Darleen is the star of silent films produced by her family's film company just outside New York City. As part of a publicity stunt, they set up a fake kidnapping to bring more attention to their films, but something goes terrible wrong. Darleen gets trapped in the middle of a real kidnapping with a wealthy heiress, Victorine Berryman. Now the two girls must discover who the kidnappers are and stage a daring escape.

I loved this wonderful adventure story! The plot takes a lot of twists and turns. I was surprised at every new development. There are a lot of complex layers to the story as we get to follow Darleen's family life, her acting career, and Victorine's difficult legal problems, and all their adventures together. I loved the hilarious writing style! It really captures that flavor of old-fashioned drama that you think of with a silent film.

Darleen strives to be a good daughter, a good actress, and a good friend. But deep inside her heart, she has a longing for adventure and danger. She isn't reckless, but she comes alive when something thrilling happens. She feels like she can't really be herself, because it will make her father too worried if she takes any risks. I loved the sweet relationship between father and daughter. They are so protective of each other.

Victorine is grieving over the death of her grandmother, which has left her a victim of horrible guardians who only care about her money. Victorine has a gentle nature, but she is strong and resourceful in difficult circumstances. I loved the friendship that quickly develops between Victorine and Darleen. They immediately trust each other, and together they make a great team.

One of the coolest things about this book is getting to learn real history about the silent film industry of this era. One of the side characters is even a real historical figure, the first woman to run her own film production company. It really interesting to see how they organized filming and editing, and the cool tricks they would use to do special effects.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.