Set in 1960s Italy, this stylish, atmospheric debut spins a bewitching web of ruthless ambition, family secrets, and the consequences of forbidden love, as an ambitious American actress snags the starring role in a mysterious horror movie shooting on location in a crumbling medieval castle outside Rome...
A delight for the senses and a truly entert.
Readers will devour it.--Megan Chance, bestselling author of A Splendid Ruin Cinematic and spooky, there is something for everyone in this gripping historical novel.
A delicious Gothic filled with atmosphere, twists, romance, and dark secrets. . .
Yet as she delves into Gabriella\'s disappearance, she triggers a chain of events that illuminate dark secrets in the past--and a growing menace in the present .
No one else on set seems to share Silvia\'s suspicions.
But when Gabriella abruptly vanishes, the movie\'s make-believe terrors seep into reality.
Silvia immerses herself in the part of an ingenue tormented by the ghost of her beautiful, seductive ancestor.
And the eerie castle inspires Silvia\'s second chance when it becomes the location for a new horror movie, aptly named The Revenge of the Lake Witch--and she lands a starring role.
Silvia\'s mother refuses to explain the rift that drove the sisters apart, but Silvia is fascinated by Gabriella, a once-famous actress who still radiates charisma.
Gabriella Conti lives in a crumbling Castello on the edge of a volcanic lake.
Desperate for money, Silvia has only one choice: seek out the Italian aunt she has never met.
Instead, she learns that the movie in which she was cast has been canceled. --Amanda Skenandore, author of The Nurse\'s Secret Rome, 1965: Aspiring actress Silvia Whitford arrives at Rome\'s famed Cinecittà Studios from Los Angeles, ready for her big break and a taste of la dolce vita. --Susan Wiggs, # 1 New York Times bestselling author You\'ll get lost in the pages of this lush, entertaining story.--Ellen Marie Wiseman, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Girls of Willowbrook Enchanting.
Like Jess Walters\'s Beautiful Ruins, the glamour and heady indulgence of the era take center stage in this captivating, multilayered story that will keep you guessing to the end.
Readers who enjoy the moody gothic allure of Kate Morton and Silvia Moreno-Garcia or the immersive settings of Lucinda Riley and Fiona Davis will be enthralled by Kelsey James\' spellbinding web of intriguing mystery, family secrets, forbidden love, and midcentury Italian flair.
Set in 1960s Italy, this stylish, atmospheric debut spins a bewitching web of ruthless ambition, family secrets, and the consequences of forbidden love, as an ambitious American actress snags the starring role in a mysterious horror movie shooting on location in a crumbling medieval castle outside Rome..
