Stars Over Sunset Boulevard was recommended by a reading group I follow and when I found out it starts out at the set of Gone With the Wind, I couldn’t wait to read about the history of that troubled movie. There was so much more to it! I posted the description below and then my own review. Get ready to be transported to 1938…

Description:

In this novel from the acclaimed author of A Bridge Across the Ocean and The Last Year of the War, two women working in Hollywood during its Golden Age discover the joy and heartbreak of true friendship.

Los Angeles, Present Day. When an iconic hat worn by Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind ends up in Christine McAllister’s vintage clothing boutique by mistake, her efforts to return it to its owner take her on a journey more enchanting than any classic movie….

Los Angeles, 1938. Violet Mayfield sets out to reinvent herself in Hollywood after her dream of becoming a wife and mother falls apart, and lands a job on the film-set of Gone With the Wind. There, she meets enigmatic Audrey Duvall, a once-rising film star who is now a fellow secretary. Audrey’s zest for life and their adventures together among Hollywood’s glitterati enthrall Violet…until each woman’s deepest desires collide.  

What Audrey and Violet are willing to risk, for themselves and for each other, to ensure their own happy endings will shape their friendship, and their lives, far into the future. 

Here is the Amazon link for Stars Over Sunset Boulevard, but check your library first! I listened to the audiobook which was beautifully narrated.

My Review:

Years ago I read a book on the making of Gone With the Wind and loved that Susan Meisner included all the turmoil behind the scenes, but even better is the story of Audrey Duvall, an almost star, and Violet Mayfield, a southern girl running from a secret that shamed her. I really liked the unpredictability of these characters. Just when you thought you knew what she would do, she did something different, which makes it a fascinating story. Old Hollywood is beautifully created and I especially loved the drunken scene in the wardrobe room. This book is not about Rhett and Scarlett as much as it about three people who worked in the background and how it changed their lives.