The Blonde: A Novel
Weinstein Books, May 2014
At the height of the cold war, Marilyn Monroe was the most famous woman in the world, but what if she was also a secret soviet spy?
In 1948, a young, unknown Norma Jeane Baker meets a mysterious man in Los Angeles who transforms her into Marilyn Monroe the star. Twelve years later, he comes back for his repayment, and Marilyn is given her first assignment from the KGB: Uncover something about JFK that no one else knows.
But a simple job turns complicated when Marilyn falls in love with the bright young president, and learns of plans to assassinate Kennedy. More than anything, Marilyn wants to escape her Soviet handlers and save her love -- and herself. Desperate, ruthless, and brilliant, what she does next will leave readers reeling.
From New York Times bestselling author Anna Godbersen comes a whip-smart reimagining of the life of Marilyn Monroe, set in a world of silver screen glamour and political intrigue. At once a crackling portrayal of Old Hollywood, an intimate portrait of the larger-than-life star, and a cat-and-mouse thriller, The Blonde is history rewritten as it could have -- and might have -- been.
Hardcover | ISBN: 9781602862227 | Publication Date: May 2014
Reviews:
"Some like it hot, but The Blonde by Anna Godbersen is
platinum-hot. From the wicked first chapter to the final outrageous
twist, this extraordinarily vivid and totally unforgettable novel is
on fire. Or . . . is it a novel? I was spellbound."
-- Douglas Preston, #1 New York Times bestselling
author of The Monster of Florence
"Daringly inventive and sumptuously sexy and thrilling, The
Blonde gets readers inside Marilyn Monroe's head -- a
fascinating, dark, inviting, and complex place. Only Anna Godbersen
is this wildly imaginative and richly descriptive; her natural knack
for capturing the mood of a historical moment is nothing less than
uncanny."
-- Emily Gould, author of Friendship
"Anna Godbersen has dared to reinvent the history of Marilyn Monroe,
breaking all literary rules. The tale she spins is astonishingly
seductive. I could not stop turning the pages and contemplating,
'Could any of this be true? Was the Norma Jean-to-Marilyn my father
knew so well a fictitious character leading a double life?'"
-- Susan Bernard, author of Marilyn: Intimate Exposures
