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Valerie Martin

Author of Property

27+ Works 3,729 Members 141 Reviews 6 Favorited

About the Author

Valerie Martin is the author of six novels & two collections of short fiction, including "Italian Fever", "The Great Divorce", & "Mary Reilly". She lived in Italy for three years & now resides in upstate New York. (Bowker Author Biography)

Includes the name: Valerie Martin

Image credit: Jerry Bauer

Series

Works by Valerie Martin

Property (2003) 1,084 copies
Mary Reilly (1990) 782 copies
Trespass (2007) 305 copies
Italian Fever (1999) 235 copies
The Great Divorce (1994) 115 copies
Anton and Cecil: Cats at Sea (2013) 102 copies
A Recent Martyr (1987) 68 copies
Alexandra (1979) 57 copies
I Give It to You (2020) 39 copies
Set in Motion (1978) 29 copies
Anton and Cecil, Book 2: Cats on Track (2015) — Author. — 27 copies
Love (2005) 13 copies
Anton and Cecil, Book 3: Cats Aloft (2016) — Author. — 10 copies
Mrs. Gulliver: A Novel (2024) 8 copies
Dissonance 1 copy
Gran Divorcio El (1995) 1 copy
Mrs Gulliver (2024) 1 copy

Associated Works

The Handmaid's Tale (1985) — Introduction, some editions — 42,013 copies
I Shudder at Your Touch (1991) — Contributor — 546 copies
At Mrs Lippincote's (1945) — Introduction, some editions — 395 copies
This Is My Best: Great Writers Share Their Favorite Work (2004) — Contributor — 159 copies
Four Letter Word: New Love Letters (2007) — Contributor — 136 copies
Mistresses of the Dark [Anthology] (1998) — Contributor — 121 copies
The Gates of Paradise (1993) — Contributor — 113 copies
Anonymous Sex (2022) — Contributor — 61 copies
Novel Voices (2003) — Contributor — 55 copies

Tagged

19th century (27) African American (13) America (16) American (19) American fiction (26) American literature (27) ARC (19) biography (20) cats (13) Croatia (13) ebook (13) family (13) fantasy (19) fiction (543) ghosts (16) gothic (24) historical (38) historical fiction (170) horror (45) Italy (32) Jekyll and Hyde (23) literary fiction (12) literature (19) London (12) Louisiana (45) mystery (43) New Orleans (22) novel (67) orange (13) Orange Prize (43) own (17) read (37) short stories (37) slavery (118) to-read (258) unread (34) USA (19) Valerie Martin (16) wishlist (12) women (13)

Common Knowledge

Birthdate
1948-03-14
Gender
female
Nationality
USA
Relationships
Cullen, John (husband)

Members

Discussions

Property by Valerie Martin in Orange January/July (January 2012)

Reviews

A most unusual but equally really enjoyable read. The writing is fast and furious and it is impossible at times to put the book down :) Lila Gulliver is the Madam of a brothel on the tropical island of Verona. She is a bright business woman not only managing her staff but also looking after their welfare, and this in return creates a sense of loyalty. A young attractive lady impresses Lila, and even though Carita is blind she is employed, and very quickly proves her worth to the business. However life soon gets very complex when Carita falls in love with Ian Brohan son of judge Michael Brolan…….” a dashing, fine figure of a man, confident in the power of his physical presence”......
It would be wrong to believe that clients visiting Madam Gullivers are dictating, and demanding, being wealthy does not mean that they have a right to humiliate, use, and discard the young ladies on offer. What makes this such a brilliant book is the way the author shows the reader that in reality it is the women working for, and with, and including, Lila Gulliver who dictate the shape and direction of their lives….”Men are expected to succeed, women to fail. Every woman knows the deck is stacked. In practical terms this makes it more difficult for women to succeed, but it’s more damning for men to fail. Win or lose, defying expectations is heavy going”........
This is storytelling at its best, set in the early 1950’s it brings to life the sights and sounds of a tropical island. Lila Gulliver holds the reader in awe with her beauty, and smart business acumen looking after and guiding those girls who she feels have entrusted their lives to her. Highly recommended.
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Flagged
runner56 | Jan 31, 2024 |
This book is set in Louisiana, nearly 40 years before the Civil War. The title of the book has many layers of meaning: Manon Gaudet is the bitter and unhappy wife of a sugar plantation owner who is rapidly descending into bankruptcy; her house slave Sarah who was given to her as a wedding gift in part to get her out of Manon’s parent’s house; the house that is left to her on her mother’s death is scheduled to become her husband’s property, since everything belonging to a woman automatically becomes the property of her husband – she only gets to retain the house due to the death of her husband in a slave uprising.

see the rest of my review here:

https://nordie.wordpress.com/2015/06/24/book-review-property-by-valerie-martin/
… (more)
 
Flagged
nordie | 44 other reviews | Oct 14, 2023 |
Here's what I wrtoe in 2008 about this read: "A different twist to tell the story of American slavery, and the awful pains inflicted. House slave is loved by the a wretched master, but treated most poorly by his unhappy wife." Observation in 2023: certainly many women treated women slaves, regardless of the amount of the husband's attention, very
poorly.
 
Flagged
MGADMJK | 44 other reviews | Jul 25, 2023 |
Compelling characters that pulled you along, wanting to know them better. Unfortunately, just as you started to connect with a character, the author discarded that character in a mystery. Wholly unfulfilling. The last twenty pages, in which the author could have offered some closure at least, instead offered more questions and red herrings. I'm wondering if i was supposed to know more about the myth before reading the book? Halfway through, I would have recommended it widely. After finishing it, not at all.… (more)
 
Flagged
zizabeph | 22 other reviews | May 7, 2023 |

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Statistics

Works
27
Also by
15
Members
3,729
Popularity
#6,792
Rating
4.1
Reviews
141
ISBNs
191
Languages
11
Favorited
6

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