
Contemporary fiction
The Comeback
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Think Hollywood is all glamour? In this redemptive read, a child actor reckons with the abuse their industry allows.
Heavy read
Psychological
Nonlinear timeline
Drug & alcohol use
At the height of her career and on the eve of her first Golden Globe nomination, teen star Grace Turner disappeared.
Now, tentatively sober and surprisingly numb, Grace is back in Los Angeles after her year of self-imposed exile. She knows the new private life she wants isn't going to be easy as she tries to be a better person and reconnect with the people she left behind.
But when Grace is asked to present a lifetime achievement award to director Able Yorke—the man who controlled her every move for eight years—she realizes that she can't run from the secret behind her spectacular crash and burn for much longer. And she's the only one with nothing left to lose.
They recognize me when I’m at CVS buying diet pills for my mom, the only kind that don’t make her lose her mind.
“Aren’t you Grace Turner?”
The woman is pleased with herself, a red flush climbing her neck and bursting proudly across her cheeks. Her companion is smaller, wiry, with narrow eyes, and I already understand that she’s the type who will need me to prove it somehow, as if I have anything left to prove.
“Grace Hyde,” I correct, smiling politely, humbly, before turning back to the staggering array of options in front of me. The one my mom likes has a cartoon frog standing on a set of scales on the box.
“Do you live around here now?” the first one asks hungrily. She’s already terrified that she’ll forget something when she recounts the story to her friends.
“I’m staying with my parents.” Maybe I’m in the wrong section.
“What was your last movie, anyway?” This from the smaller one, obviously. She’s scowling at me and I find myself warming to her. It’s hard to find a woman who still believes that the world owes her anything. Her friend, who has been shifting from foot to foot like she needs to take a piss, jumps into action.
I’ve read to escape—to embark on joyous journeys that take me away from the realities of the everyday—since I was a little girl. But like many, in the darkest moments of the pandemic I’ve found myself struggling to get lost in books, my anxieties outweighing the power of the word.
That is, until I came across a copy of Ella Berman’s debut novel The Comeback. This beautifully written and compulsively readable book broke me from my pandemic book blockage! On the night I began the book—reading for the first time in weeks—I kept my iPad aglow, reading late into the night while my husband slept beside me. Thank you Ella! Thank you Grace! I wanted to yell.
In The Comeback, our protagonist Grace Turner is broken and living with her parent’s in Anaheim after escaping Los Angeles. When she fled without a word, seemingly overnight, she left behind fame, addiction, her loving and young husband, and the abuse she suffered for eight years at the hands of the manipulative director that made her a star. After realizing she can’t hide from her life, Grace returns to LA. Armed with a secret and nothing left to lose, she must decide if and how she will fight back.
Berman astonishingly began writing the novel before the #MeToo movement—and the novel takes advantage of the distance afforded by fiction to brilliantly continue the important conversation. With nuance, wit, and humor, Berman weaves a narrative that is light and exciting, even while addressing difficult topics. At its core, this book is about redemption, grace, and pain. It is the perfect summer read.
Patty M.
Chicago , IL
I love stories about Hollywood and celebrity culture, but this was much more than that. It’s a story of relationships, loneliness, and coming of age in Hollywood and in the era of #metoo. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
MaryBeth L.
Ellington, CT
I absolutely loved this one! Completely sucked me in, right from the first page and didn’t let go until I closed the book!! Highly recommend! I wouldn’t be surprised to see this as a nominee for BOTY.
Trisha B.
Norman, OK
Dark and current and engrossing. Picture any of your early 2000’s Disney Stars in the title role. Also just saw a disliked review from someone offended by a brief portrayal of a pro-life bigot, so LOL
Leah L.
Columbia City, IN
LOVE! An insightful look into a world that seems so different, but may be more similar than we realize. That even those who look like they have it all, may be just as broken as the rest. A MUST READ!
Natasha G.
NEW HOPE, MN
I can't say enough about this book. You'll root for Grace, laugh with her, and spew your frustrations, but won't give up on her. Read this, Berman will weave this narrative into your soul. I promise.