A Showgirl’s Rules for Falling in Love
Gilded Age New York City is a difficult time for an outspoken and unabashedly plus-size vaudeville star like Evelyn Cross. Between moral reformers intent on cleaning up the city’s theaters and tabloid newspapers sensationalizing them, Evelyn and her diverse band of fellow vaudevillians are vilified for their differences. But they have a chance for a comeback when the impresario of a soon-to-be-opened entertainment palace, Thomas Gallier, falls under Evelyn’s spell and gives her carte blanche to arrange the acts for The Empire’s bill. The show is as shocking and irresistible as Evelyn herself and Thomas finds that he is no longer just worrying about his new theater’s success; he’s worried about his carefully-guarded heart.
In the present-day, historian Phoebe Blair sees herself reflected in the plus-size Evelyn, though she’s always wished for even half of Evelyn’s confidence. When the descendant of Thomas Gallier hires her to dig into the Gallier family archives in search of Evelyn and Thomas’s story, Phoebe can’t resist either the research offer or the chance to spend more time with the outrageously handsome Armitage Gallier.
Alice Murphy lists, among her credits, screenwriting for the Hallmark Channel, and that writing experience shows in this lighthearted-yet-heartfelt romance. Evelyn is a force on the page, and her modern counterpart Phoebe is just as smart and witty. Their reserved and restrained love interests pale next to these vibrant women, but they do not detract from the story, which belongs to Evelyn and to Phoebe. Murphy was inspired by real plus-size dancers and vaudeville performers and, through Phoebe’s research, informs the reader about these historical women and about how women of size were treated by the media and theater-going public in the Gilded Age. A delightful debut.
