Mrs. Houdini : a novel

Title:

Author:

Kelly, Victoria.

Personal Author:

Kelly, Victoria.

ISBN:

9781501110900

Edition:

First Atria books hardcover edition.

Physical Description:

306 pages ; 24 cm

Abstract:

After Harry dies, Beth Houdini starts noticing everywhere the code he promised he'd send her from the great beyond and retraces their remarkable romance, from Coney Island, to Budapest, to Hollywood, in an effort to decipher the urgent message from her husband.

Personal Subject:

Houdini, Harry, 1874-1926-Fiction.

Houdini, Bess-Fiction.

Genre:

Biographical fiction.

Historical fiction.

Summary:

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Ginter Park	Book	FICTION KELLY	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

"Richly lyrical and thought-provoking" ( Publishers Weekly , starred review), this "stellar debut from a novelist to watch" (Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize winning author) explores the passionate marriage of Harry Houdini and his wife, Bess--a love story that defied death itself.

Before escape artist Harry Houdini died, he vowed he would find a way to speak to his beloved wife, Bess, from beyond the grave using a coded message known only to the two of them. But when a widowed Bess begins seeing this code in seemingly impossible places, it becomes clear that Harry has an urgent message to convey. Unlocking the puzzle will set Bess on a course back through the pair's extraordinary romance, which swept the illusionist and his bride from the beaches of Coney Island, to the palaces of Budapest, to the back lots of Hollywood. When the mystery finally leads Bess to the doorstep of a mysterious young photographer, she realizes that her husband's magic may have been more than just illusion.

In surprising turns that weave through the uncertain days of the dawn of the twentieth century and continue into the dazzling 1920s, Mrs. Houdini is a "dazzling and enchanting" ( Shelf Awareness , starred review) tale, "a marvel that gallops through time and space" (Associated Press), and a "mesmerizing reimagining" ( People ) of one of history's greatest love stories.

Reviews (1)

Kirkus Review

Master magician Harry Houdini has proved an endless source of fascination to writers and filmmakers. This debut novel shifts the focus to his strong-willed wife, Bess, drawing on real events but conjuring a fanciful end to their long marriage. The two meet as young, struggling performers in Coney IslandHarry performing magic tricks, Bess singing with a female troupe. They marry and endure a hardscrabble life till Harry's daring, ingenious stunts start to attract international attention. Intercut with the story of Harry's rise to stardom is a second narrative tracing Bess' adventures and misadventures after her husband's mysterious death in 1926. Insisting that he promised, on his deathbed, to communicate with her from beyond the grave, Bess falls prey to scheming mediums claiming to relay his messages. Realizing she's being duped, Bess begins to look elsewhere for Harry's presence. She finds coded messages and joins forces with a young photographer who proves crucial to her quest. Unfortunately, this part of the bookwhich abruptly departs from the historical recordcomes off as a little silly, with a Nancy Drew-like quality to it. Throughout, the period details are rich, and it's fun to keep company with the Houdinis as they mingle with Jack London, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and other celebrities of the era. And who wouldn't want to be a fly on the wall at the magicians' salon that Besschildless and longing for something to call her ownopens in Manhattan? The book flirts with spiritual themes and with the idea that the divide between this life and the next may be permeable. But Houdini was, in the end, a down-to-earth kind of guy, and one can't help but wonder what he would have made of the otherworldly turns in this sweet if not quite satisfying novel. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.