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I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.
MY REVIEW:
This book was really different for me. My recommendation is that if you feel like you want to stop reading this one and you haven’t reached the 40% mark, keep pushing and get there. That’s when this book really starts to take off. It’s got a slow beginning where everything is a little muddled and coming together, but once you get into it, it becomes a lot more fascinating!
This woman has been missing for decades and no one really knows what happened to her, but one young man whose life seems fatefully intertwined with this missing woman, is determined to find out what happened to her.
Quite an adventure of unravelling a deep mystery and filled with elements I wasn’t really expecting. Dual vantage points are used to tell the story of Gemma Turner, acclaimed actress who tragically went missing – contrasted with the viewpoint of Christopher Kent nearly 40 years later. Their stories converge into a wonderful depiction of horror in ways that were more subtle and psychological than graphically terrifying.
When I started this one, I wasn’t sure I would finish it, but I am so glad that I did!
GET IT HERE:
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From the author of A Witch in Time comes a haunting tale of ambition, obsession, and the eternal mystery and magic of film.
1968: Actress Gemma Turner once dreamed of stardom. Unfortunately, she’s on the cusp of slipping into obscurity. When she’s offered the lead in a radical new horror film, Gemma believes her luck has finally changed. But L’Etrange Lune’s set is not what she expected. The director is eccentric, and the script doesn’t make sense.
Gemma is determined to make this work. It’s her last chance to achieve her dream—but that dream is about to derail her life. One night, between the shadows of an alleyway, Gemma disappears on set and is never seen again. Yet, Gemma is still alive. She’s been transported into the film and the script—and the monsters within it—are coming to life. She must play her role perfectly if she hopes to survive.
2015: Gemma Turner’s disappearance is one of film history’s greatest mysteries—one that’s haunted film student Christopher Kent ever since he saw his first screening of L’Etrange Lune. The screenings only happen once a decade and each time there is new, impossible footage of Gemma long after she vanished. Desperate to discover the truth, Christopher risks losing himself. He’ll have to outrun the cursed legacy of the film—or become trapped by it forever.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Constance Sayers
Constance Sayers is the author of the Amazon best-selling novel, A Witch in Time (2020 Redhook/Hachette) as well as The Ladies of the Secret Circus (2021 Redhook/Hachette) that received a starred review from both Publishers Weekly and Library Journal. Her books have been translated into six languages.
A finalist for Alternating Current’s 2016 Luminaire Award for Best Prose, her short stories have appeared in Souvenir and Amazing Graces: Yet Another Collection of Fiction by Washington Area Women as well as The Sky is a Free Country. Her short fiction has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net.
She received her master of arts in English from George Mason University and graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor of arts in writing from the University of Pittsburgh. She attended The Bread Loaf Writers Conference where she studied with Charles Baxter and Lauren Groff. A media executive, she’s twice been named one of the “Top 100 Media People in America” by Folio and included in their list of “Top Women in Media.”
She lives in Washington DC. Like her character in The Ladies of the Secret Circus, she was the host of a radio show from midnight to six.
Looking for book recs…
Adventures in Literature 
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