Review: Hollywood Whispers by Eileen Cope

Synopsis: In the 1920s, the birth of the star system in Hollywood transformed young men and women from obscure shadows into radiant constellations. The name of the game was glamour, and it was played with a fervor that eclipsed the boundaries of reality. Behind the scenes, puppeteers called studios orchestrated romances, maintained facades, and spun illusions as delicate as a spider's silk. 

This carefully curated dreamscape was ripe for journalists with an attitude to expose its hypocrisy, scandals, and hidden debauchery, and two of them led the way with a combined following of 75 million Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons. Their rivalry was the stuff of legend, a clash of titans that resonated far beyond the Hollywood Hills. The studios, aware of the power these women held, courted them with gifts and flattery, encouraging a rivalry that fueled the gossip mills and kept the public hungry for more. Late-night visits, clandestine whispers, and veiled threats—the tools of their trade were as potent as the potions in a sorcerer's arsenal.

Hollywood Whispers delves into the lives and intertwined destinies of Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons. Their columns were not just ink on paper; they were the architects of dreams and the harbingers of doom. Through scandal and spectacle, laughter and tears, they etched their indelible marks on the silver screen's most glamorous era, leaving a legacy as enduring as the Hollywood sign against the California sky. Welcome to a world where gossip was golden, and two women held the keys to the kingdom. As columnist Liz Smith has written, "The studios created both of them. And they thought they could control both of them. But they became Frankenstein monsters escaped from the labs.”

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I love reading about "old Hollywood" - the stars, the scandals, the stories. So it was with some anticipation that I settled down with this tome on two of the biggest (and oft most feared) influencers of the their time - Hopper & Parsons. When talking about the gossip mills of old Holywood, you cannot mention one without the other.

Cope wants to provide the reader with some background on the birth of Hollywood and the emergence of the two women, moving to their activity and influence before touching on their inevitable downfall. Hopper and Parsons made a career of transforming curiosity into currency and currency into control. Louella portrayed herself as the maternal voice of reason, but could be ruthless and sanctimonious; Hedda was sharp, strong, theatrical, a moral crusader. When stars were a valuable and profitable commodity, image and public opinion, and control of information was the gateway to success. Gossip was power not entertainment.

Cope then draws our attention to their public feud and rivalry, how each worked the system, who supported them and their audience, before touching on some prominent examples of defiance in the face of bad publicity. When stars rebelled against the system and failed to respond to the public sermons, the public no longer appeared guillable, and they themselves were treated with casual indifference rather than regard, the power that Louella and Hedda once held dwindled until they were but mere memories of what once was.

Those will a keen interest in this period will enjoy this immensely; for others, it will be a trite tedious in some parts. I myself, enjoyed this look back in time when two women built a culture of celebrity but lost it all when technology opened up their arena to one and all.

Review: The Last Match by Jessa Maxwell

Synopsis: One weekend. Fifty singles. Endless secrets. From the beloved author of The Golden Spoon comes another seductive, high-stakes thriller, this one set at an exclusive matchmaking retreat at an historic Newport hotel.

When fifty influencers and celebrities gather at an historic Newport estate for an exclusive matchmaking retreat, the weekend is billed as a dreamy escape—sunlit yoga, champagne by the sea, and the legendary Magnus McBride, a matchmaker with a near-mystical reputation. But behind the marble halls and ocean views, something darker lurks.

Tegan Reyes, a once-famous artist, hopes the trip will revive her stalled career. Ruby Valenti, a disgraced socialite, longs for redemption. Omar Abebe, a trivia champion haunted by loss, wants a fresh start. And Lacy Bryant, a glamorous YouTuber, is chasing more than love—she’s hunting a secret treasure rumored to be hidden in the hotel’s depths.

Then the hotel’s owner is found dead at the base of a cliff.

As a storm closes in, alliances form and fracture, old scandals resurface, and the matchmaker’s final pairings may prove fatal. Because at Windmist, everyone has something to hide—and someone will do anything to keep the past buried.

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Having read Maxwell's "Dead of Summer" (which I adored) and "The Golden Spoon", I was looking forward to this mystery with one corpse and fifty suspects!

However .... I was not really into this one. As mentioned, one corpse, fifty suspects, but zero investigation. It would seem this tome was more character driven than crime focused. The murder superfluous, the investigation non-existent, the care factor of the match-making participants zero. An indictment of today I wonder where the vast majority of humans are glued to screens, to posting and tweeting, heads in the sand unless events actually impact them directly on a personal level. These characters were no different and quite frankly my empathy with any of them amounted also to zero.

With regards to the story-telling, there is a mix of first and third person narratives of a few key characters. Maxwell provided the reader with a plethora of secrets, scandals and Big Brother style alliances; revenge and redemption; and no real happy endings.

It is not a taxing read (despite the time I took to read this), and others may enjoy this more than I did. I will still keep my eye out for more from this author.

Review: Fire Witch by Melanie Gall

Synopsis: New York’s past holds millions of forgotten stories, but few are as fascinating as the tale of Kate Claxton, the “Fire Witch.” A central figure of American theater in New York’s Gilded Age, she spent her life challenging conventions and flouting expectations. Kate was one of the most famous actors in America, and for over three decades and more than five thousand performances she held theatergoers in her thrall through her portrayal of a single dramatic Louise, the sixteen-year-old blind heroine of the French melodrama The Two Orphans.

Despite her supernatural nickname, Kate was no witch. But after the tragic events of December 5, 1876, when she stood onstage amid the panic and flames as the Brooklyn Theatre burned around her, Kate became inseparably connected with the disaster. This inferno, along with multiple subsequent blazes that occurred in hotels and theaters where Kate was present, branded her as “Fire Witch” and “Fire Fiend,” labels that followed her for the rest of her days.

Over a hundred and fifty years later, Kate’s life—and the fire that destroyed Brooklyn’s most opulent playhouse—have been almost completely forgotten. But the inferno is an integral part of New York’s history, and its heroine was a singular woman whose strength and determination carried her through tragedy and scandal to shine as one of the brightest stars of the late nineteenth century.

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Melanie Gall provides the reader with entertaining an insight into the Gilded Age Theatre with a focus on Kate Claxton who was given the name of the "Fire Witch" due to her numerous close calls with fires in both the theatres she was performing in and hotels where she was staying.

Gall presents Claxton as a woman who was beloved for her stage roles, especially that of Louise in "The Two Orphans" whilst judged rather harshly for her numerous personal scandals. Claxton was a respected business woman, with a score of personal dramas and tragedies, who was scorned for her inability to accept the limitations of her sex.

Her most notable role was one adopted at a time of disaster - when the Brooklyn Theatre was devastated by fire and over 275 people perished.  Claxton stood on stage, trying to calm the audience and prevent a panic, whilst the fire raged around her. She was one of the last to leave and from this event, Claxton began to construct her own narrative, which Gall explores.

Whilst the Gilded Age and Theatre history in general is not my particular genre, I found this biography rather rewarding on a number of levels. It re-introduced us to Kate Claxton: a notable actress of her era, a savvy business woman, a woman tainted by scandal and a victim of poor personal choices. In other words, a woman who was far from a supernatural being but one most evidently human.

Review: Legends of War - Spies, Saboteurs & Secret Missions by Brian Teinert

Synopsis: A spy book for kids packed with real missions, hidden heroes, secret technology, and daring operations—true stories so incredible young readers will ask, “Wait—this really happened?”

A double agent invents an imaginary network of spies and helps fool Hitler before D-Day. A resistance fighter with a wooden leg becomes one of the Gestapo’s most wanted enemies. A secret team builds an enormous ship to recover a lost Soviet submarine from the bottom of the Pacific.

These are not made-up adventures. They are true stories of courage, deception, ingenuity, and impossible choices.

From resistance networks in occupied Europe to spy planes flying near the edge of space, Legends of Spies, Saboteurs, and Secret Missions brings espionage history to life through fast-paced stories of spies, codebreakers, resistance fighters, pilots, sailors, and intelligence officers who risked everything in the shadows.

More than just battles, this book reveals the secret networks, covert missions, ingenious technology, sabotage operations, intelligence failures, and clever deceptions that changed history.

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Great kids book for those who might be interested in looking at different aspects of history. This book - one in a series - focuses on "spies, saboteurs & secret missions". 

It presents the most notable people and incidents in an easy to read presentation, with supporting imagery including people, plans, places and equipment. It begins with WWII going through to the later part of the 20th Century. 

It is a book I wish I was able to read as a child (as I am interested in this subject matter now).