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Silvia Moreno-Garcia never fails to deliver a book I enjoy! I took my time with this one and I think that was a good choice. The Seventh Veil of Salome is historical fiction set in 1950's Hollywood, following Vera- a young Mexican woman plucked from obscurity and caste in the lead role of a "sand and sandals" Biblical film about the girl who requested the beheading of John the Baptist. But it is also a story of jealousy, betrayal, backstabbing, and forbidden love.

The structure of the book is really interesting - we read the story of the film as if it's actually happening, Vera's experiences getting into Hollywood, and then brief perspectives from a range of side characters. Some as if they are being interviewed years later. I imagine this non-traditional method of storytelling might be frustrating to some readers but I really liked it. The mirroring of the quasi-historical Salome with the experiences of Vera are striking. This gets into the racism and misogyny of Hollywood during this era and what it was like to be a woman of color performing on screen. It was clearly very well researched and I was thoroughly engaged and invested throughout.

A word of warning though to those who are new to this author's work- she almost never writes happy endings. With a couple of exceptions, they are bittersweet or downright tragic and this is no different. I loved it though- excellently done! I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.