Poster Girl - by Shelley Blanton-Stroud (Paperback)

About the Book

It's 1942. Cynical about her missing-in-action former lover's patriotism, gossip columnist Jane Benjamin aims for a national byline, volunteering to find a picture-perfect Wendy-the-Welder poster girl; but when two top choices die, Jane must choose between personal ambition and service before the murderer kills another girl--and America's best chance of winning the war.

Book Synopsis

Cynical young gossip columnist Jane Benjamin joins FDR's Office of War Information, a propaganda unit, to find a Wendy-the-Welder poster girl to urge more women to the shipyard work essential to America's winning World War II--and, incidentally, to make herself into the new Hedda Hopper. But somebody doesn't want those women at work.

During a five-day contest to beat the world speed record for building a liberty ship, Jane investigates the lives of the first women welders and learns more about her flyboy former lover's secret post-Pearl Harbor mission--and her cynicism begins to melt. But when inspectors find and publicize a series of flaws in the contest-week welding, the women welders are blamed. Worse, two poster girl candidates are killed.

Are they being sabotaged by a belligerent male shipyard supervisor? The industrialist shipyard owner with a history of controlling women? Or someone else trying to diminish the success of the US liberty ship program? To find out, Jane must choose between her professional ambition and service to the women welders--before the murderer harms another girl and America's best chance of winning the war.

Review Quotes

"Lively prose, enjoyably edgy dialogue, and a delightful, unconventional, feminist heroine add up to a captivating page-turner."
--Kirkus Reviews

"Fans of Tracy Chevalier and Kate Atkinson will love being immersed in the detail-driven historical atmosphere, while hard-boiled mystery fans will thoroughly enjoy being led by our whip-smart and street-savvy heroine through the maze of clues leading to a shocking final plot twist."
--Chicago Book Review, 5 stars

"Aficionados of historical fiction and the Jane Benjamin series will be delighted . . . The novel is an excellent read, with sympathetic characters and set in a place and time that leaps off the page."
--San Francisco Book Review, 5 stars

"Mirroring ongoing misogyny, racial discrimination, and economic challenges women continue to face today, Poster Girl takes readers behind the scenes to experience the toll exacted on women who dared to break molds in the 1940s. A five-star read. Highly recommended."
--Ashley E. Sweeney, author of Hardland, Answer Creek, and Eliza Waite

"A cracking plot, exquisite detail, and grand cast of characters."
--Catriona McPherson, author of In Place of Fear

"Jane Benjamin has come into her own in this third book of the series. A fast-paced story that had me turning pages long into the night. Highly recommend!"
--Michelle Cox, author of The Henrietta and Inspector Howard series

"A can't-put-it-down kind of book . . . every moment perfectly crafted to keep the reader turning pages to the gripping end."
--Laurie Buchanan, author of The Sean McPherson Series

"A high-wire, ripped-from-vintage-headlines series-ender."
--Gretchen Cherington, author of The Butcher, the Embezzler, and the Fall Guy

"A historically accurate, action-packed adventure, making WWII era intrigue and sexual and racial discrimination feel contemporary."
--Maren Cooper, author of Behind the Lies

"Casts an observant eye on the misogyny, racism, and classism of the time, allowing the reader to witness that not much has changed."
--Mary Camarillo, author of The Lockhart Women

"A page-turner that delivers a strong message for our time: we must take care of each other. I absolutely loved this novel."
--Debra Thomas, author of Luz

"Weaves challenging and timeless social issues into a story about people we grow to care about while maintaining tension and suspense--you won't put this one down."
--Anastasia Zeidek, author of Blurred Fates

Praise for Tomboy:

"A wonderful story full of nuance and character."
--Sheldon Siegel, NYT and USA Today best-selling author of the Mike Daley/Rosie Fernandez series

Praise for Copy Boy:

"Smart, lively, and suspenseful, this is Raymond Chandler for feminists."
--Sharma Shields, author of The Cassandra

About the Author

Shelley Blanton-Stroud grew up in California's Central Valley, the daughter of Dust Bowl immigrants who made good on their ambition to get out of the field. Recently retired from teaching writing in Northern California, she continues to consult with writers in the energy industry. She has served as President of the Board of 916 Ink, an arts-based creative writing nonprofit for children, and serves on the Board of Advisors for the Gould Center for Humanistic Studies at Claremont McKenna College. She previously co-directed Stories on Stage Sacramento, where actors perform the stories of established and emerging authors. Her historical mystery series--Copy Boy, Tomboy, and Poster Girl--follows Jane Benjamin, a cross-dressing, tomato-picking, San Francisco gossip columnist who investigates crime stories that never make the front page in 1930s and '40s Northern California. Her fourth novel, An Unlikely Prospect, features a new protagonist in the same world. She and her husband live in Sacramento, California.