The bio ended with Shane Halloran's death in 1973. His motorcycle had sailed off an ice-covered bridge in Upper Manhattan during a freakish April snowstorm. It was rumored Holly Malone had been with him. I stared at my aunt. "You're saying . . . you're saying that was me? I'm Holly? And I . . .died?
When Holly Malone staggers into her Manhattan apartment at one-thirty in the morning, she's shocked to discover more than forty years have passed, since she was last in the building. She has a vague memory of being involved in a motorcycle crash.
No one can see her, and only a few can hear her- her now-aged aunt and the man she'd been clinging to when the motorcycle sailed off an icy bridge in 1973...Shane Halloran, who was assumed dead along with Holly.
Shane hides behind an assumed identity. The wreck that took his and Holly's life i different ways was part of a series of "accidents" connected to a play so controversial someone made sure neither the script or the actors made it to opening night.
Holly and Shane come to the heartbreaking realization that she could disappear back into the past at any time. Unless Holly's memories of "then" and "now" turn out to be a two-way street.
Excerpt
Addie read aloud from the DVD's back cover:
"'A tour de force for director Steve Galileo with a story rivaling Peyton Place.'
The film was a major shock to audiences back then because not only did it feature a mixed-race couple but they - gasp! exchanged a kiss. This was considered pretty liberal for 1963 and doubtless why it never hit the big time.Freaked people out more than anyone wanted to admit. Ridiculous. People are such bigoted fools. And not to digress, but every single one of the actors was beyond sexy. Rex Randolph. Shane Halloran. David Santini."
She paused. An odd expression flickered on her face.
"They're all dead. Kind of spooky, almost like a curse on the film."
Addy inserted the DVD, picked up her bag again and left me ready to watch what was probably total soap operary, romantic trash. Music started. Credits rolled.
And the ghost fell in love with a dead man.
Professional Reviews I really enjoyed reading this story and read it all at once
I was given this book and, although I usually don't go for the supernatural or time travel (Wait. I did read all the Outlander series),I really enjoyed reading this story and read it all in one day. There are murders to solve and murders to prevent, a wonderful love story, plus reflections on how many issues in 2016 are similar to those of 1970. The author's knowledge of New York, theater, music and musical theater also add to the storyline. The title is from the Dan Foglesburg song of that name and refers to a play in the story and, I think you'll find, to the story itself.
And I like her sense of humor.
Brilliant! Completely not what I expected
'm looking back at the blurb trying to remember what it is that first attracted me to Scarecrow's Dream. Honestly, I look at the cover and I know that's not it. Maybe it was the possibility of a ghost story, which really is not my regular cuppa. I think possibly I picked it up to read in a weak moment after reading back to back PNRs and wanting a change. Whatever my reasoning was, I'm really glad I took the chance because otherwise I would have missed out on this little gem.
This first person story starts with Holly waking up with vague memories of being in an accident. Feeling out of sorts, she stumbles her way home where she lives with her father to find a strange woman and her dog living in her apartment. The strange woman turns out to be her Aunt Adelaide, her father died years ago and it is no longer 1973. She has gaps in her memory that lead up to her death and she can only be heard but not seen. Things just get crazier from there as Holly's memories flash back to her with events from the past. Flashes that hint to the fact that her death may not have been an accident.
As crazy as it all sounds, I really enjoyed the book. Holly made for an interesting heroine. A flower child activist and writer/journalist make for quite the combination. Shane was charming and funny. I adored Aunt Adelaide! She comes off as being a bit eccentric without being a nitwit. The story itself was very good. It is told in flashbacks of what has happened with the development of Holly and Shane's relationship, the actors setting up a list of whodunits, and the events of the time. Present time as Holly slowly gets her memory back, things begin to escalate as each piece of the puzzle falls into place. There's humor throughout the story as Holly is a very likable character, feisty without being obnoxious. Knowing this was a murder/mystery I spent quite a bit of the time attempting to figure out who the murderer was but eventually I gave up. Kudos to the author for not making it obvious because I never would have ever figured it out.
All this buildup of flashback, puzzle piecing, murders of past and present, all comes to ahead as I hit the last 90%. Here is where it all leads, all the secrets revealed, and I was just...whoa! It was brilliant. Okay a few things did have me thinking "Oh come on! Really?" but, as I finished I concluded, it worked. Going into Scarecrow's Dream knowing I'm not a murder mystery reader, nor a big fan of ghost stories really didn't matter. I thoroughly enjoyed and glad I got a chance to read this book.
I received this book from the JeepDiva for the express purposes of an honest review. The opinions and rating of this review are solely mine.
Love the Concept
An interesting concept! I love how the story is told in-between Holly's flashbacks and what's happening to her in the
present. Holly and Shane are wonderful characters who have the chance to put right what went wrong forty-three years ago.
It's a serious story, but also full of the wonderful humor that Ms. Fitzpatrick does so w
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