The One and Only Vivian Stone

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo meets Fiona Davis in this enchanting novel about a pair of estranged lovers reconnecting over mysterious tapes found in an attic and the old Hollywood secret hidden within them.

After her grandmother’s death, thirty-year-old Margot DuBois returns to her childhood home to sort through the attic of things left behind and comes across a set of eight unlabeled cassette tapes. Unable to use the damaged tape player, she calls in a favor from a long-lost ex, Leo, and they strike a deal: he’ll fix the player if he can hear what’s on the tapes. When they finally manage to listen, the two are shocked to hear the voice of old Hollywood film star Vivian Stone. Why did Margot’s grandmother have these tapes and where did they come from?

As they continue to listen, Vivian’s story unfolds from her early auditions for major studios, to meeting her costar-turned-husband Kit, to the struggles of being a woman in Hollywood. Margot is inspired by Vivian’s tenacity and courage to keep fighting for the life she wants but everything changes when she finally uncovers Vivian’s ties to her family in this moving exploration of how it’s never too late to start over.

Melissa O’Connor became obsessed with stories involving family secrets, betrayal, and forbidden love after being given a box of used V.C. Andrews books at age ten. She lives in Buffalo, New York, where she can usually be found cheering on her kids’ hockey teams and sneaking words on the page between games. The One and Only Vivian Stone is her debut novel.