Alumnae pens romantic novel set in the bubble of South OC
“Spotlight” is the first in a book series by Stacy L. Davis. (Courtesy of Tate Publishing)
A young Hollywood celebrity, fed up with the Hollywood lifestyle, yearns to live the life of a typical high school girl. Yet, the pretty Brooklyn Ashbury find there’s more drama at Niguel High during her senior year than any soap opera plot of which she’d been entwined.
Teens in the South Orange County bubble of Laguna Niguel, with their new cars, plastic-surgery-perfect faces, and perfect hair, had no clue what it was like to be on your own at 15, living in Sherman Oaks and sharing an apartment with two other novice actresses. The only similarity is knowing what it’s like to grow up in a dysfunctional family. To add further drama, Brooklyn has to deal with her cheating baseball player-boyfriend, getting kidnapped at knife point and other surprises.
Aptly named “Spotlight,” this 350-page contemporary romance was penned by former Saddleback College student Stacy L. Davis, formerly Stacy Bergman. The book hit the shelves just in time for the winter holidays.
While Bergman-Davis was at Saddleback, she was a member of the Associated Student Government. Her father, Howard Bergman, was a counselor at the college from 1970 until he died in 1993 after battling cancer. A plaque hangs outside the counseling center in tribute to his dedication to students, Bergman-Davis wrote in an e-mail.
A romance isn’t complete without a love interest. The young protagonist finds herself attracted to William Langton, a childhood friend who also has a special relationship with her father.
This book offers not only romance, and the pain that tends to go along with it, but intrigue, mystery, and suspense. The plot hits its high point when the clouds of love clear and dreams are broken when Brooklyn discovers Langton isn’t who he seems, and his dedication to her father goes beyond her imagination, revealing secrets that cause her to wrestle to keep what’s truly important. Follow Brooklyn from Southern Calif. to Cambridge University.
With its local flair, readers can decide for themselves if Davis is right on the money about being a high school student in this part of Southern California, yet readers without that insight will that high school life carries the same drama anywhere. “Spotlight” is first in a series. The second book “Curtain Call” follows Brooklyn to Cambridge University in England, where the drama continues. There is no release date yet for the second installment, according to Davis’ website, www.spotlightbookseries.com.
“Spotlight” was published by Tate Publishing. The paperback is available from Tate’s website, www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore. It is also available from book retailers both in stores and online.