The Upside of Over review: J.D. Barrett's satirical ode to female desire

The Upside of Over

J.D. Barrett

Hachette, $29.99

J.D. Barrett was one of the scriptwriters behind Love My Way, among other things, so she knows how cutthroat the industry can be. Olivia Law is a perfectly coiffed newsreader in her mid-40s, and she's about to get, as they say, "boned". The cause? In the middle of her marriage breakdown, Olivia makes an explicit video to woo her husband back. Of course, it goes viral. She loses her job, her marriage, and is mercilessly slut-shamed online. The scandal has a flipside, though. Olivia starts a YouTube channel where she drops her squeaky-clean image entirely. Soon, she's a magnet for other women who feel liberated to share their erotic fantasies. The Upside of Over is a page-turner, an irreverent ode to female desire that moves with relish between erotic romp and biting satire.