Acts of Violet
A Novel
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3.9 • 13 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
A DAZZLING NEW NOVEL FROM NATIONAL BESTSELLING AND GMA BOOK CLUB PICK MARGARITA MONTIMORE, AUTHOR OF OONA OUT OF ORDER
“[A] twisty, genre-defying family drama…Reminiscent of Taylor Jenkins Reid's Daisy Jones & the Six.” --Shelf Awareness (starred review)
Nearly a decade ago, iconic magician Violet Volk performed her greatest trick yet: vanishing mid-act. While Violet sought out the spotlight, her sister Sasha, had to be the responsible one. But Sasha can never seem to escape her sister’s tumultuous orbit. Then there’s Cameron Frank, determined to finally get his big break hosting a podcast devoted to all things Violet—though keeping his job hinges on an exclusive interview with Sasha, the last person who wants to talk to him. As the ten-year anniversary approaches, the podcast picks up steam, and Cameron’s pursuit of Sasha becomes increasingly intrusive. Meanwhile, Sasha begins to experience an unsettling series of sleepwalking episodes and coincidences, which all lead back to Violet. Pushed to her emotional limits, Sasha must finally confront the most painful truths about her sister, and herself, even at the risk of losing everything.
Alternating between Sasha’s narration and Cameron’s podcast transcripts, interspersed with documents that offer a tantalizing peek at Violet herself, Acts of Violet is an utterly original, propulsive story of fame, deception, and forgiveness that will make you believe in magic.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A woman struggles to get out from under her famous older sister's shadow in Montimore's mesmerizing latest (after Oona Out of Order). Hairdresser Sasha Dwyer dreads the fast-approaching 10th anniversary of the day her older sister, Violet Volk, a popular but polarizing magician and 1990s pop culture icon, disappeared during a stage performance and never reemerged. Violet's rabid fans—the "Wolf Pack"—continue to vilify Sasha for supposedly not looking hard enough to find Violet and failing to mourn her "the right way" after she was declared legally dead. As rumors about alleged Violet sightings swirl on social media, Sasha worries that they'll give false hope to Quinn, Sasha's college-age daughter, who adored Violet but remains ignorant of her aunt's selfish and spiteful streak. However, Sasha's efforts to leave her sister in the past unravel as synchronicities and more sightings point to Violet's return. Supplementing the straightforward prose with a slew of narrative devices that include tabloid articles, email exchanges, and podcast transcripts, Montimore achieves a thoughtful, panoramic portrait of larger-than-life Violet while underscoring Sasha's pain as she tries to grieve under an unforgiving public eye. This spellbinding effort delivers its fair share of magic.
