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Juliana #1
Juliana
“An Absolutely Beautiful and Moving Novel!”
--Philip Crawford, author of Mafia and the Gays
Readers say, “I can’t wait for the next book in the series."
She went looking for fame, and found her true self, instead.
New York City, 1941. Alice “Al” Huffman and her childhood friends are fresh off the potato farms of Long Island and bound for Broadway. Al’s plans for stage success are abruptly put on hold when she’s told she has no talent. As she gets a job to pay for acting classes, Al settles into a normal life with her friends and a boyfriend. It all changes when she meets Juliana.
A singer on the brink of stardom, Juliana is everything Al isn’t: glamorous, talented, and queer. The farm girl is quickly enthralled, experiencing thoughts and feelings she never realized were possible. Al finds herself slipping between two worlds: the gay underground and the “normal” world of her childhood friends. It’s a balancing act she can handle until the two worlds begin to collide
In a city bursting with change, can Alice find what she was looking for all along?
Juliana: Volume 1: 1941-1944 is a captivating work of LGBT historical romance. If you like extensively researched settings, spell-binding storytelling, and characters you can’t help but fall for, then you’ll love the first book in award-winning playwright Vanda’s new Juliana series.
Buy Juliana to discover a sexy, funny, and deadly serious world today!
--Philip Crawford, author of Mafia and the Gays
Readers say, “I can’t wait for the next book in the series."
She went looking for fame, and found her true self, instead.
New York City, 1941. Alice “Al” Huffman and her childhood friends are fresh off the potato farms of Long Island and bound for Broadway. Al’s plans for stage success are abruptly put on hold when she’s told she has no talent. As she gets a job to pay for acting classes, Al settles into a normal life with her friends and a boyfriend. It all changes when she meets Juliana.
A singer on the brink of stardom, Juliana is everything Al isn’t: glamorous, talented, and queer. The farm girl is quickly enthralled, experiencing thoughts and feelings she never realized were possible. Al finds herself slipping between two worlds: the gay underground and the “normal” world of her childhood friends. It’s a balancing act she can handle until the two worlds begin to collide
In a city bursting with change, can Alice find what she was looking for all along?
Juliana: Volume 1: 1941-1944 is a captivating work of LGBT historical romance. If you like extensively researched settings, spell-binding storytelling, and characters you can’t help but fall for, then you’ll love the first book in award-winning playwright Vanda’s new Juliana series.
Buy Juliana to discover a sexy, funny, and deadly serious world today!
468 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2016
218 people are currently reading
1674 people want to read
About the author
Vanda
9 books383 followersI was born and raised in Huntington Station, Long Island, but my mother would never let us call it that. She said we came from South Huntington. Saying we were from Huntington Station, according to my mother, made it sound like we came from the other side of the tracks. And, well, Mom, we did and that fact has greatly influenced my writing.
I wrote my first novel in eighth grade, with encouragement from my teacher, Mr. James Evers, who said, "My children will read your words." (They did) I went on to win an Edward Albee Fellowship among other awards for playwriting. One of my plays, VILE AFFECTIONS, was a finalist for the National Lambda Literary Award.
I am currently writing a series of novels about LGBT modern history that is NOT for LGBT folks only. These are books about people surviving and rising through some very difficult and dark days. However, these are not gloomy books. The characters are filled with spirit and lots of humor. The series begins in 1941, shortly before WW2. So far I have completed through 1956. There is a core romance that begins in the first book and continues through each book that follows. The same characters mature and change throughout each book. The latest book in the series to be published is Do You Know Dorothy? Book 5, Part 1.
I wrote my first novel in eighth grade, with encouragement from my teacher, Mr. James Evers, who said, "My children will read your words." (They did) I went on to win an Edward Albee Fellowship among other awards for playwriting. One of my plays, VILE AFFECTIONS, was a finalist for the National Lambda Literary Award.
I am currently writing a series of novels about LGBT modern history that is NOT for LGBT folks only. These are books about people surviving and rising through some very difficult and dark days. However, these are not gloomy books. The characters are filled with spirit and lots of humor. The series begins in 1941, shortly before WW2. So far I have completed through 1956. There is a core romance that begins in the first book and continues through each book that follows. The same characters mature and change throughout each book. The latest book in the series to be published is Do You Know Dorothy? Book 5, Part 1.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
January 4, 2024
i found this book unread at the bottom of my kindle library, which means i must've paid money for it back around 2017 so i was curious what it was. the author describes this as a novel that gives a glimpse into LGBT history, and i would agree it paints a vivid picture of a troubled young woman who is tormented by her sapphic desires in a society that demonizes same sex attraction.
what the author didn't warn the reader about is the insane quantity of slurs that are thrown around in this. it's rough because i can tell that so much research went into this and it's very arguable that "it's just the way people talked back then!" but this book is quite frankly a slur dictionary. no matter what it was--race, ability, sexuality--these characters not only comfortably used slurs frequently in dialogue, but the main character's narration casually referred to people in derogatory terms even in her own head. and not once was it challenged or questioned.
as much as i thought this was interesting because it was a very detailed account of wartime and being gay in the mid-20th century, i really can't recommend it because of how insensitively these characters talk about anyone who isn't in their white, able-bodied friend group. and there's 4 more books in this series?? no thanks.
what the author didn't warn the reader about is the insane quantity of slurs that are thrown around in this. it's rough because i can tell that so much research went into this and it's very arguable that "it's just the way people talked back then!" but this book is quite frankly a slur dictionary. no matter what it was--race, ability, sexuality--these characters not only comfortably used slurs frequently in dialogue, but the main character's narration casually referred to people in derogatory terms even in her own head. and not once was it challenged or questioned.
as much as i thought this was interesting because it was a very detailed account of wartime and being gay in the mid-20th century, i really can't recommend it because of how insensitively these characters talk about anyone who isn't in their white, able-bodied friend group. and there's 4 more books in this series?? no thanks.
December 26, 2015
Juliana by Vanda is a interesting book that follows the lives of a handful of men and women who live in New York City in the early 1940s. The characters are alluring and the tale is poignant. You definitely don't want to miss this one.
The main character is the story is Alice "Al" Huffman. Al leaves her small town family home and moves to NYC. She is accompanied by her childhood best friends, Aggie, Danny & Dickie. They plan to take Broadway by storm and fulfill the dreams they have had since grade school. Al is naive, she is thoughtful, and she is kind. Her evolution into her true self is amazing to read. She is a wonderful character, who is by no means perfect, and makes many mis-steps throughout the book, she a compelling main character.
Al and her gang meet Maxwell P. Harlington the Third on one of their first nights in the city. Upon meeting Max, life for the three, especially Al, changes forever. Max is an magnetic character. He promises to open doors for the young friends, which Aggie and Danny jump right on. Al is a skeptic, and she has no qualms putting her concerns of Max's abilities right back in his face. Max and Al's relationship continues through the book, growing as time goes on. At times they are harsh, contentious, and very critical of one another, but they have a mutual respect that continues as life and new characters weave their way into the book.
Juliana is another character who is a main player in this book. She is an absolute fascinating woman. Juliana is a singer, a great one who has not reached the peak of her stardom. She plays in well known dives throughout the city, but has not reached the main stages. She is rich, she is upper-class, she is married, and Al is hooked on her from the very first moment she hears Juliana sing. Their relationship is a push-pull force that neither can deny but is not always wanted.
Meeting Max and Juliana changes Al forever. She is introduced to a world of people that she never knew existed. One she cannot deny know matter how many times she says she is not a lesbian.
This is a great read, and I was hooked right from the start. Vanda does a wonderful job of pulling the reader right in and holding you in the story. I highly recommended this book, you will not be disappointed. I cannot wait for the sequel!
I received this ARC from Netgalley.
The main character is the story is Alice "Al" Huffman. Al leaves her small town family home and moves to NYC. She is accompanied by her childhood best friends, Aggie, Danny & Dickie. They plan to take Broadway by storm and fulfill the dreams they have had since grade school. Al is naive, she is thoughtful, and she is kind. Her evolution into her true self is amazing to read. She is a wonderful character, who is by no means perfect, and makes many mis-steps throughout the book, she a compelling main character.
Al and her gang meet Maxwell P. Harlington the Third on one of their first nights in the city. Upon meeting Max, life for the three, especially Al, changes forever. Max is an magnetic character. He promises to open doors for the young friends, which Aggie and Danny jump right on. Al is a skeptic, and she has no qualms putting her concerns of Max's abilities right back in his face. Max and Al's relationship continues through the book, growing as time goes on. At times they are harsh, contentious, and very critical of one another, but they have a mutual respect that continues as life and new characters weave their way into the book.
Juliana is another character who is a main player in this book. She is an absolute fascinating woman. Juliana is a singer, a great one who has not reached the peak of her stardom. She plays in well known dives throughout the city, but has not reached the main stages. She is rich, she is upper-class, she is married, and Al is hooked on her from the very first moment she hears Juliana sing. Their relationship is a push-pull force that neither can deny but is not always wanted.
Meeting Max and Juliana changes Al forever. She is introduced to a world of people that she never knew existed. One she cannot deny know matter how many times she says she is not a lesbian.
This is a great read, and I was hooked right from the start. Vanda does a wonderful job of pulling the reader right in and holding you in the story. I highly recommended this book, you will not be disappointed. I cannot wait for the sequel!
I received this ARC from Netgalley.
July 19, 2018
5-
WORTH READING!
This is a very interesting, and at times disturbing, study of homosexuality and prejudice in the early U.S. 20th century. The book itself begins in 1941 tracking the lives of four "country" high school kids that move to New York City to start their careers in show business. It deals with the sexuality of both male and female characters. It is at times chauvinistic, racist, bigoted, overly-dramatic, corny, sexy, funny and delightful. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone. I look forward to book 2 which takes place in the 1950s.
WORTH READING!This is a very interesting, and at times disturbing, study of homosexuality and prejudice in the early U.S. 20th century. The book itself begins in 1941 tracking the lives of four "country" high school kids that move to New York City to start their careers in show business. It deals with the sexuality of both male and female characters. It is at times chauvinistic, racist, bigoted, overly-dramatic, corny, sexy, funny and delightful. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone. I look forward to book 2 which takes place in the 1950s.
June 11, 2016
Juliana is a coming of age story settled in NYC in the 40's.
Our main character is Alice 'Al' Huffman, a girl from a town who goes to NYC with her best friends, Dick, Aggie, and her beau Danny. They want to be stars but they face adversities that make their path to become artists difficult or unreachable.
In this journey, Alice discovers parts of herself she never paid attention to when she met the singer Juliana and other characters who are part of the homosexual community that happens to be also in the entertainment industry. Her attraction to Juliana confuses her and it gets worse when Juliana makes the first step to seduce this naïve girl.
Through the eyes of Alice whe get to see the life in the 40's, what's expected from men and women, the struggle to get into the entretainment industry, how homosexuals struggled to have a place (though underground) to be themselves and their involvement in theater and clubs, how the war affected the life of the citizens and what war did to the men who went to the front lines.
While in the beginning i struggled more with the narration due to the lack of descriptions of the city and close to no show of emotions from the MC, than the lenght of the story, by the middle of the book, my buddy reader, Iben, told me Vanda is a playwright and then, the writing made sense. Personally, the book would have been better for me if it were more descriptive and showed more emotions from the characters (specially from Juliana and Alice) than just dialogue. Also, there's a very very subtle character development and the only one i felt more rounded is Max, the other characters didn't feel flat but neither felt with much personality aside the roles they had in Alice's life. Other problem i saw was the lack of passion in the sex scenes between Alice and Juliana, i sincerely didn't feel they had raw strong feelings for each other, for me, the sex was like seeing two women caressing each other in a "lesbian" porn video; more descriptive scenes would have helped.
Ultimately, i think the story is good, long and slow but not boring, though maybe i'm biased because I've read nonfiction books of the 20's-40's regarding the mafia and queer lifes so I more or less know how things were back then and it's simply an era i enjoy to read about. The research is palpable and the addition of the references helps curious history buffs like me to read more about the themes of this book.
Our main character is Alice 'Al' Huffman, a girl from a town who goes to NYC with her best friends, Dick, Aggie, and her beau Danny. They want to be stars but they face adversities that make their path to become artists difficult or unreachable.
In this journey, Alice discovers parts of herself she never paid attention to when she met the singer Juliana and other characters who are part of the homosexual community that happens to be also in the entertainment industry. Her attraction to Juliana confuses her and it gets worse when Juliana makes the first step to seduce this naïve girl.
Through the eyes of Alice whe get to see the life in the 40's, what's expected from men and women, the struggle to get into the entretainment industry, how homosexuals struggled to have a place (though underground) to be themselves and their involvement in theater and clubs, how the war affected the life of the citizens and what war did to the men who went to the front lines.
While in the beginning i struggled more with the narration due to the lack of descriptions of the city and close to no show of emotions from the MC, than the lenght of the story, by the middle of the book, my buddy reader, Iben, told me Vanda is a playwright and then, the writing made sense. Personally, the book would have been better for me if it were more descriptive and showed more emotions from the characters (specially from Juliana and Alice) than just dialogue. Also, there's a very very subtle character development and the only one i felt more rounded is Max, the other characters didn't feel flat but neither felt with much personality aside the roles they had in Alice's life. Other problem i saw was the lack of passion in the sex scenes between Alice and Juliana, i sincerely didn't feel they had raw strong feelings for each other, for me, the sex was like seeing two women caressing each other in a "lesbian" porn video; more descriptive scenes would have helped.
Ultimately, i think the story is good, long and slow but not boring, though maybe i'm biased because I've read nonfiction books of the 20's-40's regarding the mafia and queer lifes so I more or less know how things were back then and it's simply an era i enjoy to read about. The research is palpable and the addition of the references helps curious history buffs like me to read more about the themes of this book.
June 3, 2016
To be honest I put off reading this book for quite a while. The premise was intriguing, but the combined cheesiness of the cover and the author's mononym...anyway, I'm so glad I finally decided to read it. It's lovely, actually. Even though it was indeed slightly cheesy at times. It isn't a perfect book, the message is somewhat heavy handed at times, it's occasionally overdramatized, but as far as reading experiences go, this was an immensely enjoyable one. The author has managed to create an awesomely immersive world and I didn't want my visit to end. Plus it is interesting and moreover important to be aware of history in all its ugliness, so that when someone goes to wax nostalgic and moon over the good old days they can be reminded of the ignorant hatred, terrible prejudice and discrimination that was so prevalent back then. Within the context of the book it is primarily about gays, but because it's a fairly expansive story, it also portrays the attitudes toward mental disorders, different races, etc., albeit to a lesser degree. The eponymous beauty isn't actually the main protagonist, she's just the shiniest most desirable one. There are plenty of characters in this story, all surprisingly engaging in their own ways. Definitely one of the best things about the book. And then, of course, it's also a fascinating and technically well rendered portrait of New York City during WWII. So if I had to classify this book, it would be something like a romantic historical fiction/coming out/coming of age story. But classifications aside, it's just a great read. This is apparently meant to be continued and I'd love to find out what happens next. Patience...patience. Suppose to be a virtue.
September 23, 2017
This story touches on a lot of topics. It skated the fine line of homophobia and racism, but I'm giving the author the benefit of the doubt that it was fitting given the era.
It's also very loooooooooooong, so don't start this book intending to finish it in a day or two, unless you're a very fast reader.
Kindle Freebie - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GBEZOUE/ref
It's also very loooooooooooong, so don't start this book intending to finish it in a day or two, unless you're a very fast reader.
Kindle Freebie - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GBEZOUE/ref
dnf
September 13, 2020I got this by accident some years back and kept taking it off and on my TBR since then. But it was free and I'm trying to find more F/F to read, so I figured I'd give it a try. Unfortunately, I was bored almost immediately. Young innocents from Podunk, USA moving to NYC to become stars on Broadway just doesn't interest me at all.
DNF @ 10%
DNF @ 10%
May 3, 2016
Stayed up all night reading this book so this review probably won't be terribly coherent. I thought the author did a marvelous job putting the reader into the era and setting. I found the attitudes of the four friends repellant at first, and had to keep reminding myself that this was a different time, when being gay or lesbian or even bisexual was seen as unnatural. I loved how gradually Al's attitude changed (though I still wanted to grab her and shake some sense into her more than once) as she began to see some of these "undesirables" as people, and then as friends, and then as family. I loved watching her learn how to stand up for herself, loved watching her grow as a person. This book was in a lot of ways not as dark as I expected, and in some ways much more heartbreaking than I thought possible. I'm looking forward to seeing where Vol 2. takes me.
June 16, 2016
4.5 Stars!!
WOW---WHAT A BOOK!!
It's a spell-binding, entrancing read. A gay underworld with the sights and sounds of a lost New York!! "Juliana" is the first in a series and covers the years of 1941 to 1944, in which the same characters live out LGBT history in New York City through the decades.
I would say "Juliana" is an amazing historical fiction. It is a more or less coming of age story of a young girl who falls in love and lust with another woman. In her new world she is introduced and becomes friends with many of the gay community who were stars and performers of Broadway.
It's 1941 and Alice "Al" Huffman come from the potato fields of Long Island with her three childhood friends to make it on the Broadway stage. Al meets Juliana, the glamorous, nightclub singer who voice sounds to her like "warm milk slipping down the whole of my body." Julianna, a sexual risk taker with a secret easily reels in Al who has never felt a love like this before.
This is such an excellent read...I have only touched on the topics that this book covers!!
WOW---WHAT A BOOK!!
It's a spell-binding, entrancing read. A gay underworld with the sights and sounds of a lost New York!! "Juliana" is the first in a series and covers the years of 1941 to 1944, in which the same characters live out LGBT history in New York City through the decades.
I would say "Juliana" is an amazing historical fiction. It is a more or less coming of age story of a young girl who falls in love and lust with another woman. In her new world she is introduced and becomes friends with many of the gay community who were stars and performers of Broadway.
It's 1941 and Alice "Al" Huffman come from the potato fields of Long Island with her three childhood friends to make it on the Broadway stage. Al meets Juliana, the glamorous, nightclub singer who voice sounds to her like "warm milk slipping down the whole of my body." Julianna, a sexual risk taker with a secret easily reels in Al who has never felt a love like this before.
This is such an excellent read...I have only touched on the topics that this book covers!!
December 16, 2018
3.75
I am not a fan of historical fiction as a rule, so many make it all quite tedious. This is not the case with this particular book.
The world building is well researched and evocative. There are notes at the end which explain and outline the researches involved.
The characters all have their flaws, and they extend them almost to the point of unpleasantness. For me, this makes them remarkably more realistic than many works of fiction, and is both a good thing and a negative.
On the downside, sometimes the story seemed to ramble a little too much, but as this is the story of the times it is not such a bad problem.
I would recommend this to anyone who wants to look at gay and lesbian history.
I am not a fan of historical fiction as a rule, so many make it all quite tedious. This is not the case with this particular book.
The world building is well researched and evocative. There are notes at the end which explain and outline the researches involved.
The characters all have their flaws, and they extend them almost to the point of unpleasantness. For me, this makes them remarkably more realistic than many works of fiction, and is both a good thing and a negative.
On the downside, sometimes the story seemed to ramble a little too much, but as this is the story of the times it is not such a bad problem.
I would recommend this to anyone who wants to look at gay and lesbian history.
July 3, 2019
I love historical fiction, especially when it's based not only on truth but believability.
April 7, 2018
It's a coming of age story as four friend's finish High School, then leave a potato farming community on Long Island and head to New York City.
Three dream of being Broadway Stars, the other wants to be writer and dreams of being the next Ernest Hemingway.
While it's titled Juliana, really it's about Al, Aggie, Dickie and Danny coming of age in NYC, fulfilling their dreams, four likable characters and great support cast and Al just takes over the story.
Felt like Vanda without realizing it, or maybe she knows it, wants the reader to become Alice or Al, as her friends call her.
I liked Vanda's writing style, she writes an engaging story, she puts the reader right in the pages, has unforgettable characters, your at the Stage Door Canteen with your few soldiers enjoying singing entertainment, making sacrifices for the war cause and reads like a play or a movie even.
Even if your not into the reading LBGT books, but like reading post World War 2 books, the author keeps it relatively clean, scenes change before they get to graphic and think you like this one.
With Juliana, Vanda gives the reader a look at what life was like in the States during WW2, the sacrifices everyone made, dimming lights, finding alternative items for things they can't get due to the war and like that it's fiction verse non-fiction.
I also like how Vanda took actually history regarding the celebrities from that time period, added real places, and expertly blended it with her fictional characters.
Will be adding more to this one.
Three dream of being Broadway Stars, the other wants to be writer and dreams of being the next Ernest Hemingway.
While it's titled Juliana, really it's about Al, Aggie, Dickie and Danny coming of age in NYC, fulfilling their dreams, four likable characters and great support cast and Al just takes over the story.
Felt like Vanda without realizing it, or maybe she knows it, wants the reader to become Alice or Al, as her friends call her.
I liked Vanda's writing style, she writes an engaging story, she puts the reader right in the pages, has unforgettable characters, your at the Stage Door Canteen with your few soldiers enjoying singing entertainment, making sacrifices for the war cause and reads like a play or a movie even.
Even if your not into the reading LBGT books, but like reading post World War 2 books, the author keeps it relatively clean, scenes change before they get to graphic and think you like this one.
With Juliana, Vanda gives the reader a look at what life was like in the States during WW2, the sacrifices everyone made, dimming lights, finding alternative items for things they can't get due to the war and like that it's fiction verse non-fiction.
I also like how Vanda took actually history regarding the celebrities from that time period, added real places, and expertly blended it with her fictional characters.
Will be adding more to this one.
September 23, 2017
Excellent story. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
January 19, 2018
This is the first volume in a series of historical fiction that follows a group of characters from the early 1940s forward. It would appear that the author has researched the time and area as well as she could. If I were just rating the book for it's intentions, it would get five stars, easily, but as I've been reading it, my sense of how to rate it has moved between three and five stars. Why? Well, in the beginning of the book, there's "An Apology" in which the author formally apologizes to "Roman Catholics, African Americans, Jews, the Japanese, and the disabled," because she reflected period (early 1940s) attitudes and language in writing her book. The Apology made me uncomfortable, mostly because it's like being talked down to. If I'm reading a book set in the 1940s and a character calls someone something pejorative, my first thought is not going to be, "Wow, this author must be a bigot!" Unless I've found the author to be incompetent or the characterization to be utterly capricious, I would assume that the author is trying to be true to the temper of the times. Okay, but where is her apology to obese people? The character of Mrs. Minton is portrayed as a fairly rigid, judgmental, and punitive person, who is first described as "a big lady." Later on, aspects of her girth are brought up frequently and, it seemed to me, in conjunction with less desirable aspects of her character. Only two other people in the book are noted as being overweight, one is the husband (boo! hiss!) of the woman desired by the main character and the other is a cross-dressing, cigar-smoking bull dyke. So, the religious harpy, the main character's male competition, and a bull dyke. Heft is not a character trait, that's all I'm pointing out. And weight aside, that guy our heroine dates -- the one who has a compulsion about showing off his circumcised erection and forcing Al to give him a hand job -- managed to be both creepy and gratuitously Jewish at the same time. We hear lotsa trash talking about Jews, and when we finally meet one in the book, he's revolting. Maybe Vanda should have included two rounds of Apology for those who are Jewish? The next bit that struck me as a might peculiar was that we have the ultra-feminine Juliana being pursued by Alice-call-me-Al. Al isn't described all that memorably, and except for a couple of offhand remarks by denizens of the gay world, there's nothing that would make me think, "This here is a butch kinda girl!" But Juliana dresses Al in men's pants, men's shirt, tie, men's suit jacket, and fedora because she loves seeing a woman dressed like a man. It's a turn-on for Juliana. Personally, I have never known of a feminine woman being turned into a butch by the sartorial preferences of her partner. When I insisted on wearing boy's clothes as a pre-schooler, it wasn't to impress a girl. It had to do with who I was. So, there were some things that just struck me as _off_, somehow, false notes that pulled me out of the world the author was creating. Also, there are some points in Al's travails that seem a bit too over-the-top. Would Aggie throw away an entire lifetime of being best friends with nary a backward glance? Could Al's mother be any nastier? That's why I gave it three stars. The upsides, however are that most characters are well-developed, even if not that well-described; the dialog is good; and the story does draw one in.
June 11, 2016
Vanda says about this book, that: "Juliana is not a story of just some ordinary men and women living in New York City in the 1940s; it is the story of gay men and women living in New York City in the 1940s."
-As such, I thought it was a wonderful book. Full of lively dialogue and a rich gallery of characters to show us "the scene". I'm looking at photos from the 40's, and listening to lovely music, and this little piece of history brought alive, feels so important to me. It even feels relevant to me, personally, even though I was born in a different country, in a different time, with a different experience in relation to my own sexual identity.
The fact that the author is a playwright, and this novel was acted out on stage as part of the writing process, shines through. On one hand, it reads almost as a movie; and it leaves a lot to my own interpretation and imagination. That felt refreshing to me; not having all of the answers right away, or only having a very limited access to interpretations.
I did miss getting to know more about the inner workings of the characters, however, and especially Al, the narrator. I was sometimes baffled by her reactions, and I had trouble understanding her motivations, other than the very obvious psychology of her upbringing and early experiences in her life, and having that rejection repeated time and again as a young adult. This resulted in me not being able to feel all that much empathy towards Al, and feeling like a lot of the other characters were just stencils (her mother and father, for instance).
In no way do I need to find a main character sympathetic all the time - I love reading about complex characters with flaws and blind spots. Adding more character depth and giving the readers more understanding of the character, would have made this a brilliant novel for me, instead of a good one.
I look forward to Volume 2. I do hope the next years will treat our heroine well.
-As such, I thought it was a wonderful book. Full of lively dialogue and a rich gallery of characters to show us "the scene". I'm looking at photos from the 40's, and listening to lovely music, and this little piece of history brought alive, feels so important to me. It even feels relevant to me, personally, even though I was born in a different country, in a different time, with a different experience in relation to my own sexual identity.
The fact that the author is a playwright, and this novel was acted out on stage as part of the writing process, shines through. On one hand, it reads almost as a movie; and it leaves a lot to my own interpretation and imagination. That felt refreshing to me; not having all of the answers right away, or only having a very limited access to interpretations.
I did miss getting to know more about the inner workings of the characters, however, and especially Al, the narrator. I was sometimes baffled by her reactions, and I had trouble understanding her motivations, other than the very obvious psychology of her upbringing and early experiences in her life, and having that rejection repeated time and again as a young adult. This resulted in me not being able to feel all that much empathy towards Al, and feeling like a lot of the other characters were just stencils (her mother and father, for instance).
In no way do I need to find a main character sympathetic all the time - I love reading about complex characters with flaws and blind spots. Adding more character depth and giving the readers more understanding of the character, would have made this a brilliant novel for me, instead of a good one.
I look forward to Volume 2. I do hope the next years will treat our heroine well.
December 28, 2017
To start, I really loved the addition in the back of the book of the research the author did on 1940s history. It surrounded the novel and made it seem real, especially parts that I already knew, like women needing three feminine articles of clothing if the police questioned them. But also understanding that the language used by the majority of the characters was actually thought by a lot of people in that time -- it hurt to read it but that sort of thought was normalized.
I really liked how everyone was human and made mistakes but you know, it was frustrating to read Aggie just deserting Al like that.
My favorite parts were when Al and Juliana were together, being sweet. The progression of Al & Max's friendship is something I thought was strong too. And man, when Al was thinking of the girls in her past that she's had crushes on, that was a little relatable.
I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to start on the second! 4 🌟
I really liked how everyone was human and made mistakes but you know, it was frustrating to read Aggie just deserting Al like that.
My favorite parts were when Al and Juliana were together, being sweet. The progression of Al & Max's friendship is something I thought was strong too. And man, when Al was thinking of the girls in her past that she's had crushes on, that was a little relatable.
I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to start on the second! 4 🌟
March 14, 2018
A must read for anyone interested in GLBT history. The story is not really just about an individual, however about a group of people and how life changes for them all, whether it being discovery of their sexuality in a time when being queer could cost you your life, moving to a big city from a small town, interactions with different religions and races, or the inclusion of the United States in WW II. The author has done wonderfully in capturing the time and essence of the 1940's, from the language used to the cafe and clubs that supported the diverse culture of the time. However it is really the story of how the Gays and Lesbians of the era survived and supported each other thru hardships and disappointments. It is not a pleasant story at time however one I recommed to all. I am looking forward to the next chapter of these amazing characters.
July 26, 2018
JULIANA is a fantastic novel. First book I've read by Vanda and won't be my last! This exciting, funny, touching, erotic novel tells a well-researched tale about LGBT history during World War II, as Alice "Al" Huffman and her three friends move from rural Long Island into Manhattan in search of fame and fortune in the theatre. Told in the first person through Alice's eyes, the story reveals the very secretive role played by LGBT people in American life during the 1940s. The central focus is Alice's unexpected attraction to the beautiful club singer Juliana, their hidden sexual exploits together, and Alice's coming into her own identity as she pursues the illusive Juliana. If there were six stars, I would give this novel all of them!
did-not-finish
August 11, 2016I often don't like to read longer books. It takes me a week to finish them and as long as the book is not completely holding my attention, I get easily bored with it.
So, Juliana is not a bad book - I see that there are many high ratings and praising reviews - but it is very lengthy and repetitive. It's just toooo slooow for me.
____________________________________
Genre: historical fiction
Tags: lesbian, coming of age, New York, WWII, artists
Content warnings: (internalised) homophobia, racism, ableism
Rating: dnf at 40%, no star rating
Notes: read with Iben and Fenriz whom I abandoned halfway through after making them read it
So, Juliana is not a bad book - I see that there are many high ratings and praising reviews - but it is very lengthy and repetitive. It's just toooo slooow for me.
____________________________________
Genre: historical fiction
Tags: lesbian, coming of age, New York, WWII, artists
Content warnings: (internalised) homophobia, racism, ableism
Rating: dnf at 40%, no star rating
Notes: read with Iben and Fenriz whom I abandoned halfway through after making them read it
June 18, 2017
An excellent historical romance in the vein of Sarah Waters in terms of its meticulous research into the NYC of the early 1940s on the eve of and during the initial years of WWII. Alice (Al) Huffman leaves her Long Island home town after HS graduation along with her best female friend and their boyfriends to seek fame and fortune on the stage in NYC. Along the way, she comes across Juliana, a semi-successful nightclub singer. Al's obsession with Juliana soon finds them in a kind of relationship and places Al into the gay subculture of the time. As Part I ends, Juliana returns to Al after a separation but it is unclear what could happen between them.
December 23, 2018
I liked that the story was set in the 1940's, and it was very informational. I liked the chemistry between Juliana and Al(Alice). I appreciated that the author apologized in the intro for all of the slurs that were in the book (for historical accuracy), but I didn't realize how much they would be in the book or how uncomfortable that would make it to read. I get wanting to be historically accurate and show the struggles people dealt with in the 1940's but I felt that this was a bit heavy handed. I think I was hoping for a historical lesbian romance, and while there was that, it was in a depressing way.
February 27, 2016
This is a Goodreads win review. This book is set in the 1940,s so it has an interesting story since I was not born then. You can see yourself in 1940 New York with the Broadway stage and the people of that time.
May 20, 2016
This book is a complicated story that is fictional and yet wants to depict the New York City scene between 1941 (starting before the US entered the war) and 1944 (ending just before D-Day). What’s more it deals with the show business scene and it mixes real historical characters, hence real names, and some that I consider as fictional, like the Juliana of the title who I assume is white though I base this remark on the cover of the book.
The first element in the book is the impact of the war on the American society. First the at time ferocious patriotism of American men – and women. Men volunteer and enlist in the armed forces if they can or on their side if they can’t do more (age, handicaps, sexual orientation). This patriotism is both complete and never questioned. There is not one character who speaks against it and those who are excluded are vocally protesting against this ban or exclusion they consider unjust. The war also has an important impact on daily life with women having to work in the place of men: with restrictions and food stamps; with the opening of special entertaining centers for GIs with artists, music, dancing and of course drinks and food. Note artists are recruited with rather heavy arguments: patriotism again since they too have to contribute to the effort and to the morale of the troops. There is even a “mission” of artists going to Europe to entertain the troops in England, in Italy where the offensive is already going on and in Northern Africa.
The book is centered on six characters, three women and three men, a star of David or a number of Solomon of sorts. The first couple is Aggie and Dickie. It goes along with a second couple Alice and Danny. They come from some distant suburban or rural area to New York to have a career in showbiz. They are promised to marry one day, the As with the Ds, Anno Domini. They are old friends from high school at least maybe farther back. These four meets a lot of other people in New York City but two will emerge and they are not a couple though they apparently work together now and then. It is Max and Juliana.
Aggie and Dickie manage to have small parts and jobs in plays and musicals before the beginning of the war for the US and then they go on for a while after the US entered the war. Dickie though is sent to the front in Europe: Italy is the target. He will come back with an abdomen wound and will end up with an artificial colon exhaust bag. He was a dancer and singer. He will not dance any more. Aggie at the end takes care of him but she had had some dark episode while he was away. She might even be willing to get a divorce and be freed.
Alice and Danny are supposed to get married soon but Alice discovers Danny one morning coming out of Max’s bedroom in the nude. The meaning is simple. Alice rejects Danny immediately and in a very sectarian way. Danny oscillating between depression and other temptations decides to join the armed forces and as such manages to age and to become maybe more mature about his desire, which means maybe accept it, especially since he has fallen in love on the front. Alice and Danny are good friends again at the end. But Alice is one real stake – as a stubborn black sheep who pretends she is as white as snow, well not exactly but with only one small stain of grey far away from sight – in this book. She has fallen in love with Juliana but she refuses to accept the idea that she is a lesbian.
Max is a character on the NYC stage, stylish, gay with great ideas and projects but his gayness is purely sexual, and I should say even hormonal. Yet he joins the armed forces too out od sheer patriotism and there falls in love with another soldier who is moved back to the US. Censorship discovers in one letter from this other man to Max a phrase that makes the censors think they are dealing with a homosexual couple. So they give the blue sheet to Max: internment for a while in Europe. Repatriation and internment again in the US, finally he is discharged with the blue document that tells he is not desirable. That excludes him from all benefits veterans will get after the war. That prevents him from even saying he is a veteran since it would bring a discharge that is not honorable. In other words he has become an outcast in his own country out of patriotism, and yet with the help of Alice he tries to rebuild his dream with no money and no connections. Or nearly no connections.
That’s were Juliana is important. She is a female Max, in other words a lesbian who is more hormonal than in love with any one. Yet she falls for Alice, though she does not want to say it publicly or out loud. In the same movement, and at the same time Alice has fallen for Juliana though she wants to reduce it to only her which should prove in her mind that she is not a lesbian. Of course that is casuistry, play on words, if not hypocrisy. The very end brings some kind of restructuring of the six people. Alice tells Aggie about her affection for Juliana. Aggie is shocked and run away. Dickie seems to be on the same line in his handicapped dependency. Danny will remain on the side after his return.
So the six original characters shrink to a group of three, a trinity of sort of unholy people. Gay max, lesbian Juliana and lesbian to become Alice with one project: to build and open a club in New York City, a club for music, performing, and that would be open to all diversity and particularly segregated against minorities like blacks and homosexuals.
That brings the main question in this book. It is openly gay and lesbian oriented. It reveals the bigotry of most Americans in society and in the armed forces in spite of some tolerance for a while in the armed forces, tolerance that is dubious and maybe unbelievable, of the sort Don’t Tell Don’t Ask. That did not last long. The bigotry is depicted in the most crude and brutal terms. Things have not changed a lot since then when we deal with these bigots. Things may have changed legally in this post-propositioon-8 America, but gay-bashing remains a sport for some people. In the 1940s it was both a national and a family sport: bash them all and God will finish the job and send them to hell.
Yet there is here and there a tone that is not the tone of the 1940s. Here and there the book seems to assume the present situation in the 2010s. At the same time the explicit sexual scenes and descriptions on the lesbian side make the book at least erotic and we could consider some chapter are openly pornographic. It is done with some restraint and modesty but the modesty of Greek statues, though on the male side modesty means purely and simply no-mention of graphic detail. At times the bigotry is too blunt to be effective and the regret Aggie expresses at the last minute of her connection to Alice when she recuperates her teddy bear seems to mean that she regrets the fact that Alice told her about her affair with Juliana: it would have been so much simpler if it had not been expressed in words. Hypocrisy is the loincloth of bigotry.
The last element is the families of the characters. They are so obnoxious at times and so rejected all the time that is worthless to speak of it. The families are some caricature of an explanation of the orientation of the children. Too easy, too simple and as usual the mother is the real culprit as if it were necessary. One can be gay without such a psychedelic short-cut. But the book is interesting if you want to understand that modern trend in the whole world: LGBTQ rights and Rainbow Pride.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU
The first element in the book is the impact of the war on the American society. First the at time ferocious patriotism of American men – and women. Men volunteer and enlist in the armed forces if they can or on their side if they can’t do more (age, handicaps, sexual orientation). This patriotism is both complete and never questioned. There is not one character who speaks against it and those who are excluded are vocally protesting against this ban or exclusion they consider unjust. The war also has an important impact on daily life with women having to work in the place of men: with restrictions and food stamps; with the opening of special entertaining centers for GIs with artists, music, dancing and of course drinks and food. Note artists are recruited with rather heavy arguments: patriotism again since they too have to contribute to the effort and to the morale of the troops. There is even a “mission” of artists going to Europe to entertain the troops in England, in Italy where the offensive is already going on and in Northern Africa.
The book is centered on six characters, three women and three men, a star of David or a number of Solomon of sorts. The first couple is Aggie and Dickie. It goes along with a second couple Alice and Danny. They come from some distant suburban or rural area to New York to have a career in showbiz. They are promised to marry one day, the As with the Ds, Anno Domini. They are old friends from high school at least maybe farther back. These four meets a lot of other people in New York City but two will emerge and they are not a couple though they apparently work together now and then. It is Max and Juliana.
Aggie and Dickie manage to have small parts and jobs in plays and musicals before the beginning of the war for the US and then they go on for a while after the US entered the war. Dickie though is sent to the front in Europe: Italy is the target. He will come back with an abdomen wound and will end up with an artificial colon exhaust bag. He was a dancer and singer. He will not dance any more. Aggie at the end takes care of him but she had had some dark episode while he was away. She might even be willing to get a divorce and be freed.
Alice and Danny are supposed to get married soon but Alice discovers Danny one morning coming out of Max’s bedroom in the nude. The meaning is simple. Alice rejects Danny immediately and in a very sectarian way. Danny oscillating between depression and other temptations decides to join the armed forces and as such manages to age and to become maybe more mature about his desire, which means maybe accept it, especially since he has fallen in love on the front. Alice and Danny are good friends again at the end. But Alice is one real stake – as a stubborn black sheep who pretends she is as white as snow, well not exactly but with only one small stain of grey far away from sight – in this book. She has fallen in love with Juliana but she refuses to accept the idea that she is a lesbian.
Max is a character on the NYC stage, stylish, gay with great ideas and projects but his gayness is purely sexual, and I should say even hormonal. Yet he joins the armed forces too out od sheer patriotism and there falls in love with another soldier who is moved back to the US. Censorship discovers in one letter from this other man to Max a phrase that makes the censors think they are dealing with a homosexual couple. So they give the blue sheet to Max: internment for a while in Europe. Repatriation and internment again in the US, finally he is discharged with the blue document that tells he is not desirable. That excludes him from all benefits veterans will get after the war. That prevents him from even saying he is a veteran since it would bring a discharge that is not honorable. In other words he has become an outcast in his own country out of patriotism, and yet with the help of Alice he tries to rebuild his dream with no money and no connections. Or nearly no connections.
That’s were Juliana is important. She is a female Max, in other words a lesbian who is more hormonal than in love with any one. Yet she falls for Alice, though she does not want to say it publicly or out loud. In the same movement, and at the same time Alice has fallen for Juliana though she wants to reduce it to only her which should prove in her mind that she is not a lesbian. Of course that is casuistry, play on words, if not hypocrisy. The very end brings some kind of restructuring of the six people. Alice tells Aggie about her affection for Juliana. Aggie is shocked and run away. Dickie seems to be on the same line in his handicapped dependency. Danny will remain on the side after his return.
So the six original characters shrink to a group of three, a trinity of sort of unholy people. Gay max, lesbian Juliana and lesbian to become Alice with one project: to build and open a club in New York City, a club for music, performing, and that would be open to all diversity and particularly segregated against minorities like blacks and homosexuals.
That brings the main question in this book. It is openly gay and lesbian oriented. It reveals the bigotry of most Americans in society and in the armed forces in spite of some tolerance for a while in the armed forces, tolerance that is dubious and maybe unbelievable, of the sort Don’t Tell Don’t Ask. That did not last long. The bigotry is depicted in the most crude and brutal terms. Things have not changed a lot since then when we deal with these bigots. Things may have changed legally in this post-propositioon-8 America, but gay-bashing remains a sport for some people. In the 1940s it was both a national and a family sport: bash them all and God will finish the job and send them to hell.
Yet there is here and there a tone that is not the tone of the 1940s. Here and there the book seems to assume the present situation in the 2010s. At the same time the explicit sexual scenes and descriptions on the lesbian side make the book at least erotic and we could consider some chapter are openly pornographic. It is done with some restraint and modesty but the modesty of Greek statues, though on the male side modesty means purely and simply no-mention of graphic detail. At times the bigotry is too blunt to be effective and the regret Aggie expresses at the last minute of her connection to Alice when she recuperates her teddy bear seems to mean that she regrets the fact that Alice told her about her affair with Juliana: it would have been so much simpler if it had not been expressed in words. Hypocrisy is the loincloth of bigotry.
The last element is the families of the characters. They are so obnoxious at times and so rejected all the time that is worthless to speak of it. The families are some caricature of an explanation of the orientation of the children. Too easy, too simple and as usual the mother is the real culprit as if it were necessary. One can be gay without such a psychedelic short-cut. But the book is interesting if you want to understand that modern trend in the whole world: LGBTQ rights and Rainbow Pride.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU
August 27, 2017
GAY HISTORY
I was not expecting a novel wrapped around Gay History. That being said, I unexpectedly, enjoyed this book even more because of the history. The author, Vanda makes a good point; Gay History will be lost because Gay marriage has brought us into some small part of mainstream America. We are hardly mainstream. Society has made us hide, struggle with who we are, why we are this way, and ruined lives, relationships and careers. I applaud the author's efforts to keep our history alive because of the long hard struggle we may not talk about, but rather strive to forget the outcasts we were, and still are to some if not many.
The story takes place in New York City, during WWII. It is a coming out story of sorts, although Alice doesn't know she is coming out. While she struggles, with family, friends and peers, to convince everyone she is "normal", her own internal feelings and thoughts suggest otherwise.
This novel is rich with Gay History. A wonderful story filled with the hopes and dreams of four kids from Long Island. Their career move to New York City is fraught with real world realities and an education of who they really are and how each copes with his or her own life struggles and the most difficult thoughts and feelings about what is love, and what IS "normal love"?
I was not expecting a novel wrapped around Gay History. That being said, I unexpectedly, enjoyed this book even more because of the history. The author, Vanda makes a good point; Gay History will be lost because Gay marriage has brought us into some small part of mainstream America. We are hardly mainstream. Society has made us hide, struggle with who we are, why we are this way, and ruined lives, relationships and careers. I applaud the author's efforts to keep our history alive because of the long hard struggle we may not talk about, but rather strive to forget the outcasts we were, and still are to some if not many.
The story takes place in New York City, during WWII. It is a coming out story of sorts, although Alice doesn't know she is coming out. While she struggles, with family, friends and peers, to convince everyone she is "normal", her own internal feelings and thoughts suggest otherwise.
This novel is rich with Gay History. A wonderful story filled with the hopes and dreams of four kids from Long Island. Their career move to New York City is fraught with real world realities and an education of who they really are and how each copes with his or her own life struggles and the most difficult thoughts and feelings about what is love, and what IS "normal love"?
April 14, 2025
Vanda: "Maybe my setting it in the ’40s was my attempt to understand the attitudes and prejudices I grew up with that greatly delayed my own coming out, the attitudes and prejudices my parents, my neighborhood, and my country sincerely held... It was a time of idolization of American values: Mom, country, and apple pie. They, who were apparently on the outside of those values, caused too much confusion to be brought into the circle."
A well-researched, amorphous story. It's funny when it can afford to be funny. The American theater of war boasts cameos from Old Hollywood ladies and Sewing Circle personalities. Forays into compulsory heterosexuality are bland and dull at best, predatory at worst. Then we have the love interest, Juliana: somehow the most alluring AND most repressed character in the book.
The characters can frustrate you, and the stories can hurt to read. But it is well worth it to preserve even the most painful parts of our histories.
A well-researched, amorphous story. It's funny when it can afford to be funny. The American theater of war boasts cameos from Old Hollywood ladies and Sewing Circle personalities. Forays into compulsory heterosexuality are bland and dull at best, predatory at worst. Then we have the love interest, Juliana: somehow the most alluring AND most repressed character in the book.
The characters can frustrate you, and the stories can hurt to read. But it is well worth it to preserve even the most painful parts of our histories.
September 7, 2021
Outstanding historical fiction of gay and lesbian lives in early to mid 1940s NYC. There is a romance story in this, but I definitely think of it as historical fiction rather than romance. I was hesitant when I first got into the book because it was clear it was not going to be a light and fluffy book, which is primarily what I am reading now. But as I continued reading, I was totally pulled in. And am so happy it is a series and I can get back to it again.
Some of it is hard to read and some of it seems hard to believe. But, I would say the same things about the 1980s now so the hard to believe just shows that things have changed. The author shares her research and approach at the end, which was interesting and validated the accuracy of some things that are so hard to believe. Highly recommend for the history.
Some of it is hard to read and some of it seems hard to believe. But, I would say the same things about the 1980s now so the hard to believe just shows that things have changed. The author shares her research and approach at the end, which was interesting and validated the accuracy of some things that are so hard to believe. Highly recommend for the history.
February 9, 2019
Stunned with Pleasure
While I'm am avid reader of lesbian fiction, I don't often read stories from WWII era. They're not usually my thing. But when I saw this book up for free, I swiped it up and spent a lazy Saturday reading it. The characters are usually what grabs me in a good book and the characters did, but there was so much detail from that era that I was thoroughly impressed. The entire story pulled me in and made me feel for the characters and everything they go through. A fantastic story that is put together perfectly.
While I'm am avid reader of lesbian fiction, I don't often read stories from WWII era. They're not usually my thing. But when I saw this book up for free, I swiped it up and spent a lazy Saturday reading it. The characters are usually what grabs me in a good book and the characters did, but there was so much detail from that era that I was thoroughly impressed. The entire story pulled me in and made me feel for the characters and everything they go through. A fantastic story that is put together perfectly.
October 20, 2017
Despite the title being Juliana, this story is really about Alice. I loved following her around Greenwich Village and the East Village. Even though I lived in GV 60 years after this time period, every time I walked past Patchin Place, I will forever associate it with Alice (and Juliana) and think about what it must have been like to be gay during the war.
Loved this and book 3 - can't wait to find out what happens to Alice next.
Loved this and book 3 - can't wait to find out what happens to Alice next.
June 11, 2018
Julianna is the first in a series of beautifully written historical fiction. Set in NY pre and post WWII, the author, Vanda, takes her readers through the lives of 2 woman whose relationship spans years of friendship, romance and love. The reader can't help but fall in love with Vanda's main protagonist, she is quirky, lovely, kind, and real - and you, the reader, will cheer for her happiness and success the entire series. A must read!
July 27, 2017
Simply Magnificent!!
I started reading Juliana and I didn't know what to expect. As a history buff I love how Band a wove in historical events throughout the characters timeline so seamlessly. The characters are well developed and the story entranced me from the very beginning. I can't wait for the next volume.
I started reading Juliana and I didn't know what to expect. As a history buff I love how Band a wove in historical events throughout the characters timeline so seamlessly. The characters are well developed and the story entranced me from the very beginning. I can't wait for the next volume.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews