About the Book:
A stirring tale of mystery and romance, inspired by the life of 1920s Australian film icon and 'million-dollar mermaid' Annette Kellerman.
BLUE MOUNTAINS, 2024: Working on a documentary at the historic Carrington Hotel, videographer Emma Quinn discovers a box of handwritten letters belonging to Rose Carey, water dancer and golden girl of the silent film era. Intrigued, Emma begins to read through them, slowly uncovering a deadly secret.
SYDNEY, 1923: Rose Carey has faced enough scandal to last a lifetime. After an accident and near-death experience, the threat of bankruptcy, and rumours of her romantic entanglements, Rose decides to take matters into her own hands and propose to her business manager, Walter. A respectable marriage will redeem her reputation and give her the good publicity she needs – problems solved. But she doesn't account for the unexpected feelings brewing between her and Walter, or for the possibility that the accident wasn't so accidental after all …
When she suffers another brush with death, Rose realises that someone close to her wants her out of the way. Who in her close-knit circle has the most to gain? Can she trust anyone, other than herself?
Published by Simon & Schuster Australia
Released May 2024
My Thoughts:
Fans of historical fiction inspired by real people from history will devour this latest release by Julie Bennett. There is so much within this novel to enjoy - film history, intrigue, suspense, romance, family drama. Told with a dual narrative, we move back and forth between 2024 and 1923. This story is atmospheric in both setting and style. The surprise six degrees of separation twist at the end was a very clever way to bring the two timelines together and knit the story as one. I particularly enjoyed the 2024 storyline, so often in a dual timeline, the contemporary story is a pale shadow of the historical one, but not so in this case. Highly recommended.
Thanks to the publisher and Good Reading for the review copy.
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