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Touch of Stardust
Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
17 posts | 21 read | 13 to read
From the New York Times bestsellingauthor of The Dressmaker comes a blockbuster novel that takes you behind the scenes of the filming of Gone with the Wind, while turning the spotlight on the passionate romance between its dashing leading man, Clark Gable, and the blithe, free-spirited actress Carole Lombard. When Julie Crawford leaves Fort Wayne, Indiana, for Hollywood, she never imagines she ll cross paths with Carole Lombard, the dazzling actress fromJulie s provincial Midwestern hometown. The young woman has dreams of becoming a screenwriter, but the only job Julie s able to find is one in the studio publicity office of the notoriously demanding producerDavid O. Selznick, who is busy burning through directors, writers, and money as he films Gone with the Wind. Although tensions run high on the set, Julie finds she can step onto the back lot, take in the smell of smoky gunpowder and the soft rustle of hoop skirts, and feel the magical world of Gone with the Wind come to life. Julie s access to real-life magic comes whenCarole Lombard hires her as an assistant and invites her into the glamorous world Carole shares with Clark Gable, who is about to move into movie history as the dashing Rhett Butler. Carole Lombard, happily profane and uninhibited, makes no secret of her relationship with Gable, whichposes something of a problem for the studio because Gable is technically still married and the last thing the film needs is more negative publicity. Julie is there to fend off the overly curious reporters, hoping to prevent details about the affair from slipping out. But she can barely keep up with her blond employer, let alone control what comes out of Carole s mouth, and as their friendship grows Julie soon finds she doesn t want to. Carole, both wise and funny, becomes Julie s model for breaking free of the past. In the ever-widening scope of this story, Julie is given a front-row seat to not one but two of the greatest love affairs of all time: the undeniable on-screen chemistry between Scarlett and Rhett, and offscreen, the deepening love between Carole andClark. Yet beneath the shiny facade, things in Hollywood are never quite what they seem, and Julie mustlearn to balance her career aspirations and her own budding romance with the outsized personalities and overheated drama on set. Vivid, romantic, and filledwith Old Hollywood details, A Touch of Stardustwill entrance, surprise, and delight."
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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A book with a #gray cover from the #tbr shelf 📚

#coverlove

🩶📚🩶

Eggs Looks good 👍🏼 🦋 5mo
51 likes1 comment
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actualdisneyprincess
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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“The Hollywood Daughter” was really enjoyable, so I‘m glad to have another Kate Alcott to read. I‘m even more glad that the day has calmed down enough to let me! 😂 #atouchofstardust #katealcott

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LeslieO
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Excited for December #BookSpinBingo. Thank you, @TheAromaofBooks for all your hard work! #HolidayReading

TheAromaofBooks Yay!!! Looks fabulous!! 3y
31 likes1 comment
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Thank you Amy so much for my “Galentine!” Fiona loves hers too!! I LOVE everything! I‘ll have to post a close up of the mug! It‘s perfect! I‘m happy to join the club!! #Catsoflitsy These books look so good!! Happy Valentine‘s Day!! Love you! ❤️😘

quote
Yesmynameistable
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott

“How can you be fearless unless you don‘t care what happens?”
“Honey, how can you be fearless unless you do care? I care like hell about some things, and the things I don‘t care about don‘t rank on any fear scale at all.”

quote
Yesmynameistable
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott

Faith and religion, they‘re timeless, right? So is a baseball game. It‘s the only major sport with no time limit. No clock running out. I love that. I love the timelessness of it.

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MallenNC
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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I found a list of books to read after watching A Star is Born, and these two sound most interesting. And just to be #Shallow I'm adding a picture of Bradley Cooper for good measure.

https://ew.com/books/10-books-to-read-if-you-loved-a-star-is-born/?slide=6096496...

#AMonthofSongs

OriginalCyn620 Awesome! And thanks for the pic of Cooper! 👌🏻📚🎶 6y
MallenNC @OriginalCyn620 You know me! I really wanted to post one from the A-Team but I couldn't find one I liked. 6y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Oh Bradley 🔥🔥🔥 6y
MallenNC @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Have you heard him speak French? Swoon. 6y
18 likes4 comments
review
Butterfinger
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Pickpick

Love! Love! I never thought about the irony of making Gone With the Wind as Europe was preparing for another war to end a different type of brutality. Kudos Kate Alcott!

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elisebarker
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Pickpick

I liked this book! I really liked the character of Carole. I love Gone With the Wind the movie, but I‘ve never read the book! So it is going on my TBR for 2018 😉 thank you @DimeryRene for letting me borrow it!

DimeryRene I am so happy you liked it @elisebarker ! I thought of you the whole time reading it. I‘ve never seen the movie, but after reading that, I want to. 7y
6 likes1 comment
review
JenlovesJT47
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Mehso-so

This book had so much potential, but I was left with mixed feelings. First off, I love the time period and the supporting cast. Carole Lombard was such an interesting person and I love the parts with her and Gable. I am also a huge fan of Gone With The Wind, so setting the story during the making of the movie is awesome. What I have a problem with is the main character. I didn't dislike her but she was boring and monotone. To be continued...🔽

JenlovesJT47 I feel if the story had centered on Carole Lombard as the main character, it would have been amazing. Or, if the main character had been fleshed out more and given some personality, that would have helped immensely. So, bottom line: there are some things I absolutely loved about this book and other things that were not so great. 3.5⭐️#oldhollywood #historicalfiction 🎬🎟🎭 7y
Cinfhen Great review 💜 7y
JenlovesJT47 @Cinfhen thanks! ❤️ 7y
See All 10 Comments
TricksyTails How disappointing! This sounds like it would've been right up my alley. Great review, though! 7y
JenlovesJT47 @tricksytails thanks! If you're a big fan of Old Hollywood I think it is still worth reading. I just feel like it didn't live up to its potential. But I love the parts about Lombard and Gable and GWTW! 7y
TricksyTails I'm reading a book right now about haunted places that has a tiny blip about Old Hollywood. Made me want more Old Hollywood books. My TBR is ridiculous but I'd love any rec's for some good ones if you have any. 😁 7y
JenlovesJT47 @tricksytails the one I would recommend most that I read last year is All The Stars In The Heavens. I looooved that book. Are you on Goodreads? If you are, you can check out my Old Hollywood shelf, I currently have 38 on there. Ghostland looks good, it's on my TBR list! 7y
JenlovesJT47 @tricksytails oh and duh, one of my favorite books of all time - 7y
JenlovesJT47 @tricksytails what is your favorite time period in Old Hollywood? If you like Marilyn Monroe I would recommend this - 7y
TricksyTails Thank you for all the rec's! They look good and have been added to my TBR. Gosh, that's hard to choose a favorite time period because Old Hollywood was good Hollywood. I like it all! 7y
44 likes1 stack add10 comments
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PoetKoala
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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A bit of fun in the form of an #audiobook. Reminds me of my own Midwestern roots.

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annahenke
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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#amlistening On the set of Gone With the Wind, a young clerk finds an exciting bit of Hollywood glamor and romance.

nomadreader I loved this audio! 7y
Laura317 I've got this book on my tbr shelf. 7y
106 likes1 stack add2 comments
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rubyslippersreads
Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Married movie stars Clark Gable and Carole Lombard both served their country in WWII. Tragically, she died in a plane crash while returning home after raising over $2 million in a war bond rally. After her death, he joined the Army Air Force and flew active missions to obtain film footage of aerial gunners in action. #inmemoriam #maybookshowers

AmyG I have a friend who is 104 and I just gave this to her. She still reads (large print) and is enjoying this now. I will have to have her save this for me. 8y
Reviewsbylola I wanted to love this so much but the writing just wasn't there for me. I think it's difficult to write fictional characterizations of people that were well known and larger than life. 8y
rubyslippersreads @Reviewsbylola That was exactly the way I felt. 8y
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rubyslippersreads @AmyG That's wonderful! I hope I'm still reading when I'm 104. 😊 8y
Reviewsbylola Have you read Adriana Trigiani's recent book? It also fictionalizes Gable but during a different relationship. I liked it a bit better but it still wasn't what I was hoping for. 8y
rubyslippersreads @Reviewsbylola Sounds interesting. I remember the scandal about 8y
Reviewsbylola It's a story I really knew nothing about so I was so interested to learn more. Trigiani's problem though was she had such a large scope. Personally I think she should have focused on the affair, pregnancy, and birth. She chose to drag it on so long though that it just fizzled. 8y
99 likes4 stack adds7 comments
review
Birdsong28
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Pickpick

Very good. Inspired me to read and enjoy the book Gone With The Wind as it is set during the filming of the film version. Well rounded characters and a glimpse into some more well known ones such as Clark Gable and Carole Lombard. Highly recommend especially for fans of Gone With The Wind.

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Cortg
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Mehso-so

I was super excited for this book because I LOVE Gone with the Wind. I found parts of this story somewhat intriguing but I really didn't connect with the characters or the story. I do however need to spend an early Sunday morning with some coffee and a viewing of Gone With the Wind...it's been a while.

tpixie Too bad book was so so 8y
14 likes1 comment
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Hollie
A Touch of Stardust | Kate Alcott
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Mehso-so

I loved the premise of the book, and the backdrop of the filming of Gone with the Wind. Alcott's fictional characters help to illuminate the non-fictional, namely Carole Lombard and Clark Gable. Ultimately, this was not a book that commanded attention. It was okay, but lacked the stardust quality.

3 likes1 stack add