Cover Image: Jackie and Maria

Jackie and Maria

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Member Reviews

Very well-written, Jackie and Maria examines the world of two women and the man they love.
Jackie Kennedy wants Aristotle Onassis to protect her from the world that murdered her husband.
Maria Callas, famed opera singer, has had a long time affair with Ari and believes she should rightfully have been his wife - not Jackie.
The book is full of twisted tangles, dark secrets, and a life long antagonism.

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This story tells the famous love triangle between Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Aristotle Onassis, and Maria Callas. This book read like a cheesy soap opera with two women fighting over an old rich man. I did not know what Aristotle’s appeal was to the women other than that he was rich. I also didn’t know why Maria Callas stayed with him in the end. Still, I recommend this for fans of the Kennedys especially And We Called It Camelot, The Kennedy Debutant, and The Pink Suit!

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I loved this book. Very well researched look into the complicated relationship between Onassis, Jackie Kennedy and Maria Callas, his long time love. I'd read The Secret Wife by this same author (Gill Paul) and it was terrific. The book revolves around the impossible dynamic of two women in love with the same man. Definitely recommend!

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This is a historical fiction book about Jackie Kennedy, Maria Callas, and Aristotle Onassis. I knew that former First Lady Jackie Kennedy married Aristotle Onassis, but I knew nothing about opera singer/original diva Maria Callas. It was an interesting story (and I did multiple Wikipedia deep dives on all the characters), but overall, it moved a little slow for me.

Thanks to @NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for my ARC!

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Gill Paul's new novel Jackie and Maria does what I love best about biographical fiction - introduces me to real people who I knew nothing about prior to reading the story. Of course, everyone has heard of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, the upper crust society woman and former First Lady who watched her husband, President JFK, be assassinated right before her very eyes, and sadly lived a life full of tragedy. Many also know of Aristotle Onassis, the Greek shipping magnate and one of the richest men in the world at the time, who married the widowed Jackie Kennedy. But few know of Maria Callas, the mercurial opera singer who carried on an affair with Aristotle - Ari - for nearly 10 years. Jackie and Maria examines both of these prominent women's lives before, during, and after their relationships with Ari Onassis.

Jackie and Maria gives readers a thorough picture of the lives of Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and Maria Callas, starting in the years before they became entangled in the opulent, glittering world of Ari Onassis (in the case of Jackie, the story starts many years in advance of her meeting Ari, going back to the 50s before JFK was elected President.) Maria, who was more romantically involved with Ari than Jackie could ever hope or want to be, features more prominently in the storyline as it relates to him, demonstrating their passionate love for each other throughout the years, while also showing how Maria had to battle with exes, uncover affair partners of Ari's, and struggle with career woes. Jackie's storyline focuses more on her relationship with Jack Kennedy, and implies how the numerous tragic circumstances of her life eventually led her into the arms of Ari Onassis, who could possibly provide protection for her and her children in the light of so much death and misfortune for the Kennedy family. Jackie and Maria propels readers through history, examining the ways in which Maria and Jackie's lives crossed paths through the years as they orbited Ari Onassis.

Jackie and Maria will most appeal to readers who love being introduced to some of the lesser known people of history (Maria Callas) and how they relate to more prominent figures of their time. Told in alternating chapters narrated by both Maria and Jackie, this story is easy to read and follow, and shines a spotlight on the special difficulties and circumstances women face in their lives and relationships. Paul does a fine job of creating distinctive voices for both Jackie and Maria, making each woman's chapters stand out from the other's and enveloping readers into their private (yet often, public) worlds. This book will make you ponder history, but will also entertain you with its intimate story about two intriguing women of the turbulent 60s.

As with all biographical fiction, you have to take what you read with a grain of salt, and if you care about facts, do your own research to differentiate between what is on the record about a person, what is presumed, and what is made up by the author to add flair to a story. Jackie and Maria is no exception; however, an author taking creative license on a real person's life does not bother me as much as it does some. As so much happens behind closed doors in the life of a famous figure, authors have to use their imagination to put together an engaging story that people will want to read. When reading biographical fiction, I always ask myself, "Do I now know more about this person than I did before I read this novel." With Jackie and Maria, I can vehemently answer that question with, "yes," as this book introduced me to Maria Callas, who was unknown to me before I dived into this story, and has painted a picture of her for me as both an opera singer and lover of Aristotle Onassis.

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This Book was amazing!! New author to me. I could not put down! This has to be one of my favorite Historical books to date!

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This books tells of Maria Callas' relationship with Aristotle Onassis from the time of her meeting to the time of his death with a parallel story beginning with Jackie Kennedy's first pregnancy. Although the title leads the reader to believe this is a story of Jackie and Maria, it was really the story of Aristotle and his one true love, Maria.

I found this to be an engaging story of Onassis and the two women. It concurred with other accounts regarding his love affair with Maria and that Jackie married him for convenience, security and protection at a very difficult time in her life. Good read for those who are intrigued by America's 'Camelot' era.

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I enjoy reading about the Kennedy’s and Jacquline Kennedy. It made me want to get more biographies on her and find out more.

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I really did not know much about these women prior to reading this book and found that they were both immensely fascinating women in their own right. I like that the book was told in parallel form and offered clear glimpses of the time period as well. I loved the emotion in the writing and am glad that the story was told in a way that was unbiased and just offered insight into the hearts and minds of the characters. I will remember this book for quite some time and would love to read more from this author in the future. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

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Thanks to William Morrow Books for my advanced copy. Excuse my whole I gush about Gill Pauls‘s newest book, Jackie and Maria.⁣ Gill Paul is quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me. I loved Another Woman’s Husband and The Lost Daughter, about the Windsors and Romanovs respectively. Paul’s take on a new dynasty, The Kennedys, is equally compelling.⁣

Most people know about Jackie’s life during her White House years, but hearing the tale of what caused her to marry Aristotle Onassis was fascinating. I loved the dual narrators of Jackie and Onassis’s long-time lover, opera singer Maria Callas.⁣ This might just be my favorite Historical Fiction of the year.

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Obviously, this book is a fictionalized account of Aristotle Onassis and the two women who loved him. However, if just a fraction of it is true, your heart goes out to Maria Callas (and Jackie, too). Maria's story is compelling, and a glimpse into what life was like for the opera sensation during the height of her fame as well as her descent into a more relaxed existence. The story is framed around these two women and their men - Onassis and Kennedy. And how their reliance on those men and their failure to provide for them were the backbones of Jackie and Maria's lives and livelihoods - and how their persevered regardless.

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i am learning to love historical fiction these days. so i really enjoyued this one. i love jackie o and she's amazing and this book was so excellent. definitely read this one immediately.

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Tale of the parallel lives of two women, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy and Maria Callas and one man, Aristotle Onassis told through the 50's - 70's. Great characters a bit melodramatic, but I would love to see this become a streaming series.

Thanks to Gill Paul, William Morrow and Net Galley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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I heard about this title from a book event put on by The Book Reporter. It sounded like such a creative look on the Kennedy life. I don't know the character of Maria that well, but if this is something that intrigues you it sounds like a great story. I personally didn't get around to reading it, but wish I had!

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A captivating story about two incredible women Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy and Maria Callas. One man, Aristotle Onassis.

Jackie and Maria is a well-written historical book, you can tell Gill Paul did a very thorough research about the characters, I didn’t know who Maria Callas was prior to reading this book and I was able to get to know this powerful woman. A book about love, sacrifice, and betrayal, This is my first novel by Gill Paul and I really enjoyed it.Recommended

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Great story of two people I did not know all that much about . Especially Maria Callas. Quite a lot of scandals and secrets. A really interesting story. I highly recommend for book clubs!

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this was a really interesting read, I really enjoyed going on this journey and liked the way Maria and Jackie came out in the book.

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Wow. I really thought I liked Jackie O before reading this book. I, along with what I'm assuming is most Americans, believed her to be a good person, but after reading this I'm not sure that I have the same level of respect. Why didn't she leave her cheating husband? I knew about JFK's multiple affairs, but reading about them in this way made me mad. Why was that okay? Why was she not a strong enough person to stand on her own? Instead, she ran straight into the arms of another wealthy man. Essentially, she wanted to be taken care of; the luxury that comes with being rich. I definitely lost some respect for her after this.

NOW, with all that being said; How much of this book was fictionalized to make the story readable, and how much was based on fact? Typically in historical fiction, especially about a real person, the author will list what was been dramatized and what is true. This book did not do that, so I have been doing my own digging. While I am not changing back to my former opinion of the former First Lady, I do understand that some parts were written using creative licensure, which is fine. I would just have liked a side note from the author saying, "HEY! I made this up! Don't spend two hours Googling," because, I totally did that. BUT--this speaks to the intimacy that I felt while reading through Maria and Jackie's perspectives. It all felt real, so I had to know if it was. It also led me to looking up the "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" scene on YouTube. I can't believe I've never seen that before.

I love Gill Paul and cannot wait for the next read! I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

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This one held so much promise, but I couldn't get into it and found it pretty boring. The writing style wasn't my favorite and I think the author didn't capture the captivating and enigmatic qualities of either woman in the story. DNF'd at 37%.

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I received an #ARC of this book via #netgalley. Thank you for the opportunity to read it.
I was excited to read this historical fiction novel playing out over the 1950’s-1970’s between the lives of Maria Callas and Jackie Kennedy. Jackie Kennedy is an endless source of fascination to the American public. I even toured her family home in Newport when I was a kid. Her grace under pressure, style in the White House, and her air of mystique all make her a legendary American citizen. I only knew of Maria Callas as a famous singer of past. That is it. So this was a lot of new information for me. Oddly, I never even wondered how the famous First Lady became “Jackie O.”
This story closed many gaps in what I knew vs what I didn’t know. Both women were in love with men who didn’t know how to or care to properly love them back. Then they were in love (I don’t know if I would call it that) both with the richest man alive, Aristotle Onassis. The beginning of the book dragged a little for me. In the first 70 pages or so, I wasn’t sure if I was going to stick it out. I was having trouble relating to the two main characters. But I gave it one more chance, and I’m glad I did. It finally hooked me. What these women went through with the men they loved...and tragedies in their own lives too. This was a really good read. The kind of book when you finish it it propels you to go online and look at photos to see if your imagination had it right while reading. Really enjoyable and fascinating.

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