A sinister love letter to the movies, acclaimed author Richard Christian Matheson's The Ritual of Illusion is a novella of modern fear about where stars truly come from. Oscar-winning film siren, Sephanie Vamore, meteors to iconic fame ... but like cinema itself, nothing is as it appears. The fifty witnesses to her mythic ascent and bizarre fate are film royalty ... many based on Hollywood glitterati; directors, stars, agents, studio heads, screenwriters, lovers, producers.
Widescreen with lies and revelation, Vamore's story is told Rashomon-style with dialogue alone—each hypnotic character adding poignant or lurid details to the shocking truth of what she really is. Matheson's insider's voice is a scathing X-ray that leaves them bloodied, awaiting their close-up.