Reckless Hearts (Short Story): A Story of Slim Hawks and Ernest Hemingway by Melanie Benjamin Published by Dell on December 22nd 2015
Genres: Fiction, General Fiction
Pages: 36
Format: eBook, Kindle Book
Source: Amazon Kindle
Melanie Benjamin introduces readers to the lavish, heady world of her novel The Swans of Fifth Avenue with this exclusive ebook short story! In this enchanting prequel, New York society and Hollywood royalty collide during the doomed and decadent life of Ernest Hemingway. Spain, 1959. Slim Hawks Hayward likes to think she doesn’t get jealous. But when her dear friend Lauren “Betty” Bacall learns that Papa Hemingway has come to watch the bullfights and insists that Slim make introductions, she can’t help feeling protective. Slim has known Papa for years. He always makes her feel like the most beautiful woman in the room—even when his wife is standing right beside him. Truth be told, Slim could have learned to love him all those years ago, in the streets of Havana or the mountains of the American West. Now, Slim is sure that Papa will fall for Betty. What she doesn’t anticipate is the feeling that Papa himself has changed—and their relationship will never be the same. Features a captivating preview of Melanie Benjamin’s highly anticipated novel The Swans of Fifth Avenue! Advance praise for Melanie Benjamin’s The Swans of Fifth Avenue “The strange and fascinating relationship between Truman Capote and his ‘swans’ is wonderfully reimagined in this engrossing novel. It’s a credit to Benjamin that we end up caring so much for these women of power, grace, and beauty—and for Capote, too.”—Sara Gruen, New York Times bestselling author of Water for Elephants
“A delicious tale . . . Melanie Benjamin has turned Truman Capote’s greatest scandal into your next must-read book-club selection.”—Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet “Reading The Swans of Fifth Avenue is like being ushered into a party where you’re offered champagne and fed the sumptuous secrets of New York’s elite—without having to pay the price afterward. The swans are outmatched only by the elegance of Melanie Benjamin’s prose—captivatingly earnest and sophisticated.”—Vanessa Diffenbaugh, New York Times bestselling author of The Language of Flowers “Benjamin convincingly portrays a large cast of colorful historical figures while crafting a compelling, gossipy narrative with rich emotional depth.”—Library Journal
Reckless Hearts is the prequel to the very interesting novel The Swans of Fifth Avenue. I had just started reading The Swans of Fifth Avenue when I knew about this prequel. I thought getting introduced to the world of The Swans of Fifth Avenue first would be a good idea, so I started right away with Reckless Hearts.
In this short and nice read Melanie Benjamin introduces us to one of the characters of The Swans of Fifth Avenue, Slim Hawks Hayward (trust me I get confused by the names because the female characters in both books get married more than once and so get long family names). Slim is a very self-confident and attractive woman. Throughout the book she reflects on her relation with the most famous Ernest Hemingway. She had always admired and respected Ernest. Calling him Papa, she always sought self-reassurance and confidence from him. He was the one she ran too whenever she felt in trouble or depressed. To be clear, this is not a book about a love affair. Yet it is a book about a very special relation of admiration, respect and friendship. She always knew Papa had special feelings for her. He was special to her too. Through this short story, Slim reflects with her friend Betty on some very interesting stories and incidents between her and Ernest.
Though Reckless Hearts is not a must read before reading The Swans of Fifth Avenue, it was a very good idea to read it first. I got familiar with the glamorous world of the novel. I also enjoyed Melanie’s lovely writing style. All I can say is that it was a really good fast read that you will not regret especially if you plan to read The Swans of Fifth Avenue (which I recommend you shouldn’t miss by the way).
You can check my review for The Swans of Fifth Avenue here
About Melanie Benjamin
Melanie Benjamin is the author of the New York Times bestselling novel, THE AVIATOR’S WIFE, as well as the national bestseller ALICE I HAVE BEEN, and THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MRS. TOM THUMB. THE SWANS OF FIFTH AVENUE, a novel about Truman Capote and his high society “Swans,” will be out in January 2016. She lives in the Chicago area with her husband and two sons. She’s currently at work on her next historical novel.