Review: The Limits of Limelight

The Limits of Limelight by Margaret Porter
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'm so sorry to say that while this book held my interest enough to finish, the writing didn't invest me emotionally in the characters. Instead, the narrative felt stilted and forced. And the writing seemed fixated on telling us unnecessary details.

I found some of the name-dropping interesting, especially when the movies got a little more towards the 1940s and the author's pages at the end of the book were fascinating. I love hearing how Ms. Porter researched this book. However, this was the only redeeming value for me. 

 I know that this book is a bit fictional (the conversations at the very least), But the rest was biographical. If this is true, and I've no reason to doubt this, Ginger Rogers and her Mother, Lela was selfish and spoiled. But I suppose that was the era and the manner in which these women grew up.

There was so much tragedy in this novel.

At any rate, if you like fictional biographies of old-time stars, I think you will like this book much more than I did. On that note, I do recommend this book to those who loved Ginger Rogers-this book was so very much about her, really.

*ARC supplied by the publisher, the author, and NetGalley. 

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SYNOPSIS: "Hollywood turned Ginger Rogers into a star. What will it do for her cousin?

Pretty Oklahoma teenager Helen Nichols accepts an invitation from her cousin, rising movie actress Ginger Rogers, and her Aunt Lela, to try her luck in motion pictures. Her relatives, convinced that her looks and personality will ensure success, provide her with a new name and help her land a contract with RKO. As Phyllis Fraser, she swiftly discovers that Depression-era Hollywood’s surface glamor and glitter obscure the ceaseless struggle of the hopeful starlet.

Lela Rogers, intensely devoted to her daughter and her niece, outwardly accepting of her stage mother label, is nonetheless determined to establish her reputation as screenwriter, stage director, and studio talent scout. For Phyllis, she’s an inspiring model of grit and persistence in an industry run by men.

While Ginger soars to the heights of stardom in musicals with Fred Astaire, Phyllis is tempted by a career more fulfilling than the one she was thrust into. Should she continue working in films, or devote herself to the profession she’s dreamed about since childhood? Which choice might lead her to the lasting love that seems so elusive?"