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There are currently 21 member reviews
for The Girl in White Gloves
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Shirley L. (Norco, LA)
Interesting Read with Some Limitations
The author does a reasonably good job of telling the story of Grace Kelly. The biggest weakness was in the writing of her career development; it read like a dry recitation of one play or movie after the next, and one lover after another without much heart or soul. The strength was her depiction of Grace's contentious relationship with her parents (especially her father) and how that impacted her self esteem and all of her romantic relationships, particularly her marriage. The story became deeper after Grace's marriage.
I am a fan of historical fiction that contain flashbacks and non-chronological timelines. However, in this book it seemed to be a gimmick and frequently broke the flow of the story. I fantasized about being the editor who moved chapters back to their "proper" place.
The read was interesting but could have been better.
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Julie B. (Culver, IN)
Girl in White Gloves
I enjoyed reading this book about Grace Kelly, but I wasn't enamored with it. It started slow for me. I felt the writing was a bit stiff. I appreciated the authors honesty up front about it being a work of fiction and that she added some characters to the story. When you read from that aspect, it's just an enjoyable story about royalty. If it taught me one thing, it's that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. Living in the public eye constantly cannot be easy at all, and it's clear that Grace was lonely. I would give this book to a friend to ready with the caveat that it's fiction.
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Nancy K. (Perrysburg, OH)
Who was the real Grace Kelly?
I had to force myself to finish this book although as it turned out the last third of the book was the best.
I loved the letters between Grace and Rainier but then I found out in the author's notes that she had made them up! I guess that shows that the author can write but most of the book is really quite dull- Grace has very low esteem, Grace loves older men, Grace has many affairs, Grace is unhappy- this is the message the author gives us over and over again.
My question is, who was the real Grace Kelly?
I would have a hard time recommending this book.
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Rosanne S. (Franklin Square, NY)
The Girl in White Gloves
In the past month I have read two books about Grace Kelly. The previous book presented the same facts but was part of a parallel story within the same book. I didn't care for it at all.
Today, I finished The Girl in White Gloves and I know far more about Grace Kelly now than I did before basically because this book was solely about her. I didn't care for this book either.
While the author kept her story focused on Grace Kelly's life, I felt it moved too slowly to keep me interested. I am not a fan of biographies; this read like an academic biography. Her movie career was short and speaks for itself. I rather hoped for a more personal approach and I just felt it was rather sterile and matter of fact.
I certainly would encourage anyone who enjoys biographies to read The Girl in White Gloves. Sadly for me it was just ordinary and a bit underwhelming.
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Angela K. (Tiburon, CA)
Is This the real Grace Kelly
First, thank you to BookBrowse for providing an ARC of this book. Due out in February, 2020.
Gosh, I wanted, really wanted, to love this book. I have been a big fan of Grace Kelly since I was a young girl. But no. The language of the book is so flowery - five adjectives where two would have been sufficient. At the end, I felt the author painted Grace as an insecure and shallow woman. I have read so many historical fiction novels recently where the women were strong despite or because of circumstances and this portrait of Grace did not convey that.
Finally, can authors/editors/publishers become more creative with titles and covers? It seems that in the past few years "Girl" or "Woman" is in every title with a fuzzy dreamy picture of a female on the cover.
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Miriam B. (Lakewood Ranch, FL)
The Girl in White Gloves
I was thrilled to receive a copy of The Girl in White Gloves by Kerri Maher, a historical novel about Grace Kelly. I was very disappointed in the novel as it brought out how sad Grace was throughout her life. It portrayed her feelings of insecurity all through her life and how she felt dominated by her father and unhappy with her husband. There was no joy in this novel- surely Grace felt some happiness in her life. I found reading this book a chore. Even in the retelling of her wedding to Rainier in which she became Princess Grace, the author found no joy in this event but portrayed Grace as just wanting it over. I cannot recommend this book.
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Rebecca G. (Havertown, PA)
More fiction than history
Historical fiction centering around strong women is my guilty pleasure so I was eager to read this book about Grace Kelly. I was so disappointed. The author admits this book is more fiction than most; sometimes that happens when recreating a life. But Kelly's affairs which seemed fairly provocative in this book were mostly fictional since no one really knows what happened between Kelly and her boyfriends. Most discouraging for me, however, were the letters in the book between Grace and Rainier that were totally made up! This was most glaring because the letters were central to her future disappointment in her marriage. I also found this Grace Kelly to be whiny and unhappy with her life and I really have no idea if this is really the way she was in real life. I wouldn't recommend this book
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