“Fairytale Interrupted” by RoseMarie Terenzio is a memoir of Terenzio’s time working as John Kennedy Jr.’s personal assistant, and her life during and after Kennedy’s plane accident.

Terenzio met Kennedy accidentally while working as a PR assistant at a small public relations firm. JFK Jr. came in, took over her office unexpectedly, and caused some hurt feelings for the author. Shortly afterwards, the small firm is sold off, Terenzio is in tears, and JFK Jr. spontaneously offers her the job of his assistant—one that Terenzio quickly accepts.

She is there for JFK Jr.’s time at George magazine, his relationship with fiancé and then wife Carolyn Bessette, the glamorous events in his life (attending the White House Correspondents Dinner, appearing on Oprah, holding press conferences, communicating with celebrities, etc.), dealing with the media, and ultimately seeing JFK Jr. right before the accident (she was staying at his and Carolyn’s loft when it happened).

All in all, Terenzio spent five years as JFK Jr.’s assistant, and was ready to go with him anywhere, she confesses, even to the White House. Their professional relationship was so close that Terenzio never doubted her presence in his life (even becoming BFF”s with Carolyn), and was very grateful for all the opportunities it afforded her (she could get anything she wanted by merely mentioning JFK Jr.’s name).

Overall, this was a well-written memoir. JFK Jr. is depicted as he was in his daily life, the bad and the good. The ending of the memoir is suitably emotional, as is the majority of the book. Terenzio remembers her ex-employer with love and regret (she was the one to ultimately talk Carolyn on to boarding that plane with him). The book is full of details, events, and observances. It’s a memoir of how the author’s life is impacted by JFK Jr., but also of the late nineties, and an era gone by. I found myself pleasantly surprised by the depth of the author’s re-collections, and her emotional way of writing. It’s an interesting, up-close-and-personal account.