Welcome to the Official Blog Tour for Award-winning Author Teri Bailey Black's Chasing Starlight, coming from Tor Teen! Today, on our tour stop, we have an exclusive excerpt AND a tour-wide giveaway to share! Be sure to check it out and grab your copy now! Follow the tour, HERE!
Genre:
Young Adult
Historical Fiction/Mystery
Publish Date:
August 11, 2020
Publisher:
Synopsis:
Movies, mansions, and murder in the Golden Age of Hollywood! Teri Bailey Black's Chasing Starlight is a historical mystery from the award-winning author of the Thriller Award for Best Young Adult Novel.
1938. The Golden Age of Hollywood. Palm trees and movie stars. Film studios pumping out musicals, westerns, and gangster films at a furious pace. Everyone wants to be a star―except society girl and aspiring astronomer Kate Hildebrand, who’d rather study them in the night sky. She’s already famous after a childhood tragedy turned her into a newspaper headline. What she craves is stability.
But when Kate has to move to Hollywood to live with her washed-up silent film star grandfather, she walks into a murder scene and finds herself on the front page again. She suspects one of the young men boarding in her grandfather’s run-down mansion is the killer―maybe even her grandfather. She searches for clues.
Now, Kate must discover the killer while working on the set of a musical―and falling in love. Will her stars align so she can catch the murderer and live the dream in Old Hollywood? Or will she find that she's just chasing starlight?
*Excerpt*
Chapter 1
1938 California
When Kate Hildebrand had pictured stepping off the train in Hollywood, she’d imagined palm trees and sunshine, not this inky-black night and strange, warm wind. A loose sign banged in the restless air and leaves rustled.
She stood in the shaft of light spilling from the train, her heart thumping harder than it should have, wishing she’d taken an earlier train to arrive in daylight.
Kate hated the dark.
Behind her, the Santa Fe Super Chief screamed a warning whistle and chugged into motion, moving on to San Diego. In front of her, the other teenaged girl who’d disembarked was greeted by a large family, everyone hugging and talking at once, and the man who’d dozed most of the day dropped his suitcase to embrace a woman holding a baby. Farther away, a cluster of men in suits and hats shook hands.
No one approached Kate.
She lifted her chin to see better below the brim of her stylish blue fedora, but didn’t find her grandfather.
Not that his face was all that familiar to her.
He’d come to San Francisco for Thanksgiving when Kate was eight—an attempt at reconciliation with her mother that hadn’t gone so well—and he’d returned for her mother’s funeral a few years after that, but Kate hadn’t seen him because she hadn’t attended. Since then, there’d been a few birthday cards and awkward phone calls, but Kate knew more about her grandfather from movie magazines than memories, and those magazines were a decade old, from his heyday in the 1920s.
No one had written about silent film star Oliver Banks in a very long time.
The station wasn’t as grand as she’d expected, just a wide stretch of concrete with a stucco building and two lanterns casting more shadow than light. No movie stars arriving to swarms of fans, like she’d seen in magazines. But then, this wasn’t actually Hollywood, just the neighboring town where her grandfather lived—Pasadena.
The other travelers drifted into the dark, taking their cheerful voices with them, leaving Kate alone with her luggage—two enormous trunks, a small suitcase, a cosmetic case, and three hat boxes. Her entire life packed into a few square feet of space.
“He’s expecting you,” Aunt Lorna had insisted yesterday as she’d packed for her own trip in another direction—which for Aunt Lorna meant tossing clothes on the bed for their housekeeper Hattie to pack. “I sent a telegram and it’s all set. I hope you’ve finished packing.”
“You know I have.” Lists written. Tasks crossed off. Everything Kate owned neatly folded and organized, her telescope tucked between sweaters.
“Which outfit for boarding the ship?” Aunt Lorna had asked. “Something pretty?” She’d held up an apricot-colored dress. “Or the expected nautical?” In her other hand, she’d held up navy with gold buttons.
“Nautical,” Kate had advised without much thought because Aunt Lorna looked chic in everything. She had the same lean figure as all the Hildebrands—including Kate—and the same red hair, cut chin length, carefully curled and tucked into place. Aunt Lorna’s shade was bright copper, helped by a bottle; Kate’s, auburn.
Copyright © 2020 by Teri Bailey Black
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Praise for CHASING STARLIGHT
"Chasing Starlight dazzles with richly drawn characters, a breathtaking mystery, and a vivid 1930s Hollywood setting. Black masterfully evokes the glamour and darkness of a mesmerizing era steeped in secrets, lies, and dreams." ―Cat Winters author of The Raven's Tale
"Miss Fisher meets Tinseltown in this addictive mystery full of Old Hollywood glamour and slow-burn secrets. Chasing Starlight is the journey of aspiring-astronomer-turned-reluctant-sleuth Kate as she works not only to solve a murder but find her place in the world after a tumultuous past. Come for the gossipy glam of old Hollywood; stay for a cast of charmingly quirky characters and a mystery that will have you guessing until the end." ―McKelle George, author of Speak Easy, Speak Love
"Chasing Starlight is a mystery as alluring as old Hollywood itself―and fun! Teri Bailey Black’s story has a historical-yet-modern feel, and the setting is so creative and cinematic you’ll feel as if you’re sitting on a film set. With a cast of dream-chasers who showcase both the glamour and the grit, Chasing Starlight is delightful from the first scene to the last." ―Jodie Lynn Zdrok, author of Spectacle
“Black delivers an atmospheric mystery with cinematic flair that’s chock full of period detail, highlighting women’s roles in front of, and behind, the camera during Hollywood’s golden age. A captivating crowd pleaser.” ―Kirkus Reviews
“This complex tale featuring blossoming romance, an edge-of-your-seat murder, and a host of characters to love and hate is recommended for collections where mysteries are popular.” ―School Library Journal
“Entertainingly conveying the glitz of Kate’s Hollywood life and romantic interests, this breezy whodunit is a fun historical escape with satisfactory twists.” ― Publishers Weekly
“A thrillingly romantic dive into Old Hollywood that will appeal to cinema and history buffs alike.” ―Booklist
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**About the Author**
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***The Giveaway***
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