[Smash is] an "insider's" novel, one whose appeal lies in its promise to "tell all" or "take the lid off." It is also, inevitably, something of a roman à clef, with a teasingly anonymous "Star" of Streisand-like difficulty and background, as well as a famous and familiar-sounding over-sexed composer….

Smash focuses on what might be called the creative, as opposed to financial, aspects of its story—what happens in audition, rehearsal, and performance—its ring is familiar…. Less familiar is the novel's account of backstage manoeuvering, of struggles for power and influence…. The best bits, accordingly, focus on the producer's machinations (particularly his attempts to fire the director); when the director himself takes centre stage in the earlier sections—to talk about acting, committment, show biz—the novel drags.

In the end, petty jealousies and backbiting come close to wrecking the musical. But suffering and messiness … are seen as...