The Disappearing Act By Catherine Steadman

-

 

Once a year, actors from across the globe descend on the smog and sunshine of Los Angeles for pilot season. Every cable network and studio looking to fill the rosters of their new shows enticing a fresh batch of young hopefuls, anxious, desperate and willing to do whatever it takes to make it. Careers will be made, dreams will be realized, stars will be born. And some will be snuffed out.

British star Mia Eliot has landed leading roles in costume dramas in her native country, but now it's time for Hollywood to take her to the next level. Mia flies across the Atlantic to join the hoard of talent scrambling for their big breaks. She's a fish out of water in the ruthlessly competitive and faceless world of back-to-back auditioning. Then one day she meets Emily, another actress from out of town and a kindred spirit. Emily is friendly and genuine and reassuringly doesn't seem to be taking any of it too seriously. She stands out in a conveyor-belt world of fellow auditionees. But a simple favor turns dark when Emily disappears and Mia realizes she was the last person to see her, and the woman who knocks on Mia's door the following day claiming to be her new friend isn't the woman Mia remembers at all.

All Mia has to go on is the memory of a girl she met only once . . . and the suffocating feeling that something terrible has happened. Worse still, the police don't believe her when she claims the real Emily has gone missing. So Mia is forced to risk the role of a lifetime to try to uncover the truth about Emily, a gamble that will force her to question her own sanity as the truth goes beyond anything she could ever have imagined.


This was a really hooking read! I sped through this in one sitting, and the plot completely pulled me in. The pacing of this story was exquisite; it never felt too overwhelming, but plot twists were layered artfully throughout the novel. Every new twist and turn surprised me, and the ending threw me for a spin. I didn’t find the resolution too predictable or too unbelievable.

The unique perspective that Mia brings to the table is also refreshing to read. Mia is a rising star in the British industry—she’s a talented and hardworking actor looking for her next stepping stone in LA. Since she’s British, the environment that she has grown up in is very different from that of Hollywood. She isn’t used to the cutthroat competition or the shrewd business decisions that dominate every move in LA. This makes her an interesting narrator, as she is talented enough to be welcomed into Hollywood’s elite, but enough of an outcast to look down her nose at every sleazy practice. 

Mia can be paranoid and clever at times, and incredibly dense at others. It feels very real and relatable, honestly. Her very real feelings and insecurities are a good reminder that celebrities are just real people, and that acting is just a job like any other. 

My overwhelming sentiment after reading this book was definitely one of sadness and loss; this story ripped all the sparkle and shine out of Hollywood and exposed the grief and frustration under the shiny veneer. To be honest, it was not a fun or comfortable experience. It is very hard to lose yourself in the excitement of a movie when you have even a clue of the darkness that goes on behind the scenes. Additionally, Catherine Steadman is a professional actor as well as writer, which is probably why so many of the anecdotes in this book ring true. 

Overall, this was a gripping and thrilling read that I couldn’t put down; would definitely recommend!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

As If On Cue by Marisa Kanter

-
Image
Lifelong rivals Natalie and Reid have never been on the same team. So when their school’s art budget faces cutbacks, of course Natalie finds herself up against her nemesis once more. She’s fighting to direct the school’s first ever student-written play, but for her small production to get funding, the school’s award-winning band will have to lose it. Reid’s band. And he’s got no intention of letting the show go on. But when their rivalry turns into an all-out prank war that goes too far, Natalie and Reid have to face the music, resulting in the worst compromise: writing and directing a musical. Together. At least if they deliver a sold-out show, the school board will reconsider next year’s band and theater budget. Everyone could win. Except Natalie and Reid. Because after spending their entire lives in competition, they have absolutely no idea how to be co-anything. And they certainly don’t know how to deal with the feelings that are inexplicably, weirdly, definitely developing between...
Read more

“Taylor’s Version” sets Powerful Precedent for Music Industry

-
Image
Taylor Swift’s re-recording of her sophomore album, “Fearless”, is her latest push to make the music industry a better place, especially for vulnerable artists. Swift is hardly the first artist to face devastation at the hands of their record label, but she might very well be the first one to   fight it so openly . What the public views as a catfight between high-profile celebrities is essentially   a battle for her life’s work ; the very work that the media continues to claim is too personal. In between   slut-shaming   her, the public continues to claim that Swift is a   money-hungry vulture   who masterminded every controversy surrounding her in order to increase profits.    It is completely beside the point to argue that Swift does not need the extra money from her rerecordings – what she is doing is  setting a precedent .  She has expressed her belief that artists should have the rights to their work, or at least be given the opport...
Read more

Movies Have Always Been Political; People Just Weren't Paying Attention

-
Image
Last Friday’s epic finale to “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” finally made it official: Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson is the new “Captain America.” Unsurprisingly, the decision — and the show in general — has sparked a wave of criticism. While some of the uproar surrounding the show was   blatantly racist , a lot of people took the chance to air out their grievances with the media becoming   “too woke.”   This frustration is not unique to “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”; over the past few years, an increasing number of people are uncomfortable with what they deem an   unnecessary insertion of politics   into their entertainment and are bemoaning the death of escapist cinema. This complaint, however, is insanely strange. The thing is, movies are always political if the audience chooses to watch them with a political gaze. Movies have always been firmly rooted in reality — the political messaging was just somewhat hidden in order to avoid alienating audiences...
Read more