Have you ever wanted to climb into a time machine and visit Hollywood during its heyday?
Right before talking pictures slug Tinsel Town in the jaw, a luminous silent screen star converts her private estate into the Garden of Allah Hotel. The lush grounds soon become a haven for Hollywood hopefuls to meet, drink, and revel through the night. George Cukor is in the pool, Tallulah Bankhead is at … the pool, Tallulah Bankhead is at the bar, and Scott Fitzgerald is sneaking off to a bungalow with Sheilah Graham while Madame Alla Nazimova keeps watch behind her lace curtains.
But the real story of the Garden of Allah begins with its first few residents, three kids on the brink of something big.
Marcus Adler has a lot to prove after his father catches him and the police chief’s son with their pants down. He flees Pennsylvania for Hollywood with his mouth shut and his eyes open, and begins to write the lines all those starlets will say out loud. Can a smart, sensitive guy find his own voice in a town that’s just learning to talk?
Kathryn Massey’s childhood was a grinding routine of auditions, but she couldn’t care less about being a movie star. When she takes off with her typewriter, determined to become a newspaper reporter, she finds that breaking into the boys’ club is tougher than breaking free of her bossy mother. To make it in this town, she’ll need some serious moxie.
Gwendolyn Brick is a sweet Southern beauty who’s come a long way to try her luck on the big screen. She’s hoping the same succulent lips the guys want to kiss will land her more than a bit part on a casting couch. She’s going to need some help keeping everyone in line.
Nobody gets a free pass in Hollywood, but a room at the Garden on Sunset can get your foot in the door.
The Garden on Sunset is the first in Martin Turnbull’s series of historical novels set during Hollywood’s golden age.
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Makes you feel like you’re a part of the “Golden age” of Hollywood . Good plotting and character development. Makes you want more. You can feel the author’s fascination with the era
Interesting view of the Golden age of Hollywood
For those of you who are into vintage Hollywood, this novel (heck, the entire series) is for you! Turnbull’s setting in Hollywood’s famed Garden of Allah is genius. It allows him to weave together famous faces, events and his three engaging characters. Die-hard Hollywood fans can geek out to their heart’s content in these novels as Kathryn, …
I loved it so much, I’m in the process of reading the rest of the series. The three main characters are well written as is the story line and historical content. I highly recommend the series if you like historical fiction.
Thought I would enjoy this book as I love old hollywood but I found it to be very surface-level entertainment with limited character development. I guess not bad if you’re looking for a light summer beach read. I followed the 50 page rule with this book, perhaps if I had given it more pages it would have improved. Probably a book best suited to …
I love this time of old-Hollywood and the author built a picture that I can see in my mind perfectly. I liked the characters and was rooting them on
I have always been a fan of Old Hollywood and thought this series might satisfy my curiosity and wonder. I am very happy to say that I fell quickly in love with not just the locale but Mr Turnball’s main characters. I have never read anything like it. I first thought that Marcus’ blatant homosexuality would throw me out of the pages, but I was …
I have read every one of Mr. Turnbull’s Garden Of Allah series and am looking forward to reading his next addition in the series.
His characters are true to life. I have found very few editing mistakes, and his writing ability is powerful.
I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys reading about Hollywood during the hey days of the …
a light read but raised some interesting questions about just what a bubble people lived under in that era.
This has turned in to a great series. I am finishing the 8th book in this set and can’t wait to read more about the three main characters. I hope there is a book nine.
Just disappointed. Trite, very predictable.
I like books about old Hollywood.
The Garden of Allah series is the best EVER!