"A Woman of Intelligence" Review

As a reader, it is important to recognize that not every book is "for you". Sometimes books with wonderful reviews, an exciting synopsis, or critical acclaim don't connect with everyone. That's okay, though! I am sure that some of the books I review may not interest you. You may read a book that I loved and not like it at all. Reading, above all else, is subjective. The book that I am reviewing today was a book that I, personally, did not fully connect with. Though I did not love this book, it was definitely not a terrible read! I also know that there are plenty of readers who appreciate historical fiction, descriptive writing, and will enjoy this story. I do not want to discourage anyone from reaching for this book!

"A Woman of Intelligence" is a historical fiction novel written by Karin Tanabe. It was released on July 20th of this year.

If you would like to purchase "A Woman of Intelligence" you can find it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. You can follow the author, Karin Tanabe, on Instagram and Goodreads! You can also check out her website!

"A Woman of Intelligence" follows main character Katharina Edgeworth who, on the outside, seems to be as emotionally rich as she is financially. She frequents the Plaza for parties, has a Fifth Avenue address, has two healthy sons, and the ideal husband. What looks like the perfect life for Katharina is anything but. Its 1954, and the post-war American Dream has become a nightmare.

Katharina is the daughter of immigrants, she is ivy-league-educated, and speaks four languages. When she was a single girl in Manhattan in the 1940s, she was a translator at the newly formed United Nations. Her days were devoted to her work and the promise of world peace, while her nights were for cocktails and the promise of a good time.

Now, Katharina is the wife of a wealthy and beloved pediatric surgeon and is the heir to a fortune. She is desperate to escape the constraints of domesticity. After being approached by the FBI and asked to join their ranks as an informant, Katharina jumps at the opportunity. A man from her past has become a high-level Soviet spy, but no one has been able to infiltrate his circle. Enter Katharina, the perfect woman for the job. Katharina becomes a courier carrying stolen government documents from D.C. to Manhattan. But as those closest to her begin to lose their cover, and their lives, Katharina's secret soon threatens to ruin her.

Before I get into this review, I would like to thank Karin Tanabe, NetGalley, and St. Martin's Press for sending me this Audiobook Copy of "A Woman of Intelligence". As always, all opinions expressed within this review are my own.

I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads. It was not a bad book, it just wasn't "my thing". If you enjoy historical fiction thrillers, you might enjoy it more than I did. I wanted to like it because the overall quality of the writing was good, I just didn't connect with it as much as I hoped I would. The plot and characters fell short, in my opinion. This book dragged for me. The story was incredibly slow moving and was stagnant, at times. This book is filled with a lot of dialogue and many new plot points are introduced but I didn't find it to be very engaging.

I did listen to this in audiobook form, I enjoyed the narrator but I am not sure if I can pinpoint whether or not the audiobook made this better or worse than it would have if I read a physical copy of this book.

There is some discussion of societal issues which are done really well. Motherhood struggles are portrayed in an impactful and well-delivered way. Oppositely, topics like women's rights (overall) and racism were not as well-delivered. These issues were superficially addressed, at best.

Admittedly, historical fiction is not my most frequented genre. Sometimes, I really connect with historical fiction and sometimes I don't. Unfortunately, this was a time when I did not connect with it. I really wished that I did connect a bit more because the synopsis was great. It was the execution, for me, that fell short. Some parts of this book are great, but others were not as well-done.

As I said earlier, there are plenty of readers who appreciate historical fiction, descriptive writing, and will enjoy this story. If this book sounds intriguing to you, give it a shot! You never know, it might be a new favorite for you! While I wanted to love it, this author has other books that I enjoyed more. I would reccomend for readers 18+.

With all books that I read, I make a playlist to go along with the book. These playlists are full of songs which encapsulate the feeling of the story as a whole, capture the essence of a particular scene, or just remind me of one of the characters. You can find my playlist for "A Woman of Intelligence" on Apple Music or Spotify.

Are you interested in reading "A Woman of Intelligence"? Let me know!

As always, thank you for reading!

XO,

Madison