Lone Star: An Edna Ferber Mystery

by Ed Ifkovic

Book Overview

It's 1955, and Edna Ferber is basking in the success of her blockbuster novel Giant. Headed to Los Angeles, where director George Stevens and Warner Brothers Studio are in the final days of filming her Texas oil epic, she is looking forward to meeting Rock Hudson, Liz Taylor, and especially the young James Dean. But there is trouble brewing. Dean, the new box-office sensation and teen heartthrob, has been accused of fathering a child with an unstable (and recently fired) extra named Carisa Krausse. The studio fears the negative publicity will jeopardize the release of the movie. Then the actress is murdered, and James Dean is the prime suspect. He was seen at her apartment moments before Carisa's death. The police are ready to arrest him. With actress Mercedes McCam-bridge as her sympathetic sidekick, Edna investigates, determined to clear Dean's name. Soon Edna finds herself exploring the troubled lives of Dean's circle of disparate friends. As she delves into Hollywood's dark side she discovers a power-ful studio obsessed with a cover-up and a solution she doesn't want to accept--a solution that she, in fact, dreads.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590585879
• ISBN13: 9781590585870
• Release Date: April 2009
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
• Length: 259 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.8" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

engaging Hollywood historical mystery

In 1955 septuagenarian novelist Edna Ferber riding the success of her books is in Hollywood to work on the movie adaptation of her latest bestseller Giant. As the George Stevens' directed movie is almost finished, rumors spread that one of the stars "Rebel Without a Cause" James Dean sired a child with unbalanced extra Carisa Krausse. However, as the Warner Brothers studio worries about the negative publicity a child out of wedlock would bring, someone murders Carisa. The evidence points towards the volatile womanizing Dean as her killer. Though his ego is "So Big", Edna likes the unique Dean who probably does not know that water exists outside of alcohol. With the help of actress Mercedes McCambridge, Edna investigates the homicide. This engaging Hollywood historical mystery stars renowned novelist Edna Ferber who at first look is probably the last person to investigate a homicide. Starring with Edna and James Dean, the cast of Hollywood real people like McCambridge and Rock Hudson come to life. In fact the strong cast casts a giant shadow over the amateur sleuth prime theme. Still fans will enjoy Edna Gerber meets James Dean. Harriet Klausner