Olivie Blake’s new novel Dreamland publishes Tuesday, August 11. That evening, the author will be at Vroman’s Bookstore in Pasadena, signing copies for readers who received theirs at the door.
The 7:00 p.m. appearance pairs Blake with Amy Tintera, another Los Angeles novelist, for a conversation about a book set in their own city. Vroman’s has moved the ticketed event out of Pasadena Presbyterian Church, where it was first scheduled, to its store at 695 East Colorado Boulevard. A public signing follows the discussion.
Each ticket admits one person and includes a copy of Dreamland, handed out at check-in, according to Vroman’s. Tor is publishing the novel as a hardcover deluxe edition with sprayed edges, a stamped case and illustrated color endpapers. Vroman prices the hardcover at $29.99.
Dreamland follows Anya Morris, an aspiring actress who goes to work for the de Witt family, a film dynasty, at a villa in the Hollywood Hills. There she meets Jude, the family’s reclusive heir. In the publisher’s description, the story unfolds across a Los Angeles summer of unsolved killings, Santa Ana winds and an approaching fire season.
Blake writes under a pen name; her legal name is Alexene Farol Follmuth. Vroman’s and her publisher describe her as a New York Times bestselling author, best known for The Atlas Six. She lives in Los Angeles.
Tintera also lives in Los Angeles and worked as a talent agency assistant in Hollywood before writing full time. Her first novel for adults, Listen for the Lie, was a finalist for the Edgar Award for best novel.
Novelist Alix E. Harrow, in a cover endorsement, called Dreamland “Olivie Blake at the height of her power.”
Adam Clark Vroman opened the bookstore on Colorado Boulevard in 1894. The store says it hosts more than 400 free community events a year. Its longtime owners, the Sheldon family, are seeking a buyer, according to Vroman’s.
Tickets are sold through Eventbrite, with refunds available up to one day before the event. Paid on-street parking in the Playhouse Village district is enforced Monday through Saturday until 8:00 p.m., at $1.25 an hour on lower-demand blocks and $2.00 an hour in the core area, with escalating rates past two hours, according to the Pasadena Department of Transportation. Vroman’s takes questions at (626) 449-5320 and at promo@vromansbookstore.com.
Blake was at Vroman’s last October, with a different book. She returns Tuesday with one about a young woman who wanted Hollywood badly enough to ignore every warning she was given.
