The Talent Thief


 Contents
 
 Title Page
 Copyright Notice
 Dedication
 Cursed
 Chapter 1. Curtain Call
 Chapter 2. Planetarium
 Chapter 3. Twinkle, Twinkle
 Chapter 4. Angels and Ravens
 Chapter 5. Old Friends
 Chapter 6. Serenade
 Chapter 7. Prison Break
 Chapter 8. Sketches
 Chapter 9. Poster
 Chapter 10. Talent Shopping
 Chapter 11. Vinni G’s
 Chapter 12. Breaking Bread
 Chapter 13. A Taste of Things to Come
 Chapter 14. Through the Screen Door
 Chapter 15. Birthday Cake
 Chapter 16. To-Do List
 Chapter 17. Sidekick
 Chapter 18. Beneath the Stage
 Chapter 19. Equipment Shed
 Chapter 20. Phantom of the Auditorium
 Chapter 21. Dummy
 Chapter 22. Night Shift
 Chapter 23. Three Words
 Chapter 24. A Star Is Born
 Chapter 25. Planetarium Fairy
 Chapter 26. Makeover
 Chapter 27. Halftime Show
 Chapter 28. A Little Bit of Faith
 Chapter 29. Call for Aid
 Chapter 30. Reinforcements
 Chapter 31. Game On
 Chapter 32. From the Ashes
 Chapter 33. Visitors
 Chapter 34. Thirteen Steps
 Chapter 35. The Moon
 Chapter 36. The Shining Star
 Chapter 37. Lucky Charm
 Acknowledgments
 About the Author
 Newsletter Sign-up
 Copyright
 
 
 
 Guide
 
 Cover
 Title Page
 Dedication
 Cursed
 Chapter 1. Curtain Call
 Acknowledgments
 Contents
 Copyright
 
 
 
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 Cover Page
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 ii
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Begin Reading
 Table of Contents
 About the Author
 Copyright Page
 
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 To my mother.
 Lover of music, literature, and science. Fellow late-night toiler. You’ve spent a lifetime dedicating all your many talents to make others look far more talented than they are … including me. Thank you.
 
 
 Cursed
 With her dying breath, my loving, sweet grandma left me with something I never expected: a curse.
 “Tiffany,” Mimi whispered, her soft, wrinkled palm cupping my cheek. “Be brave. Let the world see my Shining Star.” Her last words were hardly audible as she relaxed back into her bed, her hand slipping from my face. She was gone.
 That was two years ago today. And look, I get it. I know it doesn’t sound like much of a curse, and I’m like 65 percent sure legit curses aren’t actually real, but I don’t know how else to explain my sudden turn in bad luck over the last seven hundred and thirty days. I haven’t even hit puberty yet, like a handful of other twelve-year-old girls, so I can’t blame it on that. I’ll prove it to you (that it’s a curse, not that I haven’t hit puberty—that would be weird). Let’s just go straight to the dictionary and see if what my grandma said at least fits the definition of a curse. Was it a solemn utterance? Check. Has it inflicted harm and punishment upon its intended victim? Double check. Did it invoke a supernatural power? Okay, maybe not literally, but I will let my track record speak for itself here.
 I know my grandma was only trying to get me to come out of my shell a little bit, telling me to be bold, to let the world see the real Tiffany Tudwell. As some kind of motivational poster or meme, that all sounds dandy. In practice, however, things have played out … what’s the opposite of dandy? Un-dandy? Anti-dandy? They’ve played out poorly, let’s just say that. Over and over again. Don’t believe me? Well, I’ve got three journals full of this stuff, so buckle up.
 November 17 of last year, I was a bit under the weather and had a couple of sneezing fits. The first time, I blew straight through my tissue and covered my hands in snot. The second time, I somehow missed the tissue and shot a giant wad of mucusy