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    The Last Woman Standing: A Novel
    The Last Woman Standing: A Novel
    The Last Woman Standing: A Novel
    Audiobook9 hours

    The Last Woman Standing: A Novel

    Written by Thelma Adams

    Narrated by Emily Foster

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    At once an epic account of an improbable romance and a retelling of an iconic American tale, The Last Woman Standing recalls the famed gunfight at the O.K. Corral through the eyes of a spunky heroine who sought her happy ending in a lawless outpost—with a fierce will and an unflagging spirit.

    Two decades after the Civil War, Josephine Marcus, the teenage daughter of Jewish immigrants, is lured west with the promise of marriage to Johnny Behan, one of Arizona’s famous lawmen. She leaves her San Francisco home to join Behan in Tombstone, Arizona, a magnet for miners (and outlaws) attracted by the silver boom. Though united by the glint of metal, Tombstone is plagued by divided loyalties: between Confederates and Unionists, Lincoln Republicans and Democrats.

    But when the silver-tongued Behan proves unreliable, it is legendary frontiersman Wyatt Earp who emerges as Josephine’s match. As the couple’s romance sparks, Behan’s jealousy ignites a rivalry destined for the history books…

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateJul 1, 2016
    ISBN9781511376204
    The Last Woman Standing: A Novel
    Author

    Thelma Adams

    Thelma Adams is the author of the bestselling historical novel The Last Woman Standing and the O, The Oprah Magazine pick Playdate. She coproduced the Emmy-winning Feud: Bette and Joan. Additionally, Adams is a prominent American film critic and an outspoken voice in the Hollywood community. She has been the in-house film critic for Us Weekly and the New York Post and has written essays, celebrity profiles, and reviews for Yahoo! Movies, the New York Times, O, The Oprah Magazine, Variety, the Hollywood Reporter, Parade, Marie Claire, and the Huffington Post. Adams studied history at the University of California, Berkeley, where she was valedictorian, and received her MFA from Columbia University. She lives in Upstate New York with her family.

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    Reviews for The Last Woman Standing

    3.5/5

    26 ratings9 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Good read. it kept my attention but ended a bit abruptly.
    • 3/5
      3.5 stars

      I went through fazes while reading this book. Some parts were very interesting to me, and during other parts it couldn't keep my attention. Overall, I enjoyed it more than not. It's cool reading historical and having female characters who didn't follow the rules of the times. It's not that she necessary wants to be a rule breaker sometimes, but regardless, she is. It's also cool seeing the men of Tombstone from a different angle.
    • 4/5
      This is told in a great first person narrative style and Josephine is plucky and outgoing. You can just see an actress on the stage reciting the story as her lines, it’s that conversational. Adams maintains this strength right about until she gets to the OK Corral and then things get a little fuzzy. It’s never very clear what exactly happens there but writing gunfight history is not the pull here. It is the life of Josephine Marcus and how she survives that is the story and with that in mind, the novel is a great and fun read. It made me want to know more about Marcus from a non-fictional standpoint as well as Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and Johnny Behan and how they really interacted. Copy Provided by publisher
    • 4/5
      The Last Woman Standing by Thelma Adams is a 2016 Lake Union Press publication. I have been curious about Josephine Marcus since watching the wildly popular motion picture, “Tombstone.”I know Hollywood often takes huge liberties with the facts, so I decided to do an internet search to see what information was available about Wyatt Earp’s common law wife. To be honest, there really isn’t a lot of absolutely, positively true and documented facts about ‘Sadie’ or ‘Josephine’. There are large gaps of her life that are murky and much speculation has developed over time. Josephine went to great lengths to keep her life in Tombstone from becoming public knowledge. So, I was immensely curious how the author would present Josephine’s life story in this work of fiction. Naturally, the book is written in first person narrative, as Josephine looks back on her life leading up to her arrival in Tombstone, how she met Wyatt, and how the two ended up embarking on life’s journey together. The author bravely taps into the black hole of time that Josephine worked so tirelessly to keep private for so many years. I loved the way Josephine came to life, her voice raw, pure, and brutally honest, revealing her naïvete, foibles, bad luck with men, and how she was rescued from a harsh life not befitting her beauty and talent by Wyatt Earp. I do believe Josephine was a woman ahead of her time, a true adventurer, but also a person who suffered through some real regrets for the poor choices she made in her youth. She did not live like many ‘respectable’ ladies, and never went through a formal, legal wedding ceremony, which was perhaps more common in some places, like Tombstone, but was still quite scandalous. She lived unconventionally, and was quite an interesting figure who lived life with gusto and was lucky enough to find her soul mate and true life partner in Wyatt.This fictional accounting of Josephine’s life mixes a few documented facts in to create a plausible portrait of a legendary figure of the old west. I think it’s as good a guess as any about the enigmatic actress that captured the heart of Wyatt Earp. It was fun to see all the legendary historical figures we have come to know in film and countless documentaries and books, come to life in this fictional take on events in Tombstone, seen through the eyes of Josephine Marcus. Overall, this in a provocative read, interesting and engaging. If you enjoy Historical Fiction, this book is one you may want to try. 4 stars
    • 3/5
      This novel has so much potential - a plucky heroine, gunfights, cowboys, romance - but I kept struggling to keep my attention focused on the story. I initially had a lot of hope that Josephine's voice would carry the story, but she seemed to vary between tedious and spunky, without really striking the needed balance. A decent enough story, but much harder to get through than I anticipated.
    • 4/5
      This book is a work of FICTION people, based on the life of an actual woman. The author took a character most of us have heard about, and built a story that brings her to life. AND done a great job at it! Josephine was a jewish immigrant, headed west for a marriage that did not happen. What DID occur instead was epic. Adams took a woman from the flat pages of history and the movie screen and developed a 3-dimensional woman for us to enjoy. Better known perhaps as the 'wife' of Wyatt Earp she is gutsy, intelligent and quick-witted as well as beautiful.
    • 5/5
      My only exposure to the personage of Josephine Marcus has been the movie of “Tombstone”. That portrayal intrigued me, this gal who doesn’t truck with the usual Victorian lady behavior but that blazes a trail all her own. Adams picks right up on that fantastic portrayal with a unique character voice and an intimate look at an American legend. At first, Joe’s internal voice made me pause; she holds NOTHING back when it comes to her inner monologue. Everything from sex to personal impressions on the people she meets comes right thought her mind, and sometimes her mouth, with no filter. That’s refreshing amongst the abundance of very proper POVs in westerns and books set in this era.I love Joe as a person, too. She’s an intriguing mix of innocence and brashness. Easily taken in by a charming smile and pretty face, she makes life decisions on the flimsiest of reasoning to detrimental effects at first. Facing all the challenges that come her way with a courageous spirit and pluck makes her someone I can relate to. She itches for more out of life than hearth and home with an arranged marriage. Boy does she find it!! Shootouts, gangsters, threatened rape, death, and the dusty, arid world of Arizona greet her. However, she also finds the love of her life in the form of Wyatt Earp of the OK Corral fame. A man different than those she’d encountered before, he respects and honors her for who she is rather than the role she can fill for him. Their connection is immediate and emotionally resonant throughout the entire book. Adams humanizes the Western legend of the OK Corral shootout and its aftermath with great skill. It wasn’t just bang, bang, legend born. There was buildup with strengthening tensions and animosity; the fallout had judicial and emotional elements. The rising tension and a town on the brink brought this action-filled and suspenseful world to life.A great flesh out to a lesser known female Western figure, this book shines. A great setting and character voice make Josephine’s story unique; Adams draws her readers in and doesn’t let them go. After finishing this book, I had the sudden urge to re-watch “Tombstone”. I grew to appreciate this book all the more after finishing. What a tale!
    • 4/5
      “Tombstone kicked my ass and I kicked back.” Oh, really? Well, tell us more! Author Thelma Adams gives voice and new life to Josephine Marcus Earp in this novel. Undoubtedly, Josie’s character will make you laugh as she tells her tale in her gutsy, high-spirited oratory. It begins with the Jewish home life of Josephine in San Francisco. She will miss her father for sure once she decides to leave home, but her relationship with her mother was contentious to say the least. She’s very young and so very sure she’ll love Johnny Behan, Sheriff of Cochise County, for the rest of her life, but that’s until she arrives in Tombstone, gets to know him, and finds out what he’s really like. He broke her heart … but she’d spotted the handsome Wyatt Earp when she first arrived and begins to give him more thought. As it turns out, the feelings were mutual.This is a nicely detailed look, albeit a naïve one, of the life of Josephine Marcus Earp, Wyatt Earp’s common law wife. Through the author’s skillful descriptive passages, you may be tempted to place a cloth over your nose and mouth to avoid the dust being kicked up by horses and wagons driven through the rugged streets of Tombstone. The novel goes from February 1937 to Autumn 1882. I was looking for an author’s note to get an idea of the research probing into Josie’s life. In checking a few online sites, I tend to think Josie may have actually been a prostitute, even at the tender age of fourteen. So, suggesting that she was waiting until her wedding night to lose her virginity seemed a stretch to me. The real Josie actually avoided delving into her past. Wikipedia points out, “Her confusing recollection of events show how easily Josephine mixed fact and fiction.” This novel so very well written, but I’m inclined to believe Josie’s life as presented is more fictional than factual. Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
    • 3/5
      I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book or my review itself.I've been reading a lot of dark books lately, maybe because it's winter and typically pretty dark and gloomy outside. Or maybe just because I tend to love psychological thrillers and suspense and they tend to be pretty dark. And Last Woman Standing is definitely one of those dark reads.Comparisons have been made to Strangers on a Train and I can definitely see why. When Dana Diaz, a comedian trying to find her place on stage, meets Amanda Dorn after a difficult show, the two start talking about the difficulties they've faced in their lives, especially when it comes to men. When Dana finds herself drawn into a pact, she realizes the consequences are far more than she could have anticipated.This is a fascinating and disturbing look at what it means to be a woman in a man's world, the danger and violence women can and do face anywhere at any time. Gentry dives deep into this, through the world of stand up comedy (highly unique), as well as the tech industry (highly timely). Gentry also explores the bonds (or lack thereof) between women, and the power and harm of obsession.I did guess a large percentage of the major revelation before it happened, but this actually upped the tension for me, because I could see what was coming and as a reader could do nothing about it.Gentry has proven with this and her debut book that she is a talented writer who knows how to write dark, tense psychological thrillers and suspense. I'm excited to see what she comes up with next.