The Understudy cover art

The Understudy

A Novel

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free

$8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.
Get this deal
Offer ends on July 15, 2026 at 11:59 PT.
More purchase options

The Understudy

Written by: David Nicholls
Narrated by: Tristan Layton
Get this deal

$8.99/mo. after 3 months. Cancel anytime. Offer ends July 15, 2026 at 11:59pm PT.

Buy Now for $20.00

Buy Now for $20.00

Thirty-two-year-old actor Stephen C. McQueen (no, not that Steve McQueen) is waiting for his big break. His only screen credits so far are playing dead bodies on cop and doctor shows. At the moment, he's paying the rent by understudying hot movie star Josh Harper, who's trying to gain dramatic credibility in a West End play. If only Josh would miss a performance, Stephen-with-a-P-H could prove his talent and redeem himself in the eyes of his disapproving ex-wife and their precocious seven-year-old daughter.

Then Stephen stumbles on a secret that puts Josh in his debt. In exchange for Stephen's silence, Josh might let him go on stage. It's a sticky situation, made even stickier by Stephen's special friendship with Josh's wife. Stephen has his first real chance at success, but getting there will involve a certain amount of lying. He's about to discover how good an actor he really is.

©2005 David Nicholls; (P)2005 HighBridge Company Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Women's Fiction
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

What the critics say

  • 2005 Publishers Weekly Listen Up Award, Fiction

"The follow-up to Nicholls' hilarious debut novel, A Question of Attraction, is a smart, funny, big-hearted romantic comedy." (Booklist, starred review)
No reviews yet