The Memoir of Johnny Devine
Love can’t rewrite the pages of your past, but it can cover a multitude of sins ... one page at a time.
A WW2 widow hired to write an exclusive memoir lands on McCarthy’s hit list and must clear her name while trying not to fall in love with the born-again, ex-Hollywood heartthrob whose scandalous past keeps him too busy to notice her. Or does it?
In 1953, desperation forces war widow, Eliza Saunderson, to take a job writing the memoir of ex-Hollywood heartthrob, Johnny Devine. Rumor has it Johnny can seduce anything in a skirt quicker than he can hail a cab. But now, the notorious womanizer claims he’s born again. And so he seems to be. Eliza soon finds herself falling for the humble, grace-filled man John has become, a man who shows no sign of returning her feelings. No sign, that is, until she discovers something John never meant for her to see.
When Eliza’s articles on minority oppression land her on McCarthy’s communist hit list, both John and Eliza become entangled in a HUAC investigation that threatens both John’s book and Eliza’s future. To clear her name, Eliza must solve a family mystery. She also needs to convince John that real love—not the Hollywood illusion—can cover a multitude of sins. But just when the hope of love becomes reality, a troubling discovery confirms Eliza’s worst fears. Like the happy 1950s façade America now clings to, had it all been empty lies? Is there a love she can truly believe in?
"Camille Eide masterfully blends themes of oppression and hope, regrets and redemption, through historical glimpses of Hollywood and the Red Scare. The unpredictable unfolding of John and Eliza will draw you in and spur you to finish "The Memoir of Johnny Devine" in one sitting. And the subtle wisdom of a grandmother-like housemaid may have stolen the show, and my heart." -C. Fischer, Amazon Reviewer
The Memoir of Johnny Devine earned a rare RT 5 Gold Star Top-Pick rating, the Editor's Seal of Excellence, and the 2015 Reviewers' Choice award for BEST INSPIRATIONAL ROMANCE. The book also won the 2016 Cascade Award for Historical Fiction.
A WW2 widow hired to write an exclusive memoir lands on McCarthy’s hit list and must clear her name while trying not to fall in love with the born-again, ex-Hollywood heartthrob whose scandalous past keeps him too busy to notice her. Or does it?
In 1953, desperation forces war widow, Eliza Saunderson, to take a job writing the memoir of ex-Hollywood heartthrob, Johnny Devine. Rumor has it Johnny can seduce anything in a skirt quicker than he can hail a cab. But now, the notorious womanizer claims he’s born again. And so he seems to be. Eliza soon finds herself falling for the humble, grace-filled man John has become, a man who shows no sign of returning her feelings. No sign, that is, until she discovers something John never meant for her to see.
When Eliza’s articles on minority oppression land her on McCarthy’s communist hit list, both John and Eliza become entangled in a HUAC investigation that threatens both John’s book and Eliza’s future. To clear her name, Eliza must solve a family mystery. She also needs to convince John that real love—not the Hollywood illusion—can cover a multitude of sins. But just when the hope of love becomes reality, a troubling discovery confirms Eliza’s worst fears. Like the happy 1950s façade America now clings to, had it all been empty lies? Is there a love she can truly believe in?
"Camille Eide masterfully blends themes of oppression and hope, regrets and redemption, through historical glimpses of Hollywood and the Red Scare. The unpredictable unfolding of John and Eliza will draw you in and spur you to finish "The Memoir of Johnny Devine" in one sitting. And the subtle wisdom of a grandmother-like housemaid may have stolen the show, and my heart." -C. Fischer, Amazon Reviewer
The Memoir of Johnny Devine earned a rare RT 5 Gold Star Top-Pick rating, the Editor's Seal of Excellence, and the 2015 Reviewers' Choice award for BEST INSPIRATIONAL ROMANCE. The book also won the 2016 Cascade Award for Historical Fiction.
Johnny Devine: Beyond the Silver Screen
The Memoir of Johnny Devine received a rare FIVE GOLD Star Top Pick from Romantic Times, their highest rating, as well as the Editor's Seal of Excellence, the first inspirational novel to receive this award. RT also awarded The Memoir of Johnny Devine BEST INSPIRATIONAL ROMANCE of 2015.
A Romantic Times editor writes:
“I am having a difficult time finding the words to describe exactly how much I loved The Memoir of Johnny Devine. Religion, particularly as a person’s saving grace, is a deeply personal and highly subjective topic. However, Camille Eide introduces the plot point with such sensitivity and respect that it’s easy to identify with the characters. I cannot tell you how much I loved reading about an educated, unmarried woman making her own way in the 1950s. In a time where women were expected to stay home, marry and take care of the household, our heroine Eliza is committed to her career and correcting social injustice. Her intelligence, sensitivity and grace immediately endear her to her new boss, the famous Hollywood heartthrob Johnny Devine. The most intriguing (and also disturbing) thing about this story is that despite the 1950s setting, the need for gender and racial equality as well as the ongoing witch hunt that is the Red Scare are very relevant today, in 2015, and I applaud Eide for being part of the conversation. She has managed to intertwine a beautiful love story, the desire to build a personal relationship with God and the necessity for social change into one truly fantastic read.” -Kristin Wise
A Romantic Times editor writes:
“I am having a difficult time finding the words to describe exactly how much I loved The Memoir of Johnny Devine. Religion, particularly as a person’s saving grace, is a deeply personal and highly subjective topic. However, Camille Eide introduces the plot point with such sensitivity and respect that it’s easy to identify with the characters. I cannot tell you how much I loved reading about an educated, unmarried woman making her own way in the 1950s. In a time where women were expected to stay home, marry and take care of the household, our heroine Eliza is committed to her career and correcting social injustice. Her intelligence, sensitivity and grace immediately endear her to her new boss, the famous Hollywood heartthrob Johnny Devine. The most intriguing (and also disturbing) thing about this story is that despite the 1950s setting, the need for gender and racial equality as well as the ongoing witch hunt that is the Red Scare are very relevant today, in 2015, and I applaud Eide for being part of the conversation. She has managed to intertwine a beautiful love story, the desire to build a personal relationship with God and the necessity for social change into one truly fantastic read.” -Kristin Wise
