February 25, 2020
The Girl in White Gloves by Kerri Maher
Genre/Categories: Biographical Historical Fiction, Historical Romance
*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
Summary:
Thanks #netgalley #berkleypub for a free e ARC of #thegirlinwhitegloves by Kerri Maher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
In this highly fictionalized biographical historical fiction of the life of an American actress turned princess, we get a glimpse into Grace Kelly‘s childhood dreams, her rise to fame, and her eventual royal life as Princess of Monaco.
My Thoughts:
Glamorous and Beautiful: Like many Grace Kelly fans, I had a romanticized, idealized image of the glamorous Grace Kelly. This story dispells those perceptions and I was left with feelings of sadness. It seems that Grace Kelly struggled with finding her voice, feeling self-confident, realizing her career goals, and establishing a loving, mutually respectful relationship. She lived during a time when the silent, subservient girlfriend/wife custom was valued, and most likely, her insecurities contributed to her decisions. I cheered for the times she asserted herself.
Along with her glamor and beauty, Grace Kelly was also driven to perform, loved Broadway, and dreamed of having a family.
Highly Imagined: From the author’s comments, it seems that some events in the story are rearranged and consolidated to create a tighter timeline. Also, Maher highly imagines a great many of Kelly’s relationships and interactions due to a lack of personal journals and letters. It’s important to recognize the limited amount of source material available while reading The Girl in White Gloves so that you can enjoy the story as presented.
If you love behind-the-scenes peeks into celebrity lives, the glamour of old Hollywood, or have heard of the lovely Grace Kelly, you might enjoy The Girl in White Gloves.
Related: You might also appreciate this engaging and romantic historical fiction story that is set on Monaco during the time of the wedding of Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier: Meet Me in Monaco by Heather Webb and Hazel Gaynor.
My Rating: 3 Stars
The Girl in White Gloves Information
Meet the Author, Kerri Maher
Kerri Maher is also the author of *This Is Not A Writing Manual: Notes for the Young Writer in the Real World* under the name Kerri Majors. She holds an MFA from Columbia University and founded YARN, an award-winning literary journal of short-form YA writing. For many years a professor of writing, she now writes full time and lives with her daughter in Massachusetts where apple picking and long walks in the woods are especially fine. She is a budding Instagrammer at @kerrimaherwriter, and you can also find her on Facebook at @kerrimaherwriter and on her website, http://www.kerrimaher.com
QOTD:
Are you a Grace Kelly fan? Or do you love biographical histfic?
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Unless explicitly stated that they are free, all books that I review have been purchased by me or borrowed from the library.
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Lovely review Carol! I do like Grace Kelly films although I haven’t watched any in a while 🙂
Thanks Nicki! 😍👍
I really appreciate your thoughts, Carol! ♥️
Thanks Jennifer! 🙌😍
[…] The Girl in white Gloves Review […]
Sorry you didn’t like this as much as I did… but as they say, no two people read the same book!
I think I was hoping for a happier Grace Kelly! It’s not the author’s fault.
Ah…
Nice review Carol. I had heard that she did not have a happy life and her marriage was not what she was expecting. I had hummed and hawed about this one, I think I will pass. I do have The Grace Kelly Dress to read though.
I guess I hadn’t heard that and so it was a hard read because I’m expecting a lovely fairytale romance! Enjoy Grace Kelly Dress! There’s also Meet Me in Monaco which is a fun read!
[…] ***Edited 8/25/21 to add: If you’re interested in a biographical historical fiction story of Princess Grace you might like The Girl in White Gloves by Kerri Maher. […]