I finally read my first book by Fiona Davis, and I absolutely loved it.The Chelsea Hotel in the 1940s and 50s New York is the hotspot for all the creatives in the city. Artists, musicians, poets, filmmakers; they are all here.Maxine Mead, an actress, and Hazel Riley, a playwright, plan to use the Chelsea to get the ball rolling for their careers. They soon find, however, that making a Broadway show isn’t just about who you know; it’s about politics.With fear over communism as its backdrop, Senat...

Life is too short to waste on mediocre books. So for your own sanity, skip this one. The Chelsea Girls is rife with poor character development, typos, and stilted sentence structure. It simply cannot compare with historical fiction greats by authors such as Philippa Gregory or Sharon Kay Penman.But also, as a random aside, my love for Sharon Kay Penman knows no bounds so it is *almost* an unfair comparison. Almost.The Chelsea Girls features, to no one’s surprise, the Chelsea Hotel in New York, h...

Fiona Davis is absolutely one of my favorite voices in historical fiction and her latest, The Chelsea Girls, proves why. This time around, Davis takes on post WWII communism and does so within the world of theater and performing arts in NYC. Deviating from the dual timelines of her past work, The Chelsea Girls begins in Italy where Hazel & Maxine meet on a USO tour and then a few years later, they are reunited in NYC at the Chelsea Hotel to work in theater together. Underneath all the friendship...

This one had a bit of a different feel than the author's other books, but I liked it. The story is centered around the era of McCarthyism which I knew the very basic history of before reading this book. I'm now feeling motivated to seek out other historical fiction or nonfiction books exploring the topic. To me that's always a sign of a good historical fiction book when the author is able to get you interested enough to want to learn more.It's the 1940s and Hazel Riley and Maxine Mead meet while...

A haven for artists, musicians, writers, and actors, the iconic Chelsea Hotel provides the backdrop for this fictional account of friendship and McCarthyism. The main characters meet in Naples as USO entertainers during 1945. Their friendship continues into the 1960’s. One becomes a famous movie star while the other becomes a playwright and, at times, both live at the Chelsea. During the Cold War, people in the entertainment suffered blacklisting, unfair allegations and investigations leading to...

The thing that I always liked most about reading a book by Fiona Davis was that she always chose to write about a well known New York City iconic landmark and somehow allowed it to play a central role in her book. In The Chelsea Girls, Fiona Davis chose The Chelsea Hotel for that role. Fiona Davis was able to properly portray the glitz and glamour of the ionic Chelsea Hotel during the 1940’s, 1950’s and through the turbulent hippie years of the 1960’s. A good part of The Chelsea Girls took place...

Hazel Ripley left her unfulfilling career as a constant understudy to join the USO Tour during World War II. Her new job takes her to the Old World where she meets Maxine Mead, a vivacious and outspoken actress. The two women bond over their love of theater and mutual formative experiences in Italy. Their friendship endures beyond their stint abroad; the two cross paths again at the iconic Chelsea Hotel - a haven for artists and creators - in the 1950s. Hazel catches a break as a playwright, and...

As always, Fiona Davis delivers in this startling story about life post-WWII in the theater industry in NYC. This was a time when the FBI and USA government was going crazy about finding the infiltrating communists. So much so that they accused innocent people and ruined many people's lives. Davis does a fabulous job of telling this story. The Chelsea HotelYes it's a real place. And yes it hosted many celebrities and artists (of all kinds) over the years. I love the little drops of descriptions

Read cover to cover on s perfect summer day at the beach! So many reasons to love this...The McCarthy Era, NYC theater, and the Chelsea Hotel…Fiona Davis has treated us to another wonderful novel, The Chelsea Girls!I love the historical setting of the Chelsea Hotel in NYC in the 1950s, with writers, actors and musicians in residence; READ FULL REVIEW WITH AUTHOR Q & A NOW ON Book Nation by Jen https://booknationbyjen.com/2019/08/2...

I couldn’t get through either “The Address” or “The Masterpiece” by this author, but I enjoyed this book. Fortunately, it did not have dual time periods and I liked the theater setting and the description of the impact of the blacklisting in the 1950s.

Another Fiona Davis winner4 1/2 StarsIt was easy to love this book, “Chelsea Girls” by Fiona Davis. She magically combined all the glitz and glamor oh Hollywood and Broadway with a real spy story. Standing ovation for a her on that achievement. The pace flows very smoothly as seen through the eyes of the two stars, Maxine and Hazel. Meeting as USO entertainers in WWII, they have a relationship that lasts almost 30 years. During this friendship, there are ups and downs like many relationships but...

What a fun, interesting place The Chelsea Hotel must have been.Hazel was in a family of performers, but Hazel wasn’t a performer. Hazel was a playwrite.We meet Hazel when she was on tour with the USO during the war. Hazel met many actors and became friends with them.We follow Hazel as she moves out of her childhood home and into The Chelsea Hotel during the McCarthy Era. When her friend, Maxine, from the USO, moves in too their friendship is renewed.The description of the hotel's decorations, th...

I love the way this Author writes and each book I have read of her's I truly enjoyed. This book is based at the beginning on 1947 with the film industry coming under attack for being suspected of being in the communist party. This book is based on the true story that happened to many in the industry who's career's were destroyed by being blacklisted unfairly. Author Fiona Davis makes a great story out of this with moviestars, writer, spys, FbI and close friendships within a beautiful hotel where...

This is a little bit of a departure for Fiona Davis. No dual timeline, and the landmark—the Chelsea Hotel—plays a slightly less crucial role than the landmarks in her previous works. But the examination of McCarthyism and its impact on the theater world is dark and devastating.

Fiona Davis has captured the hearts of readers with the way she brings life to New York City landmarks through compelling historical fiction. Setting her sights on the Chelsea Hotel, she delves into the world of theater in the McCarthy era. As two women wrestle with wartime memories, fractured friendship, love, and trust, readers will find themselves immersed in the world that Davis created and will be eager for more.