My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher: Crown
Summary: Twenty-five-year-old Cassie Danvers is holed up in her family’s crumbling mansion in rural St. Jude, Ohio, mourning the loss of the woman who raised her—her grandmother, June. But a knock on the door forces her out of isolation. Cassie has been named the sole heir to legendary matinee idol Jack Montgomery's vast fortune. How did Jack Montgomery know her name? Could he have crossed paths with her grandmother all those years ago? What other shocking secrets could June’s once-stately mansion hold?
Soon Jack’s famous daughters come knocking, determined to wrestle Cassie away from the inheritance they feel is their due. Together, they all come to discover the true reasons for June’s silence about that long-ago summer, when Hollywood came to town, and June and Jack’s lives were forever altered by murder, blackmail, and betrayal.
As this page-turner shifts deftly between the past and present, Cassie and her guests will be forced to reexamine their legacies, their definition of family, and what it truly means to love someone, steadfastly, across the ages.
This is the second book by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore I've read (Bittersweet being the other) and I while I wanted to love this, I liked it. A cross between historical and literary fiction, the story unfurled a bit more slowly than I wanted but it very much held my interest. I thought Cassie was well rendered even if I didn't always understand her. I most enjoyed the story of the past and the was there wasn't there a romance between June & Tate all with the Old Hollywood backdrop (that's what really drew me in to wanting to read this one, I admit). Also, how can you not like a story that offers a house as a character in its own right. As soppy as I feel saying it, I fell in love with the idea of a house having dreams and memories. Just on setting and tone alone, I'd definitely recommended for vacation reading.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
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