This was such a good read! As always with Silvia Moreno Garcia, I learned a lot, this time about Golden Age Hollywood. And as always, the characters were amazing. Well drawn, relatable, it’s a great example of a book where people make stupid choices, but you cannot help but understand where they are coming from. It is also written superbly, with shifting points of view, a sense of foreboding, and a mixture of chapters that resemble long interviews after the fact, chapters that bring forward the plot of the movie, and chapters that follow our protagonists. I really loved this book, and I would like to thank NetGalley, Quercus Books, and Silvia Moreno Garcia for the advance copy.

The story revolves around the legendary character of Salome. One of the studios in Golden Age Hollywood is shooting a movie centring her, and every (wannabe) actress in town covets the lead role, which is given to a young and unknown Mexican woman, Vera Larios. Vera soon becomes the talk of the town and the object of Nancy Hartley’s envy. Nancy has been trying to make it in Hollywood for several years and believes herself to be the perfect woman to portrait Salome. Among gossip, (broken) promises, stereotypes, lucky breaks, and shooting days, the stories of Nancy, Vera, and Salome become intertwined in this dazzling and glamourous story, up until a highly cinematic ending.

There are many things that I loved about this book. The characters and the mixed style of the chapters are definitely two of them, together with the plot in itself, which I found wholly entertaining. What I liked the most, though, is the tone of this book. The words used, the short descriptive sentences peppered throughout, the switching points of view and narration styles, everything contributed to making this book a highly cinematographic experience. You could definitely close your eyes and imagine the lights, the sounds, the cameras rolling, and feel like Nancy and Vera were part of a movie themselves, maybe about the making of a movie in Golden Age Hollywood. Up until the action sequence at the end of it all.

Honestly, I don’t have much negative feedback, except maybe that I did not particularly enjoyed the book cover, which I think makes this book look much more focused on lust and desire than what it actually is. But this is really nitpicking.

I cannot wait for it to be published and translated into Italian so I can give it to my mom and we can discuss it, maybe after having watched one or two golden age “Sword and Sandals” movies to get in the right mood!

The Seventh Veil of Salome is a delightful dive into 1950s Hollywood. Vera, a Mexican debutante cast as Salome, and Nancy, an actress vying for the same role, bring drama and ambition to life. The book also offers a fascinating retelling of Salome's biblical story. Moreno-Garcia's vivid writing and engaging characters make the era come alive. It's a compelling and enjoyable read, especially for fans of old Hollywood and historical fiction.

3.5 stars.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is an excellent writer with a great talent for setting the scene. I love old Hollywood and felt really drawn into the setting.

This is written from the prospective of Vera, Nancy, Salome and the others. It eventually became clear that the others were some way into the future and doing an interview of sorts. It would've been nice to know exactly when in time each chapter was happening and more about this interview.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and SMG for the advanced copy.

The Seventh Veil of Salome takes place in the Golden Age of Hollywood and it follows multiple POV'S. The main POV'S are Vera who plays Salome in the movie, Nancy who wanted to get the role of Salome and the POV of Salome. We see Vera Larios who is a young Mexican girl cast in the lead role of Salome. Vera is very new to the machinations of Hollywood and soon becomes the talk of the town. Nancy Heartly desperately wants the role of Salome as she has been in Hollywood for a while now but has nothing to show for it. This means she becomes envious of Vera and wants to take the role away from her. The reader gets Salome's POV as if this is a historical fiction story and whilst you are reading Salome's POV you can imagine Vera playing the role.

This was a very well done story set in 1950s Hollywood. The Hollywood vibes were very much in this story and I had a good time reading this. I enjoyed all 3 main POV's particularly Nancy as she reminded me of the worst characteristics of Evelyn Hugo. I also enjoyed the other minor POV's which gave insight into the Vera and Nancy through other people. Salome's POV was very well done as it felt very historical and in many ways this book felt like 2 stories. It was quite a slow story though and it is not something you would binge read. I would recommend this and I am going to give this 4.5 stars rounded up to a 5. This is my favourite novel this author has written out of the ones I have read. The cover is gorgeous so that is a huge plus. There was also some important conversations on Mexicans and POC's in Hollywood and how they were treated.

"The Seventh Veil of Salome" is historical fiction depicting the behind-the-scenes production of a 1950s Hollywood film about the biblical character Salome. The story is told in an interview-like format with multiple points of view, primarily focusing on Vera, a Mexican-born debutante and starring actress, and Nancy, an aspiring actress struggling to break through in Hollywood. The narrative also includes a retelling of the biblical tale of Salome from her perspective.

As a fan of Silvia Moreno Garcia's work, I appreciate her ability to write captivating tales across various genres. "The Seventh Veil of Salome" is ambitious and beautifully written, showcasing the author's knowledge of cinematic history. However, it didn't captivate me like her other books. The division of the narrative into three separate subplots impoverished the perspectives, leaving me wishing for more depth in each character's arc.The stories of Vera and Nancy seemed to lack substance to me. The whole narrative felt somewhat predictable, and the romance threads were not compelling enough to offset this. Paradoxically, the most interesting aspect for me was Salome's story itself, as it offered great opportunities to provide an intriguing reinterpretation of the biblical narrative and give voice to Salome herself. I somewhat regret that the author did not place more emphasis on her relationship with Jokanaaan. Anyway, I have no doubt that the structure of this book may not work for everyone. The fates of the three women only intertwine until the very last pages. While I found the conclusion emotionally resonant, it felt somewhat delayed, as the book becomes rewarding only towards the end.

All in all, in the case of this book, instead of being guided solely by the author's name, it is worth reading the synopsis. This novel will certainly appeal most to fans of mid-20th century Hollywood history and novels set in that era.

This took me a wee while to get into but once it sucked me in, I flew through it in a few hours. Reminded me a bit of the seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo, so if you like that I highly recommend this.

It’s twisty and you never really know what’s about to happen, and features some truly awful characters who you just wanna shake!

Bit of a bittersweet ending but overall a great read. 4.5 stars!