Beautifully captured… Candid and revealing.
In this candid, vivid memoir, Rice transforms the events of her long, winding journey from brokenness to wholeness–fear to faith–and resistance to surrender into an immensely readable story. The narrative unfolds through a series of intriguing chapters as Rice recounts her journey as a young nineteen-year-old girl from the Midwest and the various opportunities that led to her successful run—from a receptionist to assistant casting director to production assistant—in Hollywood, enabling her to receive an inside peek behind its glamorous doors. Throughout, Rice maintains a clear and cool-headed perspective on the Hollywood show business industry and its many downfalls and how her idealistic world crumbled and disappointments, heartbreak, and abuse followed, throwing her in a dark pit of despair and depression. The narrative includes the juicy tidbits of older times in the Hollywood era and Rice shares how she really came to put her faith in God after broken relationships devastated her, leaving her depressed, confused, and searching for answers and how under the guidance of the higher power, she began to pick the shattered pieces of her life and became whole once again. Rice recounts her time at the Vineyard where she received salvation, her part in starting a crisis house in Hollywood as a young Christian, her determination to pursue and complete higher studies, including a master’s and doctorate’s degrees, and her return to the same places later to take care of managerial and administrative work. Arguing that life is always full of challenges and a person may feel disappointments, heartbreaks, and losses, she stresses on the significance of putting one’s faith in the higher power as it is the comfort of God that will never abandon a person no matter the circumstances. The charm of this book lies in Rice’s relatable writing, which shows the complex emotions and confusion of a woman challenging God to show his powers and her contentment in the aftermath of realizing her destiny and purpose that God wants her to fulfill in this life. And while religion and Christianity stay at the heart of the narrative, the book is also a young woman’s reflective coming-of-age story. Thoughtful and keen, the book is both approachable and thought-provoking. Although it’s a comparatively short read, the reader will benefit to read it in multiple sittings as many portions deserves additional time spent pondering and applying its message. This a poignant, informative book by an author whose life has been dedicated to exploring the true meaning of living.
Tarnished Crowns a Memoir
The Power of Purpose and Authenticity
By Pamela Rice
Pub date August 2, 2021
ISBN 978-1736365403
Price $16.99 (USD) Paperback, $7.89 Kindle edition
