I would like to thank Net Galley and W.W. Norton and Company for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. I love movies, and books about movie stars, especially of the "Golden Era", so this was right up my alley. Merle Oberon was a noted film star, nominated for an Oscar in 1936, and cast as Cathy in Wuthering Heights in 1939. For her entire life, she kept her origins a secret, from her friends, her fans , even her husbands. The woman she believed to be her sister was actually her mother, and the woman who raised her was her grandmother. Merle Oberon was born Estelle Merle Thompson, and nicknamed Queenie. She was Anglo Asian. She was born in India, although for her life she claimed to have been born in Tasmania. In the 20's and 30's, Asians were not allowed to emigrate freely to the USA, and were not able to act as anything other than stereotypical Asian roles in films. By dint of hard work, her charm , beauty and a net work of lies, Merle Oberon overcame her birth to become a star. I have read some things about her , Micheal Korda's 2 books- Charmed lives, about his family( she was married to his uncle Alexander Korda) and Queenie, his fictionalized biography of her. This book is a fully engrossing telling of a most complex life. It is packed with details of the movie system, the star making machinery , if you will. along with capturing the inner layers of a conflicted woman. She was a study in contrasts- acting out her fantasies on the big screen, while hiding the truth of her life. I really enjoyed this book.

I have to say, I was very impressed with Mayukh Sen's autobiography of the actress Merle Oberon, who is now viewed as Hollywood's first South Asian star. Merle led a very complicated life, which included her passing as white despite the fact that she was actually South Asian and spent her early life living in India. I loved and truly enjoyed how Mayukh Sen weaved Merle's story together throughout the book, beginning at the place of her birth as well as documenting her last days, and the various relationships she formed throughout her life. Reading Merle's backstory about how she was raised and how hard she worked to make herself a film actress in Hollywood was so interesting to me, as well as inspirational, considering how many barriers Merle faced along the way. Prior to reading this autobiograpgy on Merle, I did not know much about her and had seen only a few of her films growing up. She always struck me as very beautiful as well as a great and talented actress. I appreciate the author for choosing to tell Merle's story in this book as it is one not often told. I can tell this book was well researched and I liked the way the author addressed important themes like race and gender in the book.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed reading about Merle Oberon. I think it focuses heavily on her acting career and the details get dull at times. However, it was fascinating to learn that she-an Asian woman-participated in yellowface. Although, she didn't have power in those days to fight for her people and the way they were portrayed in American and British films. This is an intriguing story of an ambitious woman who had to be someone else to succeed.

Thank you to Net Galley and W. W. Norton & Company for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
This is a very informative biography of South Asian actress Merle Oberon. She seemed to have a hard life because she was a woman trying to make it in Hollywood. She had the added hardship of prejudice because she was South Asian in a time when white actresses were the ones getting the parts. She tried to hide her beginnings all of her life. She also fought against this prejudice all of her life. I had heard of Merle Oberon, but I did not know much about her. I learned a lot from reading this book. It is a very well researched biography that grabbed my attention right from the beginning. I also enjoyed the photographs at the beginning of each chapter. I recommend this book if you like to read about Old Hollywood.