Marilyn's Daughter

by John Rechy

A young woman journeys from Texas to California in search of her true identity and, as she moves deeper into a maze of uncharted Hollywood history, discovers that she could be the daughter of Marilyn Monroe

Genres: Fiction

531 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1988

About the author

John Rechy is an American author, the child of a Scottish father and a Mexican-American mother. In his novels he has written extensively about homosexual culture in Los Angeles and wider America, and is among the pioneers of modern LGBT literature. Drawing on his own background, he has also contributed to Chicano literature, especially with his novel The Miraculous Day of Amalia Gomez, which is taught in several Chicano literature courses in the United States. His work has often faced censorship due to its sexual content, particularly (but not solely) in the 1960s and 1970s, but books such as City of Night have been best sellers, and he has many literary admirers.

Reviews

[Caryn Cady Barnett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve read this book three times because I can never remember the ending! I remember enjoying reading it the last two times! But that was several years ago! This time I had to drag myself through it! Whilst reading other books! He also uses a lot of exclamation points!! You see how annoying this is!!!


!!!!!SPOILERS!!!!!
The Dead Movie Stars is an annoying side story!

Yes, she’s MM’s daughter!

[Tlcp · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not one of my favorites by Rechy...too disjointed and difficult to read

[Jessica Ham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wild ride. John Rechy does a good job of maintaining the suspense and intrigue throughout the book, even when logically we know it's one of two answers. Still, we're never really sure which one because the answer isn't binary- it's both. What makes someone your mother? Biology or daily care, love, and attention?

Solid story with tons of characters, but Rechy gives you breadcrumbs along the way so you can remember that one line detail from 150 pages ago that is the linchpin to the whole plot.