Diva: The Flappers

Gr 9 Up—Music, mayhem, and murder fill Jillian Larkin's final novel (Delacorte, 2012) in the series. Set in the 1920s, nightclub singer Gloria Carmody is a caged songbird—three weeks after killing a mobster who was about to murder her "colored beau" Jerome, she is sitting behind prison bars. Gloria's cousin, Clara, decides to use her popular column in the Manhattanite to rave at such injustice and to keep the story at the forefront of the public's mind. Gloria is sprung after accepting an offer from an FBI agent to infiltrate business mogul Forrest Hamilton's high-society circle and discover the secret of his sudden wealth. Liquor flows freely in an effort to hide the lurking danger and deception. And there's a butler who is really Forrest's "deceased" father who will stop at nothing to keep the millions he made in the insurance business by skimming off clients' accounts. An interesting mix of side stories is deftly intertwined: a flapper who is "quite the kitten's pajamas" turns over a new leaf to find the man of her dreams; Clara stops a con-woman from marrying a man she loves; two ditzy flappers, Glitz and Glamour, are perfect foils in this noir-esque novel. Solid narration with an eclectic range of voices is provided by Abby Craden. This fun listen is a supplementary purchase.—Cheryl Preisendorfer, Twinsburg City Schools, OH