Parlor Games, Maryka Biaggio
Parlor Games, Maryka Biaggio
2 Rating(s)
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Parlor Games

Author: Maryka Biaggio

Narrator: Leslie Carroll

Unabridged: 13 hr 39 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/15/2013


Synopsis

Based on a true story, comes a sweeping historical novel about a beautiful con artist whose turn-of-the-century escapades take her around the world as she's doggedly pursued by a Pinkerton Agency detective
 
The novel opens in 1917 with our cunning protagonist, May Dugas, standing trial for extortion. As the trial unfolds, May tells her version of events.
 
In 1887, at the tender age of eighteen, May ventures to Chicago in hopes of earning enough money to support her family. Circumstances force her to take up residence at the city’s most infamous bordello, but May soon learns to employ her considerable feminine wiles to extract not only sidelong looks but also large sums of money from the men she encounters.  Insinuating herself into Chicago’s high society, May lands a well-to-do fiancé—until, that is, a Pinkerton Agency detective named Reed Doherty intervenes and summarily foils the engagement. 
 
Unflappable May quickly rebounds, elevating seduction and social climbing to an art form as she travels the world, eventually marrying a wealthy Dutch Baron. Unfortunately, Reed Doherty is never far behind and continues to track May in a delicious cat-and-mouse game as the newly-minted Baroness’s misadventures take her from San Francisco to Shanghai to London and points in between.
 
The Pinkerton Agency really did dub May the “Most Dangerous Woman,” branding her a crafty blackmailer and ruthless seductress.  To many, though, she was the most glamorous woman to grace high society. Was the real May Dugas a cold-hearted swindler or simply a resourceful provider for her poor family?
 
As the narrative bounces back and forth between the trial taking place in 1917 and May’s devious but undeniably entertaining path to the courtroom—hoodwinking and waltzing her way through the gilded age and into the twentieth century—we're left to ponder her guilt as we move closer to finding out what fate ultimately has in store for our irresistible adventuress.

About The Author

Maryka Biaggio, a former psychology professor, has many scholarly publishing credits to her name, but Parlor Games is her debut novel. Maryka now splits her time between creative writing and higher-education consulting work. She travels extensively, for both work and pleasure, is crazy about opera, and enjoys gardening, art films, and, of course, great fiction. She lives in Portland, Oregon, that edgy green gem of the Pacific Northwest.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jane on October 24, 2015

Where I got the book: purchased from Amazon. Maryka is a friend. I jumped on this novel, friend or no friend, because of the cover—a gorgeous piece of design—and the era. Plus, the promise of naughty goings-on in Chicago parlor houses, which were the better brothels. Alas, the blurb is massively decep......more

Goodreads review by Jennifer on January 08, 2013

The settings in Parlor Games were amazing. London, New York, Shanghai, etc., but the same Pinkerton Agency detective keeps tracking May down in these cities. How? It didn't seem reasonable to me. Maybe I can't imagine finding people in the years before the internet? May changed her name and moved fr......more

Goodreads review by Paul on February 08, 2013

“Parlor Games” by Maryka Biaggio, published by Doubleday. Category – Fiction/Literature The reader may take this as fiction/literature surrounded by a true story, or a true story surrounded by fiction literature, regardless it is a fascinating book. This is the story of May Dugasv, in the book May Duga......more

Goodreads review by Marilyn on January 05, 2013

I was amazed at how much I enjoyed this book! I got a message asking me if I would be interested in this book to review, as I also loved American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin (review here). At 352 pages, I honestly thought that it would be a pretty quick read for me. However, the book was quite detailed,......more

Goodreads review by Karen on May 10, 2014

You have to love a book where a woman (in 1887) is hunted down all over the world by a Pinkerton detective. It's based on a true story of turn-of-the-century con artist May Dugas, once dubbed America's "Most Dangerous Woman.” It’s 1887, and eighteen-year-old May Dugas has ventured to Chicago in hope......more


Quotes

"An engaging glimpse into a character, who categorically eludes our attempts to define her.”
--Kirkus Reviews 

"This double-stranded narrative bounces back and forth between the extortion trial of turn-of-the-century con artist May Dugas and the international escapades that led to her arrest. Basing her novel loosely on a real-life figure, the woman the venerable Pinkerton Agency once dubbed the “Most Dangerous Woman,” Biaggio re-creates the deliciously fabulous foibles and follies of a woman born into hardscrabble circumstances but determined to make her way in the world with wit, beauty, and a brazen ability to exploit her feminine charms for a very high price. Whether one admires or reviles May, theres no doubt that she [Biaggio] makes the most of every entertaining opportunity—and, hey, a girl’s gotta make a living, especially with a particularly persistent Pinkerton detective hot on her heels. Sheer, frenetic fun."
--Booklist

"Parlor Games is a captivating tale narrated by the irresistible and deliciously unreliable con-woman, May Dugas. Her escapades, which span the Gilded Age right through the turn-of-the-century, immediately transport the reader to a bygone era. It's a wildly entertaining and constantly surprising ride."
--Daisy Goodwin, author of the New York Times bestseller American Heiress

“Come meet May Dugas, a con artist of the highest order. You’ll be swept up by her delicious voice from the first page of Parlor Games, so prepare to be joyously fleeced.  This jaunty tale through the life of a woman who keeps one step ahead of a dogged Pinkerton agent of the law is a true pleasure, something like munching your way through a box of chocolates all by yourself.  Curl up and settle in for a lovely read.”
--Kate Alcott, author of the New York Times bestseller The Dressmaker

“Like Becky Sharp from Vanity Fair before her, May Dugas--delightfully unrepentant--charms with tantalizing glimpses of her con games as she cheats her way from poverty into opulence.”
--Eva Stachniak, the author of The Winter Palace

Parlor Games is both playful and deeply serious in its portrayal of one determined woman's battle to make her way in a man's world. You'll be cheering for May Dugas as she cons her way across the continents. She's a terrific creation.”
-- Matt Rees, author of Mozart's Last Aria