Scoop (Occupational Hazards, Book 1) [Paperback]

Rene Gutteridge (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 10, 2006

And now back to our regularly scheduled insanity.

Channel 7 news producer Hugo Talley dreams of working with first-class professionals. Instead he’s saddled with a weatherman who can’t admit when he’s wrong, an aging anchorwoman who refuses to release her clawlike grip on the newsdesk, a conscience-stricken reporter who’s reluctant to focus on sensationalism, and a new assistant–former homeschool student Hayden Hazard–who can’t just seem to leave her faith outside the newsroom.

When the Channel News 7 team inadvertently stumbles on a hot news story, Hugo is frantic to exploit this rare opportunity. But a series of crises–including a Botox disaster and the disappearance of a colleague–threatens to destroy his chance for ratings success and send him completely over the edge.

Meanwhile Hayden’s presence is distracting at least two coworkers. Softspoken reporter Ray Duffey isn’t sure whether he’s attracted or frightened by her outspoken faith, while ego-driven Sam Leege is certain her naïve spiritual convictions will fall victim to his persuasive attentions.

With their oddball antics and all-too-real foibles, this lovable cast of characters offers a hilarious look at the sometimes-unexpected effects of taking one’s faith boldly into the workplace.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This humorous novel from Gutteridge kicks off her new series, the Occupational Hazards, featuring seven siblings in a clown family that disbands when the parents die in a freak accident. Twenty-five-year-old Hayden Hazard sheds her protected, homeschooled life to strike out on her own as assistant to Channel 7 news producer Hugo Talley. Her innocence, simple faith and good looks attract the attention of reporter Ray Duffey and egomaniacal weatherman Sam Leege. But trouble is brewing: an aging newscaster has overdone the Botox, giving her a permanent happy face while announcing the most terrible tragedies, and Ray is assaulted on the air while doing a story on pig zoning. An explosion at the waste-water treatment plant seems simple, but Ray discovers something stinks more than sewage or the pigs. Hugo pops blue pills for his stress, but even his medicated calm can't quell the looming disaster. As she did in her Boo series, Gutteridge clearly has fun with her story; the pages brim with quirky characters and plenty of laughs. Hayden's crusade against Hugo's antianxiety meds are the only questionable note in the book; readers may see it as a faith versus prescription antidepressants message. Drugs aside, this is a rollicking evangelical ride through the television news world, reminding readers why Gutteridge is such a delightful read. (Oct. 10)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Here's a tale of local TV set in Los Angeles. It features a clueless but endearing young Christian woman, Hayden Hazard. Her colleagues include a self-important weatherman who could be played by Will Farrell; an overmedicated producer; a goodhearted reporter, Ray Duffey; and an aging anchorwoman named Gilda Braun. It's become obvious that Gilda's 1980s look is responsible for a ratings dip, and Hayden's counsel that only inner beauty matters doesn't help much. Gilda hits the Botox and is frozen in a smile regardless of what tragedies unfold. Such plot as there is results when Ray is attacked while reporting on pigs in the city; somehow, the station has blundered into a significant story. Unintentionally amusing Hayden tags along for the moral, and maybe even for love interest, in one of the funniest Christian novels ever. John Mort
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: WaterBrook Press (October 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400071577
• ISBN-13: 978-1400071579
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,352,475 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Rene Gutteridge is the author of several novels, including The Boo Series, The Storm Series, and My Life as a Doormat, a Women of Faith selecton for 2006. She has a degree in screenwriting and ten years of experience writing, directing and publishing church comedy sketches. She writes in both comedy and suspense genres, and enjoys meeting other writers and teaching at writers conferences. She is married to Sean, a musician, and lives in Oklahoma City, where she raises her children and works as a full-time novelist.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious inside look at the making of the news..., November 30, 2006

By 

Ruth Anderson "Book Reviewer" - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scoop (Occupational Hazards, Book 1) (Paperback)

The Occupational Hazards series gets its name from the seven Hazard siblings, all homeschool students and veterans of their parents' family clown business. After their parents' untimely deaths, the family business is sold and the sheltered Hazards are each forced to make their own way in the world, sans the clown masks. Scoop picks up five years after the deaths of the Hazard parents and centers on daughter Hayden and her job as an assistant to Channel 7 News producer Hugo Talley. In a station filled with a stressed producer worried over sagging ratings and the state of his marriage, a control freak anchorwoman experimenting with Botox, and a weatherman focused more on his image than actual weather fronts, Hayden stands out as an island of calm in a sea of chaos. When the local sewage plant explodes, Ray - a reporter who struggles to balance his desire to report news that matters with the constant demand for sensationalism and "fluff" - has to juggle his undercover investigation with an increasingly undeniable attraction to Hayden.

For someone whose name lends itself to the series title, Hayden Hazard is characterized not so much by her actions and point of view, but by how she is perceived by others. This is at once the main strength and as well as weakness of the novel. The book works well because of the engaging, funny, and very real group of characters with which Gutteridge populates her fictional news station. However, while Hayden is the supposed "center" of the book, Gutteridge chooses to reveal the bulk of her character, feelings, and emotions through the perceptions of other characters. Hayden never really grows in this book; instead, she exists as a rather flat, but nice, touchstone the rest of the characters revolve around.

I started reading Scoop expecting a novel centered on one character and their experiences, similar to Gutteridge's previous release this year, the fabulous My Life as a Doormat. Instead, what I discovered, much to my surprise, was a quirky ensemble story that made me feel like I was reading about the characters that populated the newsroom of the Mary Tyler Moore show. On that front, Scoop succeeds splendidly as a fast-paced, engaging read full of Gutteridge's trademark dry humor and lovable characters. The only drawback is that Hayden has a tendency to come across as one-dimensional and cardboard, something of a caricature of a homeschool student that doesn't ring true and can be rather annoying. The book is saved by Gutteridge's strong plotting, snappy dialogue, sense of humor, and ability to create characters (Hayden aside) that are quirky and funny and feel genuine as well as relatable.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Scoop this!, January 18, 2007

By 

Rel Mollet "RelzReviewz" (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scoop (Occupational Hazards, Book 1) (Paperback)

Rene Gutteridge's diverse writing talent continues to amaze me! Scoop, the first in her Occupational Hazard series, details the inner workings of a television news team struggling in the ratings and looking for the one big "scoop" that will boost their popularity.

With a stressed out producer, a young and dedicated reporter, an ageing news anchor and an ethically-challenged news director, Channel 7's 10 o'clock news is looking down the barrel of oblivion if the team doesn't find a story so the news director sees no problem trying to make the news instead of just reporting it. Into this mix comes Hayden Hazard, assistant to the producer, Hugo, home schooled with an honesty about her faith that is both endearing and confronting to her colleagues. When their news anchor disappears, it seems Channel 7 finally has a story that will be a ratings winner and save their futures.

Rene gives fascinating insight into the stressful and fast paced news environment and fills it with genuine and unique characters. As always her writing is injected with humour yet with an underlying depth that encourages the reader to think and contemplate their own workplace behaviour. My only niggle with the book was not hearing more of Hayden's own "voice". Hayden is portrayed through the thoughts of her work colleagues and no doubt while I imagine this was a deliberate choice by Rene, it would have been great to hear directly from this interesting character.

Scoop has left me highly anticipating Snitch (releasing in May, 2007 ) and Skid (releasing in 2008).

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More like 4.5 stars..., November 18, 2006

By 

Michelle Sutton (Arizona) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Scoop (Occupational Hazards, Book 1) (Paperback)

Scoop is a creative novel with a well-done plot, fantastic dialogue, and great characterization. The setting is superb and I truly felt like I worked in a television news station throughout the story. Scoop is highly entertaining with a strong theme tucked within it's pages regarding the power of a true Christian witness to nonbelievers we work with.

Scoop also contained several points of view. On the one hand, I enjoyed getting to know the cast, but as a result, I didn't feel like I had much time to get to know Hayden Hazard--the main character. I think that was the downside to this otherwise riveting novel. I suppose seeing Hayden through others' eyes did work for the book, but by story's end I wished I'd had a chance to know Hayden more, to discover the way her mind worked. I really enjoyed her philosophy of life and how well the author portrayed it through her actions. Sometimes her naive perspective was downright funny. I also thought the author did an amazing job showing the various character arcs. Well done!

Overall I'd say I enjoyed Scoop enough to recommend it. Though not "hilarious", in my opinion, it did bring me indescribable satisfaction as I perused its pages. Most importantly, I didn't experience a dull moment in this novel. Not once did Scoop feel like a chore to read. I'm looking forward to reading more about the Hazard family though future books in the Occupational Hazards series.