She Treads Softly: The One and Only Vivian Stone

Tuesday, July 8, 2025

The One and Only Vivian Stone

The One and Only Vivian Stone by Melissa O'Connor
7/22/25; 368 pages
Gallery Books

The One and Only Vivian Stone by Melissa O'Connor is a highly recommended romance novel and historical fiction presented in two timelines. This is O'Connor's debut novel and romance novel readers will likely love it.

In the present day Margot DuBois is cleaning out her grandmother's house to sell it. She finds a mysterious box of cassette tapes with a damaged tape player. She turns to her first love, Leo, to fix it. He finds a working cassette player and sets to work cleaning up the tapes, one at a time. The two then listen to the eight tapes over a series of days and reconnect with each other.

The tapes tell the story of Vivian (MacKenzie) Stone early in her career as a famous comedic actress in the 1950's Hollywood studio system and later on TV. Vivian recounts her life story with her friend Ruth and her two great loves, Hugh Fox and Kit Pierce. On the eight tapes she honestly shares and vividly describes the wins and struggles they all endured at the time. She had wanted to be a dramatic actress but her fame came when she took on comedic roles.

Vivian's story is the stronger narrative of the two stories. The novel shares what was on each tape, with Vivian telling her story. The tapes sections include excerpts from gossip columnists that add context and tone to the narrative.The tapes contain many descriptions of 1950's fashion, which is interesting. In between the tapes sections is the shorter present day plot with Margot and Leo.

As Vivian is described, readers will immediately view her as a Lucille Ball like character. She is written as an intelligent woman who realistically faces life and the studio system with determination and fortitude. Margot is settling for a lesser life than she envisioned and cleaning out her beloved grandmother's home. Reconnecting with Leo and listening to Vivian's story encourages her, but the real revelation is when she learns why Vivian sent the tapes to her grandmother in the first place.

The One and Only Vivian Stone is a great choice for historical romance novel readers. Thanks to Gallery Books for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

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John Updike's six rules for reviewing:

1. Try to understand what the author wished to do, and do not blame him for not achieving what he did not attempt.

2. Give him enough direct quotation--at least one extended passage--of the book's prose so the review's reader can form his own impression, can get his own taste.

3. Confirm your description of the book with quotation from the book, if only phrase-long, rather than proceeding by fuzzy precis.

4. Go easy on plot summary, and do not give away the ending.

5. If the book is judged deficient, cite a successful example along the same lines, from the author's oeuvre or elsewhere. Try to understand the failure. Sure it's his and not yours?

To these concrete five might be added a vaguer sixth, having to do with maintaining a chemical purity in the reaction between product and appraiser.....Review the book, not the reputation.... Better to praise and share than blame and ban. The communion between reviewer and his public is based upon the presumption of certain possible joys in reading, and all our discriminations should curve toward that end.