Hollywood Dreams – Stars Over Sunset Boulevard by Susan Meissner

Like all of Meissner's fiction, this novel was well-researched and offered some fascinating insights into the Hollywood of the late 1930s and onward. 

The author explores the friendship between two very different women, Violet, a transplant from Alabama, and Audrey, a native Californian. The two women meet at work at Selznick International Studios, where they work in the secretarial pool as filming for "Gone With The Wind" is about to begin. Audrey owns a small bungalow bequeathed to her by her Aunt Jo, and Violet becomes her roommate. Audrey has a very close friend, Burt, who is in love with her, though she does not have the same feelings for him.

Audrey is a little older, and has aspirations to act in the movies, but her big break has failed to come. Violet left home to escape the rigid society of her upper middle class environment, and a broken romance. Both women (of course) have their secrets, which they eventually share and which lead to a situation many friendships could not sustain, which will become the later focus of the plot.

In a moment of poor judgment and after drinking a few too many cocktails at a party they attend with Burt, they "acquire" a hat that is part of the wardrobe of Scarlett O'Hara in the movie. As Burt works in the costume department and is responsible for the items kept there, he gets into trouble for the incident and nearly loses his job. The hat will take on great significance as time passes.

Many things occur in this triangular friendship, and alignments change. Violet falls in love with Burt, and he with her. They marry, while remaining friends with Audrey. World War II intervenes and time continues to pass as the lives of the friends evolve. Where this will all lead is the crux of the story...which has some somewhat unlikely elements that I will leave to other readers to discover.

What seems unfortunate to me is the device author Meissner used to introduce readers to the action – the infamous hat has made an appearance in a vintage clothing store and the store owner, recognizing its significance wants to return it to its owner. This felt contrived to me, at least as it was used in the book, and less than believable. If it had been handled differently, it would have been more effective and much more appealing. The jacket copy describes this as a "journey more enchanting than any classic movie" but this aspect is just not convincing. Otherwise, there is a lot to like about this book in terms of atmosphere and detail.