Review by Booklist Review
Author duo Kelly and Thorne (The Antiquity Affair, 2023) return with a new historical thriller set in 1950s Hollywood. Veteran actress Vivienne Rhodes is ecstatic to finally have a starring role as Helen of Troy, until she finds out that her archrival, Lottie Lawrence, is now in the lead role. But when Lottie discovers a dead body near the props shed and Vivienne is handed a mysterious film canister by a dying extra, they find themselves fleeing the island on the same boat, pursued by thugs on a desperate journey to deliver incriminating film to Interpol. After they crash a party at the palace in Monaco, hitch a ride to Rome in the back of a wine truck, and end up as extras on the set of Ben Hur, they finally come to appreciate each other's hidden talents. A fun, madcap romp through old Hollywood with an "enemies to besties" twist, this book will be a hit with fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (2019) and Ally Carter's The Blonde Identity (2023).
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Kelly and Thorne follow up The Antiquity Affair with a spry and suspenseful crime novel set just after Hollywood's golden age. In 1958, the floundering Apex Studios is filming Trojan War saga A Thousand Ships on the tiny Italian island of Tavalli. Studio head Jack Gallo has assured Olympic swimmer--turned--actor Vivienne Rhodes that the project will make her "America's Golden Girl." She's not pleased, therefore, when she arrives in Italy and learns rising star Lottie Lawrence has been cast as Helen of Troy, with Vivienne assigned the smaller role of Cassandra. Tempers flare, but the women put aside their animosity when they learn that mob-connected crew members have put the production in the crosshairs of violent gangsters. After Vivienne and Lottie stumble on evidence of the crew's shady dealings, they're targeted by Italian thugs, forcing them to flee first to Monaco and then to the Alps and Rome, with plans to deliver their findings to Interpol. Kelly and Thorne make a clichéd setup entirely their own, wringing surprising depth from Vivienne and Lottie's mutual thawing without skimping on action or sumptuous descriptions of France and Italy. For movie buffs, this will be as welcome as a cool breeze on a hot day. Agent: Katelyn Detweiler, Jill Grinberg Literary. (Nov.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
In their second collaboration (after The Antiquity Affair), Kelly and Thorne brilliantly capture both the glamour and grit of Golden Age Hollywood and then deftly fold this into an entertaining plot imbued with just the right measure of danger. It's bad enough that Lottie Lawrence stole Vivienne Rhodes's almost-fiancé Teddy Walters and her chance at an Oscar. Now Lottie has managed to get her claws into the leading role in Apex Pictures' A Thousand Ships too! Well, if Jack Gallo, the president of Apex Pictures, thinks Vivienne is going to play second fiddle to Lottie, he has another thing coming. However, before Vivienne can get off of Tavalli Island, where the picture is being filmed, she stumbles across something dangerous going on with the production. Even more horrifying is that the only one who can help Vivienne is the man- and scene-stealing Lottie. Alongside the madcap plot, this novel's fabulously fun icing on the cake is the friendship that develops between Vivienne and Lottie, which becomes almost a distaff version of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby in their "Road" pictures. VERDICT Pass the popcorn and settle in for a terrific time with this seamlessly crafted blend of historical fiction and old-school suspense.--John Charles
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