Roxanne Granville is the granddaughter of Hollywood legends and after the recent passing of her grandmother she is trying to decide what is next for herself and that includes a job, but what should she do with a name like Granville. Roxanne becomes an agent for writers in hopes of finding the next Casablanca!

I liked this book, but didn't love it. This may sound weird, but it felt like a constant name drop. The author just kept throwing names and things at the reader and I didn't feel like I got to know any of those famous people or even the infamous ones. I liked that Roxanne was entering a field that was dominated by men and even though she threw her famous grandparents names around, she got to do good work and pave the path for future women. Roxanne was a great character to follow in this story, but she was the only one with true depth.

There have been a lot of behind the scenes of old Hollywood stories that I have read that I loved and this one just fell a little short compared to the others. I wouldn't count this author out, I would read another one by her, but I hope that she would spend more time on the supporting characters no matter if they are real or fiction.

(Thanks to Berkley for my review copy. All opinions are my own.) What a ride!!! The Great Pretenders was not at all what I expected, but I adored it! I was expecting a light-hearted story about the glamorous world of 1950s Hollywood. I was expecting Cary Grant, Ginger and Fred, Rock Hudson and the like. I got them, but this story had meat on its bones. Roxanne is a granddaughter of a movie studio head but she decides to strike out on her own as a Hollywood agent. Upset with her grandfather’s callous treatment of his loyal writers with former communist ties (This is prime McCarthy Era) she begins representing blacklisted writers under pseudonyms. As if this plotline wasn’t compelling enough, she then begins a deep and meaningful romance with a young black journalist covering the emerging civil rights movement. The author brought to light so many issues of the time in such a thoughtful way. I had never considered how the shifting politics of the time would affect the film industry. The glamour of Hollywood was present, the book was overflowing with old movie references (which I adored), but it was the love and personal growth at the heart of this story that I found most compelling. If you are interested in a beach read that will leave you thinking, this is your book.

If you love a strong female lead and an old-Hollywood setting, Laura Kalpakian’s The Great Pretenders is a must-read book! Set in the 1950s, the book tells the story of Roxanne Granville, granddaughter to a successful studio head and an agent to script writers. But Roxanne’s life is not as easy as it seems. She falls in love with a black man—frowned upon in the time and setting where she lives. And she breaks a few rules along the way to promote her writers. A dazzling story about a fascinating, flawed, fierce female that I positively loved!

Though Roxanne begins the novel as a bit of a spoiled rich girl—she came from means, afterall, during a time of Hollywood opulence—she quickly transforms into a strong, brave, and forward-thinking woman. Not without flaws, Roxanne is a character that you can’t help but root for. She’s relatable, despite the difference in era and status from many readers. I found Roxanne totally sparkled, despite how women were often treated at the time.

There was a lot about the 1950s that I knew, but only pieces of. The bit about communism and the red scare—those were things I knew about but didn’t have a great frame of reference for what it was like at that time. I thought Laura Kalpakian brought many issues—the red scare, racial tensions, rampant sexual misconduct in the workplace—to life in old Hollywood, making me feel both the glamour and the toxicity of a town where everything glitters but doesn’t quite mask the seedy underbelly of that much money and power.

The relationship between Terrence and Roxanne felt authentic, emotional, raw, and fierce. Mixed race couples were just not done at that time, particularly in Hollywood and at the level of status Roxanne was at. I really enjoyed their relationship—the ups and downs, the tenderness, and the way they struggled to move forward despite the times.

The symbolism was also something to note! Not only does this book take place in Hollywood, but often it felt like a film itself. From the birth of Roxanne literally on a film set to Terrence whisking her off in that cream convertible (hello, white horse), I felt the book was rich with vivid scenes and interesting characters, not to mention a fascinating storyline about a woman breaking all of the rules to help talented people find their way despite all of the stigma.

Appearances are everything in Hollywood in the 1950s, and The Great Pretenders clearly showcases that. I loved this book and I want more—I want to know what happens next to Roxanne! The hallmark of a great book (and a great movie) is wishing it would never end. This book felt that way to me!

Thank you to Berkley for my copy. Opinions are my own.

I requested to read this book because the premise sounded interesting. However, the book unfortunately did not keep my interest. I tried to get into it but just couldn't. The characters were flat and not captivating and I didn't care about them at all. The main character, Roxanne, was irritating, spoiled and unsympathetic. Unfortunately the book was archived before I could finish it, so I cannot give a truly accurate review. I read about 50% of it.

I’m not sure what I was expecting from this book, but the plot definitely surprised me. For the first half of the book I wasn’t sure where the plot was going, but in the second half I felt like the plot found a good speed and I was absorbed in the story. I am frequently annoyed when books have unrealistic endings, but I felt that the ending of this story was true to the characters.

There is so much history, so much content in The Great Pretenders that is truly enchanting and you can tell that the author spent a lot of time and effort into getting so many world events and Hollywood events right. It really is like taking a step back in time and experiencing it all for yourself through a different perspective.

A time when everything and anything and everyone was judged, tried and prosecuted for the color of their skin, where they lived, how they dressed, what they believed in, and how much money they had.

Rich in detail, family drama, a Hollywood atmosphere and all the things that go with them all, this was a read unlike any I've read before.


Sometimes troubling, sometimes slow but always interesting, The Great Pretenders is a book that is sure to appeal to many people who love the theme, era, and the setting.

3.5 stars

I decided to review this one because I have zero impulse control when it comes to pretty historical fiction book covers.

I love the eye catching teal and yellow color pallet in this cover and it so clearly screams 1950s Hollywood glamour and as soon as I saw it, I knew I wanted to read it. I didn’t even really read the pitch all the way through, I just eagerly agreed!

This author has written a number of other books but none that I have read or really heard of but she has won a number o literally awards. This book seems to be kind of her ‘break out’ novel in my opinion. Kind of more mainstream and widely appealing.

I also see she lives in the Pac NW (though I don’t know where, does anyone else know?) and one of her son’s, Bear McCreary, is responsible for the outstanding Outlander sound track so I was immediately interested in reading this book for the cover but ultimately my curiosity about the author and her exceptionally talented family drew me in and made me all the more excited to read this book!

Summary

Roxanne forges a career unique for women in the 1950s, becoming an agent for hungry young screenwriters. She struggles to be taken seriously by the men who rule Hollywood and who often assume that sexual favors are just a part of doing business. When she sells a script by a blacklisted writer under the name of a willing front man, more exiled writers seek her help. Roxanne wades into a world murky with duplicity and deception, and she can’t afford any more risks.

Then she meets Terrence Dexter, a compelling African American journalist unlike anyone she’s ever known. Roxanne again breaks the rules, and is quickly swept up in a passionate relationship with very real dangers that could destroy everything she’s carefully built.

Roxanne Granville is a woman who bravely defies convention. She won’t let men make all the rules, and won’t let skin color determine whom she can love. The Great Pretenders is a riveting, emotional novel that resonates in today’s world, and reminds us that some things are worth fighting for (summary from Goodreads).

Review

Ok this author has done an incredible amount of research. So so so much historical detail and research must have gone into this novel. I also loved that this book wasn’t full of cliche troupes just to sell more books. I feel like the author stayed true to her vision for the book and focused on the racism and sexism that was rampant in Hollywood at this particular time.

One reviewer noted that while we live in 2019, has Hollywood really come that far since the 1950s when it comes to race and sex issues in the industry? After reading this, I am inclined to agree to a certain extent. I thought the author took on some pretty big issues in this book and I think it worked well.

This wasn’t just another feel good book about romance in Hollywood in the 1950s, instead she stuck to her theme in this book and really focused on the forbidden romance between Roxanne and Terrence and how that could ultimately destroy them in Hollywood.

I loved reading about Roaxanne. Her transformation was impressive and fit well in this book. She went from rich girl to this badass Hollywood agent. I loved seeing her evolve throughout the book.

So the bulk of this book is the middle. The beginning was a little slower than I expected and the end it seemed to lose a little momentum, which placed this book in a 3 star situation for me but I also felt like it was better than just 3 stars based on the historical research, so I rounded up to 3.5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Great Pretenders by Laura Kalpakian follows Roxanne Granville, the granddaughter of a Hollywood studio head, as she navigates the sexism, racism, and difficulty inherent in the 1950s Hollywood studio era. She's born into extreme privilege but always kept on the fringes due to her birthmark and her eccentricities.

I like a lot about this book: the setting, Roxanne, Terrence, the interwoven nature of things that really happened vs the fictional studios, films, and other characters. I think Roxanne and Terrence were really indicative of their time, and I liked the dynamic between them. I like Roxanne's willingness to fight for what she wanted. She rejected the notion that she had to mistreated by men in the industry and instead forged her own path.

She runs up against a lot of things in her work and personal life, and it all felt messy, but in a real human way.

As a white woman, I'm interested to see what black readers have to say about this, as there were times when I was uncertain about the portrayal of Terrence and his relationship with Roxanne. While I believed their relationship and feelings, some turns felt like they could be veering into problematic territory.

My review won’t give this book justice, but I will try my best.
The Great Pretenders features protagonist, Roxanne Granville, granddaugher of Empire Pictures founder Leon Greene, who sets off on her own path once her beloved grandmother, Julia passes away.
As Roxanne’s life completely changes from Julia’s death, she demands to move out of Leon’s mansion as her anger towards him for shacking up with his mistrss the young and up and coming actress, Denise O’Dell while he was still married to her grandmother. But being neglected from her own actor parents, she attempts to cut ties with the only father she ever knew because of his love life choices.
When Roxanne decides to become an agent for writers, she paves a path for other women to step away from the conformity of what women in the 50’s endured. But once she is sexuall assaulted by her boss, she decides that being an agent for an agency isn’t enough, she starts her own agency utilizing her famous relative ties and starts to know how to manipulate the male world to make her own successes come to life.
However, the 50’s were a time of Communisits overthrowing the governemnet and anyone who had ties to that political belief before WWII were chatised and forced to flee the country. Some of them were Empire writers that Roxanne considered as uncles when she was a little girl. So when she is approached by one of these writer’s scripts and asked to present the script as one of her other client’s work, she undertakes another path of bravery.
But she doesn’t stop there. Her unexpected love life leads her into the arms of the black reporter, Terrance and they establish a double-life of secrecy and an enduring love. But during a time of racial segregation, their forbidden love affair is tested when Terrance’s family doesn’t hide their disapproval of their relationship, and Roxanne’s family not knowing about it at all. However, their love story is exposed when a past boyfriend stumbles across Terrance within Roxanne’s home and reveals the relationship to the newspapers.
Roxanne and Terrance’s relationship was a great example of what bi-racial couples went through in the past to bring about change in times of adversity and forced confomity. A fanstastic historical fiction novel that features the dark side of the perfect 50s where gender, sexuality, political beliefs and race was on the brink of changing times.

The Great Pretenders is a tale of Old Hollywood, specifically 1950's era. This was a time of complexity and fear. The Red Scare and being Blacklisted were relevant topics in this era. Still, other things were not addressed adequately, including segregation and inequality among others. This story is about a woman with great Hollywood connections who decides to become a Hollywood agent instead of a wife and mother. Then, to add more controversy to her life, she falls in love with a black man. Interracial affairs simply didn't happen and weren't allowed in the 1950's. This story is engaging and very informative about the movie business of the time period. It's quite captivating with the one serious drawback of an overdramatic heroine. I wanted to slap her a few times. Overall, this is a good piece of historical fiction. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Roxanne Granville was fortunate to be born into Hollywood Royalty as the granddaughter of a powerful studio mogul. Her grandparents raised her and she spent her childhood mixing with film stars at the studio and in her home. When Roxanne has a falling out with her grandfather, she decides that it is time to step out on her own. She moves to a bungalow and uses her contacts to become an agent for writers.

During the 1950s there was fear of being on the “Hollywood Blacklist“ where your work would never be accepted. Television was also becoming a threat to the movie industry, and the civil rights movement was gaining momentum.
Roxanne's agency takes off when she sells a script from a blacklisted writer and others come forward seeking her assistance. She knows the risk to her reputation if the truth were to be revealed but feels it is the right thing to do. She also takes risks in her personal life when she secretly becomes involved with an African American journalist which is unusual for the time period.

I enjoyed reading “The Great Pretenders” by Laura Kalpakian. It has a fun blend of Hollywood history, romance, family dysfunction, and scandal. I look forward to more works from this author.

I featured this book on my blog and will provide the direct link to the publisher during the next step of this process.

an elegantly told exquisite tale of Old Hollywood and the girl who turned it on its head!

Laura Kalpakian stole my heart with this brilliant book! Have you ever finished a Book and thought, I need more and I need it now! That was me with this book. I was so invested in the story and these characters, I was seriously crushed when it was over. Kalpakian completely transported me to 1950s Old Hollywood with her riveting words.

Roxanne is Hollywood royalty, growing up on the back lots of her grandfather’s studio. Raised by her grandparents she is devastated when her grandmother passes away and is angry with her grandfather for leaving her beloved grandmother for a much younger woman. Not wanting to continue college and cut off (sort of) from her grandfather she finds herself living in a bungalow in Malibu. Realizing she knows Hollywood better than most she decides to pursue a career as an agent. After not being taken seriously and dealing with sexual harassment she decides to set out on her own. A huge risk, but Roxanne is all about risk. After a chance encounter (or two) Roxanne finds herself falling in love with Terrence an African-American reporter. BUT this is the 50s and multiracial relationships are a huge taboo even in liberal Hollywood. Will Roxanne‘s risks ultimately pay off? Will love conquer all or leave her heartbroken? You are definitely going to need to read this book and find out the answers to these questions and so much more!

Roxanne was so feisty, so fierce, and so ahead of her time. She was sassy with a vulnerable side and that made her even more endearing. This book took place during the “red scare, “the “blacklist,“ I found the politics of Hollywood fascinating. I also had absolutely no idea that Los Angeles was so segregated in the 50s. Growing up in southern California I guess I always like to think we are a little more enlightened than the rest of the country when it comes to racial relations, I guess not so much? Also fun fact... max one of the screen writers in the story who is blacklisted moves 60 miles south east of LA to the city where I live now(He was pretty much exiled to Riverside). I imagine it was quite rural here back in the day and seemed extremely far away from the hustle and bustle of LA. Now it is nonstop cities and freeways and traffic from LA to Riverside.

Such a magical story! I just loved everything the history, the characters, the setting, the tension, the romance. Roxanne was an amazing character who I won’t soon forget. Her relationship with Terrence was so raw, so intense, and so heart wrenching. I fell for these two so completely. This book had a Beautiful perfect ending, BUT I SO wanted more! A follow up would be great, I would really love to see what happens to these characters next. In case you can’t tell I strongly recommend this book!

*** A huge thank you to Berkley for my copy of this book ***

What a lovely story! Historical fiction fans of the 50’s and early motion pictures should enjoy this. Roxanne is one gutsy young woman. I enjoyed how she stood her ground and wanted more for herself in an era when women were traditionally just wives and mothers. Granted she came from privilege so she had advantages that most do not, it was still nicely done.

Realistically told romance between her and Terrence in a time where interracial relationships were just not done. What the cost was to even consider dating outside your race.

I really loved all the movie making details and references to movies, sets, and that industry.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book.

I absolutely love any book that's written about Old Hollywood, and this was no exception. The Great Pretenders was a really fun look at how things used to be in Hollywood, with of exciting cameos along the way!

I really enjoyed the characters, especially Roxanne, thought she got to be a bit of a diva at times. I guess that probably comes with being part of an empire in Hollywood, though. I would have loved to have read this with Julia as a main character, but I'm not sure how that would have worked, so maybe a prequel? Wishful thinking?

I think Roxanne was a very bold character, and I like that she fought the patriarchy. We need to hear more about women in the 1950s that pushed the narrative of women empowerment further. This book does a great job of bringing historically significant events to life; events that I was not aware of. I had a lot of research to do while I was reading, but only because I became so intrigued in the world that Laura Kalpakian was describing.

I received an advance copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

The Great Pretenders is a love story that involves two people of different races. The theme of this book are racism and gender. Roxanne craves to get out from her grandfather’s thumb and live her own life. She decides to become a screenwriter and falls in love with an African American journalist. I did not really like Roxanne. She complained throughout the novel and was very selfish. The story also dragged and would have been better if it was shorter. Still, I recommend this for fans of Susan Meissner, Kate Alcott, and Adriana Trigani.

Roxanne Granville was born into the Hollywood world. Her grandparents ran Empire Pictures and she was the darling around the studio. Now in her twenties, Roxanne is ready to begin a career of her own, which isn’t easy for women in the 1950’s. She quickly learns that men refuse to take her seriously and only see her as a sex object.

She is determined to begin a career as a Hollywood agent. She takes on some daring scripts that people would find controversial. Not to mention that she becomes involved in a relationship that is not acceptable in the 1950’s. Roxanne is playing with fire and both situations turn her life upside down.

This is a realistic look into the turbulent times of the 1950’s. The author adds real life celebrity names to the story which helps to paint a vivid picture of the era and bring realism to each page. For a few days, I actually felt as if I was in the 1950’s.

The Great Pretenders is well written and emotional with true to life situations. There were a few parts in the middle that were slow-moving, but then the excitement picked up and I couldn’t stop reading until I knew how it would all play out.

I never read anything by this author before, but I will definitely be on the look out for more of her books.

Historical fiction set in the 50s in Hollywood, that shows how hard it was for women and people of color to get ahead. Interesting characters and story line. A very good read.

I love historical fiction set in old Hollywood and couldn't wait to read The Great Pretenders. Roxanne Granville is Hollywood royalty and born with a silver spoon. In 1950's Hollywood, the "red scare" is snowballing and many are blacklisted. Roxanne starts her own writers agency and soon finds herself making decisions that could be career ending. Not to mention that she falls for a black reporter which was taboo then. Laura Kapakian's research and attention to detail shines through! I loved this story! A must read for historical fiction fans.

1950s Hollywood was filled with psychic peril. Roxanne, raised in privilege and then out on her own, finds a soft point in the system when she sympathizes with writers banned as a result of the Red Scare. Repackaging their scripts is a good business for her - and for them. Terence Dexter is entirely alien to her universe but she can't help herself. There's two good stories here- one is about Roxanne and the writers and the other is the love story. You will find yourself rooting for both of them. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Nicely written, it hits a sweet spot for fans of historical Hollywood.