2/5
- ✓ $9.99 Kindle price
- ✓ All-time favourite for several
- ✓ Audiobook
- ✓ Not on Kindle Unlimited
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