Today is my stop on the blog tour for The Empire by Michael Ball!

Here’s the blurb

Welcome to The Empire theatre

1922. When Jack Treadwell arrives at The Empire, in the middle of a rehearsal, he is instantly mesmerised. But amid the glitz and glamour, he soon learns that the true magic of the theatre lies in its cast of characters – both on stage and behind the scenes.

There’s stunning starlet Stella Stanmore and Hollywood heartthrob Lancelot Drake; and Ruby Rowntree, who keeps the music playing, while Lady Lillian Lassiter, theatre owner and former showgirl, is determined to take on a bigger role. And then there’s cool, competent Grace Hawkins, without whom the show would never go on . . . could she be the leading lady Jack is looking for?

When long-held rivalries threaten The Empire’s future, tensions rise along with the curtain. There is treachery at the heart of the company and a shocking secret waiting in the wings. Can Jack discover the truth before it’s too late, and the theatre he loves goes dark?

Musical theatre legend Michael Ball brings his trademark warmth, wit and glamour to this, his debut novel.

Enjoy the show!

Review.

I can honestly say I was drawn to this book..the cover! Amazing, The synopsis! Intriguing… and it’s written by Michael Ball! You’ll probably be thinking the same as me… he’s a singer… clearly a man of many talents.

We follow Jack Treadwell as he arrives at The Empire. Jack’s a former solider and after his return has struggled to find a place to really call home. His mam and dad have both died but a last note from his mother sends him on a journey of discovery.

Jacks’ quick and smart and soon has a job at The Empire but suddenly no acts want to play The Empire any longer.. but why? It soon becomes clear.. a rival theatre owner has them blacklisted!

Jack along with Grace Hawkins come up with a few ideas to save the struggling Empire and you can see the bond between them grow.

Things start to look a bit better for the theatre but how long can they go on.. they are still blacklisted… BOOM.. it’s time to write a new play and to find the stars themselves! They can do this!

Everyone pulls out all the stops to create a wonderful play.. but will it save the theatre?

There’s so much more to this tale then that though..and it’s not all romance either. There’s lies, deception, love, tears, joy, friendships…  

The mix of characters, pace, plot and connections were superb. Nothing overshadows anything, each character supports the story perfectly and leave an impression on you, it’s more than just glitz and glamour.. the author did a fantastic job of developing the characters, it’s a big cast so I’m impressed just how detailed the characters and sub plots were.   

I know the book has been labelled as a historical romance novel but that barely scratched the surface.. it’s a wonderous 5* adventure of friendship and hope!

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads (Or any other good local retailor 🙂 )

My thanks go to the author, the publisher and Rachel’s Random Resources for having me on the blog tour! I received an ARC of the book as part of the tour but I’ll be adding this to my purchased collection too.

Why not following the tour?

Author Bio –

Michael Ball OBE is a singer, actor, presenter and now author. He’s been a star of musical theatre for over three decades, winning the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical twice, he’s also won two BRIT awards and been nominated for a Grammy. Michael regularly sells out both his solo tours and his Ball & Boe shows with Alfie Boe and has multiple platinum albums. The Empire is his first novel.

Social Media Links – Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrmichaelball/   //  https://twitter.com/ZaffreBooks

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrmichaelball/?hl=en // https://www.instagram.com/zaffrebooks/