Ever since she left
Cleveland for glitzy and glamorous LA six years ago, Stacey Reiser had been waiting and
hoping for her big break in Hollywood and meantime spent her time acting in various ads
and minute movie parts, while working part-time in various jobs to support herself. Part
of the reason Stacey left her hometown was to get away from her overprotective and
overbearing mother, Helen. But this soon proves futile, as an aimless and bored Helen
moves bag and baggage to LA and pretty soon she’s happily making Stacey’s
hitherto placid life, hell. Braced by her optimistic and make-up genius friend Maura,
Stacey suffers through and waits with bated breath for the release of a movie in which
she’d done a bit part as Jim Carrey’s receptionist, and which she prays will be
a hit. Unfortunately for Stacey, Jack Rawlins, the highly influential host of a Hollywood
gossip TV show, rips apart her performance in the movie and this spells doom as far as her
so far limping acting career goes.
And as Stacey’s career careens
downhill, shockingly her mother’s skyrockets! Her mom who’d never worked in her
entire life, gets to star in a national ad campaign and pretty soon she’s becomes a
famous media personality. Stacey abruptly finds their roles reversed - now Helen is the
typical flighty and careless Hollywood star with the requisite hangers-on, and Stacey the
worried daughter, who called up at all hours and questioned her about everything and in
general, made herself a regular pest – a la Helen in the past. And to tell the truth,
initially Stacey is jealous of the success that her mother suddenly becomes, but this then
changes into concern, for Helen, in spite of all her success, is still basically naïve
and has little idea of the sharks that lurk in the glittering waters of Hollywood. And
Stacey soon finds her worst fears coming true, as Helen falls in love with a guy with a
most suspicious background. And to save her darling mother, Stacey will then have to act
her heart out and prevent ‘murder most foul’!
Jane Heller, author of many successful
novels, has once again created a happy and bubbling little book to entertain her growing
cult of readers. This book takes the readers to the scintillating world of LA and
Hollywood, and it not only takes a look in front of the cameras, but also exposes the
sleazy underbelly of this tinsel town. Stacey, her feelings, her actions, and every other
aspect of her are made transparently clear to the readers and as such they can easily
relate to her and feel her emotions as she undergoes them. To an extent this also applies
to Helen, though the story is told mainly from Stacey’s point of view. There are
various other secondary characters too, and Ms. Heller has done a very good job of make
them appear real and witty at the same time. The story is a bit knotty and there is some
suspense in the plot, which adds to the drama. Into this are mixed love, romance and
relationships, and then the problems take on gargantuan proportions. Throughout it all,
the author proceeds with a tongue-in-the-cheek narrative which is as entertaining as it is
biting, and time after time, hits the nail upon the head with her quirky observations, and
her lively and pert humor livens this story up immeasurably.
‘Lucky Stars’ totally
entertains and Jane Heller’s writing is worth reading and re-reading!
Reviewed By Rashmi Srinivas for
The Road to Romance
May 27, 2003 |
