This was a well-written and thorough biography which I quite enjoyed as a former tennis player. If you have any interest at all in the subject matter, I highly recommend giving the book a try!

-- this read was quite a while back, as I received the arc during 2020 and was unable to review during 2020 due to the many, many issues of that year. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for arc!

Very Detailed Biography - Well Worth Reading!
This biography is well researched and very well written. The author clearly states his sources. He also differentiates between fact, his opinion, and the opinions of others. He does not soft soap flaws in any of the persons in this book, nor does he make them out to be more than they are. This is a long book that is a slow read. I found myself putting this aside while I read something lighter, and then coming back to it. I am not a tennis player, did not know this woman before reading the book, but there is so much more to it. It is fascinating as the author brings us inside the heady days between the wars. The Hollywood scene with the glamorous stars rubbing elbows with Howard Hughes, William Randolph Hearst, the DuPont's and other industry titans. Playing tennis with Marion Davies, being friends with Carole Lombard, flirting with Errol Flynn. I enjoyed being a fly on the wall through it all. This biography is well worth reading. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

Truly interesting tale of a tennis star now mostly forgotten. The tennis and society parts were the most interesting. The parts of her life that cannot currently be substantiated (like the supposed spy career) could have been a lot shorter, since so much was speculative.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a digital ARC for the purpose of an unbiased review.

The Divine Miss Marble
By Robert Weintraub

I love tennis and reading sport biographies and I must confess that I have not heard of the amazing Miss Marble and her amazing history in sports and the social history surrounding her life. I thought that this was a fascinating read and not only learned about this tennis legend and all the famous dignitaries surrounding her life but also what was happening in that time of pre WWII era. I enjoyed this read very much. Well written and very profound read I enjoyed very much.

An interesting woman from the early days of tennis, but oh man is the story disjointed in time and boringly written.

A fascinating read Alice Marble was a tennis icon an incredible player.Beneath the fame the glory of being a winner there is a layer of mystery questions about who she really was.Was she really married was she a spy.This is an amazing read one I really enjoyed.#netgalley#penguindutton

American tennis player Alice Marble (1913-1990) captured the world’s attention and multiple titles beginning in the mid-1930s. As detailed in Robert Weintraub’s “The Divine Miss Marble: A Life of Tennis, Fame, and Mystery,” Marble possessed a great deal of innate talent, but it wasn’t until coach Eleanor “Teach” Tennant agreed to instruct her that she morphed into a champion.

The road to the top wasn’t easy. Several health crises threatened to end her career, and she left the circuit for two years to recover. She made a triumphant return in 1936, when she won the U.S. National Championships (now known as the U.S. Open).

Her comeback story along with her televised matches made the public fall in love with Marble. Her friendships with movie stars such as Carole Lombard and Clark Gable gave her a reputation of rubbing elbows with Hollywood royalty. She became a glamorous figure in her own right and gained a platform for her other projects, including sportswear design.

Much of Marble’s life remains shrouded in mystery. Though she wrote not one but two memoirs, questions persist. Was she married to an officer who died in World War II? Did she serve as a spy? Weintraub uses Marble’s memoirs as the foundation of his research, and his discoveries turn this sports biography into a page-turning thriller.

Alice Marble lived a fascinating life, or did she?????? The author set out to investigate the stories about Alice that have circulated for years, even after her death. Was she really a spy? Was she ever married? This is such a fascinating read. I had never heard of Alice Marble before seeing this book, but something about it grabbed my attention. I am so glad that it did because it was such a great read!