Captivating Characters of July link-up opportunity! Please join the link party or share your most captivating character in the comments.

Carol’s Captivating Characters of July Link-Up

On the last Friday of the month, I will write a post about my most captivating character of the month and create a Link Party (see link below my review)! In addition to hearing about the memorable characters that have captivated you, I also want this new project to facilitate new bookish friendships, help you find your book twin, and promote blog engagement. This link party will stay active for 30 days. In exchange for linking your post back to me, I promise to visit every blog post that links up, leave a comment, and share your post once on #bookx and #booksky.

Captivating Character Link Up Details:

1. You can use fictional or real characters/persons.
2. Link up a review that specifically highlights a captivating character or person, or write a post dedicated to your most captivating character or person of the month.
3. Please include a link back to this (monthly) post.
4. Be kind: visit one other post in the link-up and leave a comment.
5. #CaptivatingCharacters25

No blog? No problem! Share your most captivating character of the month in the comments.

Special shoutout to Joanne @ Portobello Book Blog and Carla @ Carla Love to Read for linking up with me last month. Check out their posts.

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Judy from Come Fly With Me

Name of Captivating Character: Judy Goodman
The reason she is captivating: brave, adventurous, loyal friend
Book and Author: Come Fly With Me by Camille Di Maio
Genre/Categories/Setting: Historical Fiction (1960s), Air Travel, Careers for Women, Thriller, Florida, San Francisco, and various international locations
Mood: Suspenseful
Content Considerations: Domestic Violence, Spousal Abuse

I loved learning about the early, glamorous years of jet age travel and the rigorous standards for Pan Am “stewardesses.”

Judy was trapped in an abusive marriage with a controlling husband. Her neighbor suspected Judy’s situation and helped her plan an elaborate escape. The plan involved gaining acceptance into the Pan Am Stewardess training program under an assumed name. Judy hoped that this name change along with international travel would prevent her husband from finding her.

Escape is one part of Judy’s story, and the other part involves her training, travel, and work experience. I was fascinated by the first part of the story that focused on the training for stewardesses and expectations for them in the 1960s.

Training was not the only stress in Judy’s life. She also hides the fact that she is married because a married woman was not allowed to become a stewardess. As the story progresses, Judy needs to trust and confide in her close friend and associate, Beverly. I enjoyed the friendship and women-supporting-women themes.

Judy’s life becomes increasingly complicated as her husband tracks her down and makes threats. Can she have a second chance at romance? How much danger is she in? Can she trust her friends to keep her safe? Can she finally escape her abusive husband and find safety? Will she lose her job?

It requires courage to escape a toxic relationship and train for a new career, but Judy proves that it can be done. It’s not easy, but through fortitude, bravery, and the support of friends, it’s possible.

Judy’s story will resonate with women who have been in abusive relationships and have made difficult decisions to escape and start new lives. Fans of 1960s historical fiction with a side of romance and thriller will enjoy this one. If you’ve worked with the airlines or have ever dreamed of becoming a “stewardess,” you will find Come Fly With Me interesting.

Star Rating: 4 Stars

You might also enjoy The Way of Beauty and The Beautiful Strangers by the same author.

Meet the Author of Come Fly With Me, Camille Di Maio

Camille Di Maio left an award-winning real estate career to become a full-time writer. Along with her husband of twenty-seven years, she enjoys raising their four children. She has a bucket list that is never-ending, and uses her adventures to inspire her writing. She’s lived in Texas, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and California, and spends enough time in Hawai’i, NYC, and Maine to feel like a local. She’s traveled to four continents (so far), and met Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II. She just about fainted when she had a chance to meet her musical idol, Paul McCartney, too. Camille studied political science in college, but found working on actual campaigns much more fun. She loves to spend Saturdays at farmers’ markets and belts out Broadway tunes whenever the moment strikes. There’s almost nothing she wouldn’t try, so long as it doesn’t involve heights, roller skates, or anything illegal.

Follow her on Instagram @camilledimaio_author, on her You Tube channel, and on Tik Tok.

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You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

(this link party is open for 30 days)

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“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke
“I love the world of words where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes
“Reading good books ruins you for reading bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
“I read because books are a form of transportation, teaching, and connection. Books take us to places we’ve never been, teach us about our world, and help us understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley

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