One women's quest for revenge gets tangled with her cousin's desperate plea for her help in this 1930s historical fiction set during the Chicago World's Fair. There are three perspectives in this book: Rose, a mysterious dancer at the World's Fair who is plotting revenge on the man who killed her family; Mina, a young woman who just gave birth in captivity and had her baby taken from her; and Danny, the not-quite mobster who was paid by Mina's uncle (definitely a mobster) to keep her hidden until after her pregnancy and to arrange the baby's adoption despite Mina's protests.

The backdrop of the World's Fair is a great setting and it made the book special. The drama was fun, and the characters were likable. I hoped for more depth and development in the characters and relationships, but ultimately it was a fun book anyway.

Despite some evidence of historical research in immigrant life in 1930s Chicago, this novel has too many subjects and subplots.
The back story of facism in Italy and the rise of pro-racism in the US is one theme, plus mobsters in Chicago, and race relations in 1930s US. And then there’s the World’s Fair history and carnival life and small people and so called “freak shows.” Whew! I wish the plot had focused on one of these but it read like the author kept going off on tangents.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-ARC of Sinners of Starlight City by Anika Scott.
A book that centers around Chicago during the World's Fair, a mob family, and cousins that are trying to revenge injustice. Scott creates a story that has a great balance of suspense and historical facts to keep the reader engaged.

I do not remember reading another book about the Chicago World Fair, so I was very excited to pick up this book and read about it. I live in Illinois, so Chicago is like coming home for me. As I read, I was able to picture the city and locations.

The Chicago World Fair is like nothing I have ever seen. The unique acts, the hugeness, and the sense of family all had me wishing that I could head to Chicago right now. This place came alive to me, I could hear the calls of the acts, smell the food, hear the sounds of the games, I could picture the entertainers working the crowds.

Author Anika Scott wrote a book that pulled me in and kept me wanting to never put the book down. I love the history of Chicago, the depth of the characters, and the strength of the storyline. Everything about this book is wonderful. I look forward to more from her in the future.

Anika Scott created a riveting and unforgettable novel with "Sinners of Starlight City." Set in the midst of the Great Depression at the wonderous World's Fair in Chicago, each chapter is fraught with tension, each character carrying out a tightrope act as they balance between a world of violence and the possibility of a brighter future.

Rosa Mancuso has long lived two lives. As the glamorous Madame Mystique, she dazzles crowds with her burlesque show, illusions, and dancing. She curries favors, builds a following, and gains the acclaim necessary to earn top billing at the Chicago World's Fair. For many, this would be the achievement of a lifetime. For Rosa, however, it's just a means to an end as she works her connections to get close enough to the famed Italian Air Fleet to execute a revenge killing almost a decade in the making.

Rosa finds herself drawn into the shadier side of Chicago's Mob Scene when her estranged cousin, Mina, recognizes her photo in a local paper and comes to her desperate for help as her father and uncle try to force her to abandon her newborn daughter. As a product of a mixed-race marriage herself, Rosa finds she is unable to turn away Mina and baby Hope. Now with the threat of the mob and her chance of revenge speeding toward her Rosa must use all of her wits to try and wrestle her uncles into meting out the justice her mother so deserved while also running another con behind the scenes that might just give Mina and Hope the happy ending she never recieved.

Scott's novel is sweeping, and gorgeous and will be the hit of book clubs across the nation as readers flock to a novel that provides an atmospheric and lush look at an underrepresented era of historical fiction. Multiple plotlines and perspectives will keep readers on the edge of their seats as they race to "Sinners of Starlight City's" brilliant conclusion. Perfect for seasoned readers of Fiona Davis, Kate Quinn, and Martha Kelly Hall, and for fans new to the historical genre who are interested in exploring a point in history not centered around a World War, "Sinners of Starlight City" is sure to be atop everyone's best of the year list. A special thanks to NetGalley and to William Morrow for providing an Advanced Reader's Copy of "Sinners of Starlight City" in exchange for an unbiased review!

I got about 15% in and instantly got confused the back story to this was odd and I could follow, I reread 4 times and just couldn’t sorry wish I could sounded amazing

Just finished this read.
Wow! I loved setting of the World's Chicago Fair! 1933- 34!
The description was so vivid that I felt like I was there myself.
It was like seeing it for the very first time through Rosa's and Mina's eyes, to experience what they did.
The cover is gorgeous! Madame Mystique on the front.
Twists and turns that I didn't see coming made it even more exciting.
I had no idea that there World's Chicago Fair was in the Depression era also.
 A Century of Progress World's Fair in 1933–34 was the name of this one.
A new exhibition includes incubators for premium babies born too early like Hope (Rocket). Love that nickname.
This was an excellent adventure that I enjoyed very much.
My favorite thing was it was told from Rosa's and Mina's Point of View.
My second favorite was the setting of course! I learned something new because I only thought Chicago had only one World's Fair which was 1893.
How cool to learn they had another one!
5 stars for a well written story. I highly recommend!
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Chicago World’s Fair of 1933–1934 was, according to all accounts, a grand extravaganza. Fifteen years after the end of one world war, with the tensions that would lead to a second coming into view and the Great Depression in full swing, many factors might have dampened public enthusiasm for such a spectacle. Instead, the exact opposite seems to have occurred. From camels to incubators—with magicians and burlesque dancers, an international air show, and more—the World’s Fair had something for everyone.

Against this chaotic but joyous background, Anika Scott sets the entwined stories of two cousins, Rosa Mancuso and Mina Gallo. Rosa, although born in the United States, spends the second half of her childhood in Sicily, until a family tragedy linked to the rise of fascism sends her back to the land of her birth in search of revenge. There she renews her acquaintance with Mina, whose out-of-wedlock pregnancy has brought her into conflict with the older men who rule their family and are determined to separate Mina from her newborn baby, whatever the cost to mother and child.

It's a quick and emotionally satisfying read, with many twists and turns, intense passions, hidden pasts, and nasty deeds. Mina and Rosa are both sympathetic characters, and even some of the villains turn out to have hidden, better sides. Nor should we underestimate the role played by the World’s Fair itself. More than a setting, it exudes a kind of magic that reaches across the decades, infusing everything it touches.

I will be interviewing this author on my blog (link below) on August 4, 2023.

Such a great Historical Fiction book! Anika Scott does it again. A gripping story of retribution, belonging, and survival, Sinners of Starlight City boldly explores the complexity of identities straddling ethnic lines and asks, who gets to decide who we are and where we belong?

It’s no secret I love Historical Fiction, and I always love finding a book that’s a different type of Historical Fiction!

I loved last summer’s Soviet Sisters by Anika Scott, so I was very eager to read her latest, and it definitely didn’t disappoint!

Cousins Mina and Rosa are estranged from each other and the rest of their families, but they come together to help each other settle some very complex family drama against the backdrop of the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair.

I loved the historical details of the fair that were woven seamlessly into the story, and I loved the side venture into 1920’s Sicily. This is a treasure trove of historical gold amid a great family drama with a very satisfying resolution. Definitely don’t skip this!

Sinners of Starlight is a historical fiction set during the Chicago World Fair in 1933. It follows two main storylines about a dancer at the fair and a young woman searching for her recently born child that she has been forcefully separated from.

It’s a well written novel that is great for historical fiction fans that are looking for an era that isn’t overly saturated or featured in the genre. I did find myself more interested in the storyline of Mina, her baby, and her mobster family. This book tackles biracial marriage, family, and revenge. It’s a rather unique historical fiction read.


Thank you very much to William Morrow and NetGalley for the review copy.

The Chicago worlds fair has always fascinated me, the engineering marvels, the shows, the food, and mostly the people.

This book gives such an insight into the lives of two women connected at first by birth and later by desperation, help, and finally trust.

Mina and Rosa have lived very different lives but both have had to survive trauma in their way and at the beginning of the book we find Mina in a situation that most women would find horrific.

In Paolo, Danny, and Mina's family, we have our villains and in the beginning, I was so convinced I knew what would happen, I'm so glad I was wrong.

Each of these women had come to the fair with a purpose, one filled with a lust for revenge while another had a hope of the purest sort, each would do whatever it took to end up where they needed to be no matter the cost or the pain.

While this book is a story of growth it's also a story of finding your strength, survival, and for some even a chance at redemption and a future they had only dreamed of.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing a copy of this ebook, I have voluntarily read and reviewed it and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'll be posting this review to social media and retail sites at the end of the week.

Thank you Netgalley and William Morrow for access to this arc.

I’ll be honest and say that I had doubts about most of the characters along the way. Some are not nice and some are horrible. Some do terrible things while others know the truth about that and are content to accept this or look the other way. Only a very few come through to the end with flying colors. Why are so many awful things planned and done? Revenge in some cases. Power and control in others. La familia and honor are everything. Or nearly everything.

Rosa endured snubs and then loss after loss. As a mixed race child she knew the love of parents only to lose them. As a teen she had to flee for her life and then rebuild it before realizing that she could take revenge on the one responsible. Danny had to fight against parental abuse and grew up to be a man who “fixed” problems by whatever means. Tino and Sal Gallo … well, thugs will be thugs. Paolo’s actions can be laid at the feet of the facism sweeping Italy.

I enjoyed how strong the women are in the book. Rosa, Mina who won’t give in to her family’s demands, Fiammeta, who survived that terrible night along with Rosa, and the other women of the Oriental Fair who are seen as misfits by society but who stick together to face that. The other “found family” members are given their dignity and courage and allowed to stand up against the abuse and demands made on Rosa and Mina. The world at large might view these people as outcasts but together they are a family.

But how was it going to end? Could things be pulled off? Would Rosa get her revenge and Mina get her baby? Was Danny all bad? Would Rosa’s uncles uphold family honor? I was on the edge of my seat. When the blood congealed and the dust settled, I was satisfied. It wasn’t pretty but it all worked. So (mostly) morally gray and morally black characters in an intricate revenge plot set against a glimmering 1930s World’s Fair that was supposed to uplift people during a time of economic depression for the win.

I enjoyed The Sinners of Starlight City by Anika Scott. I read a lot of historical fiction but haven’t read much from the 1930’s. This book features two stories of cousins, who didn’t grow up together but nonetheless their stories intertwine. Mina has a new baby that is taken to the incubators at the Chicago World’s Fair before being taken to an adoption agency. She has to figure out a way to get her baby back. The biggest star at the fair is Madame Mystique, who Mina recognizes as a cousin she hasn’t seen in years. Madame Mystique is really Rosa Mancuso, Mina’s cousin who moved to Italy with her mother after the death of her father. She narrowly escapes after her family is killed by Mussolini’s henchmen. Rosa returns to the US and finally feels she might have the opportunity to avenge the death of her family. I couldn’t put the book down and kept reading to find out what would happen with each of their stories. I appreciate NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for this ARC! This was another solid entry into William Morrow's historical fiction books. I enjoyed this look into the Chicago World's Fair but found the character development to be rushed and the final conflict to be a tad confusing. It felt as though the characters all had their big revelations in the last 10 pages or so and did not seem to reflect the story as it had been portrayed so far.

3.5/5 Stars
I will start this review by saying that there’s a whole lot of good things here, in particular the descriptions of the performances by Madame Mystique. These, together with the scenes telling her story, as Rosa Mancuso, in her youth were really very nicely done, and I could find no fault with them. I’d even go as far as to say that they were a joy to behold. I also liked the way that Scott set up her story, which was fairly complex, but fully understandable. You see, Rosa was the daughter of an Italian mother and a Black father, and back then, these types of relationships weren’t looked upon so kindly. Considering the Chicago location, with its notorious reputation for housing the Italian mobs, any daughter who marries outside the “fold” and without the family’s approval, would have problems. The whole premise is quite realistic. Even the “escape” of Rosa and her mother back to Sicily, and the rise of fascism, forcing Rosa to leave her second home makes total sense.

However, there were several other things that didn’t sit totally right with me. For example, I’m not sure I totally bought the parallel with Mina here, as some of the details seemed sketchy. She’s the daughter of the head of her very powerful family, and that’s a prestigious position. Still, here she is, going out to become a nurse. My thinking is, I don’t know if the family would have approved of her going to work, since back then, her main job would be to get married to some other Italian mobster boss’ kid, and make the best political connection possible. Granted, maybe Mina was more of a rebel than Scott seems to have portrayed her (or maybe I missed something). Her getting pregnant by a Black doctor also felt somewhat out of character. Getting back to Rosa, I’m also confused as to why her family in Sicily were murdered so brutally. Yes, the Italian fascist were as inhumane and cruel as the Germans were, but surely when dealing with a non-Jewish family, they would have tried to form an alliance rather than just suddenly muscle into their territory.

My biggest problem here was the historical inaccuracies concerning the Chicago World’s Fair. Now, Chicago is my home town and I love reading any kind of fiction set there. So, I was a bit surprised that Scott changed so much about both the city and the World’s Fair. Yes, I know… literary license and all that. Still, I would have preferred that Scott not taken so many liberties with the fairground’s features. Yes, it was true that a squadron of 24 Italian planes, led by the infamous Italo Balbo landed during on Lake Michigan for the Fair. And yes, there really was an incubator house showing the amazing, new medical advancement in keeping premature babies alive and helping them get strong. But with these exceptions – essential as they may have been to the story – it seemed far too many other things Scott included here were total fiction.

I know, these types of things shouldn’t impact my enjoyment of a book, but I can’t help myself. I assure you; I can tolerate, and sometimes even ignore a few bits of fudging with history. But I get frustrated when things are glaringly wrong, and then I get annoyed when inaccuracies get all piled up, one upon another. For me, they are distracting, and I find I can’t connect with the characters as easily. This is a real shame because I found this book to be very nicely written (which kept me reading), but I think this story could easily have been far more effective if Scott had just nudged these characters into a more accurate depiction of the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. So, although I can still recommend this to people who aren’t as picky as I am regarding Chicago and historical facts, I’m not sure this is the best novel for sticklers like me. That said, I think for me, this book deserves three and a half stars out of five, which shows that I did like it a good deal, I just didn’t love it.

5 Stars

“Magic is a way for you to question the things you thought were true. The impossible is possible.”
~ Madame Mystique

I grew up in a small Northern Indiana town about two and a half hours East of Chicago. As a nerdy teen, I would often skip school on a Thursday and catch the Amtrak to Chicago for free museum day. My mother grew up in the even smaller town of Beverly Shores, Indiana. Now part of the Indiana Dunes National Park, Beverly Shores is home to the Century of Progress Homes from the 1933 World’s Fair. Between our close proximity to Chicago and my mother’s uncommon upbringing among the famous World’s Fair houses, I grew up listening to stories of gangsters, Chicago’s tycoons of industry, and the peculiarity of the Century of Progress Homes. So, when I read the description for Sinners of Starlight City by Anika Scott I knew I was in for a treat and this novel did not disappoint.

Rosa Mancuso, aka Madame Mystique, a burlesque dancer at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, is plotting vengeance on the man who murdered her family in Italy. Mina Gallo has given birth to a bi-racial baby prematurely and is trying to get her baby back while also escaping from her mobster family that is hunting for her. Danny, a mobster being paid by the Gallo family to return Mina and take her baby to an orphanage, is just trying to stay alive. All with very different goals, their lives intertwine at the fair and they realize they can all get what they want if they work together. With an intriguing cast of characters helping them along the way, Rosa, Mina, and Danny find that family is not always bonded by blood.

Sinners of Starlight City is my top read of 2023 so far. I know you are not supposed to judge a book by the cover, but the cover for this novel is stunning. It really sets the tone for the mystical aspects of the book and its star character Rosa. Scott’s writing is nothing short of magical. She flawlessly uses mixed point of view, first for Rosa and third for Mina and Danny. Her lush descriptions of each setting immerse the reader in rich detail and is a masterful showcase of showing versus telling. She skillfully uses flashbacks to reveal backstory and develop each character’s narrative. The use of magic throughout the story evokes a dreamlike atmosphere, particularly in scenes at the fair.

It’s funny, but the book I’ve enjoyed most this year has been the hardest to write a review for. There is so much to love about this book, I highly recommend it to any fans of historical fiction, those who enjoy a dose of magic in their novels, or anyone wanting to study superb novel writing techniques. Sinners of Starlight City is going to stay with me for a long time as one of my favorite books.

Many thanks to Anika Scott, HaperCollins Publishers Inc., and NetGalley for a complimentary ARC of this novel.

High praise for Sinners of Starlight City! I love historical fiction but admit that when I started reading this I wasn't sure what I was getting in to. Rosa Mancuso is Madame Mystique in the Chicago World's Fair in 1933. Her burlesque show at the fair is only a part of her life, she is the niece of a mob boss and the daughter of a Black man who was not accepted by her mother's family.

Rosa's cousin Mina escapes her own confinement and comes to the fair to find Rosa and beg for help. There is Danny, a hoodlum who has been holding Mina but feels a need to change his ways. Mina's father and uncle who want to control her life are after her.

Told in flashbacks, we learn about all these family members and more about Rosa's life and the devastation she lived through. Rosa wants revenge for the murder of her family in Italy, and she'll make strange alliances to get it done. I was rooting for Rosa and Mina and hoping that something good could become of their lives.

Fascism led an interesting part of this story along with gangsters and the mob. Scott truly took us on a interesting ride and I loved it!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Set during the Great Depression at the Chicago World’s Fair, as well as in the past in Italy, with a diverse cast of characters, Sinners of Starlight City is a story of a Sicilian family told in multiple points of view. Rosa is the primary voice and driving character. She has experienced tremendous loss and trauma. She is the enigmatic Madame Mystique at the World’s Fair. Her story emerges gradually. Her character is finely drawn an interesting. The many characters surrounding her are nearly as rootless as she is, having suffered their own losses. This book is serious and deep as it delves into family, lost and found, and the consequences of seeking revenge.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I am so disappointed that I didn’t love this book. The title and cover are beautiful, and a World’s Fair setting? Perfect. Sadly I think too much was happening here. I was really sold on Rosa’s story in the first few chapters, and moving to Mina took me out of that. But I was sort of interested in Mina as well. Eventually, though, there’s Rosa and Mina and Danny, and we’re dealing with fascism, family, the Mafia, race relations, women’s rights… and it was too much for one small book.

On the plus side, it inspired me to learn more about certain points in history.