Historical Fiction: The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Today I am discussing the fifth book I have read by popular and well-loved author Silvia Moreno-Garcia. The Seventh Veil of Salome is partly a Bible story, and also part historical fiction set in 1950s Hollywood, as a young actress is offered the role everyone wanted.

The Situation: The movie is The Seventh Veil of Salome, and things would be going much smoother if they could just find someone to play the lead role. It is bad enough that the director is hard to work with; rewrites are still happening; and there are certain things that the censors simply will not allow, but the role of Salome still needs to be cast. When the completely unknown Vera Larios is given the part, many cannot believe that a no name from Mexico has landed the coveted role, especially the young and hopeful Nancy Hartley.

The Problem: With the sudden move from Mexico to Los Angeles, Vera finds herself in almost as much confusion and turmoil as Salome, the young woman in the movie who must choose between her loyalties to her family and the throne, and her love of a bold but doomed preacher. Vera is not even sure she wants to be an actress, but the pressure from her mother and the desire to do a good job keep her going. Hollywood is difficult to navigate, but having a few new friends close by may be enough to help Vera hold onto the opportunity she has been given. Meanwhile, Nancy is not quite ready to accept defeat, and is willing to do whatever it takes to be a star. But desperation can be a very dangerous thing.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a historical fiction novel set in 1950s Hollywood, but also tells the story of Salome, the woman who asked King Herod for the head of John the Baptist after dancing for him. Vera Larios arrives in Hollywood and comes face to face with both racism and jealousy, but she is determined to perform the role she was hired for. But she also must be willing to deal with insistent and entitled male co-stars, demanding directors, and the relentless gossip columns. Vera, Nancy, and Salome are the main focus, but other interested side characters offer their viewpoint on what occurred.

My Verdict: For whatever reason, I felt immediately detached from Salome's story, perhaps because I was already familiar with the version that appears in the Bible. I was much more interested in what was happening with Vera in Hollywood, as a naive young actress trying her best to navigate an often hostile industry, at least for a young actress from Mexico. Her growth over the course of the novel was executed well, and Nancy's resentment over her career not going how she thought it should was displayed in a way that somehow still made her a three dimensional character. Perhaps Salome's story deserved its own book, apart from those who hope to use it to make their careers.

Favorite Moment: There is a moment when we get to meet Nancy's father, and the reader gets a glimpse into her past and why she views Hollywood the way she does.

Favorite Character: Vera is incredibly naive, especially in the beginning. But she slowly begins to speak and stand up for herself, even against her own pushy mother.

Recommended Reading: Brendan Slocumb's Symphony of Secrets is a different kind of historical fiction novel, this time focusing on a young composer hoping to make it big, but no one is interested in the music he comes up with on his own.  

Contemporary Fiction: Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell

I am a long-time adorer of Rainbow Rowell. Her YA novel Fangirl remains as one of my all-time favorites, and is one of the few times I have truly felt like I could just read a book for forever. So I did not hesitate to pick up her most recent book, Slow Dance, a contemporary novel written for adults.

The Situation: Shiloh is a single mother of two, now living with her own mother, and doing her best to co-parent with her ex-husband, Ryan. Once a self-assured teenager who was great at making decisions, Shiloh now feels like every decision she has made has led her wrong. But today she is deciding to attend the wedding of one of her best friends from high school, Mikey, even though that means making small talk with strangers and former high school classmates. But the chance of running into her other best friend from high school, Cary, is something she must take advantage of. Sure, it has been 14 years since they have seen each other, and Shiloh is not sure what will come of this meeting. It could be great, but it could also be a disaster.

The Problem: Attending Mikey's wedding turns out to indeed try Shiloh's patience, as well as threaten to completely drain her social battery. But Cary is there, just as she both hoped and feared, and the two manage to reconnect. But has it been too long? Back in high school, everyone thought they were together, but they never were. And now Shiloh feels like their moment may have passed. When she went off to college, and Cary enlisted in the Navy, they promised each other that nothing would change, that they would each stay in touch. But a combination of miscommunication, lack of communication, and of simply not recognizing what was happening has allowed the two of them to lose track of each other. And now it feels like they are starting all over.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a contemporary fiction novel set mostly in modern-day Omaha, Nebraska, but also moves back and forth through time between Mike's wedding and the months after, and when the three friends were in high school just trying to survive adolescence. It seemed clear to nearly everyone back in high school that Shiloh and Cary were interested in each other, but Cary has always been hard to read, and the most Shiloh can manage is to awkwardly poke him, punch him, kick him, pinch him, basically touch him just enough to be annoying. The novel gives the long and full history of Shiloh and Cary's relationship, and how two kids who were clearly in love in their teens, are now attempting to reconnect in their 30s.

My Verdict: Shiloh and Cary's story is interesting enough, and the 'will they won't they' of it all is enough to keep the story engaging while it moves along, reaching back in time while also moving forward at a steady pace. However, the much more interesting story of Cary's family steals the show for me. It is as if the opening band at a concert put on a better show than they headlining act (which does indeed happen), and left the crowd wanting more. More details regarding Cary's family history are given, but I found myself wishing that the book was only about that. Cary's family is given so much background that I would have loved a 500-page saga about them, John Steinbeck East of Eden style. The story of Shiloh and Cary is endearing; the story of Cary's family seems utterly captivating.

Favorite Moment: Shiloh's mother may not have always been the best parental figure, but there is a moment when she breaks into a disturbance between Cary and his family and proves she is no one to mess with.

Favorite Character: Junie (short for Juniper) is Shiloh's oldest child, and while she may be five years old when the novel starts, I enjoyed her overly dramatic reactions to everything, as well as her wild-eyed observations and declarative statements. 

Recommended Reading: I will always recommend Fangirl for those interested in YA, as well as Attachments for the adults. 

Door Stop: Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens

The time has come to tackle another door stop. On this blog, a 'door stop' is essentially any book that is 500 pages or more, and this week, it is Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens. In this tale, Dickens tackles poverty, debtors' prisons, and bureaucracy and red tape in 19th century England.

The Situation: Life inside of the Marshalsea debtors' prison is the only life Amy Dorrit, or Little Dorrit, has ever known. She was born in the prison, and after her mother died when she was very young, she has spent her life being of service to her father, older brother and sister, and their uncle. William Dorrit entered the prison over 30 years before, and has become known as the "Father of the Marshalsea," while trying to hold onto the class and status in which he was raised. Though it would anger her father if he knew, Little Dorrit works as a seamstress for various individuals, one of which is the stern and harsh mother of Arthur Clennam. Arthur suspects that his family may have something to do with William Dorrit being in the debtors' prison, and resolves to find out and right any potential wrong.

The Problem: It is clear that Arthur's mother is holding back on some vital piece of information regarding Arthur's deceased father, so he must make his own investigation, while also entering into a business partnership with a local inventor. Meanwhile, the kind and good-natured Mr. and Mrs. Meagles worry over their spoiled daughter's potential attachment to a young artist who does not make much money, and who is also friends with a mysterious and potentially dangerous man known only as Blandois. Throughout the story, Little Dorrit remains sweet, and good, and hard-working, and while it is clear some take advantage of her goodness, including her own father, she would never hear of going against any of them, and remains a true and faithful servant.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a story of fiction written by Dickens and was published in 19 monthly installments, beginning in December of 1855. Little Dorrit may be the title character, but there are large chunks of the novel when the character disappears completely, while the story focuses not only on Arthur, but also the Meagles, Blandois, and a few other key characters. One major theme is that of imprisonment, as several characters end up bound to their locations for various reasons. Another heavily explored subject is that of government bureaucracy, as the narrator talks at length about the Circumlocution Office and their specialty of not getting anything done. And then there are several characters who experience sudden and severe turns of fortune.

My Verdict: This book is long...like Bleak House long. If there was ever a reason to be thankful for jury duty (and in my mind, there are few), it is because of the long stretches of time in which it allowed me to make headway with this book. The character of Little Dorrit is indeed incredibly good, and sweet, and pitiable, but she is also frustratingly naive, and good to the point of not wanting to cause anyone trouble, including those who do her wrong. Those familiar with Dickens will recognize the style of writing, the fun character names, and the dialogue that often feels to be going in circles (and sometimes it is). If I had to give it a ranking among the other Dickens books I have read, I would have to put it somewhere between Bleak House and David Copperfield, with A Tale of Two Cities still being my favorite.

Favorite Moment: Little Dorrit's older sister Fanny takes advantage of her younger sister's good nature, much like her brother and father. But even with all of her bluster and boasting, there is a moment when even she seems to admit that her situation is not ideal, though she does not do so with words.

Favorite Character: Mr. Pancks is a rent collector who, naturally, is viewed as a villain by those he has to collect rent from, but also enjoys a sort of side hustle as someone who restores people's lost inheritances, therefore helping to reverse the fortunes of a few characters. 

Recommended Reading: Middlemarch by George Eliot is even longer, but also follows a variety of characters in 19th century England. 

Contemporary Fiction: The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer

Reader's absolutely adored last year's The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer, so this year I went ahead and picked up the follow-up, The Lost Story, which was inspired by C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia, specifically The Silver Chair. Shaffer leans even more into the magical realism for this story, offering up a fantasy book for adults who are not too old for fairy tales.

The Situation: Jeremy Cox has a seemingly supernatural ability to find lost girls and women. He is known all around the world for the people he has found, and is currently appearing on a documentary TV show as a special guest, which is where Emilie Wendell meets him. She desperately wants to meet Jeremy to see if he will help her find her sister, who went missing 20 years ago. The thing is, Emilie's sister went missing in the Red Crow State Forest of West Virginia, which is the same forest Jeremy himself went missing, along with his best friend Ralph 'Rafe' Howell, 15 years ago. Both boys emerged six months later, mostly physical okay, but definitely different. Only Jeremy remembers what happened during those six months, and if he is to return to Red Crow to find Emilie's sister, he will need Rafe's help.

The Problem: Even though Jeremy remembers where he and his friend were while they were lost, he has always refused to tell Rafe anything about it, who cannot remember a thing. In fact, the two of them have not spoken in years. While Jeremy has become a famous missing persons investigator, Rafe has become somewhat of a reclusive artist, mostly emerging from his home to protect his property and the animals on it from poachers. But if Jeremy is to find Emilie's sister, it means telling Rafe the truth. A strange truth about the magical land they were in while they were gone. It was a world full of beauty and magical creatures, but also incredible dangers, and haunting memories. Emilie is not the only one looking for something she has lost, and Jeremy and Rafe will have to confront their shared past to find it.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a fantasy book set primarily in West Virginia, specifically the fictional Red Crow State Forest, but also the magical realm of Shanandoah. Nearly half of the book is set in the world we know, and the other half in Shanandoah, where evil and mischievous entities known as the Bright Boys cause havoc, but are almost always outdone by the queen and her Valkyries. Occasionally, the book's storyteller will interrupt to provide background, or let the reader know that certain details are being skipped intentionally, or to even give props to the reader for noticing specific details. The book also confronts the pain of traumatic memories, and considers if beauty and love are worth it if they bring pain, sorrow, and grief along with them. 

My Verdict: The part of the story that involves Jeremy, Rafe, and Emilie moving around in our world has moments that are incredibly compelling, and help build the mystery about Shanandoah. The part about the magical place with unicorns and insects with wings of fire is enchanting and wonderful. But for some reason, the bringing of the two worlds together does not quite work for me, and I do not know what the disconnect is. It is like two separate stories smashed together. Also, I will admit to not being a fan of the interrupting storyteller, as I did not fully see any added value in the mechanic. Fantasy lovers may still enjoy the adventure, and it seems there is a chance there will be more in the future.

Favorite Moment: There are two horses in Shanandoah who are incredibly loyal and helpful, and come in clutch when dealing with an enemy.

Favorite Character: Rafe's mom will not let him into her house unless he shaves. But once he does, she feeds him and his friends, and together they are able to deal with what happened when Rafe was a child.

Recommended Reading: I recommend Shaffer's previous book The Wishing Game, and also the entire The Chronicles of Narnia series.