Belle Cora
Phillip Margulies, 2014
Loosely inspired by the life of a real 19th-century prostitute of the same name, Belle Cora tells the story of Arabella Godwin, from her childhood in New York to the events that led her to sell her body, eventually becoming one of the wealthiest and notorious madams in San Francisco.
I love historical fiction, so this book was right up my alley. I thought that Arabella was a brilliantly written character, and her story felt so real to me that it was easy to see how each event in her life led her to do the things that she did. I also liked that, despite being told from Belle's point of view, she never claims to be perfect or blameless. We're rooting for her, but not necessarily always backing up her moves.
My only complaint is that, at just over 600 pages, the book is a little long and dragged a little bit at the beginning. Maybe it's just because we know from the beginning what she's going to become that I wanted to rush to get there, but I feel like a little bit could have been cut from her younger years. Only a minor complaint, though. Most of the early stuff was still interesting and it was all well-written.
Not only a fascinating character piece about a woman doing what she has to do to survive, but also a thrilling look at the history of America at the time, especially the Gold Rush and what San Francisco was like at the time. Recommended for anyone who likes historical fiction, particularly the mid-1800s in America.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advanced Copy.
I love historical fiction, so this book was right up my alley. I thought that Arabella was a brilliantly written character, and her story felt so real to me that it was easy to see how each event in her life led her to do the things that she did. I also liked that, despite being told from Belle's point of view, she never claims to be perfect or blameless. We're rooting for her, but not necessarily always backing up her moves.
My only complaint is that, at just over 600 pages, the book is a little long and dragged a little bit at the beginning. Maybe it's just because we know from the beginning what she's going to become that I wanted to rush to get there, but I feel like a little bit could have been cut from her younger years. Only a minor complaint, though. Most of the early stuff was still interesting and it was all well-written.
Not only a fascinating character piece about a woman doing what she has to do to survive, but also a thrilling look at the history of America at the time, especially the Gold Rush and what San Francisco was like at the time. Recommended for anyone who likes historical fiction, particularly the mid-1800s in America.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advanced Copy.
No comments:
Post a Comment