Strangers in the Night

It was the tumultuous romance that scandalized the world: Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner fought, loved, and lived life to the hilt. Now their unbridled story is brought vividly to life by Heather Webb, the bestselling author of Meet Me in Monaco and The Next Ship Home.

In the golden age of Hollywood, two of the brightest stars would define—and defy—an era . . . 

She was the small-town southern beauty transformed into a Hollywood love goddess. He was the legendary crooner whose voice transfixed the world. They were Ava Gardner and Frank Sinatra. Separately they were irresistible; together they were an explosive combination.

Ava’s star is rising just as Frank’s career—and public image as a family man—is taking a hit. Gone are the days of the screaming bobbysoxers and chart-topping hits. Ava, however, finds herself gracing the front page of every tabloid in America. Jealousy and cheating abound, and when the two succumb to their temperaments and their vices, their happiness is threatened at every turn.

As the pair ride the rollercoaster of success and failure, passion and anger, they both wonder if the next turn will be the end of their careers, and most devastating of all—the end of all they’ve shared.

A captivating novel with a star-studded cast spanning continents and decades, Strangers in the Night brings to life the most riveting love story of the twentieth century.

PRAISE

“Webb grabs hold of the reader and does not let go. Told in intimate first-person chapters from both Ava’s and Frank’s viewpoints, their many spats, breakups, and reunions feel honest yet not overdone…Altogether, a rousing and well-done, probably mostly true, romantic novel.”- Historical Novel Society Review

“Strangers in the Night is a gorgeously written, impeccably researched historical novel that delves into both the glamour and darkness of old Hollywood, as it details the passionate and tumultuous epic love story of Ava Gardner and Frank Sinatra. By turns sexy and heartbreaking, beautiful and volatile, I loved this fascinating peek behind the curtain of a real Hollywood love affair.” – Jillian Cantor, USA Today bestselling author of Beautiful Little Fools

“Heather Webb writes illuminatingly about a love story that could easily have lit up the silver screen… I raced through this book, drawn into the passion and the tumult and the tenderness too. Ava Gardner, Frank Sinatra and the golden age of Hollywood are wonderfully portrayed and readers will find themselves wishing that the director didn’t have to call, ‘Cut!’, that “the end” didn’t exist, and that they could stay immersed in this sumptuous story forever.” -Natasha Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Seamstress 

“Heather Webb expertly chronicles Hollywood’s most tumultuous love affair with immense skill, bringing Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner into full focus on every page…From New York to California, from Vegas and all throughout Europe, Webb captures Hollywood’s golden age with all its glitz and glamour. Have a box of tissues ready and be prepared to be wiped out in the best possible way. A true marvel of a novel. I fell as hard for this book as Frank fell for Ava.” -Renee Rosen, USA Today bestselling author of The Social Graces

“Heather Webb gets under the skin of two of the brightest stars showbiz ever produced, and takes us inside their tempestuous, compulsive, alcohol-fuelled love story. Crackling with sexual tension, and full of insight about the pressures of mega-stardom, this is a spicy and addictive page-turner.” -Gill Paul, USA Today Bestselling author of The Manhattan Girls

“Ava Gardner and Frank Sinatra’s wildly rocky relationship in Strangers in the Night exposes the cinematic glitz of Hollywood’s golden age alongside Tinseltown’s darker underbelly. Readers craving a story that’s glamorous and deliciously dishy won’t be able to turn these pages fast enough!” -Stephanie Marie Thornton, USA Today bestselling author of A Most Clever Girl

” Heather Webb has set a new standard in historical fiction by writing a story that was so engaging that I forgot that I was reading a book and not actually embodying the characters. Legendary stars Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner come alive under her deft handling of their tumultuous and passionate relationship and will leave readers feeling like they’ve leapt from the page into living, breathing people that they know. A lifelong fan of the famous crooner, my own music listening will forever be quite impacted by Webb’s captivating book.”--Camile Di Maio, author of Until We Meet