Publisher's Synopsis
Standing in the Shadows is the story of a 20 year struggle for overnight success and the toll a bizarre Southern family exacts for it. Singer Christie Marlowe's gleaming world begins to crumble on the night of her first appearance as the Headliner at a posh Tahoe resort. She receives a call from her younger sister Julie who has just washed down 70 Seconals with a fine cabernet. During the 5 days that Julie lies in a coma, the carefully laid foundation of Christie's budding career is turned to chaos. She takes on the monumental task of rebuilding her personal and professional life in a new city with the added burden of caring for her sister and 4 year-old niece. Christie learns the hard way that "it ain't no talent contest," and if you want to sing the blues you've got to live them. She faces humiliation, betrayal and rape as she is transformed from a talented soulful lounge singer to gutsy and charismatic Rock Diva. Her journey takes her through the underbelly of the music business from sleazy roadhouses of the Jacksboro Highway to posh uptown Jazz Clubs, from sweatshop jingle studios to Society gigs at the opulent parties of the Dallas elite, from pay-to-play clubs on Sunset Strip to all day Stadium concerts. The action plays out against the backdrop of the 70s and 80s amid the new libertinism of the post sexual revolution and emerging Feminism. An epic family saga of spiritual mayhem with sex, drugs and Rock n' Roll.
