If you are looking for a historical fiction book with a little glamour and old Hollywood. This is the book for you! The Blue Butterfly is the story of Marion Davies. Before reading this book I didn’t know much about Ms. Davies or W.R. Hearst, but now I find myself looking up facts about the time and deep diving on the Hearst’s. While, it did start to drag a little in the middle, the story was interesting enough to hold my attention until the very end. If you like historical fiction, but are looking for something a little different, I highly recommend The Blue Butterfly. It’s being released May 3rd and I’m excited to have others read this book and hear your opinions. **Disclaimer: I was given this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. #thebluebutterfly #netgalley #shewritespress #LeslieJohansenNack

I loved the idea of this book but it fell a little flat in the execution. It dragged on a bit and felt more like a story of the relationship of Marion Davies and WR Hurst. I love reading about this time period and I was so excited to read it but it was a hard one to get through.

This is a historical fiction novel, but there are not a ton of non-fiction sources for Davies’ life so the historical bits have come from other people’s stories and biographies. So the fiction part is probably a lot higher than others in the same genre. This is a frustrating thing for me, and had I known that before picking up this book, I probably would not have read it. A good historical fiction novel makes you want to go out and find the sources and read those for yourself, and I can’t do that with this one.
It was interesting to read about someone new from that era, but I wish there were more sources to have made it a more credible telling of her story. I do wish that the author’s note about the lack of information had been put out upfront instead of at the end of the book. I think it would give a more honest reading to the novel that way.

Question: 🤔
Have you ever read a book you enjoyed so much that you could not wait to tell your friends about it? The Blue Butterfly by Leslie Johansen Nack is that book for me. Y-E-S!!! It is that good, and you don't want to miss it!

Who is Marion Davies, and what makes this book a delicious read?
Marion Davies was a silent film star with a brilliant career. Marion never received credit for her work due to her scandalous long-time affair with William Randolph Hearst, the huge multimillionaire newspaper tycoon. Not only was Marion his mistress, but she also had his child out of wedlock and loved him with an unmatched fierce, passionate ferocity.

At one time, Marion was the richest woman in Hollywood and loved entertaining her friends Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Clark Gable, and Groucho Marx. The book is historical fiction based on true accounts of the classic Hollywood a-listers. It is full of sizzling details about their lavish, sometimes indecent lifestyles. It is "ooh la la" juicy! 🍾🍸

The Blue Butterfly is available on May 3rd.
5 Huge ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you, NetGalley and She Writes Press, for this delectable book. Way to go, Leslie Johansen Nack! Historical fiction fans are going to love this book!

I was unfamiliar with Marion Davies until reading this historical novel. I knew who William Randolph Hearst was but had not a clue about his personal life. The Blue Butterfly is an engaging read. Davies was a passionate spitfire who fell into an illicit relationships with a newspaper czar. She railed against convention and learned to make a life that worked for her, within the confines of the parameters carved out.
Nada evokes the golden era of Hollywood as the setting for Davies life and work. She captures the essence of each of the characters so that readers can glimpse an intimate look.
The Blue Butterfly is a fascinating read.

I found The Blue Butterfly, by Leslie Johansen Nack, to be fascinating. I was unaware of Marian Davis and her place in history and was pulled into the story from the beginning. It took me a bit to finish as I found myself researching parts because of my desire to know more. I'm so glad the cover and the title drew me to this one. Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher, for providing me with an ARC ebook of this historical fiction novel, in exchange for my honest review.

Book received for free through NetGalley

Took a bit to get into this book but I’m glad I read it. A realistic and probable glimpse at the past.

The story of the actress Marion Davies and the publishing baron William Randolph Hearst, comes to life in this fascinating look at one of the legendary romances of the last century. Marion came from a family of four sisters with varying degrees of beauty and talent. Her mother’s goal was to have all her daughters marry into wealth and security, and she believed that the New York stage was the best vehicle for success. Marion and Hearst’s deep and passionate relationship lasted for thirty-four years, but they never married because his wife would not grant him a divorce.

Born in Brooklyn, Marion takes to the stage as a chorus girl, eventually landing a job in the Ziegfeld Follies. There she catches the eye of the wealthy and much older Hearst. He pursues her with gifts and flowers. Even though she is warned against him by her fellow dancers; Marion and Hearst are soon involved in an ardent affair. Hearst takes charge of Marion’s career eventually forming his own movie production company so that Marion can become a film star. Despite Hearst never flagging love for Marion, the two can not marry because Hearst’s wife will not grant him a divorce. Eventually he moves Marion and her family to Hollywood so that Marion’s career can truly take off. Despite her love for Hearst, Marion begins an affair with Charlie Chaplin which continues on and off for years. In the end Marion remains with Hearst until his death, their love and devotion to each other never dying away despite all of the obstacles thrown in their path.

From the bright lights of Broadway, trips to European capitals, yachting to South America, and living in the sumptuous San Simeon, this novel teems with images of wealth, opulence and the famous. Their Hollywood circle of friends include L.B. Mayer, Mary Pickford, Greta Garbo and Clark Gable to name but a few. Wild parties, affairs and gossip are all apart of Marion’s lifestyle. The novel teems with delightful descriptions of exquisite clothes, gleaming jewels, grand mansions, and sumptuous feasts. The Blue Butterfly will transport the reader to another time, as well as a world most of us will experience.
Many of us only know Marion’s story from the vapid portrayal of her in Orson Welles’ movie Citizen Kane. This book paints the picture of a women whose talent, intelligence and drive created a rich life for herself and her family despite the many obstacles thrown in her way. Though her life was not without tragedy, the love between Marion and Hearst was always there sustaining her.

Pulling from far ranging sources such as newspaper and magazine articles; IMBD; the Hearst Castle website; various biographies of Hearst; as well as a posthumously published autobiography of Marion that used her own recorded thoughts; Ms. Nack has brought to the pages of this novel a moving story of Marion Davies and the multi-faceted life she led.

I give 4.5 (rounded up to 5) stars to this well-written, compulsively-readable book for its comprehensive look into the decades-long love affair between actress Marion Davies and publisher William Randolph Hearst. Told from Marion’s perspective, the book gives readers an in-depth understanding of why a teenaged vaudeville performer was able to capture and retain Hearst’s love and attention from the beginning of their affair until Hearst’s death decades later. The book is well-researched and offers an in-depth examination of the relationship between two flawed, fascinating, larger-than-life individuals, as well as an insiders look into the machinations of Old Hollywood.

I have always been a big fan of Old Hollywood fiction books and I look for books in that genre often. I just had to read this one when I saw it was also about Marion Davies. I have always been a fan of hers. She was a funny comedienne and lived a lavish life. This book shows you what might have happened in the private life of Marion and the wealthiest man, William Randolph Hurst. They were together as a couple for a long time, he shaped her Hollywood career, and they had magnificent parties and loved each other for a very long time.

This was a fun little look at the old Hollywood glamour and I recommend it to all Hollywood fans.

This book isn't for me. I've desperately tried to finish it but I'm at 60% and I am not enjoying it. There isn't a single character I like or admire. I'm intrigued by the historical details but the story is plodding along with the same types of behaviours over and over. It's not compelling me to finish. The cover is beyond gorgeous, though! And I'm glad to see that others are enjoying this.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

I really, really enjoyed this book! It was extremely compelling and I fell in love with the main character! It was a compelling story and I found it hard to put down.

While I loved learning a little more about Marion Davies as well as Hollywood at the time. I have to say after reading this William Randolph Heart was the worst. He was a horrible human being.

Many years ago, I visited Hearst Castle, San Simeon, and was intrigued by the excess of wealth and astronomical cost of building and furnishing a home. Having heard tales of the goings-on and visitors to the estate, it was with open arms that I read The Blue Butterfly. It is a good read, well written and an interesting chronicle of what happened to Marion Davies during her love affair with William Hearst. Whether you agree with the lifestyle or find Marion not to your liking, the book is undoubtedly an accurate description of her life and times whilst with the publishing magnate. I enjoyed it immensely and thank the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC copy.

I seem to be the only nay-sayer here, but I couldn’t stand reading all the whining about the fact that Hearst would not divorce his wife (and mother of his 5 sons) to marry his mistress. He gave her everything money could buy – and also provided for her family: her parents and her 4 siblings. He gave her the stardom that she sought.

Obviously this is a great hit for those who like memoirs – even fictional ones. And of course, that makes me wonder how much of the book is true. Maybe there’s an afterward that tells that, but 50% was more than enough for me.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, She Writes Press, in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story of the life of movie star, Marion Davies. I felt like I was reading her diary. It was written in first person narrative. Most of her life was lived in an affair with William Randolph Hearst with a side affair with Charlie Chaplin. She lived an opulent lifestyle. It was interesting to read about the extravagances. While I enjoy reading how people lived in a different time than me, I found a lot of the book to be depressing. I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really did not know much about William Randolph Hearst and Marion Davies before I read Blue Butterfly by Leslie Johansen Nack. I found the book to be full of interesting facts about both their lives as well as the movie world as it was in the 1020’s, including the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Louella Parsons. Hearst took very good care of Miss Davies and showered both her and her family with riches otherwise unavailable to them. However, the relationship between these two left me feeling bad for both. While they did have moments of happiness, there never seems to be any real commitment. While Hearst did open experiences for Davies, these appeared to be only to control her not to advance her aspirations. The book was a good read and did give the reader a glimpse of a different world, but I did not really enjoy the manipulations of both Hearst and Davies.

The Blue Butterfly reimagines the life and career of Marion Davies, who fell in love with the publishing industry giant, William Randolph Hearst, when she was a teenage show girl. After moving to Hollywood, Marion’s career accelerated and she starred in more than 40 films between 1917 and 1937. Although a successful actress, with the public’s interest in on-screen sexual buzz, she was hampered by Hearst’s refusal to allow even the most innocent of on-screen kissing, and he refused to encourage her to spread her wings with regards to comedic roles, which is where her real talent lay. Hearst’s wife, Millicent, with whom he had five sons, was a thorn in Marion’s side, stubbornly refusing, until many years later, to accept that Marion was the love of Hearst’s life. Perhaps Marion’s downfall was that she was genuinely in love, but was never able to fulfill the role of wife.
The novel is filled with opulence and decadence and glamour, elaborate homes, expensive yachts, rich and powerful friends, with cameo appearances by noteworthy names. Marion’s frustration at always being second best to Millicent made for a rocky relationship at times and she chafed against Hearst’s control of her life. The novel lacks narrative tension (perhaps more showing rather than telling would help) and a chunk of the book feels like a filmography, but it goes a long way toward explaining why Marion allowed herself to be dominated and caged by Hearst with whom she remained steadfast up until his death. This will be enjoyed by anyone interested in the growth of Hollywood from ‘silents’ to ‘talkies’, and the lives of the rich and famous.

The Blue Butterfly is a vibrant period novel that reimagines the controversial love story of a classic film star! I loved the characters and the way I had to keep asking myself if I was right in how I thought the plot was turning out.

A fictionalized account of Marion Davies, silent film star, and her longtime lover, William Randolph Hearst. While I did not like either character through much of the book, it is a fascinating look at the lives of the rich and famous as the film industry took off. Highly recommend.