New Dog, New Book:Dark Lady of Hollywood

I haven't weighed in for awhile, but some fans of my late writing partner, Heidi the German shepherd, know that my husband and I have a new canine: Alley, a German shepherd-Husky rescue found tied up and abandoned in the alley behind Heidi's former doggie day care, Sam's Green Paw.  Sam's took her in, called us, and the rest is history.  Alley is busy learning her sit stays, how not to bark at other dogs when on leash and that I do NOT appreciate being brought a dead squirrel as a special treat.

Alley is not yet a writer, but I am enlisting her aid to help me announce my new novel, Dark Lady of Hollywood (Harvard Square Editions), a merry mashup of Shakespeare and the TV biz set in Burbank, Studio City and our general Valleywood area.  The book made its debut March 15 to great reviews. Here's the latest:

Dark Lady of Hollywood

By Diane Haithman

Finalist, William Faulkner Creative Writing Competition

Ken Harrison, 36, Vice President of Comedy Development at a Big Three network, was right in the middle of TV’s most desirable demographic: men 18-49. Then misfortune enters stage left, and Ken’s comfortable world is suddenly fraught with shadows and uncertainty. Ousted from the network’s comedy department, Ken finds solace in his unread, undergrad’s copy of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare — and discovers Shakespeare’s mysterious Dark Lady of the Sonnets, a 16th century enigma whose identity has baffled scholars for centuries.

Praise for Dark Lady of Hollywood

All the world’s a stage when an actress and a terminally ill TV executive meet in this biting comedy. It takes a special kind of talent to simultaneously skewer Hollywood and Shakespeare while writing a thought-provoking novel, and Dark Lady of Hollywood proves Diane Haithman has this genius. — Jill Allen, ForeWord Reviews

Link to the full review: https://www.forewordreviews.com/reviews/dark-lady-of-hollywood/

At once hilarious, sly, cynical, sublimely entertaining and spectacular, crafted with an irreverent flair and an insider's self-assurance. You absolutely need to purchase a copy — or, as Haithman says, “If you buy two copies, it’s twice as funny.” — Ray Richmond, Burbank Leader

Link to the full story: http://www.burbankleader.com/opinion/tn-blr-read-on-a-novel-approach-to-the-bard-20140315,0,5819764.story

A finalist in the William Faulkner Creative Writing Competition, Haithman’s hilariously funny novel gives readers a bird’s–eye view of the Hollywood machine and its players. With witty, fast-paced dialogue and characters readers will cheer for, this debut is a deeply satisfying story of love, loss, and acceptance. --Carol Gladstein, Booklist

Dark Lady of Hollywood is available at Barnes & Noble, at Harvard Square Editions, as well as at Ingram, Gardner’s,  Amazon Kindle, and others.

 And just to let know you know I am not the only artist in the family, I have attached a photo of Alley with her latest art installation, which has already won rave reviews on Facebook.  She calls it "Toilet Paper Descending a Staircase."