A Betting Woman: A novel of Madame Mustache by Jenni L. Walsh

This is a book of historical fiction, with some nonfiction sprinkled in. regarding the gambling history of blackjack also known as 21. The first-ever known, man or woman, to deal the game of 21 was madame mustache. I loved this book! I could relate to it on many levels right down to the fact that I have been teased about the hair on my upper lip.

Consider though how valiant and undaunted she must have been to bring the game to unpredictable and oftentimes dangerous men during such unapologetic times… The gold rush, California-Indian war, Apache and Civil Wars and also during a time when women and other races were demoralized and oppressed among many other things… I can’t help but wonder if a young Wyatt Earp, Ike Clanton, Doc holiday, Mark Twain, Levi Strauss or any of the other well-known businessmen and hooligans from that era ever sat across from Madame Dumont and played her game? It’s pretty outstanding that over 170 years later, we still play Her game!

Thank you to Jenni L. Walsh, Wyatt-Mackenzie publishing, and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this book in exchange for an honest review.

I received this from Netgalley.com.

A fictionalized account of Simone Jules, reinvented as Eleanor Dumont, and largely remembered as Madame Moustache.

An okay read, I found the history interesting.

2.75☆

"A Betting Woman" is an interesting read about the fictionalized life of Eleanor Dumont, the female croupier known for popularizing Black Jack in the United States. I found this to be a fun and quick read, good pacing and interesting story!

A good read. Very well written. Especially old English words are well used. The story line is rapidly progressive. One can feel that this book has been written after thorough research. The reader gets to know Madame Dumont very closely, though this is a fictitious. Jenni has tried to show Madame Dumont in good light by expressing her feeling/ justifying her actions. No doubt, Madame Dumont was not an ordinary woman. She couldn't be the stereo typic lady who valued family life, Nevertheless, Madame Dumont inspires strength in a woman character, which even present day women can find inspiring.

What if whenever tragedy struck you could reinvent yourself? What would it be like to let destiny and fate guide you in life altering decisions? Readers, let me introduce Madame Moustache. In this book author Jenni L. Walsh brings to life the incredible story of Simone Jules/Eleanor Dumont/Madame Moustache. Simone Jules experienced a tragedy so intense that she picked up and left everything she knew to start over. She inserted herself into a world dominated by men as a woman croupier (card dealer). Tragedy again stuck and Simone wandered as a means to find closure. A calm befell her as she embraced a new home and new identity as Eleanor Dumont. Her past life as Simone threatened to topple her new existence but it was the inevitable rise and fall of a mining boom town that had her off again. As a woman who lived most of her adult life on her own terms, she comes to realize that sometimes outside forces are out of a person's control. Madame Moustache embraced all who she was and who she could be as she ventured to carve out a legacy for herself in the rough and tumble western mining towns. Walsh delivers a brilliantly composed novel that truly encapsulates the uniqueness of its main character. A wonderfully enjoyable read!
I received a copy of this title via NetGalley.

This is a really good book, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Before reading this, I had known nothing about Eleanor Dumont and am so glad I was given an ARC by the publisher. What a character she was, quite the woman, she had determination, adaptability, generosity, caring for others, she was smart, savvy, and I loved the way the author enhanced the storytelling with her imagination.
The descriptions of the towns, emporiums, the fires, the way Eleanor dressed, her mule riding. I loved it all. This is an author to watch, I will be looking for more of Jenni L. Walsh. Highly recommend if you love the old west and want to see how one woman beat the odds.
I want to thank Wyatt-Mackenzie Publishing with NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC. This is a 5-star read!! Really good book!

She's mine, and I'm partial -- but let me tell you a little about why I wrote A BETTING WOMAN. My interest in Eleanor Dumont’s story bloomed as I began researching the women of the California gold rush. It wasn’t long before I came upon a name unknown to me, Madame Moustache. As it turned out, Madame Moustache was the sobriquet for Eleanor Dumont, who was born as Simone Jules, and who had popularized vingt-et-un, now known as blackjack.

The presence of three names for a single woman intrigued me. I wondered how one name bled into the next and how life winded to a nickname—one I didn’t initially find particularly endearing—that Eleanor lived with for over a decade. I wondered if she endured the moniker for all those years or if she was accepting of the name, which was spat at her after taking a man’s last dime during a game of vingt-et-un and offering him a glass of milk, Eleanor having been claimed to have said, "Any man silly enough to lose his last cent to a woman deserves a milk diet.”

In all the anecdotes I found of Eleanor, she was warmhearted, quick-witted, business savvy, courageous, and tenacious. The attributes led me to believe that perhaps Eleanor didn’t tolerate the nickname but instead embraced it. After that, there was no stopping me from telling her story.

Great look into a fascinating woman and her place in history. Rich details bring this time period to life.

A Betting Woman is an inspired and imaginative fiction of the first professional woman croupier and blackjack dealer. Set during the California gold rush this novel is the story of Simone Jules or Eleanor Dumont. Through her eyes we get to read the life in the west during the gold rush and the struggles that the miners went through in search of the gold. Very well researched this novel has a strong protagonist who persevered and made her name as Madame Mustache.

Wow! What a book. This is a part of history I was unfamiliar with and I’m so glad I got my hands in it. The author is clearly knowledgeable about the topic. I will definitely recommend this book for book clubs.

This was such a great book. I didn’t know anything about Simone Jules, Eleanor Dumont, nor Madame Moustache but that quickly changed the more I read this. I was enthralled with the book and couldn’t put it down. It kept getting better and better the more I read. Absolutely loved it!!

A Betting Woman: A Novel of
Madame Moustache
Written by Jennie L. Walsh

It wasn’t the blurb that coaxed me into taking a chance on reading this book it was the picture on the cover of a Lady who appeared to be sure in herself, beautiful and maybe the hint of adventure.

What I got was a wonderful story based on fact with parts that the author fit the character. In 1849 Simone Jules leaves her home and embarks on the adventure she had over the next 15 years of her life was spell binding.

Beginning with her arriving in San Francisco in 1849 and being the only woman croupier to deal Vingt-eh-un, known today as Blackjack.
Going in blind with know knowledge of the gold rush times and establishing herself. We readers get to go on this amazing adventure, which had it’s ups and downs but gives us a glimpse of one very determined woman.

As she leaves San Francisco and moves on to Nevada, California, she changes her name to Eleanor Dumont and establishes her own emporium Dumont’s Place. With one last move onward it is to Fort Benton, Montana where she ends up with the moniker Madame Moustache after what she thought to be a way to break the air when a miner had lost his money to a woman, backfired. Over time she was able to use the name and not take it as a direct insult.

Author Jennie L. Walsh’s story based on facts and stories to give Madame Moustache a vie incroyable (amazing life)! If you are looking for something different that will hold you captive this is a book you need to consider.

Many thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read the story of Simone Jules and the mark she made in history.

How refreshing to read about a strong, forward thinking, independent woman during the Gold rush era. And a double bonus to learn that the main character was a real person!

Fascinating insight into the tough life of living in the West before the Civil War. This lady blazed her own path, chose her own love and refused to conform to what was the typical expectation of women - a wife, housemaker, or saloon girl. Simone Jules / Madam Dumont / Madam Moustache was a savvy business owner and incredibly brave, stubborn individual. I really enjoyed this book.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC, this is my honest review.

A terrific historical fiction novel is one that will send me off doing more research, which is exactly what A Betting Woman did. What a wonderfully independent, interesting woman! Loved the book.

Enjoyed the story I like the way the writer incorporated fact and fiction together. Making the story very readable. Written so one could actually visualise the scenes. Depicts one always has that one true love no matter whether we are together or apart.
Great read

What a great way to kick off my reading year! I loved reading about Madame Moustache (do yourself a favor and wait to Google her photo until you've finished) and Walsh's storytelling really brought the Gold Rush to life. This story of reinvention and an unconventional woman breaking the rules was such a nice escape. Historical fiction and women's fiction fans should definitely check this one out!

An excellent book to read. It was written well and had a great pace. The characters were interesting especially Eleanor who suffered heartache but overcame lots of problems. Ido recommend that you read this book.

Amazing read, it was so good it felt like I needed a second book. We need more books like these about these women who were extraordinary in their own right. Will be purchasing this book, to be able to read it again and again. A must read for those who like strong, independent women whom we can all learn from.

This was my first ever NetGalley read nd I'm really pleased that I enjoyed it so much! This is a really interesting book based on the true life story (with some creative license of course) of Madame Dumont/Moustache, one of the first professional croupiers in the USA.

I really enjoyed this book. It's very quick paced, sometimes moving along years at a time, and even the ending (which is feels is 15 year in the making) happens quickly. I didn't mind that though, i enjoyed the pace and liked watching Eleanor grow over those years.

I was also very attracted to Eleanor as a character. She was independent, fierce, kind and intelligent, with a strong moral compass trailblazing the way for women in a mans world. As a women, I was proud of her courage and amazed to see what she could do in the tough world of America in the mid 1800s.

I also appreciated the historical research that went into this book, referencing real events (San Francisco fires, Gold Rush hotspots) and how the author aligned it in her own way with the information she had about the real Madame Dumont. I really loved the nots from the author at the end which spoke to what we know about the real Madame Dumont and what was creatively imagined by the author.

My only negative comment (which is something really silly and picky) was a few times where words were repeated in a sentence, I though maybe that could have been edited differently (but such a minor detail).

All in all, a very enjoyable read about a piece of history I know little about. Thankyou Jenni L. Walsh for that education and I look forward to learning women about the pioneering women of the 1800s gold rush.

Wow,wow,wow, I didnt want this to end! An amazing story based on a real person. Theres heartache, thrills and spills. This story will captivate you and take you along for the ride, which is thoroughly enjoyable and interesting. Such detail in the tale brings it fully to life. Six stars out of five, it's better than you can imagine.