Francie Tillman receives a diary for her fifteenth birthday
in 1924. Over the next four years she chronicles her life as
she runs away from home, leaving her parent's farm in rural
Wisconsin and heading for Chicago. Francie writes of the
fascinating and fearful life of bootlegging and organized
crime in which she finds herself involved.
Dani Gallagher just won a national award for an article she
wrote for the Kenosha Times. A phone call from one of the
teens she interviewed quashes the celebration in her office.
Dani rushes to the scene where China's boyfriend has just
shot and killed himself. This isn't the best part of town,
and Dani is met with hostility as China blames Dani for the
act. Dani encouraged China to leave Miguel because of the
abuse she was receiving from him.
Across the street from the suicide scene is Bracciano's
Restaurant. Nicky Fiorini manages the restaurant owned by
his grandfather where his sister, Renata, waits tables. The
restaurant has belonged to the Fiorini family for
generations. When Dani goes back to see China at the
apartment where Miguel died, she discovers a diary in the
trash. As she begins reading the diary, she learns that
Francie lived here and had a connection to Bracciano's.
Over the next several weeks, Dani investigates the teens in
this neighborhood and the gangs in which they are involved.
She wants to write another article that may help to pull
some of these teens out of this life and channel their
talents into something better. In the process, she finds
herself in some precarious situations as she infiltrates one
of the gangs. She also meets Nicky, who tries to persuade
her to leave well enough alone. He tells her she doesn't
have the street smarts to deal with what is happening in
that neighborhood. Dani isn't listening to Nicky.
YESTERDAY'S STARDUST follows Nicky and Dani as they read
through the diary together, trying to assemble the puzzle
pieces and learn the connection between Francie and Nicky's
family. Where will this lead them, not only for the story's
sake, but romantically as well?
This story toggles from present day back to the past where
Francie is living a fascinating life, although deeply
involved with organized crime, not of her own choosing. It
was a way to leave her mundane life on the farm, fulfill her
dreams of becoming a dress designer and help her sister. As
the story unfolds, inspirational truths are discovered by
the characters that will warm your heart. And there is a
little "stardust" sprinkled throughout the pages for
everyone. This is the second in Becky Melby's Lost Sanctuary
series and it's just as good as the first. YESTERDAY'S
STARDUST is a great read -- don't miss it!
Journalist Dani Gallagher finds a tattered diary written in the Roaring Twenties—and clues to a lost treasure. Chef Nicky Fiorini helps unravel the clues, and attraction ignites, but Dani is hiding her own secret. In hopes of a great story, she’s using questionable means to gather information on a local teen gang. Just as she and Nicky are on the verge of solving the mystery, internal fighting breaks out in the gang. Dani is caught the middle, and Nicky is furious. Then the diary leads to a hidden room and a shocking discovery, but have they missed the real treasure?
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