I am grateful to have received a galley of Diva a couple of months ago. Many thanks to @stmartinspress @daisygoodwin and @netgalley for a copy of this amazing book. Going into it, I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into. Prior to reading this book, there were four things I didn't know much or anything at all about: 1) Opera 2) Maria Callas 3) Aristotle Onassis (Jackie Kennedy's second husband) and 4) That Maria was involved in a years long affair with Onassis. It turned out I fell hard and fast for the novel anyway. In between reading binges, I would furiously Google more information about Maria, her childhood and parents, Onassis, different operas and opera terms, and Jackie Kennedy.

I was delighted to learn how this incredibly talented woman came to be so influential in opera and particularly the 1950s-1960s world of "who's who". Without understanding what Maria Callas endured in terms of her relationships, particularly with her mother and later, her husband, it is difficult to understand who Maria can be a likable individual. Goodwin does an incredible job at creating a work which accurately portrays a woman gifted with such impossible talent while struggling to be seen, heard, and loved for who she is outside of her voice. Callas was, without a doubt, the first great diva of the stage. I highly recommend listening to recordings of the works referenced in the novel and watching interviews of Callas (easily found online) to more deeply connect with and immerse yourself within the story.

What any reader picking up this book needs to understand is that it is Biographical Fiction. While it is based on Maria's life primarily from just before the time period she makes Onassis's acquaintance, through just after his marriage to Jackie, there is some background information sprinkled in to help the stranger to Callas's life and career along. For the seasoned Callas fan, there is plenty which will feel comfortably and delightfully familiar. That being said, with the knowledge that it is still bio-fiction, go easy on accuracy of events, opinions, and conversations within the book.

Diva by Daisy Goodwin is a mesmerizing work of historical fiction. This book is compelling and captivating. This is a time period that I really did not know a lot about. Ms Goodwin brings history to life in very realistic ways. Maria Callas led such a fascinating life and this book makes me want to learn more about her life. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

I wish I could give this book 3.5 ⭐️
Told us the story of the great Maria Callas, a strong woman, a Diva, who new about her talent but fell in love. The story focuses on her romance with Aristoteles Onasis, I didn’t love the portrait of her during this time, but it fell real and something that used to happen to women on her time.
I enjoyed this novel now I have to go an listen something from her.

This is a book about a strong amazing woman who overcame a lot of heartache and obstacles to become one of the most beloved and talented opera singer of all time. I love opera and never knew Maria's back story. After reading this book I can understand why she sang with such emoting at her performances. She had such tremendous heartbreak in her life hat you had to realize why she was so emotional and expressive in her singing and acting. She was not lucky in love and was devastated by Ari Onassis but still managed to go on with her life and be a huge success . thank you net galley, st. Martin Press and Daisy Goodwin for allowing me to be mesmerized by this book

"Diva" explores the passionate but tumultuous love affair between opera sensation Maria Callas and Greek tycoon Aristotle Onassis. The narrative navigates Maria's journey from a childhood in Nazi-occupied Greece to her rise as an opera legend. "Diva" captures the clash between Maria and Onassis and their opulent romance, culminating in his marriage to Jackie Kennedy. Daisy Goodwin's portrayal of Maria's strength and vulnerability is compelling, though the sudden ending post-split leaves readers wanting more.

BRAVA!!! A most interesting read of the tumultuous life of Maria Callas ... brought back many memories of those days and times ... I can still hear Madame Callas in my memory ... alas, I never saw her in person, but was always mesmerized when listening to her recordings.

Really enjoyed this book, but I feel that, unless you love opera, or remember those days, there may not be much to interest you. But I still definitely recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

I loved getting to see a new side of Maria. I am loving this trend of Hollywood/celebrity historical fiction. This one did not disappoint.

3.5⭐️

I’ve struggled with how to review this story. I think, ultimately, the problem comes from the fact that it is just that: a story. It’s historical fiction about a prominent person, but how much is history and how much is fiction? It’s hard to know- even more so having gone into this knowing next to nothing about Maria Callas. But I felt some potential for bias in the portrayal of her fall from strong, independent woman, straight to weak, needy “kept woman” in the presence of her rich lover. And then there was the explicit depiction of their unhealthy love life- which had to be an imagined account, and felt, well, “icky,” for lack of a better word- because they WERE real people. Toxic fanfic smut was really unnecessary and unwanted in this case, in my opinion.

Yet, that aside, the story kept me thoroughly engaged from start to finish. So again, it was an engaging story, even if I’m still undecided whether I could say I enjoyed it.

Thank you Daisy Goodwin, St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book is not that good. The characters are so one dimensional even though they are based on real people. I stuck with it to see how she wrote the ending. Because we all know how this "romance" ended.

Daisy Goodwin weaves an historically true, but beautifully fictionalized story of soprano Maria Callas and her rise to operatic fame that connects her with another famous Greek, Aristotle Onassis. As someone who has heard of Onassis and his connection to the Bouvier sisters, but never Maria Callas, I found this story intriguing. It started off a bit slow, with details of Maria’s younger life and relationship with her family slipped in throughout. It picked up from the moment she met Onassis and built up to and ending that left me wanting more. Goodwin is talented in her ability to make her readers feel fully submersed in the past, as if they are right there with her characters.

Maria Callas was one of the most famous opera singers of the 20th century. The legend that she is because of her incredible voice was definitely supplemented by the her ongoing feud with her mother and her relationship with fellow Greek Aristotle Onassis, who married Jackie Kennedy and not her. This book focuses on the glamour and glitter of Maria Callas’ personal and social life and her love affair with Onassis. The book was interesting and captures well Maria’s anguish and despair. I’d heard a lot about Maria Callas and her heartache and shock when she found out that Onassis was marrying Jackie Kennedy, while he professed that he loved her. I found the structure of the book a bit disconcerting. It moved back and forth in time but I could never figure out why there was so much of that, some might have made sense, but maybe the thinking was that it would keep the reader engaged. Overall the book was an okay read and I certainly learned more about Maria Callas, the great diva. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Would recommend for fans of.,.
✨ Famous divas
✨ Masterpiece historical dramas
✨ High fashion

I read a ton of historical fiction when I was younger, but have read much less of it in recent years. I’ve wanted to get back to the genre though and have been dipping my toes back into it, usually with books centered on actresses, singers, and the entertainment industry. Diva, Daisy Goodwin’s latest about opera singer Maria Callas, seemed like a perfect fit for me.

Goodwin incorporates everything I love about historical dramas — decadent descriptions about food and fashion, cameos by other famous contemporaries, and a new lens to view history through. I admittedly didn’t know much about Callas before picking this one up, so I found myself Googling her while I was reading and was impressed by how much history was incorporated into the book.

But as much as I loved those details, there were some things that fell flat. The story jumped around through time and brought up new characters without properly introducing them, which could prove confusing for those with little background of Callas’ life. There were also some romantic scenes and a frustrating focus on Callas’ weight that left me a little 🥴🥴🥴🥴 as well.

I’d definitely recommend this one for hardcore historical fiction fans, or anyone who loves reading about 1950s/60s history.

Diva is out now. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Diva

What a story! I have never heard of the famous opera singer Marie Callas. But man did her story and life draw me in.

The story started off a bit slow for me, which I think is typical when reading such a character driven story and one that pertains to someone’s life.

I loved hearing how Maria fell in love with someone other than her husband and the multiple famous characters she then came across. A lot of whom I had heard of.

I really felt so connected to her story and after finishing I wanted to learn more about Maria and her life so I did a deep dive on google to learn more about her.

I think that’s Daisy Goodwin did such a fabulous job writing her story but adding enough fictionional aspects that allowed readers to enjoy a book like this.

This was such an interesting and intriguing read. I truly loved the glamourous world that Maria took us on and her triumph of finding her voice and fame again after such heartache.

The cover and title drew me to the book. I was fascinated by the story, this is def movie worthy. And I would indeed be one of the first to watch. A must read, hope you enjoy it like I did.

Knowing little about the relationship of Maria Callas and Aristotle Socrates Onassis, I looked forward to reading this book. In Diva by Daisy Goodwin, we get a glance at the battle of psychological one upmanship and manipulation that took place between these two extraordinarily strong personalities. It was not nice. Maria has a terrible relationship with her family, constantly struggles with her weight and with her desire to be the best opera singer in the world. Onassis struggles to make sure everyone knows about his wealth and power. They deserved each other. It is egos on display rather than a love story. I did not find this book interesting, and all the characters were unkind and flawed. Having read all of Daisy Goodwin’s previous novels, I was disappointed in this one. I would recommend reading this book only if you are interested in this duo.

Diva by Daisy Goodwin is a historical romance about Maria Callas - a world famous opera singer - a diva - showing her early life in flashbacks sandwiched between her brilliant career and her relationship with Aristotle Onassis. I purchased the audiobook to read along with the e-book, and it was a truly immersive experience. I highly recommend the audio narrated by the lovely Lorelei King. I enjoy a dialogue heavy narrative to help push the story along. I found that with Diva. Through all the glitz and glamour, the heartaches and struggles, Maria Callas remained an iconic figure, and the author was able to artfully showcase the highs and lows of her tumultuous relationship and her journey to fame. The only negative was that the story ends after Onassis marries Jackie Kennedy, and I would have loved to have more of her life after Onassis and leading up to her untimely death. The story was beautiful, but felt incomplete.

I became fascinated by Maria Callas when I read another historical fiction book which introduced me to Maria in Jackie and Maria by Gill Paul. I loved this book because it was focused only on Callas. I loved the audio which has snippets of opera and the interview with the author. I know I now need to read a biography about her. A wonderfully richly written book about one of the greatest voices of opera.

I LOVED this book. I'm a big fan of historical fiction and love books that tackle the lives of famous people rather than events or situations (although I'm down for that as well). To think that the author took on such an iconic persona as Maria Callas....genius. The character of Callas is fully realized (as are all of the character in the book). We experience her insecurity over the lasting of her talent, her drive, her fight for her career and her fierce love of her man. My favorite parts where when Callas was literally living art imitating life because once she got together with Ari she finally was really feeling emotions that she had effectively portrayed as an actress. A+ to this one!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance reader copy. You can get yours now!

Diva was an emotional read! The writing was beautiful and compelling. Once I started, I couldn’t stop reading! Maria was such a great character and I enjoyed reading out her journey!

I was really excited to read this book. Maria Callas is someone that has always interested me; I’ve always been intrigued by her story.

The story starts at the beginning of Maria’s career as an opera singer. I felt that it dragged a bit. As I read through the chapters, Maria eventually met Aristotle Onassis, the true love of her life. I kept asking myself how much of their relationship was really the way the author depicted it. That is the thing about historical fiction; the truth can blend in with the fictional aspects of the book. As such, I will definitely be reading some biographies about her and Onassis.

As the story continues, we are shown how Maria loved Onassis with her whole heart and how he basically broke her heart when he married Jacqueline Kennedy.

I found parts of the book to jump a bit especially towards the end but all in all it was an enjoyable read.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion.