I.O. Book Tours Presents "The Holden Age of Hollywood" by Phil Brody Review/Giveaway (ends 9/13) U.S.

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I would like to welcome you to The Holden Age of Hollywood by Phil Brody Book Tour presented by Innovative Online Book Tours. and my stop which will feature a spotlight, review, and giveaway.

“Hollywood died on me as soon as I got here.
Welles said that, not me, but damn if he didn’t nail it, you know?”
Sam Bateman came to Hollywood to settle a score, but amidst the sunny and 75, his
plans went astray. Everything changed the day he drank in the intoxicating legend of
Meyer Holden, the greatest screenwriter Hollywood has ever known, the one who
pulled a Salinger and walked away. Holden now tacks pseudonyms onto his works
and buries them in the bottomless sea of spec that is Hollywood’s development
process. They’re out there for anyone to find—but at what cost? In his quest,
Bateman severs all ties and sinks into a maddening world of bad writing and flawed
screenplays. Paranoid and obsessive, the belligerent savant encounters an eccentric
cast of characters—each with an agenda—in his search for the one writer in
Hollywood who does not want to be found.
Phil Brody’s The Holden Age of Hollywood is at once a detective novel, an unexpected
love story, and a provocative exposé of a broken industry. With dark humor and
incisive commentary, the novel immerses readers in a neo-noir quest to attain the
Hollywood dream, integrity intact.


The Holden Age of Hollywood by Phil Brody
excerpt from Chapter 1: Doing Time
I escape to the patio, perch myself at the bar, where the bartenders can’t pour the
Red Bull or the Kettle One fast enough. I watch them work, mesmerized by the stampede
for this overhyped mixture of depressant and upper. I know no one uses terms like that
anymore— depressant, upper. Call me old-fashioned. Actually, call me well-rounded. Helps
me do my job and deal with the reason I’m doing time in this town. Drink to that.
“Another gin and tonic?”
I nod once to my best friend at this party, my only friend in this fucking town—the
bartender. Not this bartender per se. Every bartender. They mix a cure for what ails me.
Sure, it’s a momentary cure, but those are some of my happiest moments. Way it is.
Too many people. Too loud. Attitudes starting to asphyxiate. I stare at the sea of
lights, the view from the Hills of this coldfuckcold city that’s 75 degrees every day. It’s an
endless four- story grid of isolated, lock-the-door-behind-you lives, where everyone is
either so wrapped up in creating their own success story or so damaged from their failure
that resentment for one another is all we have in common.
Lights everywhere twinkle, look so inviting, but it’s a trick. I know it.


The Holden Age of Hollywood by Phil Brody
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I will begin by saying this is not my normal type of book to read.  I did find it hard to follow at times, but most of it made sense.  I cannot say I am a thorough fan of this book, but please understand this is just my opinion.

I did enjoy getting a glimpse into the life of Hollywood and screenwriting.  I had never thought about how many people write screenplays and send them off to Hollywood studios.  I also did not realize how much drugs and more were still a part of the Hollywood scene, but I suppose I should not have been surprised.  Holden was quite a character, and the mystery behind him did make one wonder throughout the book.  There is a love story, but it is not the central feature of the book.

I grew very tired of the profanity in the book.  I am sure that the language is realistic, but when there is so much of it, I do tend to get turned off to a book.  But again, that is my opinion only.  No bedroom scenes, though.

The style of the book was quite unusual.  There were articles interspersed with scripts and more.  Some of that made the story interesting, but other portions of this style made it confusing for me.  I would have preferred the footnotes being in the back rather than within the chapter, but if you actually read the footnotes, you will certainly learn!

I could not guarantee that anyone would like or not like this book.  It all comes down to style.  It is a mystery, but it is not your typical mystery.  It is a romance, but it is not your typical romance.  If you are truly interested in some of the inner workings of Hollywood told in a somewhat entertaining style, this could very well the book for you.

I was sent of copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.  I was not financially compensated, and all opinions are 100 percent mine.


View all my reviews

Phil Brody lives in Los Angeles and writes every day. He began his career in
Chicago in advertising. After moving to LA, Brody toiled in development,
penned a few spec scripts, and has worked as a writer, producer, and director in
documentary TV. His short film, A Blue Christmas, was the grand prize winner
in The Short Film Group’s First Annual Script Competition and was
acknowledged in the WorldFest-Houston and Cleveland International Film
Festivals. Brody is a graduate of Miami University of Ohio and an alumnus of
Writers Boot Camp in Santa Monica, California. The Holden Age of Hollywood is
his first novel.
He can be reached at email: philbrody@gmail.com.

Phil Brody Online:

Blog  http://philbrodyblah.tumblr.com/

Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/PhilBrodyAuthor

Twitter  https://twitter.com/PhilBrody

Goodreads  http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5387713.Phil_Brody

The author is offering a giveaway for a $30 Amazon Gift card.  Enter below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

And be sure to check out the upcoming tour posts for this book:

8/28  White Sky Project  Spot Light, guest post
 and Giveaway 
8/28   Night Owl Reads  Spot Light, guest post
 and Giveaway
8/29  Janiera Eldridge  Spot Light, guest post
 and Giveaway  

And click on the tour banner to follow the entire tour!