A Raven Between Two Tropical Birds - an Editorial Review of "To Be True"

Book Blurb:

If you have to choose between going too far or being too late, always choose too far.

Marion Pallas is the plain middle sister, the raven between two tropical birds, and that is how the ladies in 1920's London high society treat her with their malignant whispers and snide comments. When Marion exacts her revenge, her misdeed launches a plot to save her involving a motley crew of characters including a Canadian playwright and his theatre company, a notorious gang of female thieves, a countess's duplicitous lover, and a very devoted and decidedly unconventional aunt.

If only they can shake the relentless investigator who wants to clip Marion's wings.

Book Buy Link: https://geni.us/kx6QB1

Editorial Review:

“Trudeau Tuttle was the only child of Tucker and Rolla Tuttle, the famous vaudevillian act known as Tuck and Rolla. His earliest memories from child- hood were from backstage, before the curtain rose and applause filled the air. It was from that vantage that his tutelage—or Tuttleage, as his father called it— began in the wild world of entertainment.

He learned the importance of timing and delivery, when it came to telling a story or a joke, at the knees of his parents. His instruction in song and the old soft shoe came from none other than the great Broadway stage actress Emilee Flitz, his father’s cousin. He owed his prestidigitation prowess to one of his father’s cohorts, whose stage name was the Great Theo-Mazing.”

Oh to be young, in the heyday of 1920s London, in a setting that leaps from the pages of “To be True” by KD Straus. For those of us who can identify with being a wallflower, or being overlooked, or the “plain” sister, then the character of Marion Pallas will resonate deeply. For those who find such concepts of abstract interest only, well, there are two other sisters for you to happily identify with. This well-drawn novel takes this established trope of sisters competing for suitors and makes it so much more, with richly developed characterizations, family interactions and dynamics. 

And Marion has a secret – more than one, in fact – that lends the plot a level of unconventionality and draws the reader into the world of theatre. Her sisters Octavia and Dorothea feature too, catting together about Marion actually receiving a delivery of flowers (can they really be for Marion?) and amply illustrating the difficulties of sisterly relationships. There are other secondary characters too, True and Nora, and other locations, as True is Canadian, and the story moves to Quebec and to Niagara Falls. The way in which the storylines intertwine is cleverly imagined, adding to the detail of the book and the sense of the era.

““We have arrived,” said True as he helped Nora out of the back seat of what Tucker Tuttle called a Studebaker.

Tucker pulled his son aside and suggested that True go in first to tell his mother that he had brought a friend with him.

True knew better than to leave Nora alone with his father and chose springing his new fiancée on his mother as the safer option.

When he looked at Nora, she swallowed hard as she heard True’s mother call out from within the house.

“True, you’re home! Tuck, you brought True home,” said Rolla as she opened the door.

“Home, I am,” said True as he set the bags down to embrace his mother.

“You don’t call, you don’t write.” His mother laughed as she squeezed him. “Well, I have heard of bringing home souvenirs,” she teased as she stepped back and took a good look at Nora.”

The dialogue throughout the novel is authentic and very much of the times, and the relationship between True and his parents is a continuing thread. Each character has a distinct personality and there are both highs and lows as the Wall Street crash and the Great Depression approach. There is an emphasis on family; it would be easy for such a story to focus only on individuals, but family relationships endure. The character arcs are realistic and carefully formed for each. Although the story moves between different locations it remains cohesive and the pacing is consistent throughout the book.

““The next afternoon, Nora and True arrived in front of a warehouse in the Garment District, it too was off Spadina, somewhere between Queen and King streets.

“Is what they do in need of such a large space?” asked Nora.

“They have a little corner of the building, in the back. Magee’s Millinery and Dressmaking was painted boldly in gold on the large window of the build- ing’s entrance.

“My costumer, Hermie, worked here at Magee’s. I guess you could say that I stole him away from them, a few years back.”

“So, we are both thieves then,” said Nora with a smirk. “Larcenists, the pair of us,” True said with a wink.””

“To be True” by KD Straus is a great read, full of twists and very unexpected turns. The temptation for this reviewer to reveal a spoiler has been high! Highlights include the wonderful characterization and the sparkle of Marion’s personality as she realizes her own unconventional worth, and the vividness of the 1920s setting. 

*****

“To be True” by KD Straus receives 4 stars from The Historical Fiction Company

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