What do you think?
Rate this book
Stardust
FAME HAS ITS PRICE—AND ITS PASSIONS...
C.C. McCarty: He burst upon the rock-and-roll scene with sudden heat of a comet. A poor Dallas boy from the wrong side of the track, he had the talent—and the looks—to make it to the top. Soon he had everything…the women, the money, the fame. And the danger.
Valentina Trent: The voluptuous, ruthless owner of Bluebonnet Records had tried and failed to manipulate C.C. into a contract and into her bed. Now a woman scorned, she vowed to destroy him and all he held dear.
Laura Kay McCarty: She'd inherited C.C.'s talent, his magnetism…and his enemies. It was up to her to pick up the pieces of her daddy's legend and show the world that she, too, had been sprinkled with the elusive, magical Stardust .
C.C. McCarty: He burst upon the rock-and-roll scene with sudden heat of a comet. A poor Dallas boy from the wrong side of the track, he had the talent—and the looks—to make it to the top. Soon he had everything…the women, the money, the fame. And the danger.
Valentina Trent: The voluptuous, ruthless owner of Bluebonnet Records had tried and failed to manipulate C.C. into a contract and into her bed. Now a woman scorned, she vowed to destroy him and all he held dear.
Laura Kay McCarty: She'd inherited C.C.'s talent, his magnetism…and his enemies. It was up to her to pick up the pieces of her daddy's legend and show the world that she, too, had been sprinkled with the elusive, magical Stardust .
- GenresRomance
475 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
1 person is currently reading
27 people want to read
About the author
Nan Ryan
44 books71 followersNancy Henderson is the middle daughter of a Texas rancher and postmaster. She's been married for many years to Joe Ryan, a television executive. Hisoccupation has taken them from border to border and coast to coast. Fortunately, writing is something that can be done anywhere - and Nan shouldknow. The Ryans have lived in Washington, California, New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, Missouri, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and their own home state of Texas. Nan says it was fun to move around the country and honestly believes that it has helped her writing. The library and the Internet offer a great deal of information on any given place, but there is nothing quite likeactually living in a locale where a book is set.
She began her writing career in 1981. She flirted with writing mysteries, but never finished any. Then, as fate would have it, she saw an article in Newsweek magazine entitled "From Bedroom to Boardroom." It was an interesting story on the women who were writing romance novels. Nan was intrigued. She had never read a romance. She bought a couple, read them, and knew she'd found her calling. She sat down at the Smith Corona typewriter and began her own romance. The first one never left her house. It is burieddeep in a trunk and Nan says it will never be shown to anyone. Her second book sold and she's been writing since. Twenty-two romance novels later, shestill enjoys writing and realizes she's been blessed to have found what she loves to do.
The winner of numerous awards, Nan Ryan says one of the nicest things ever written about her was printed in the St. Petersburg Times. Correspondent AnnV. Hull wrote: "Romance novelist Nan Ryan could step right into the pages of one of her paperbacks. Tall and slender, with smokey eyes and pearly skin,Nan Ryan looks like movie star Jessica Lange's older sister. Ryan writes the most imaginative and bold love scenes, some of which would surely shock herformer teachers at Abilene Christian University."
She began her writing career in 1981. She flirted with writing mysteries, but never finished any. Then, as fate would have it, she saw an article in Newsweek magazine entitled "From Bedroom to Boardroom." It was an interesting story on the women who were writing romance novels. Nan was intrigued. She had never read a romance. She bought a couple, read them, and knew she'd found her calling. She sat down at the Smith Corona typewriter and began her own romance. The first one never left her house. It is burieddeep in a trunk and Nan says it will never be shown to anyone. Her second book sold and she's been writing since. Twenty-two romance novels later, shestill enjoys writing and realizes she's been blessed to have found what she loves to do.
The winner of numerous awards, Nan Ryan says one of the nicest things ever written about her was printed in the St. Petersburg Times. Correspondent AnnV. Hull wrote: "Romance novelist Nan Ryan could step right into the pages of one of her paperbacks. Tall and slender, with smokey eyes and pearly skin,Nan Ryan looks like movie star Jessica Lange's older sister. Ryan writes the most imaginative and bold love scenes, some of which would surely shock herformer teachers at Abilene Christian University."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 21, 2016
I wished I was tech savvy enough to link a photo of the stepback art for this 80s sudser published by Zebra. Very dramatic character scheme by Pino Daeni. Fortunately the artwork lives up to the hysteria that is Stardust. This would've been an epic mini series for TV a lá Lisa Hartman Black or Valerie Bertinelli. Backstabbing, blackmail, drugs, alcohol, and numerous sexual escapades orbiting around good ole rock 'n roll. Not sure why Nan Ryan didn't revisit this kind of territory in her other novels (it appears her bibliography consists mostly of historical romances), but maybe she topped herself in this single outting. Doesn't have the same smutty charm as a Jackie Collins or Jacqueline Susann (what could?), yet Ms Ryan pulls out all the tropes and then some.
August 21, 2022
Found this buried at the bottom of an old bookshelf while cleaning. I remembered I’d enjoyed it way back in the day, so I figured I’d give it another whirl. This was the kind of super-sudsy book that was considered “beach reading” back in the ‘80s and ‘90s - plenty of sex, thinly-disguised celebrities (the initial protagonist of this book is an Elvis clone), backstabbing, betrayal, a psycho on the loose, and a super-bitch antagonist. Great literature? Hardly - though the book does make an effort to seriously depict how fame affects both a performer and his family. Good, dumb fun? You betcha! The plot, as it is, follows early rock singer C.C. McCarty as he rises from a poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks to superstardom, attracting the ire of a corrupt female record label boss in the process. As a bonus, the book offers a glimpse of Dallas high society - the wife of the first protagonist and mother of the second is from an “old money” family - so if you liked nighttime soaps back in the day, this is worth reading. (Caveat to modern readers: There’s a couple of plot points that might seem racist/homophobic. Just be aware that this book is very much a product of its time).
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews