It was hard to read this novel after having seen Woody Allen's movie, "Midnight in Paris." I kept hearing his actors' voices in my head while reading. In spite of that, like some of the other reviewers, I found the novel challenging to get into at first. And while I appreciate how Ms. Fowler created Zelda's character, I found myself more inspired to read Nancy Mitford's biography of Zelda called "Zelda." Still, it's a novel worth reading if you enjoy a dip into the era of the Lost Generation.

Therese Anne Fowler's Z/A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald seems to have been written to cash in on the success of Paula McLain's The Paris Wife.

While I thoroughly enjoyed McLain's book (how much do most of us know, after all, about Hadley?), I found Fowler's book quite tedious. It may be that I've already read enough about Zelda. Nothing new is revealed in this latest effort: it's almost common knowledge.

But my primary criticism is that the writing just never rang true for me. I never felt that it was actually Zelda doing the narrating. Everything was all too crisp and matter-of-fact. It parroted the style of McLain's much more successful book.

I do not recommend Z at all. There are thousands of biographies more worth one's time.