Excerpt from The Roaring Days of Zora Lily by Noelle Salazar, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

"It is strange," Lu said, frowning. "The studio must've wanted something exact."

"Then why hire her?" I asked. "Not that she didn't do a lovely job. The clothing is exquisite. I'd wear them all now."

"And look fab doing it."

I felt myself blush with pleasure at the compliment. Being tall and willowy had its advantages. Unfortunately for me, I had neither the opportunity nor the bank account to wear clothes as fine as the ones before us.

"Thanks, Lu," I said, bending to peer closer at the large white beaded star on the white satin gown that was to be the centerpiece for the entire show.

Aside from the star, the rest of the fabric had been left unadorned, letting the beaded element shine before one's eye went to the skirt, which fell in soft overlapping layers to the floor. It was a stunning piece of art. But a confusing one. Because it had no resemblance to any piece ever sewn before by Cleménte. At least not any piece I'd seen in my years of studying the different famous designers. It didn't have her specific way of hand sewing or her distinctive technique of tying off a knot, or even her tendency toward geometric shapes. But it was the neckline that really threw me off. Cleménte had preferred to leave a lot to the imagination. It was her calling card during a time when everyone else was showing more skin. And yet for these, she'd completely gone off-script.

The rest of the crew arrived at nine on the dot and the quiet of the room rose to a dull roar as individual desk lights were turned on, loupes donned to scrutinize the tiniest details, and we all began to sew, glue, and chat our way through the day.

"Syl?"

I glanced up and winced as my back protested from having been bent over a table for the past hour. Lu stood, her coat over her arm, by the door. Everyone else had vanished.

"What time is it?" I asked.

"Nearly seven."

"Shit. How does that always happen?" I pulled the loupes from my head.

"You happen to be in love with a dress," Lu said. "That's how."

"Story of my life."

"Explains so much."

"Does it?"

"I mean, it definitely explains why you haven't had a date with a real live human in a while. Only—" She gestured to the mannequin beside me.

We laughed. She wasn't wrong.

Lu was the only person who truly understood me. The only person besides my sister who I'd ever allowed to see inside my guest room closet where dozens of scavenged vintage dresses, trousers, jackets, and hats hung, waiting to be delicately cared for like the ones I lovingly handled at work.

"You gonna stay?" Lu asked, watching me as I looked back at the dress spread out before me.

I rubbed my eyes and stared at the tiny white beads I'd been replacing. We'd named the dress The Diaphanous Star, and I'd been carefully sewing on one bead at a time for the past two hours. It was a delicate task as the fabric they clung to was nearly one hundred years old. I had to work slowly and thoughtfully to keep from shredding it.

"Yeah," I said, rotating my head. "I want to get this star done. How'd you do today?"

I glanced over at the black evening gown she was working on.

"I'm close," she said. "You can barely see the snag in the back now, and I should be able to replace the bit of fringe that's missing tomorrow."

"Perfect," I said, reaching over to wake my laptop and clicking on the calendar. "We are ahead of schedule, which bodes well should we have any catastrophes."

Lu knocked a small wooden box holding scissors inside it.

"Don't jinx us," she said and then waved. "See you B and E."

"See you B and E," I said.

B and E. Bright and early. We'd made it up one day after the youngest woman in our group rattled off a bunch of acronyms as if the rest of us should know what they mean. We used it constantly. She didn't think it was amusing. This of course made it that much funnier.

Excerpted from The Roaring Days of Zora Lily by Noelle Salazar. Copyright © 2023 by Noelle Salazar. Excerpted by permission of Mira Books. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.