When you think Mafia, you probably envision men but there were also plenty of women involved.

Barbie Latza Nadeau, has taken an in depth look into one side of the Mafia that we don’t hear a lot about. Focusing on the story of Pupetta Maresca who avenged her husband’s murderer by putting 29 shots in him. In addition to her story, Nadeau tells the story of other women with mafia ties as well as a lot about the culture.

I am a huge fan of Mafia history. I was so excited about this book because it was about women in the mafia, which is never discussed. This book left me feeling underwhelmed. Pupetta’s story was staggered throughout the book which was confusing. The book just choppy and very bland even for a nonfiction book.

I received this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

“But as I sit with all of the women I’ve interviewed, mesmerized by every detail they feed me, eagerly recounting each experience to anyone who will listen, I cannot help wondering who is truly at fault for romanticizing the mafia.”

Oh, I was so so excited for this book! It was good, I just wish I’d like it more.

I was expecting a more streamline book about Puppeta herself, so I was surprised at how many ‘mafia women’ that Barbie Latza Nadeau actually spoke with and talked about, and it made it more enjoyable of a book I think.

One thing that bothered me- was the back and forth attitude about these women. It never felt certain if it was sympathizing with them or if it was condemning them equally or worse than the men. In one chapter, they were abused and manipulated victims who were simply doing what they had to do survive with their children; and then in the very next chapter, speaking about the same woman, they were criminal masterminds who held more power than most people in Italy would imagine. I understand that the two things AREN’T mutually exclusive and both can be true, but it still felt a bit like whiplash.

I did enjoy the book and I’m so glad I got to read a copy of it, but it just wasn’t what I wanted.

Excellent expose from a journalist into the ruthless lives of mafia women. Unlike men, who have qualms about punishing, torturing, or killing families and children of turncoats - those who turn state's evidence - women engage in this with stomach-churning frequency. It gives new meaning to Kipling's "The Female of the Species is More Deadly than the Male". These women are anything but the molls portrayed in popular fiction and media!

My only complaint was in descriptions of locations where events in the book happened. My memory of Italian geography is a bit vague, and in some cases I had to look at a map of Italy to figure out where things were or how far from another place or event. It would be helpful to include a map of Italy in at least the print versions of the book.

Wow. This was an interesting eye opener for sure. I love books of this type where I learn a lot and still get that true crime type vibe. It’s also a fascinating topic, which I am sure many will enjoy.

With it's title I was expecting more from the story of, and from, Pupetta, and not so much of other mafia women. The cover picture and title pretty much made the impression of it being her.

It was interesting learning about the life of others, but I wanting more of Pupetta, not a couple of chapters then scattered through the book. Sadly my attention was drawn away quickly by other things going on. Because of that I almost dnf'd it, but since it was at 65% I finished it up.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read it for my honest opinion.

Barbie Latza Nadeau, a journalist based in Italy, opens her novel with a scene of an elderly woman serving her coffee. But she wasn’t always an espresso-loving grandma - as an 18-year old pregnant mob widow, she fatally shot a man and spent time in prison for it.

Nadeau is a great writer and paints a clear picture of the Italian city where the story opens, one that has a striking view of a volcano, a hint to the insidious nature of the community. She does a good job explaining the mafia’s influence on Italy and explores the patriarchal tone of organized crime.

Nadeau writes that the feminism movement forgot Italy. Naturally, misogynistic attitudes seep into organized crime, overlooking the contributions and roles of mafia women. But even so, the Italian government has more mafia women jailed now than ever before, suggesting an increased involvement, even if they’re not formally initiated members.

Nadeau’s book is engaging, well-researched and well-written. It was shocking to learn the grip the mafia still holds on Italy and even more shocking to learn about the group’s ruthlessness.

This was an interesting subject and I did enjoy learning about women in the mafia. I’m not really sure I like the way it was written though, it was not bad just it never fully clicked for me.

Barbie Nadeau's The Godmother is by far, one of the most interesting reads I have picked up in a long while. This book covers so many aspects of the Italian Mafia, giving an in-depth look at a true hidden gem in the realm of our notorious history, and the true back bone that actually held (and still holds in many ways) the criminal aspect together.

These are the women that "stood next to, behind, and in front of " the leaders of the Italian Mafia, and quite often shaping it to become what it is today by the their own blood, sweat, and tears; especially when their men (husbands, fathers, sons, etc.) were killed or were just to incompetent to lead such a vast group of people, leaving them to become one to run an 'empire '.

This book will leave the readers shaking their heads in disbelief at the same time they cheer some of these women on who dare stand up for themselves, their families, and in many ways, even their rights. These women, while used to using violence to getting their point across, are in many ways, true pioneers of the women's lib movement.

If anyone is interested not only in history, but Italian history, and the Mafia in particular, then The Godmother is definitely a book you need to read.. It is grip will hold you spellbound practicality from the first page to the last, and you will learn who the REAL Capre's are in this truly historic organization.

For most of the history of the Mafia/Mob in Italy women have never been taken as serious members thanks to the strict patriarchy and sexism woven into everyday life. After all there is no way woman can be smart and competent enough to be able to be a member, let alone run a crime family. More recently though that attitude is starting to change. Police, prosecutors, and reporters are beginning to see that not only can women be members of a crime syndicate, they are essential to the running of most if not all crime syndicates/families. This book explains the roles of women in organized crime in Italy and goes into depth with several women that have been born or married into criminal families beginning with arguably the first woman mob boss, Pupetta Marcesa.

I really am a big fan of this book. It is very well written and goes into deep detail about each of the women talked about without seeming exploitative (to me at least). It goes into detail about what life was like for these women in the crime families, what it was like to try to leave, and what happens when some of them fail to. It also goes into detail about prosecution efforts and what is being done to stamp out the Mafia in Italy. The majority of the women talked about have lead truly tragic lives and I genuinely felt for them as their ordeal was described. The author went into a lot of detail about each of the crime syndicates talked about and I really learned a lot in reading this. It makes me want to read more about the subject in the future.

I definitely recommend looking up trigger warnings about this book before you go into it. There are very explicit scenes of violence (including sexual violence) that can be very hard to read at times. If sexual violence makes you uncomfortable you might want to skip this book.

Overall I really do like this like I said though. Recommend for true crime fans of an appropriate age that can handle the subject material.

Always thought of Italy Sicily a fairytale a romantic place to visit a place to escape all the chaos of the world to enjoy the beautiful scenery the pastries the beverages well at least that’s how they pictured it in the Hallmark movies. I always said I wanted to go there visiting sites and live in the moment, breathe in the air and exhale all my worries and problems . After reading this I see these places totally different when you watch a Hallmark movie you never see the bad these places have to offer and this book really made me feel like I was there like I could see I was experiencing this stuff for myself I was amazed with all the different stories, short yes it just shows that there is so much more out there that we don’t know so much more out there that people live and do that’s not really state in the news or pictured in a movie. These things are happening nearly there across the world but you are so familiar because it’s happening in our own hometown and who would of thought. I love how this is about women powerful women with big rolls and small ones. I love how Barbie did her research didn’t take anyone at their word and researched her research. I love how she picked different regions of Italy and different aspects of what these women were involved in. you don’t hear too many stories of women in the mafia. this is a very interesting read. it’s true crime n the life of brave women who lived very dangerous but intriguing life’s that they had no choice to live because they were born in two families.

For anyone interested in history, especially the history of women and the mafia, this book is great. I'm huge fan of all things Mafia related in the media, and to hear the stories of women involved in the mob was pretty mind blowing, as it is such a patriarchy.

There seemed to be more history of the mob and back stories that strayed from the women discussed. I guess it was to provide context. But that was interesting as well. On top of that, Barbie paints a picture, although a somewhat alarming one, of Italys crime filled cities.

I would highly recommend this book.

Investigative journalist Barbie Latza Nadeau takes on the often undermined and underestimated roles that women play in the male-dominated Italian mafia. Focusing her research on Pupetta Maresca, the self-proclaimed “Godmother of the Mafia”, Nadeau explores the dated misogynistic attitudes of Italian police and officials, as well as the stereotypical roles given to females by society, and how female members of the mafia are faced with threats to their lives and the lives of their loved ones, forcing them into complete participation and compliance.
“The Godmother: Murder, Vengeance, and the Bloody Struggle of Mafia Women” is a dangerously realistic look behind the scenes of some of Italy’s most renowned crime families that goes far beyond anything portrayed in North American media. Latza Nadeau’s true crime story is told in several parts, highlighting why and how females become enwrapped within the mafia web and how they survive (Nadeau also discusses those who did not survive, and how they met their fate). Not to be outdone, the misogynistic and out-of-date viewpoint of not only the (male) heads of Mafia families, but also the Italian police and officials, take a starring role. In the world of the Mafia, women are often overlooked, and always underestimated, which works only to aid them in avoiding severe punishment (in most cases).
“Godmother” is an in depth look at the political climate of Italy and its centuries-old patriarchal structure. Nadeau highlights many of the crime families that head the mafia in both Italy and in North America, and there are a lot of characters mentioned, but it is evident that she has done her research. Latza Nadeau identifies Italy as her “adopted homeland”, and it is obvious that she has spent much time there, learning the culture and the language, fully immersing herself in the country to be able to provide as much detail as possible in her writings (ignoring the most present dangers).
The legal system in Italy is touched on in Nadeau’s story, but only to depict how corrupt it is. “Godmother” does not focus on the court proceedings, and instead focuses on illegal practices of the mafia in Italy, and the women who make it all possible. This prevents long pages of legal jargon and speeches, which I appreciated, and allows the reader to learn all the nitty-gritty details, which are the best parts.
It is obvious that Nadeau literally took her life into her hands to present the world with “Godmother”, facing danger home and abroad. The story itself is a creative examination of a culture that most people are only vaguely familiar with through (poor) representations on their screens. “Godmother” is a completely immersive, educational experience and Nadeau manages to accrue a type of sympathy for these women, and makes them relatable. “Godmother” is true-crime at its finest.

The God mother was a very interesting book about the mafia and Naples Italy. The woman called PUP ETC Was a very interesting person because she's a very let it very crazy life. And this book talked about how these women played apart in their destroyed feelings money wondering everything but but it was under the watchful eyes of the cops. Some women turned against their husbands or lovers and Or not all have any cocktank with their families or if they had children they were not allowed to see them. Some had to leave the area because they also had death threats against them. This was interesting how they ran businesses and stuff and how afterward 2 allowing them had no choice to use the mafia for money for loans because the government would not help him. The woman called PUPTC killed her husband's killer Went to jail when she was pregnant. When her son turned 4 he was taken away and lived with relatives. She got out of jail and they met up with another guy who was also involved in the mafia and had a girl with him. This is interesting how this woman left a very interesting life of crime and how in the book it was all time together with different stories how these women were treated but they had a lot of power. The women are also turned against other women too if they turned to the police this was obvious in a lot of cases

A look at women in the Italian Mafia, with mostly about Pupetta. I found this interesting, but I would have liked it better had Pupetta's story been told in one or two chapters instead of interspersed throughout the book.

The only way to leave the Family is either death or in a police car arrested for a crime. If you happen to be a woman who married, there is no divorce.

The women in the Mafia are looked down on as second class citizens. They are to raise the next generation of the family. A daughter is often married off to raise the status of the family. Some women do become Grandmother's' that are revered, but most don't.

Published September 6, 2022

Thanks to Netgalley, and Penguin Books for the Kindle Version of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

#netgalley
#penguinbooks

📚 Happy Reading 🙂📚

The book follows the life of Lady Camorra, the first female crime boss, who started her career at the tender age of 18 when she, newly widowed, pregnant with her first baby, killed the man who ordered the murder of her husband. She hit the offender with 29 bullets in the middle of the day, instantly becoming an object of admiration; poetry and songs have been written and sent to her while she was in jail. Describing her, Barbie Nadeau notes, “She was a cunning liar and a cold-blooded killer, but if you could look beyond that, she was genuinely delightful.” In the book, author tells the story of this woman and other women like her. Going against the stereotype, she shows that the stories of these women are complicated. They are as much victims as they are criminals. In addition, Barbie Latza Nadeau explains why the mafia has such a strong hold in Italy. People curious of this topic will find much interesting facts and details in the book.

The Godmother is non-fiction but reads like exciting fiction. I loved the insights into various mob wives and how they interacted with the mafia.

This book was so interesting! It is a unique look some women in the Italian mafia. Who they were, what they did, and what happened to them. Every chapter gives us a close look at an aspect of a different mafia woman’s life. Some of them were very active parts of the group, even more in power than their husbands, some were not willing participants in the business. I liked that we also learned about Italian culture and politics during this time so we understood why women often got away with their crimes or why they may have accepted their situations. It is very well researched and a very quick enjoyable read. The author has first-hand experience talking with these women and she tells their stories in an empathetic and unbiased way. If you have even a fleeting interest in the mafia, you will love this book!

Thanks to Netgalley, Penguin Books and Barbie Nadeau for sending this e-book for review.
This was fantastic and engrossing, hard to put down. I have been intrigues by the Mafia and have read quite a few books about it. This is definitely one of the better ones. I highly recommend this for fans of Mafia books, crime thrillers, or anyone just looking for a good read.
We make so many assumptions about the Mafia, and what Mafia women are like, but rarely do we get to see them in their personal, day to day life, many times overlooked and shadowed by their husbands exploits. Through massive and extensive research, done over a period of time, with hours of interesting and revealing conversations and interviews, Nadeu's investigative reporting have given us a clear peek into what its like to be a Mafia women, a Mafia wife and a Mafia mother. Growing up in the Family, marrying into the Family and the difficulty of leaving "pantiti".
The actual role of women in the mafia may differ from woman to woman, but most seem to adopt the lifestyle and become as calculating, ruthless as the Family they join. Exterminating families and infants to young to speak, and feeling little remorse is chilling. The life of "Pupetta", the N'drangheta, and the lives of these women will be hard to forget. The prose brings them to life beautifully and pushes the novel.
Highly recommended.

The writing style of this author is not my favorite. There is a lot of speculation in the commentary by the author and I think it takes away from the story.
The story is an interesting look at the women of the mafia and the injustices they bear but I just couldn’t get into it. I finished it but it was not my kind of book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This was an interesting read that I feel would apply to a niche group. I have always been interested in the way the mafia works. I've seen all the Godfathers, and Goodfellas (RIP Ray Liotta), but we never really get to hear about the women in those situations. What happens to them? How much do they truly know? This book is about just that. It's their story.