biography

Spotlight on: Ace, Marvel, Spy! by Jenni Walsh

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In our house, we love tennis, so I was excited to hear about this book, which highlights a female tennis player who was also a spy! Here’s the scoop:

ACE, MARVEL, SPY!

By Jenni Walsh 

Harper Muse; On-Sale January 14, 2024

Prepare to be transported to the most thrilling moments of Alice Marble’s legendary tennis career, where you’ll relive iconic matches and witness her relentless pursuit of justice, equality, and love. Through captivating snapshots from her rise to fame, ACE, MARVEL, SPY! brings to life her journey on and off the court, highlighting the battles she fought for a fairer world and the passion that drove her every move.Alice’s major tennis accomplishments include:

  • Winning over 18 championships across singles, doubles, and mixed doubles 
  • Speaking out against the gender wage gap in tennis
  • Leading the U.S. Wightman Cup team to victory in 1933 and 1937-1939
  • Advocating for Althea Gibson to cross the color line
  • Being inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1964
  • Coaching Billie Jean King 

Perhaps most interestingly, under the guise of playing tennis in Switzerland in 1945, Alice served as an Allied spy to uncover a Nazi gold and money laundering ring. You can read more about Alice’s mission here.With a hint of romance, history, and tennis, ACE, MARVEL SPY has it all, and it is the perfect companion for the upcoming Australian Open!

Trailblazer, superstar, activist, and spy: Alice Marble is a true American icon.

Alice strives to have it all.

At seventeen, Alice Marble has no formal tennis skills and no coach. What she does have is an ability to hit the ball as hard as she can and a strong desire to prove herself. With steadfast determination and one sacrifice after another, Alice plays her heart out on the courts of the rich and famous, at national tournaments, and—the greatest of them all—at Wimbledon, rising to be one of the top-ranked players in the world.

But then her world falls apart.

With the outbreak of war with Germany, Alice’s tennis career and life come to a screeching halt, and for the first time, she is forced to confront who she is without tennis. As she seeks to understand her new place in the world and how she can aid in the war efforts, a telegram arrives with devastating news from overseas. Heartbroken and lost, she feels like she can only watch as the war wreaks havoc in every area of her life.

Until an unexpected invitation arrives.

Alice is given the chance to fight back when the US Army sends her a request: Under the guise of playing in tennis exhibition games in Switzerland, she would be a spy for them. Alice aches for nothing more than to avenge what the war has taken from her and to prove herself against this new opponent. But what awaits her might be her greatest challenge yet.

From her start as a promising athlete with worn-out shoes to her status as a glamorous international star, Alice Marble’s determination to control her own life and destiny fuels a story of achievement, discipline, loss, and love.

Jenni L. Walsh’s Ace, Marvel, Spy brilliantly showcases the life of Alice Marble, a real-life tennis sensation known for her extraordinary talent and indomitable spirit. This fast-paced and action-packed historical novel spans multiple international settings and is enhanced by discussion questions that prompt readers to reflect on Alice’s challenges and triumphs, making it an ideal choice for book clubs.

Advance Praise for ACE, MARVEL, SPY:

“Jenni L. Walsh captures the thrill of being on the court in a vivid and detailed portrayal of Alice Marble’s rise to sporting greatness, as well as her struggles to fulfill her dreams both on and off the court. ACE, MARVEL, SPY is a smashing success!”

—Billie Jean King, sports icon and equality champion

Check it out!

Quick Review: ELIZABETH OF YORK by Alison Weir

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Alison Weir is an amazing historian, having written non-fiction books on a variety of British history subjects, including Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. I’ve read most of her work and while it is dense, it is fascinating.

I received ELIZABETH OF YORK from Net Galley. To be honest, I had no idea who she was (except that with that name, she was British). The subtitle of this book is “A Tudor Queen and Her World”. Elizabeth was Henry VIII’s mother. Her brothers were the little princes in the Tower (who disappeared). Elizabeth lived in a somewhat chaotic and violent time in British history in the late 1400’s. After a variety of ups and downs, she became a beloved and reigning queen, and the grandmother of Elizabeth I.

While I love reading these type of books, it is dense reading! It was also quite long. I read a Kindle version, but Amazon says over 600 pages. It is filled with facts that I would have been better served to write down into a genealogy. (I also struggle with the fact that a LOT of British queens/ladies shared the same three names: Elizabeth, Anne, or Jane, with an occasional Margaret thrown in).

If you don’t know much about Elizabeth of York and enjoy historical biography of the Tudors, then this is one for you!

Thanks, Net Galley and Ballantine Books, for my copy!

Review: “Fever” by Mary Beth Keane

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Through Net Galley I received an ARC of “Fever”, the biography of “Typhoid Mary” by Mary Beth Keane. I had heard of Typhoid Mary, but didn’t know her true story. This novel, appropriate for YA or adults, gave an interesting and sensitive account of Mary Mallon’s life and experience as a healthy carrier of typhoid in New York in the early 1900’s.

Mary Mallon came to America from Ireland and worked her way from being a laundress to being a cook. She loved cooking and had a talent for it. At times she cooked for wealthy and prestigious families in New York and New England, but death followed Mary and she was accused of being a healthy carrier of typhoid fever. “Fever” follows Mary’s journey from New York to her confinement on North Brother Island in New York. Mary fights for her life back and her job and reputation. A large part of the story is Mary’s relationship with her significant other, Alfred, with whom she had lived for over twenty years before she was taken away.

I really enjoyed reading this historical biography. Turn of the century New York comes alive as Keane creates a compelling and sympathetic protagonist  in Mary Mallon.