Michelle Moran has long been one of my favourite authors and I have enjoyed every one of her books so far.  MATA HARI'S LAST DANCE is no exception.

I knew little about Mata Hari when I picked up this book other than that she was a spy.  Margareth Zelle MacLeod, also known as "M'greet", didn't have an easy life growing up, nor during her years of marriage. Learning her background was much appreciated and helped me to understand her choices later in life.  I don't often cry reading books, but this one had me in tears at the end.  Is it weird that even though I knew the history, I still hoped for a different ending??

Moran has a knack for writing about strong female characters in history.  I always feel more akin to them after I've read her books.  Her writing style is easy and smooth and I fly through the pages while wishing sleep and work weren't things.  Also, the cover is stunning!!

The book is on the slim side and if I had a complaint, that would be it.  I wish the book had been longer so that the story didn't feel rushed.  There was much I would have loved to had expanded.  However I do understand that too much of the same thing--dances and conquests--could have weighed the story down too much and made it bland.  I'm looking forward to what Michelle Moran writes next!

4 stars 

Thank you to Touchstone for the ebook version via NetGalley

A very quick but interesting look at the life of Mata Hari, her struggles, her loves, her naivety and her downfall. Michelle Moran has a way of really bringing life to historical women who, while maybe not entirely forgotten by textbooks, are somewhat unexamined.

Didn't grab as much as her other books but I still enjoyed it.

I really loved this book. It was hard to put down. I had never heard of Mata Hari until reading this so it was fascinating to learn of this woman who took Europe by storm in the early 20th century. She built her life from nothing and her imagination. She was beautiful and talented which she traded on to become an icon. The author describes her beautifully leading me to search for pictures of her. This book was beautiful and over too soon. I highly recommend this! Another great novel by Michelle Moran!