17 November 2020

Glimmer As You Can | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK


“A timely and beautiful story of female friendship and strength.” –Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of The Queen’s Fortune

“Martin deftly and exquisitely captures this historical moment.” –Jillian Cantor, USA Today bestselling author of In Another Time

In the glitz and glamor tradition of Beatriz Williams’s Tiny Little Thing and Fiona Davis’s The Chelsea Girls, Danielle Martin’s debut is “a love letter to…women” (Greer Macallister, The Magician’s Lie) that illustrates the courage of women and the strength of sisterhood.

Welcome to the Starlite. Let your true self shine.

1962. In the middle of Brooklyn Heights sits the Starlite: boutique dress shop by day, underground women’s club by night. Started by the shop’s proprietor after her marriage crumbled, Madeline’s social club soon becomes a safe haven for women from all walks of life looking for a respite from their troubled relationships and professional frustrations. These after-hour soirées soon bring two very different women into Madeline’s life–Elaine, a British ex-pat struggling to save her relationship, and Lisa, a young stewardess whose plans for the future are suddenly upended–irrevocably changing all three women’s lives in ways no one could have predicted.

But when Madeline’s ne’er-do-well ex-husband shows up again, the luster of Starlite quickly dampens. As the sisterhood rallies around Madeline, tension begins to eat at the club. When an unspeakable tragedy befalls their sorority, one woman must decide whether to hide the truth from the group or jeopardize her own hopes and dreams. Sure to appeal to readers of Kathleen Tessaro and Suzanne Rindell, Glimmer As You Can captures the heartbeat of an era and the ambitions of a generation of women living in a man’s world–a world threatened by a wave of change.

Publisher: Alcove Press
Release Date: November 10, 2020


MY REVIEW

Take a trip to the 1960s for an interesting story of female friendship and empowerment, as the Starlite, both a boutique dress shop and women’s social club, brings together a group of women from various backgrounds and professions.

Over the course of Glimmer As You Can, I enjoyed getting to know Madeline, Elaine, and Lisa, seeing their circumstances and how their connection brings them through the struggles and tragedy. It proved quite interesting to me how this then allowed the historical setting to shine, page after page—I love a historical novel in which the sense of time and place is undeniable and transporting. This debut from Danielle Martin is sure to delight historical-fiction readers.

★.5

I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Danielle Martin started her professional career as an assistant with the William Morris agency before pursuing a degree in teaching. She previously worked as a special education teacher in New York, Pennsylvania, and Louisiana. Currently she works as a freelance writer near New Orleans. Born in Putnam County, NY and raised by two generations of native Brooklynites, her depictions of the boroughs of New York were informed by her childhood experiences, family accounts, and a love of city history.


TOUR SCHEDULE

3 comments:

  1. Thank you for being on this tour! Sara @ TLC Book Tours

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice review, thanks for sharing your thoughts

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nice review Hallie, it sounds like a book I would enjoy.

    ReplyDelete