by Susan Roberts
Embark on a journey to 1930s California in this spellbinding historical novel in which a woman must choose between friendship and her own secrets.
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| September 2024; She Writes Press; 978-1647427221 ebook, print (344 pages); historical fiction |
The 1930s were considered the Golden Age in Hollywood. Movie studios were the kings with stars and starlets trying to gain fame and everyone else dreaming about how wonderful life must be in Hollywood. Everyone went to the movies and knew all about their favorite stars and envied the lives that they must be leading. A Golden Life takes the readers back to this golden age and the life of one woman who was part of it in her job as a secretary to a major producer.
Frances is looking for a fresh start after some rocky times in her past. Trying to start over takes her to Hollywood where she gets a job as secretary to a major Hollywood producer Lawrence Merrill. As his secretary, she is privy to many Hollywood secrets and sees many of the stars of the day. The main project being worked on at the studio is a movie about Kitty Ridley, a star who was legendary in her day but then disappeared from the public eye in 1895. She was still remembered and there were a lot of rumors about her but no one knew where she was or if she was even alive. A beautiful ingénue is thrilled to be chosen to play Kitty and has great hopes that it will make her be seen as more than the girl next door. However, when the 90-year-old Kitty Ridley finds out about the movie, she sends a scathing letter to the studio that they must stop plans to make a movie of her life. Hoping to change her mind, Lawrence Merrilll and his secretary Frances, take a road trip to Napa Valley to try to change her mind and allow them to make the movie. Will they be successful or will the movie be stopped?
I really enjoyed this look at Hollywood in the 1930s. Frances was a very complex character - she was trying to hide her past but it still affected her present and how she related to people - especially men. She was a very complex character who needed to learn to not only accept her past but to forgive herself and learn to live her life in the present. My absolute favorite character was Kitty Ridley. She was 90 years old and was still sharp with a great memory of her younger days. She spoke her truth and didn't really worry about what other people thought about her.
This was an interesting and well-researched novel. If you enjoy well-written historical fiction set during the 1930s, you don't want to miss this one.
Buy A Golden Life at Amazon
Susan Roberts grew up in Michigan but loves the laid-back life at her home in the Piedmont area of North Carolina where she is two hours from the beach to the east and the mountains in the west. She reads almost anything but her favorite genres are Southern Fiction and Historical Fiction.
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