Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours Book Review: The It Girl & Me

The It Girl and Me: A Novel of Clara Bow by Laini Giles

Publication Date: March 25, 2017

Sepia Stories Publishing

eBook & Paperback; 341 Pages

Series: Forgotten Actresses, Book #2

Gere: Historical Fiction/Biographical

Daisy DeVoe has left her abusive husband, her father has been pinched for bootlegging, and she’s embarrassed by her rural Kentucky roots. But on the plus side, she’s climbing the ladder in the salon of Paramount Pictures, styling hair for actress Clara Bow. Clara is a handful. The “It” Girl of the Jazz Age personifies the new woman of the 1920s onscreen, smoking, drinking bootleg hooch, and bursting with sex appeal. But her conduct off the set is even more scandalous. Hoping to impose a little order on Clara’s chaotic life, Paramount persuades Daisy to sign on as Clara’s personal secretary. Thanks to Daisy, Clara's bank account is soon flush with cash. And thanks to Clara, Daisy can finally shake off her embarrassing past and achieve respectability for herself and her family. The trouble begins when Clara’s newest fiancé, cowboy star Rex Bell, wants to take over, and he and Daisy battle for control. Torn between her loyalty to Clara and her love for her family, Daisy has to make a difficult choice when she ends up in the county jail. Here, Daisy sets the record straight, from her poverty-stricken childhood to her failed marriage; from a father in San Quentin to her rollercoaster time with Clara, leaving out none of the juicy details.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Chapters

Review: The It Girl and Me is the second book in the Forgotten Flapper series. I read the first book about Olive Thomas, who started out in my hometown. This is a novel about Clara Bow, who is a lot more famous than Olive was.

This story is based in fact. Daisy was a real person involved in Clara's life, and oh what a life it was. And oh how bad Clara was, and she was one of the most popular actresses of her time. She even managed to transition to talkies.

This was a fabulous read, detailing her relationship with Daisy as well as all the things that happened in her life.

Rating 5 flowers

About the Author

Originally from the counterculture mecca of Austin, Texas, Laini discovered a love of reading early on, and when she was eight, decided to be Nancy Drew. This dream was dashed when she realized she was actually a big chicken, and that there were no guarantees of rescue from tarantulas, bad guys with guns, and other fiendish plot twists. She finished her first "mystery novel" (with custom illustrations) when she was nine. She set the writing aside for a while when life got in the way, but was led back to it through her interest in genealogy and 18 months of enforced unemployment due to moving north for maple-flavored goodies and real beer. Reading old microfilm stirred new life into her interest in writing, and watching early silent films struck the match. Like most other writers, most of her monthly budget is spent on coffee and books. She lives with her husband and their two gray cats in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information, please visit Laini Giles' website. You can also connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Goodreads.

Giveaway

During the Blog Tour we will be giving away 5 paperback copies of The It Girl and Me! To enter, please enter via the Gleam form below. Giveaway Rules – Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on November 29th. You must be 18 or older to enter. – Giveaway is open to US & Canada only. – Only one entry per household. – All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion. – Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen. The It Girl and Me