Review
The cover and and true-story basis of Mob Queen intrigued me. But I did not expect for it to stay with me long after I finished. Virginia Hill is an inspirational force to be reckoned with. As readers follow her journey from escaping an abusive husband only to put herself in more danger while she searches for her missing friend, we get to know her as the powerhouse that she is. We get an intimate look at the 1930s Chicago mob scene and how women are undervalued and underestimated at every turn. But then walks in Virginia Hill who uses it to her advantage and turns the mafia world upside-down.
Virginia’s loyalty to her best friend and the difficult choices she makes in the book puts her in the morally gray category. She is tenacious, resourceful, confident, tough, and loyal to herself and her gender. I couldn’t help but admire her ambition, wit, and quick thinking in life-and-death situations. I also enjoyed getting to know the other famous names and how the mob scene changed after Al Capone’s conviction.
I definitely commend Erin Bledsoe for delivering a strong story with an even stronger heroine, jaw-dropping moments, and even some humor sprinkled in. I can’t wait to talk to her about it on the Cantina Book Club Podcast later this year. In the meantime, I highly recommend historical fiction and organized crime aficionados to pick it up. Mob Queen is available now.
Book
All Virginia Hill wanted was a better life.
She escaped her abusive father and dreary, small-town Georgia existence by marrying a man who took her to Chicago. But the realities of the Depression–and her husband’s volatile temper–soon destroyed Virginia’s fragile idea of happiness. With the help of a new friend, Madeline, she finds the courage to stand up to her husband–only to end up divorced and destitute.
Down but not out, Virginia joins Madeline working as a waitress in one of the Mob’s favorite hangouts, a restaurant smack-dab in the middle of the World’s Fair. But when Madeline disappears after getting involved with the wrong Mafia man, Virginia vows to find her friend no matter what. But to do that, she’ll have to follow Madeline into the heart of the Chicago Mob . . .
As Virginia climbs the ranks and unravels the mystery of what happened to her friend, working for the Mafia proves both seductive and deadly. What started as a desperate attempt to find Madeline brings power she never imagined a poor girl from Georgia would ever have. It turns out a woman can be a mobster, but she’ll have to give up her heart to do it.
